This thesis constitutes a study of the policy construction process through an examination of the policy leading to the implementation of the Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE). In order to place the VCE as an episode of educational policy construction, into a context of time and space, a detailed discussion of the features of the social, political and economic contexts in which the policy was framed, is undertaken. The VCE is then able to be viewed in the light of the broader society and thus the ways VCE policy may be seen as a reflection of or reaction to the conditions and events of the period, are extrapolated. It is asserted in this thesis that it is necessary to devise new approaches to the interpretation of social processes such as policy construction in the light of the specific features of the current era. One of the key features of the current era is seen to be the economic rationalist agenda and the resulting dependence upon market forces and a market economy. In order to undertake the interpretation of the process of policy construction a selection of theoretical perspectives is made upon which to draw for insights and interpretive frameworks. The theoretical perspectives discussed include critical theory, postmodernist theory, meta- theory and the structurationist approach of Anthony Giddens. Drawing predominantly upon the Theory of Structuration, an interpretive framework is devised and applied throughout the course of this study. The interpretive framework which is developed in this thesis is based upon the concept of there being four domains in which social processes such as policy construction occur. These domains are referred to here as: global, macro, meso and micro- domains. In employing this approach the tensions and vectors of interest which are present both within ( intra- domain) and between (inter-domain) domains are examined with particular concentration upon the effect of such dynamic relationships upon the process of policy construction. The concept of the dialectical relationships which occur between elements within and across domains is a central one in the interpretive framework developed and applied. Policy construction is thus represented in this study as a dialectical process where the interaction of people with structures (rules and resources) results in a recursive and dynamic social context where transformation and change are inherent.