Building trust: how low-income parents navigate neoliberalism in Singapore’s education system

Singapore is described as a hybrid neoliberal-developmental state. While politicians have, since the city-state’s independence, exercised ‘strong’ ideological leadership over Singapore’s economy and society, including education – there are simultaneously aspects of ‘neoliberal’ logics in Singapore’s education system: extensive school choice and streaming, academic competition and the self-responsibilising meritocratic ethos. Literature on the nature and effects of neoliberalism typically depicts rising inequalities and families’ growing anxieties, due to competition and self-responsibilisation. Drawing on in-depth interviews, this article explores how a group of low-income Malay parents navigate two aspects of institutionalised neoliberalism: (1) responsibilisation of young people within a meritocratic regime, (2) responsibilisation of parents as stakeholders in an increasingly complex education landscape. We find that while families internalise responsibilisation – profound trust in the state remains. Empirical particularities are drawn upon to understand how a socio-politically-constituted ‘architecture of trust’ between state and low-income parents is built, and its implications on families’ lives.