Commercialization of Schooling

Commercialization of schooling refers to private sector influence on the operation, instruction, curriculum, or aesthetic of schools. The most familiar example of commercial presence in education is the passive advertising found on sports fields and school cafeterias. Businesses, and to a lesser extent nonprofits, have also used more active approaches that affect teaching practices and uses of student time and directly alter or add to curriculum. In return for this access, schools receive money or in-kind contributions. Although there are several examples of commercialization in schools that support legitimate partnerships with the business community, there is also a growing concern over the ethics of providing businesses with direct access to advertising opportunities and the curriculum. Scholarship in the field of curriculum studies has explored the impact of business partnerships on altering curriculum, tracked the time taken out of the traditional work day for commercially driven activity, and analyzed the impact of commercialization on student health and learning.

Commercial access to schools is not new, but it did grow increasingly more popular over the last quarter of the 20th century. Commercialization of schooling becomes more controversial when it is more directly involved in driving the curriculum and as it is deemed to promote activities or knowledge that is harmful to children. Advertising has moved from extracurricular fields and buildings to cafeterias, school hallways, buses, and inside the classroom itself. The most popular example of advertising in the curriculum is Channel One. Originally launched by Whittle Communications in 1989, Channel One provides high schools with original news programming. In exchange for students watching advertising from Channel One sponsors, the school receives the news show content and in-kind use of equipment. In addition to Channel One, there are instances where schools have worked with local companies to provide advertising directly in the curriculum or even on homework assignments in exchange for cash benefit.

Although advertising contracts represent a small percentage of the total school budget, the revenue generated becomes discretionary funds. As less discretionary money is available at the school level, there is increasing pressure to seek out alternative revenue streams, such as commercial school access, to support important school-based programs. In some cases, businesses have involved themselves heavily in in-kind donation efforts without direct advertising in an attempt to influence future consumer behavior, increase their recognition among youth, and enhance their own bottom line. Computer donations are an example of this where the donation of new equipment has long been seen as a way to help build brand loyalty among students. Donations of used computer equipment can be more cost-effective than storing or disposing of computers that quickly hold no value for the company.

Legislation has appeared in several states limiting or regulating commercial influence in schools. Although many examples of state law on the matter are quite vague, the one area of commercial access to schools that has received the most explicit attention has been soda and candy vendor contracts. The early part of the 21st century has seen an increase in districts adopting policies that either ban or place limits on direct sales and vendor contracts. As a result, after almost a quarter century of growth in commercial activities in schools, this trend started to reverse itself slightly in 2001.

...