The paper is conceptually-based, fusing Foucault's concept of 'governmentality' with Edelman's concept of 'politics as spectacle'. The paper examines current UK education policy and the policy process in the light of these concepts.The paper is a conceptual study which is based on the concept of 'governmentality' from the work of Michel Foucault(1991). This portmanteau neologism combines the term 'government' with 'rationality' and has been defined as the 'art' of government, which Foucault understands to be 'the conduct of conduct'. This concept is developed in the paper, however, by recognising the work of Murray Edelman(1985, 1988) who argues that politics must be seen as a 'spectacle' so that what is seen to be the case, public perception, can be as important as what is, demonstrably, the case. Taking note, further, of recent work on political 'spin' and rhetoric (Fairclough, 2000), the paper suggests that education policy needs to be seen in the light of a more modern stress in governance which recognises that 'the conduct of the conduct of conduct' (the management and presentation of policy - the conduct3 of the title) is not only of political relevance but has considerable implications for education and policy. The paper argues that the importance of the presentation of policy, the conduct of policy, has implications both in terms of policy content but also in terms of policy process. It argues that while spin and rhetoric have now been recognised as constitutive of policy (Gewirtz et al., 2004), what must also be recognised is that the policy process, including key stages such as consultation, must also be seen as elements of conscious policy management, and so essentially political techniques rather than simply manifestations of open, participative democracy. Based on an analysis of some recent policy initiatives in the UK, the paper argues that the purpose of educational legislation and of policy consultation is often primarily that of political spectacle and needs to be understood in those terms. The paper concludes by suggesting that those in academia involved in policy research need to be more aware of politics as spectacle and of the different perspectives, purposes, and perceived needs of the politician.Edelman, M. (1985). The symbolic uses of politics (with a new afterword).Urbana and Chicago: University of Illinois Press. Edelman, M. (1988). Constructing the political spectacle.. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Fairclough, N. (2000). New Labour, new language? London: Routledge. Foucault, M. (1991). Governmentality. In G.Burchell, C.Gordon, & P.Miller (Eds.), The Foucault effect (pp. 87-104). Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Gewirtz, S., Dickson ,M., & Power, S. (2004). Unravelling a 'spun' policy: a case-study of the constitutive role of 'spin' in the educational policy process . Journal of Education Policy, 19, 321-342. Gillies, D. (2006, November). Speaking of excellence: an analysis of the usage of 'excellence' in key UK policy texts 1997-2006. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Scottish Educational Research Association, Perth, UK. Olssen, M., Codd, J., & O'Neill, A-M. (2004). Education policy. London: Sage. Intended for submission to Journal of Education Policy