The theory of enactment by Stephen Ball: And what if the notion of discourse was different?

Abstract

The studies of curricular policies, and educational policies in general, based on Ball’s theoretical approaches produced at the end of the 1980s are still considered potent in a variety of research work carried out in Brazil and other countries in the world. Several studies incorporate the approach of the policy cycle into curricular research, thus contributing to deepen the understanding of curriculum and open up to other research agendas, especially those directed toward the connections between structural constraints and the possibilities of agency. For these reasons, in this article I focus on Ball’s theory of enactment, making it dialogue with the theory of discourse in the post-structural register constructed by Laclau and Derrida. I am interested in strengthening the post-structural register already present in Ball’s discussions, seeing his productivity as something positive for more complex views of the curriculum policies that question the separation between interpretation and translation, proposal and practice, structure and agency.