Dr Shuang Chen

This course is available on the MSc in International Social and Public Policy, MSc in International Social and Public Policy (Development), MSc in International Social and Public Policy (Education), MSc in International Social and Public Policy (LSE and Fudan), MSc in International Social and Public Policy (Migration), MSc in International Social and Public Policy (Non-Governmental Organisations) and MSc in International Social and Public Policy (Research). This course is available with permission as an outside option to students on other programmes where regulations permit. This course uses controlled access as part of the course selection process. For information on controlled access courses, including eligibility, application processes, deadlines, and departmental contact details, please refer to the Controlled Access Courses webpage.

All Social Policy Courses are ‘Controlled Access’.

Other than for students in the first category below, when applying for a course all students are required to provide a written statement explaining why they wish to take that course.

Statements are considered by the Course Convenor and, where merited by the statement, places are offered in the following priority order:

1. Students for whom the course is a ‘core course’ on their Programme Regulations (these students should already be allocated to the course in LSE for you – i.e. no written statement is required).
2. Students for whom the course appears as an ‘optional core course’ on their Programme Regulations (where students have to choose between a small number of core options).
3. Students for whom the course appears as an optional course on their Programme Regulations.
4. Other Social Policy students.
5. LSE students from Departments other than Social Policy.

Please note: The number of students that can be accommodated on most courses is limited. If a course is over-subscribed, places will be allocated at the Convenor’s discretion, based on student statements. Therefore, you are advised to have an alternative course in mind in case you are unable to secure your first-choice course selection.

If offered a place on a Social Policy course, please accept the place as early as possible. NB: Offers will ‘time-out’ after 48 hours and the place will be offered to another student. If you wish to reject an offer, please do so as early as possible so that the place can be offered to one of your fellow students.

Close of Course Selection is on the 10 October 2025 (dependant on availability of course places).

Please Note: No places will be offered on Social Policy courses UNTIL 1pm on 29th September 2025.

For queries contact: socialpolicy.msc@lse.ac.uk

Recommended pre-requisites:

Prior work experience in education or education policy in the Global South is desirable but not essential.

What explains educational inequality in the Global South? What can we do about it? This course examines how educational inequality in the Global South is shaped by forces in and outside schools, on the macro- and micro-levels, and globally and locally. Rather than prescribing knowledge about specific countries, the course equips you with conceptual frameworks, analytical skills, and an international and comparative perspective, and invites you to apply them to issues in contexts you care about.

The course pushes you to navigate the complex relationship between theory, empirical evidence, and policy. Lectures and readings draw on research from multiple fields (economics, sociology, political economy, comparative education, development studies) and examples from diverse contexts across the Global South. Seminars combine discussions with activities based on real-world policy experience.

The course is organised around weekly themes, including but not limited to: global education expansion, girls' education, teacher labour market and teaching, globalisation and policy borrowing, and education in emergencies. Specific themes may vary each year.

15 hours of lectures and 15 hours of seminars in the Winter Term.

This course has a reading week in Week 6 of Winter Term.

All teaching will be in accordance with the LSE Academic Code which specifies a "minimum of two hours taught contact time per week when the course is running in the Autumn Term (AT) and/or Winter Term (WT)". Social Policy courses are predominantly taught through a combination of in-person Lectures and In person classes/seminars. Further information will be provided by the Course Convenor in the first lecture of the course. The course will be taught in the WT.

Presentation.

Morris, E. M., Qargha, G. O., & Winthrop, R. (2023). Elevating the purpose of education to achieve the spirit of SDG 4. International Journal of Educational Development, 103, 102926.

Buchmann, C., & Hannum, E. (2001). Education and stratification in developing countries: A review of theories and research. Annual Review of Sociology, 27(1), 77–102.

Snilstveit, B, Stevenson, J, Phillips, D, Vojtkova, M, Gallagher, E,Schmidt, T, Jobse, H, Geelen, M, Pastorello, M, and Eyers, J, 2015. Interventions for improving learning outcomes and access to education in low- and middle- income countries: a systematic review, 3ie Systematic Review 24. London: International Initiative for ImpactEvaluation (3ie).

Carnoy, M. (2024). The political economy of education. Cambridge University Press.

Steiner-Khamsi, G. (2010). The politics and economics of comparison. Comparative Education Review, 54(3), 323-342.

Dryden-Peterson, S. (2016). Refugee education: The crossroads of globalization. Educational researcher, 45(9), 473-482.

Course participation (10%) weekly.

Debate / role play (40%) weekly.

This component of assessment includes an element of group work.

Essay (50%, 3000 words).