Borrowed but Not Implemented: Educational Policy Borrowing and the Implementation Gap in Centralized Systems

ABSTRACT

This study examines why borrowed educational reforms in Kuwait have failed. It is based on in‐depth interviews with 20 key figures from the Ministry of Education (MOE), including former Ministers, and administrators from the Kuwait National Center for Education Development (NCED). The study found prior research suggesting that the failures of Western education not being a suitable fit for Kuwait were incorrect, and that a weakness in following correct implementation patterns was the main reason. Borrowed reforms adoption without modification, top‐down implementation with a lack of ‘on‐the‐ground’ implementers' inputs, and insufficient alignment with the existing infrastructure and the local school culture, had led to fragmented educational reforms and on‐the‐ground resistance. The study recommends that reforms should include orientation and planning, collaboration with stakeholders, modification of the reforms to fit the local socio‐cultural context, and effective ongoing monitoring and tracking systems.