What is Education Policy Policymaking, Policy Implementation, the State, Ideology and Interest Groups - Essay Example

? Education Policy: Policymaking, Policy Implementation, the Ideology and Interest Groups By of 2148 Words [Date] Introduction In every learning institution, parents, students and teachers among other stakeholders articulate the kind of learning experiences and outcomes that they expect learners to encounter. While this articulation of the experiences learners are expected to undergo is quite vital to learning, it would not pay without a proper educational policy making and implementation by all stakeholders in the education sector (Ball, 2009a). The role of education policy in the realization of academic and professional growth for learners cannot thus be overemphasised. In its general sense, an education policy refers to the various systemic and structural arrangements by which the expected experiences and outcomes in an educational system can be achieved (Ball, 2009a). Importantly, these arrangements must maximize the attainment of these outcomes for students. However, in most cases, the policy structures and arrangements designed and implemented do not translate into the expected learning experience and outcomes. Unfortunately, the pressure piled upon schools, colleges, universities and their administrators, managers and teachers by stakeholders such as government authorities, school boards and parents for improved performance and experiences are partly responsible for the failed educational policies (Ball, 2009b). As a result of this kind of pressure, school managers and administrators end up having incoherent and mixed up policies that are not only hard to design but also to implement to fruition. Hence, instead of supporting learning institutions to achieve what is expected of them by the government and parents, schools end up failing due to excessive pressure and interest from the many stakeholders in the education system. Research has shown that there is not a single system of education and educational policy that would be best for all the stakeholders, including learners, teachers, parents, local communities, school boards and the regulatory bodies such as the central government. In education, just like other social issues, policies depend on various aspects of life in the target population (Les, 2006). In other words, education policy solutions are more based on case-to-case scenario instead of universal standards. Hence, discrepancies on education standards must be addressed based on the immediate situation, which obviously has its complex and intertwined social, cultural and economic issues. Nonetheless, solving educational policy issues in whatever setting is never a complex task; all stakeholders are expected to do is to step aside and let education policy experts to design, develop, implement, evaluate, monitor, and reform education policy. These experts are also expected to incorporate the input of all educational stakeholders in executing their mandate. State and local skills and knowledge, educators, communities, parents are some of the stakeholders who must be involved in these exercises to design educational systems that function to achieve the expected experiences and objectives. This paper explores the concept of education policy with regards to policy making, implementation, ideology and interest groups or stakeholders. The Ideology and the Making of Education Policy Many an education policy is based on a market-based education system and reforms characterised by programs and strategies that promote choices and ready solutions to social, economic, political and cultural problems (Hanushek & Woessmann, 2008). However, some oppose this ideology for education, arguing that such an approach misperceives the function and objectives of education. In addition, the market-based approach to education is considered to weaken and threaten the democratic philosophies of education. However, both ideologies have been shown to have strengths and weakness and each jurisdiction may weight its options before adopting the ideology on which to base their education system and policy (Smith, 2003). Importantly, the ideology adopted must improve the quality of public education. The principles, rules, laws and the government policy-making that touch on education and the operations in the education sector are referred to as education policy. It is important to note that since education appears in different forms and serves different functions in different contexts, educational policies and their making varies across jurisdictions (Levin, 2009). Among the most common forms of communication are early childhood education, kindergarten, high school, college and university education. Other are graduate education, job training, adult and professional education. Hence, whenever education policy is mentioned, it could imply of these forms of education or all of them in the same breadth. The roles of education in modern society make education policy a rather extensively debated concept in the public spheres. The key aspects of education policy mostly debated are sizes of learning institutions, especially schools, educators’/teachers’ pay, teaching methods and models, graduation requirements, infrastructure, investment, educational values, curriculum content, teacher training and certification and certification of schools (Levin, 2009). To ensure that school policies comply with set policy standards, internal and external educational policy analysis are periodically conducted. The purposes of these analyses include seeking responses to issues pertaining to the societal and personal uses of education, methods of achieving these goals and performance evaluation tools. An important aspect of education policy making and implementation is policy planning, which is mandatory for the development of an articulate and implementable policy. It is only via such an education policy that education can be used as the basis for realistic, convenient, manageable and sustainable social change not only in the education sector but also in the larger society (Heckman et al., 2007). Education Policy Making The first and perhaps the most important step in the process of policy making is policy planning. A key figure in policy planning is a technical personal on the subject of education policy analysis and design of educational development plans (Whitty, 2006). In addition, stakeholders should carry out donors who would support the implementation of the prioritized educational activities. Among the aspects of an education policy that would require donor support include in policy formulation, resource projections, sector management, programme monitoring and evaluation, educational planning, policy simulation and dialogue and sector analysis. All these processes require national and institutional capacity-building, highlighting the importance of constant and adequate funding from the state as well as other non-governmental organisations (Whitty, 2006). Policy review is the other critical step in the process of policy making in which key stakeholders such as educationists and the state must play a crucial role. In this review, the stakeholders are expected to undertake an internal as well as an external review of all the aspects of an education system so that the right policies are implemented. For educational institutions, it is of the essence that the internal and external dynamics that affect their capacity to provide the necessary and adequate education to their learners is constantly reviewed (Whitty, 2006). The factors worth reviewing are the socio-demographic and macro-economic contexts in which learning takes place. In these reviews, the equity and accessibility issues and the quality of education offered should be accorded the highest priority. In addition to these factors, cost and financing of education, external efficiency and the management of learning institutions should also be thoroughly reviewed (Whitty, 2006). At the forefront in providing technical supports to states on education policy making, review and implementation is the United Nations, through its agencies such as the UNESCO, which offers help in capacity building for the enhancement of performance by national educationists and administrators of learning institutions. In particular, the UNESCO assistance targets education sector reviews and analyses. Consequent to these reviews and analyses, there has been an increase in the robustness of education sector plans, programs, policies and projects across the globe (May & Aikman, 2003). It is thus imperative upon each state’s education officials and individual institutions to liaise with the relevant educational agencies that might offer policy making, planning, assessment and review assistance and skills. There are several techniques or tools that institutions and governments use to plan, design, develop and implement education policies. The foresight approach to educational policy making has gained prominence in recent times as a tool for making, reviewing and reforming educational policies across institutions and states. In its basic sense, this tool adopts a futuristic approach to education policy planning. It applies futuristic methods such as trend analysis, Delphi surveys and scenario construction to foresee future educational needs (European Commission, 2009). In also emphasizes the inclusion of all stakeholders in education policy-making processes. Its inclusive nature results in the making of education policies with shared visions and preferred methods of achieving future objectives (European Commission, 2009). Although used to asses a wide range of social issues, the foresight technique has been particularly limited. The Stakeholders and the Implementation of Education Policy There quite many interested parties in the education sector, implying that the education policy making process also has many interested parties; individuals, the state, non-governmental organisations and community-based organisations (May & Aikman, 2003). Since everyone in society is affected by education in one way or the other, it is true to assert that everyone is a stakeholder in the education sector. In fact, given education’s role in the realization of sustainable development, the entire community must contribute to education in different ways and not undermine its implementation and outcomes (Harris, 2009). In this generalised view, it becomes difficult to identify each individual’s or organisation’s role in ensuring the right educational policies and programs are implemented. The different bodies at different societal levels should thus identify with certain roles and responsibilities to ensure the successful development and implementation of educational policies (Ball, 2010). The key stakeholders included in this process are; the state or government, non-governmental organisations, civil society and the private sector. The roles are responsibilities for the state as a key stakeholder in the education system are quite clear-cut. The government’s key roles are policy-making, framework-setting, promoting public input and consultation, instituting public campaigns on education and operationalising educational systems and policies. For the civil society and non-governmental organisations, the key roles in education policy making and implementation are public awareness through campaigns, sponsorship, raising and lobbying (May & Aikman, 2003). Second, NGOs and civil society carry out consultancy and input into policy formulation, deliver educational policies and programs, especially in informal settings, participate in learning and other educational actions and mediate between the state and the public on educational policy and system matters. As for the private sector, its work regarding education policy is also cut out for it. These roles and responsibilities encompass initiation of entrepreneurial initiatives and training, management of education policy models and approaches, implementation and evaluation of policies and developing and sharing of practices that promote sustainable production and consumption of education (Card, 1999). Despite the division of roles and responsibilities across the stakeholders, there are duties that they share. For instance, all stakeholders are crucial in the development of education systems and policies. In this regard, all the stakeholders produce educational and informational materials and identify and mobilize resources for the implementation of educational policies and programs (Brauna et al., 2010). In addition, all interested parties participate in modelling practices for sustainable educational practices and actions in institutions. Of equal importance is the role of all stakeholders in exchanging information, hence promoting collaboration across the sector (Finn et al., 2005). This cooperation ensures that policies and educational outcomes are the same across the sector. Due to the long-term effects and links with the educational institutions and policies, a special mention must be made of the local communities served by educational institutions and policies. Local communities may be active or passive interested persons in education policy. For instance, parents of learners are active stakeholders in the formulation of education policy and must be involved in the process (Bowles & Gintis, 2011). Also worth mentioning is the media or advertising agencies, which keep the public aware and informed of the various educational policies, programs and activities. It is not enough to confine awareness of these policies to educational institutions; more should be done to disseminate this information to the public. It is at this point that the media and advertising agencies become valuable stakeholders. All the stakeholders are quite crucial in the implementation of education policy and each must play its stipulated role to completion. The stakeholders must ensure that the national education policy is implemented in all settings although the policy may take different forms and approaches across institutions and levels of education. A pragmatic approach should be adopted to ensure a policy benefits an institution’s learners. Policy implementation should also be done in contextually sensitive manner to benefit individual learners and institutions. Research has also shown that proper mediation of policy in local settings is central to successful implementation as local factors affecting education would be identified and their potential to hinder or support implementation gauged. Conclusion Education policy refers to the principles and the structure by education is delivered to learners in a country or an institution. State, NGOs, civil society and private sector are the key stakeholders in education policy. They play key roles in the design, development, implementation, evaluation and reformation of education systems, policies and programs. Thus, all of them must be involved and their opinions gauged and included in the policies. References Ball, J. S (2009a) Education for sale: the commodification of everything. National Education Policy Center; University of Colorado Boulder. Ball, J. S. (2010) “Why Education Policy May Be Looking in the Wrong Direction; Education Policy, Civil Society and Social Class.” International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, 30(3/4); 155-166. Ball, J. S. 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(2003) The Ideology of Education: The Commonwealth, the Market, and America's Schools. Sunny Press. Whitty, G. (2006) “Education (al) Research and Education Policymaking: Is Conflict Inevitable?” British Educational Research Journal, 32(2); 159–176. Read More