GLOBAL BEST PRACTICES OR CULTURAL IMPERIALISM? AN ETHICAL CRITIQUE OF INTERNATIONAL ACCREDITATION STANDARDS IN EDUCATIONAL MANAGEMENT

Abstract

International accreditation standards in educational management are widely promoted as pathways to ensuring quality assurance, global competitiveness, and institutional credibility. However, beneath this universalist appeal lies a growing ethical debate about the potential of such standards to impose Western-centric values and practices upon diverse educational systems—thus perpetuating cultural imperialism. This paper critically examines the ethical tensions embedded within international accreditation practices, drawing on contemporary scholarly literature and case analyses. It argues that while global best practices can promote accountability and improvement, they can also marginalize local knowledge systems and institutional autonomy. The paper proposes an ethical framework grounded in contextual autonomy, procedural justice, and distributive equity, offering recommendations for decolonizing and localizing accreditation in education management.