7. Policy analysis and the study of the politics of education

Abstract

It is a frequent observation, particularly by European scholars whom I know, that the study of educational politics in the United States has been locked within an intellectual straightjacket, which is variously called pluralism, empiricism, pragmatism, behavioral science, or some other term meant to convey not a little derision.1 Most scholars who work within the field of the politics of education probably would acknowledge that there is some truth in this characterization, at least until very recently.