Using Sabatier's Perspective of Synthetic Approach to Analyze Early Childhood Education Subsidy Policy.

The government recently promotes education subsidy policy in order to achieve the policy goals that enhance the educational equity, improve the quality of education, and reduce the burden of parenting on families. While the central government sets policy, the local government adjusts the policies based on the features of the local. The implementations of the policies result in policy-oriented learning and subsidy program changes. This study used Sabatier's perspective of synthetic approach to explore early childhood education subsidy policy in terms of policy sub-system, problems that occurred during the implementations, policy learning, and the direction of subsidy programs changes again in the future among 14 preschool educators and educational administrators. The research reaches the following major findings. The beliefs of the education subsidy policy are consistent with the philosophy of preschool educators; hence such consistence is conducive to promote the implementation of subsidy policy. The policy network structure of the central government, local governments, and preschools are collaborated one another in the process of implementing the subsidy. The complexity of the subsidy operation resulted into different levels of problems. In order to solve the problems, policy learning was enacted and therefore it affected policy change. Moreover, the changing of the education subsidy policy only modifies the way to achieve the goal, but not the core beliefs of the subsidy policy. The directions for policy changes include setting policy goals on educational purposes, enactment of social justice, calling for education quality, and provision of subsidies in addition to financial ones. Finally, suggestions are provided for policy planners, particularly collecting information on policy enacting, making policy changes through policy learning. The education administration authorities should act as policy brokers to communicate with different units and protect the rights and interests of relevant personnel. Policy planners should analyze the social environment and provide strong evidence to strengthen policies and goals. The suitability for the economically disadvantaged grants should be reexamined for its appropriateness and income tax laws should be modified in order to implement the core beliefs of the subsidy policy on preschoolers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]