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Education-UK and British private schools more specifically are often framed as a global brand of 'world-class' quality. However, the increased competition within the international education market has meant British private schools cannot rest on their laurels but instead must continue to project their 'world-classness' in a way that does not diminish their brand image. Drawing on interviews of parents and key gatekeepers, this paper examines how British private schools in Nigeria (BPS-NIG) and British private boarding schools in the UK (BPBS-UK) evoked and projected their supposed world-classness through the strategic use of white symbolism and the expensive admission process. The paper contends that the latter are types of soft-sell marketing techniques utilised by BPS-NIG and BPBS-UK to sell British schools without imperilling their brand image. The paper concludes by drawing attention to the racial implication of framing whiteness and white British specifically as synonymous with high-quality, 'world-class' education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Current ethical codes inadequately speak to the complexities of researching elite groups. These groups contribute to broader inequalities and yet are protected from scrutiny by their own resources and, in the research context, ethical guidelines. For this reason, Gaztambide-Fernández (2015) called for those researching elite groups to adopt an 'un/ethical' position. This position circumvents conventional ethical codes to disrupt the power of research participants. In this paper, we put forward a considered assessment of this position. We reflect on and theorise our own experiences in the field from this ethical perspective, paying particular attention to our multifaceted insider/outsider statuses. We find that an un/ethical position offers short-term benefits but also does long-term damage to the elite studies scholar community. Thus, we counter-propose a way forward that dismantles power relations while avoiding the drawbacks of the un/ethical approach. Our proposal continues a necessary discussion around the ethics of elite studies research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studies have shown the ways in which non-Western middle- and upper-class families are seeking to educate their children in the West. The rationale for this kind of social reproduction strategy is the acquisition of 'valuable' cultural and symbolic capitals which can be advantageous in the graduate job market of both their home country and internationally. Presenting a case study of four middle-class Nigerian fathers, the paper reveals the rationale behind these fathers' decision to opt out of the Nigerian HE sectors. The paper focuses on three Western capitals – specifically institutional (a Canadian degree), embodied (high proficiency in English language) and symbolic (Canadian citizenship) – capitals which will position these parents' children advantageously in the future. The paper concludes by presenting an argument that in seeking these Western capitals for their children, these parents become implicated in the Western hegemonic discourse of 'West is best'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Risk permeates all aspects of modern life, and the International Secondary Education Market (ISEM) is no exception. Drawing on empirical data, this paper considers a specific type of risk: namely, the potential loss of cultural identity, which Nigerian parents associate with educating their children in the West. This paper argues that Nigerian families employ three key risk management strategies (the Right time; the Right country; and the Right school – or the 3Rs) in their attempt to mitigate and/or avoid this perceived risk. Adopting a broadly socio-cultural analysis of risk, the paper argues that parents’ understanding of risk as well as the type of risk management strategy they use are shaped by socio-cultural factors such as religion, gender, and social class. Data from the study indicate that cultural and religious beliefs influence which of their children parents choose to invest in, and in which country they chose to educate them, as certain bodies are rendered more “risky” and in need of closer monitoring. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Existing studies on the role of schooling in the formation and (re)production of elite identity have focused almost entirely on the reproduction strategies of Western elites. Consequently, the distinction strategies employed by non-western elite parents to maintain and/or advance their class positioning – via their children – have remained largely unexamined. Using rare qualitative data from a broader study of the educational preferences of elite Nigerian families, this paper critically examines the key processes involved in Nigerian elites' attempts to protect and/or enhance their children's future elite status. Combining the theoretical frameworks of Bourdieu and Fanon, the paper argues that a significant proportion of elite Nigerian parents opt for UK-based private boarding schools because they believe that these schools will bestow their children with “attributes of excellence” through a highly selective exposure to elite White British lifestyles and practices. These parents believe that placing their children in White (elitist) spaces would allow them to acquire the right dispositions and deportment such as “respectability” and a “refined accent,” essential for the (re)production and/or formation of “genuine” elite identity in modern-day Nigerian. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]