From Above and Below

In another publication (Atweh & Clarkson, 2001) we noted that the two terms globalisation and internationalisation are at times used by different authors to mean the same thing and also the same term is used by different authors to mean different things. In that publication we provided definitions in which we were using the two terms. However, in presenting these definitions we were cognisant of the dangers in essentialising and oversimplifying of terms used in a wide variety of meanings, none of which capture their essences (Buenfil-Burgos, 2000). Arguably, the strong debate between some promoters and rejecters of globalisation can be attributed to differences in the signification that they place on the term. Woock (2000), in a recent review of an edited comparative education book with the focus on the "problem of how the global affects the local [which] is one of the most important areas of research interest within global studies", commented that "nowhere in the book is there an accepted definition of globalisation or any common analysis of its relationship to education " (pp. 163– 164). For many people globalisation is often associated with evil forces and trend