Policy Boundaries in School Districts: When and How School Mathematics Enters the Policy Conversation

This multicase study of two school districts examined the policy boundaries educational leaders frame to define and demarcate the policy issues relevant to mathematics. Drawing on interviews with district leaders, observations of policymaking, and collection of artifacts, I found that meanings (or discourses) about the school subject constrained policymaking for mathematics to student achievement concerns. Subject-neutral policies that treat all subjects equally or ignore subject-matter were sometimes enacted in mathematics-specific ways, but other subject-neutral policies—including equity-minded efforts—were excluded from mathematics. These findings show how even seemingly subject-neutral policies are sensitive to the school subject and the ways meanings about the subject render some policy issues relevant to mathematics while excluding others. The results of this study have implications for how educational leaders and researchers partnering with schools might challenge and reconstruct policy boundaries, especially in ways that allow for more equity-minded policies.