Sociology of Educational Policy in Iran through Governmentality Lens

Present paper do investigate the educational policy in Iran by conceptual system of governmentality and accordance to Mitchel Dean’s “analytics of government” framework in three dimensions such as rationalities/discourses, technologies and subjects of government. Mmethodologically, mixed method of both Focaultian discourse analysis and genealogy were used. Statistical population consists of texts of educational policy such as laws of development plans in Iran’ Islamic pre and post-revolution era. Findings showed that governmentality which run educational policy in Iran is neo-conservative governmentality. The ideas of this governmentality are signified with returning to past, preservation and stabilization of order, attention to values, state hegemony and centralism. Educational policies in Iran operate with mixture of technologies of domination/power (governing on others) and technologies of self (governing on self). In addition, subjectivities of educational policy in development plans in pre and post-revolution have different forms. So that in pre-revolution ones, the most properties of subjects were vocationalism, professionalism, job-generation and entrepreneurship, while in after revolution ones, the ethical and value aspect of subjects were dominated. Results implies that the ultimate goal of educational policy in Iran is conducting subjects’ behavior in accordance with final values of neo-conservatism governmentality.