Local Control in the Era of Accountability: A Case Study of Wisconsin 4K

• In Event: 75.060 - Roundtable Session 33
  In Roundtable Session: 75.060-9 - Politics and Access in Early Childhood Education

Abstract

In this paper we examine how two discourses highlighted in discussions of public preK, standardization and local control, come into contact in the current accountability context and profoundly impact the way preK policy is formed and implemented. Based on a study of policy enactment in Wisconsin, we explore how key actors interpret and enact the state’s 4K program. Interviews with legislators, state education and district personnel provide a window on how seemingly contrary discourses coexist with eye backwards to state tradition and forward to a movement that promotes greater alignment and standardization of preK programs. We explore how this particular hybrid gets enacted in the current accountability context and suggest implications for broader implications for preK programs in the U.S.

Authors

• Mary Elizabeth (Beth) Graue, University of Wisconsin - Madison

• Bethany Wilinski, Michigan State University

• Amato Nocera, University of Wisconsin - Madison