Digital philantrocapitalism in education: Covid-19, UNESCO, Google, Facebook and Microsoft

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to analyse new forms of digital philantrocapitalism in Covid-19 education policy. Digital philantrocapitalism is a conceptual hybridisation that unifies the principles of digital capitalism with new forms of philantrocapitalist governance. This paper, after the introduction section, is organised into 6 sections. The first section focuses on broadening the analyses that relate to the notions of digital capitalism and philanthrocapitalism that have become the new forms of global governance after the most recent crisis of capitalism due to Covid-19. The second section addresses the research methodology used to examine the new global assemblages of digital philantrocapitalism in global education policy. The methodological process is based on network ethnography, as it adapts to the analysis of policy networks in education policy. The third section, as a case study of global assemblages, analyses the policy network Global Coalition Education UNESCO. The global education coalition launched by UNESCO is a global governance partnership (Multilateral partners, Private sector, Non-profit organizations, Networks and associations) which provides the disruptive education brought abouth by the Covid-19. The fifth section takes into account the discourses and narratives about the digital philanthropicalism of Google, Facebook and Microsoft in the policy network of UNESCO. The last section examines the discursive logic about Big Data in digital philantrocapitalism in education.