Introduction: Critical Approaches to Education Policy Analysis

Our purpose in this book is twofold. The main purpose is to discuss the methodological implications of critical approaches to educational policy analysis. A second purpose of the book is to provide concrete examples, and thus road maps, for engaging in critical policy analysis. Neither of these purposes can be achieved without an introduction to the basic ideas in this approach. We therefore devote this chapter to introducing some of the basic elements of critical policy analysis (CPA), including some of the fundamental ontological and epistemological claims as well as their implications for investigating educational policy. From this starting point, the reader will then find a variety of ways that other critical policy scholars have chosen to pursue this work.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

1. Curry School of Education, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA Michelle D. Young
2. Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis, University of Missouri, 202 Hill Hall, Columbia, MO, 65211, USA Sarah Diem

1. Michelle D. Young