Proposed policymaking scheme for the Knesset Committee for the Examination of the Structure of Elementary and Post-Elementary Education in Israel-an illustration of a policy analysis memorandum

Two of the main problems of improving public policymaking through the utilization of analytical methods are (1) how to analyze complex issues which are difficult to deal with through systems analysis, and (2) how to introduce a more analytical approach into the considerations and proceeding of political bodies, such as legislatures. The following memorandum has been rewritten and is reproduced for wider circulation to illustrate an effort to deal with these two problems. It presents a scheme for improved decisionmaking by a political body on a complex issue. This scheme is on the meta-analysis level : it does not analyse the policy issue itself, but tries to provide a design for doing such an analysis. In other words, the scheme tries to provide a decision network and a proposed structure for dealing with this network, with due allocation of critical events to the political units. Preparation of such schemes is, I think, essential if we want to move on from systems analysis by professional units to policy analysis as a mode (or mood) of real decisionmaking throughout the social guidance cluster. An effort was also made to adjust the language of the scheme to the needs of achieving communication with politicians. I should perhaps add, that due to some special circumstances, this memorandum was never formally submitted to the Committee.