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Technologies of participation: designing consensus in the Better and Fairer Schools national review process
Journal article   Open access   Peer reviewed

Technologies of participation: designing consensus in the Better and Fairer Schools national review process

Glenn C. Savage, Elisa Di Gregorio and Jacob Broom
Journal of education policy
2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/02680939.2026.2673391
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Open Access CC BY-NC-ND V4.0

Abstract

critical design governmentality Participation policy design schooling policy
This paper adopts a critical perspective that treats public participation in policy design not as a democratic ideal nor as a hollow ritual, but as a technology of governance: a set of tools, practices, and socio-technical arrangements through which governments structure reform, legitimise authority, and define policy possibilities. Drawing on governmentality and critical design studies, we develop the concept of ‘technologies of participation’ to describe how governments curate the terms of public engagement and set the discursive and material boundaries of reform. Using Australia’s ‘Review to Inform a Better and Fairer Education System’ as a case study, we show how participatory tools and design choices constrained public influence while building consensus around predetermined reforms. Through analysis of four technologies of participation – Terms of Reference, Expert Panel practices, a national survey, and the public release of the final report – we illustrate how participation functions to design consensus, manage dissent, and narrow spaces for contestation. The paper invites broader reflection on how the mechanics of public participation are inseparable from the politics of governance and demonstrates how the consultative spaces common in education reform are sites where power is carefully structured, contested, and continually negotiated.

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