Enchanting Edu-Futures: Glitter, Happy Objects and the Governance of Girls’ Science Aspirations
摘要
Inspired by Foucault’s work on governmentality, this chapter examines the temporal governance of young girls’ science aspirations with a specific focus on physics and chemistry education. Drawing on existing literature on educational aspiration-raising policy, it integrates perspectives on material forms of future-making and sparkly glitter to explore how a group of glittery educational toys operate as happy objects, promising happy futures in physics and chemistry education to young girls, thus governing the aspirational actions of young girls in the direction of physics and chemistry education. The chapter argues that not only immaterial future time but also material(ised) future time governs the educational physics and chemistry aspirations of young girls, concluding that young girls’ physics and chemistry education aspirations are governed within complex im/material/temporal entanglements. This finding underscores the need for a broad material-temporal approach when studying the governance of young girls’ aspirations for physics and chemistry education, as well as when planning and implementing educational initiatives targeted at governing these educational aspirations.