The Capitalist State and Public Policy Formation. Framework for a Political Sociology of Educational Policy Making

Abstract

This article argues that public policy formation cannot be understood without a consistent theory of the capitalist state and politics. This is particularly true with respect to education policies. Expanding capital accumulation and increasing the legitimation of the entire mode of production seem to be the principal roles of the capitalist state, a role that is in perpetual tension. Coming to grips with this tension constitutes a principal challenge for the state. Considering educational policies, programs and practices, to inquire into the reasons for the growth of a given educational level—how programs have been devised historically, by whom, for what purposes, and how they are related to the educational clientele that they are supposed to serve—is to ask for an explanation of the determinants of educational policy formation. In this article a framework for a political sociology of educational policy making and a set of hypotheses on the production rules of public policy are offered.