ABSTRACT
In essence, the principal concern of politics can be regarded as relating to power and desire for a just organisation in line with what was seen at the time as the righteous order of things. In modern usage, politics concerns matters of organisation, action and governance at national and local levels. This can include government, local authorities, trade unions, student bodies, charities and lobbyists and, in a digital networked age, the media and social media as political actors and agents. One way of developing our political thinking in education can be to consider the descriptions of the historical milestones in national educational policy, their legislative milestones and related policy developments. The different elements of New Right educational policy produce practices that are made obvious, common sense and 'true'. Privatisation, marketisation and commodification are all terms that can be readily aligned with a neoliberal politics of education.
