In the traditional halls of power, policy is often viewed as a “thing”—a finished document, a royal decree, or a rigid law. We imagine it sitting on a pedestal, waiting to be “implemented” by obedient workers. But in modern sociology, this view is considered a myth.
To understand how education and society actually work, we have to look at policy as a network, a cycle, and a social practice. Whether you are in London, Amsterdam, or Bangkok, policy is never just words on a page; it is a complex struggle for meaning.

1. The Network Revolution: Governance over Government
   In 1997, two major shifts in thinking occurred. R.A.W. Rhodes argued that the state was being “hollowed out.” Power was no longer held by a single central office but was spread across a web of private companies, NGOs, and international bodies. This is what we call Policy Networks.
   Rhodes noted that these networks are built on Resource Dependency. No one has all the money or all the answers, so they must trade. At the same time, Walter Kickert and the “Dutch School” argued that because these networks are so complex, we can’t “control” them; we can only “manage” them.
   In Thailand, this is often seen in the concept of “Pracharath” (ประชารัฐ)—the idea of a “civil-state” where the government, the private sector, and the people must work together in a network to achieve national goals.
2. Stephen Ball and the “Policy Cycle”
   If Rhodes and Kickert give us the map of the network, Stephen Ball gives us the movie of how it moves. Ball argues that policy doesn’t just happen once; it lives in a continuous cycle across three contexts:

• The Context of Influence: Where global ideas and “big players” fight to define the problem.
• The Context of Text Production: Where the actual laws and curriculum guides are written (often full of contradictions).
• The Context of Practice: Where the “street-level” professionals—the teachers and administrators—actually do the work.
  This is where we must “remove policy from the pedestal.” When a policy reaches a school, it isn’t just “followed.” It is Appropriated (การนำมาปรับใช้). It is translated and reshaped to fit the local culture.

1. Text vs. Discourse: The Hidden Power
   Ball’s most profound insight is that policy has two “faces” that act on us at the same time:

• Policy as Text: This is the script. We have the agency to read it, argue with it, and interpret it. We are the actors on the stage.
• Policy as Discourse: This is the invisible cage. Discourse limits what we are allowed to say or even think. If the policy discourse is only about “standardized testing,” it becomes very hard for a teacher to talk about “creativity” without feeling like they are breaking the rules.
  In Thai education, we see this struggle between the “Traditional Discourse” (วาทกรรมแบบดั้งเดิม) of rote learning and the “Global Discourse” (วาทกรรมระดับโลก) of 21st-century skills.

1. The 7 Types of Policy Actors (Ball et al., 2011)
   Finally, we must look at the people. In the book How Schools Do Policy, Ball, Maguire, and Braun (2011) explain that policy enactment is a “power-infused” process. They identified seven specific roles that people play when a new policy hits their desk:

• Narrators (ผู้บรรยาย): They tell the story. They decide which parts of the policy the staff should care about.
• Entrepreneurs (ผู้ประกอบการทางนโยบาย): The champions. They are excited about the change and push others to join in.
• Outsiders (คนนอก): Consultants or advisors who bring the “new ideas” from the outside into the institution.
• Transactors (ผู้ประสานงาน): The “data people.” They focus on the paperwork, the spreadsheets, and the reporting.
• Enthusiasts (ผู้กระตือรือร้น): Teachers who use the policy as a chance to try something new in their own rooms.
• Critics (ผู้คัดค้าน): The skeptics who point out why the policy might not work based on years of experience.
• Receivers (ผู้รับผล): Those at the end of the chain who simply have to deal with whatever changes are made.
  Conclusion: The Art of Bricolage
  Policy is not a straight line. It is a Bricolage—a French term for “tinkering” or “making do.” Professionals take bits and pieces of different policies, mix them with their own values, and create a workable reality.
  Next time you see a new government regulation, don’t just look at the paper.
• Look at the Narrators telling the story, the Critics questioning the logic, and the Practice happening on the ground. Only then will you see the true face of policy.