 “Access denied”: interrogating how inequality and injustice are produced in educational policymaking contextsElena Aydarova Chapter 9 in Research Handbook on the Anthropology of Education, 2026, pp 81-92 from Edward Elgar Publishing Abstract: Over the last three decades, the influence of conservative groups on educational policymaking has grown exponentially. Networks of intermediary organizations funded by major philanthropies and dark money groups have promoted a redesign of educational systems, claiming that educational reforms would address achievement gaps between various racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic groups. Yet, as charter schools, vouchers, and other reforms are implemented, the gaps not only persist but widen. In the context where market-based reforms exacerbate existing inequities, more studies in anthropology of education should utilize the critical tools of the discipline to analyze the activities of powerful groups that promote market ideologies and translate them into policy action. Drawing on scholarship in anthropology of policy, I argue that to disrupt systems of inequity and injustice, anthropologists of education should study powerful actors who create and maintain inequitable systems through their policy advocacy and educational reform activities. Keywords: Educational policy; Intermediary organizations; Anthropology of policy; Elites (search for similar items in EconPapers) Downloads: (external link) Related works: Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:elg:eechap:23336_9 Ordering information: This item can be ordered from Access Statistics for this chapter More chapters in Chapters from Edward Elgar Publishing |
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