informants involved in the policymaking process. The research findings were analyzed and presented on the basis of narration analysis. The policymaking process of the legislation was then analyzed from three paradigms: agenda-setting, decision-making and organizational behavior. Finally, by examining the results of the previous stages of analysis, and further comparing the two cases, the research arrived at a theoretical framework for education governance that embraces three essential elements: political ideology, perceived value of education, and institutional rationale. A thorough analysis of the two legislative processes identified that the political ideology ‒ which shifted from efficiency-oriented economic well-being to equity-oriented social cohesion ‒ steered the agenda-setting of the compulsory education legislation. The perceived value of education reflects the role that education plays in development, changing from economic value to social value. The institutional rationale essentially determines strategies by which compulsory education materializes, with a variance from governing by goal and mobilization to governing by accountability and regulation. In conclusion, education governance in China witnessed a paradigm shift from “economic instrumentalism” to “social rationalism” between mid-1980s and 2006. |