Elites go public? International Baccalaureate’s decolonising paradox in Ecuador

This chapter explores the Ecuadorian government’s co-optation of the International Baccalaureate (IB)—a signifier of elite schooling and its internationalisation. Under President Rafael Correa, the government has implemented the IB in over 200 public secondary schools since 2007. This reform is paradoxical. On the one hand, the education system’s rejuvenation is part of an overall “citizens’ revolution” that is closely affiliated with the internationalism of Latin America’s post-neoliberal governments and activists. On the other hand, the government has turned to Ecuador’s elite schools for guidance in implementing an international curriculum with a global reputation for prestige. Drawing on decolonial theory, this tension is shown to reflect the ongoing colonial nature of elite education as well as the possibility for reducing its associated inequalities.