<p>This article analyses trends over the last seven decades in the domains of educational planning, privatisation and neoliberalism. It does this by focusing, in particular, on literature published in the <i>International Review of Education</i>. In educational planning, the 1960s saw a convergence of opinion among economists and educators with a particular focus on workforce needs. Subsequent decades saw shifts in the relative roles of state and private actors. From the 1980s onwards, many significant players in the field of education became advocates for neoliberal approaches. They made claims about innovation, efficiency and responsiveness in education systems, though these were not universally accepted. This article also highlights the phenomenon of privatisation by default rather than by government policy. Among the most prominent examples is the provision of private supplementary tutoring, also known as “shadow education”. The article also considers the roles of international agencies such as the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and the World Bank, and the challenges faced by educational planners in pursuing their remit to protect the common good.</p>