Prototypes of “Preschool” in Arizona, 1987 to 2014 by Alexia Shonteff A Dissertation Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy Approved April 2015 by the Graduate Supervisory Committee: Gustavo Fischman, Chair Daniel Schugurensky Jeanne Powers David Berliner ARIZONA STATE UNIVERSITY December 2015 ABSTRACT This dissertation identified ideas and prototypes framing the notion of “preschool” in two types of influential public discourses in Arizona during the 1987-2014: a) editorials, op-editorials, and opinion letters appearing in the Arizona Republic and Arizona Daily Star and b) political documents, including Senate and House Committee Meeting Notes and Comments, Gubernatorial Speeches, Executive Orders, Comments, Proclamations, Memos, and Press Releases. Seventy seven newspaper articles and 43 political documents that substantively addressed debates about preschool in Arizona were identified from an initial pool of 631 documents, of which, 568 were newspaper articles and 63 were political documents. This dissertation argues little progress can be made in education policy by ignoring the unconscious and automatic levels of thinking, which are not easily dissuaded with rational and factual arguments. Haas and Fischman’s (2010) model for identifying prototypes provided an analytical method to capture the richness and diversity of the educational policy debate about preschool in Arizona. Prototypes captured the values, ideologies and attitudes behind the discourse of “preschool.” Prototypes provide a window into the unconscious thoughts of the authors of the editorials, op-editorials, opinion letters and political documents. This research identified five newspaper prototypes: “Last Resort,” “Community and Family,” “Evidence-Based for At-Risk Children,” “New Knowledge Community,” and “Learner of 21st Century.” It also identified four political prototypes: three of them (“Community and Family,” “Evidence- Based for At-Risk Children,” “Learner of 21st Century”) were aligned with the newspaper prototypes. The fourth prototype was “Arizona Citizen.” i This research concluded that: (1) Multiple “truths” of the concept of “preschool in the newspaper and political documents existed between 1987 and 2014, (2) An inter- relational cross-over existed between the newspaper and political documents effecting the policy debate of preschool, and (3) In less than 30 years, the newspaper and political prototypes narrowed to one. Movement away from the rational policy model, and a broader use of prototypes and discourse analysis in education policymaking, is advocated. Keywords: Prototypes, Discourse, Newspaper, Policymaking, Preschool ii DEDICATION This dissertation is dedicated to the three most important people in my life whose love and belief in me made this possible. My daughter Sarah who allowed me to be insanely pre-occupied. My husband Kevin who grounded me as he patiently put up with my incessant talk and encouraged me not to give up. And lastly to the person who has been my role model throughout my life, my mother Christina, who endlessly supported and guided me as I wrote and studied. iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Nothing is achieved alone. I cannot even begin to express my thanks to my committee. To Dr. Gustavo Fischman, my perspective and outlook on life changed because of your wisdom, mentoring and guidance. To Dr. Jeanne Powers, your demand for excellence helped me to dig deeper when I did not think I could. To Dr. David Berliner, your words of wisdom stopped me in my tracks and caused me to rethink everything I was doing. To Dr. Daniel Schugurensky, your kindness and direction placed me on the right path whenever I was confused and stuck. You have all touched my life more than you will ever know. I am forever grateful because I am no longer just an observer in this world but now a participant. Special thanks to my father, Lindsay Shonteff, who never gave up on his dreams. My sister, Nicole Shonteff, for teaching me compassion and gratitude for the things I have. My friend and mentor, Connie Johnson, for supporting me throughout my studies, reminding me to keep going. To Dr. Stuart Low, Dr. Jerry Kingston and Dr. Arthur Blakemore for encouraging my return to school. To Dr. John Hall and Dr. Susan Johnson for their guidance and kindness when I first enrolled in courses after a 22-year absence. To Dr. David Carlson, who enlightened me on the complexities of research, and to Dr. Joshua Barnett, who introduced me to viewing problems from multiple perspectives. To my friends and classmates: Dr. Jennifer Shea, who read and commented on my dissertation proposal, and Dr. Jessica Holloway-Libell, who read and commented on my dissertation. Their insight, and knowledge were invaluable. To my mother Christina Shonteff, Deborah Koshinsky and Dr. Elizabeth McNeil for proofreading my dissertation. A special thanks to all the people over the last 26 years who have walked with me iv through every facet of my life journey. In particular, Muriel, Annabelle, Mary, and Ms. Peggy, whose kindness and words of wisdom will forever be appreciated. My cats and dogs that sat with me for hours on end while I worked at the computer. Lastly, I am grateful for the professionalism, willingness, and kindness of the staff at the Arizona House of Representatives, the Arizona State Library, and the Arizona State Senate Resource Center. v TABLE OF CONTENTS Page LIST OF TABLES………………………………………………………………………..xii LIST OF FIGURES……………………………………………………………………...xiv CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION ................. ….. ............................................................................. 1 Actions of the Federal Government ............................................................ ….3 Actions of the Individual States .................................................................. …..6 Arizona……………………………………………………..………………9 Research Questions ......................................................................................... 10 Framing of the Research ................................................................................. 12 Significance of the Research .......................................................................... 13 Overview of the Dissertation .......................................................................... 14 2 BACKGROUND LITERATURE FOR THE CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK… 15 Origins of Prototype Theory ........................................................................... 15 Rosch’s Prototypes .......................................................................................... 17 Cognitive Linguistics Adds to Cognitive Science ......................................... 17 Lakoff Adds to Rosch’s Prototype ................................................................. 18 Haas and Fischman Model for Identifying Rosch and Lakoff’s Prototypes..19 Connecting Stone’s Critique of the Rational Model of Policymaking to Haas and Fischman’s Model to Identify Prototypes…….……………..….21 Summary .......................................................................................................... 22 vi CHAPTER Page 3 METHODOLOGY ................. .............................................................................. …23 Timeframe .................................................................................................…..23 Data Collection…………..………………………………………. ..... …..24 Newspapers………………………………………………………………24 Political Documents……………………………………………………...26 Data Analysis…………………………………………………………….28 Validation…………………………………………………………………36 Summary…………………………………………………………………36 4 DATA AND FINDINGS ............. ............................................................................. 37 Newspaper Prototypes .................................................................................. 38 Last Resort ……………………………………………………....38 Community and Family……………………………………….....40 Evidence-Based for At-Risk Children.………………………......43 New Knowledge Community………………………………..…..45 Learner of the 21st Century………………………………….…...48 Political Prototypes ....................................................................................... 54 Community and Family……………………………….………....55 Evidence-Based for At-Risk Children…………..…………….…57 Learner of the 21st Century……………..………………………..61 Arizona Citizen……………….………………………………….68 Comparison of the Newspaper and Political Prototypes ............................. 70 vii CHAPTER Page Brief Historical Account of Arizona, Pre-1987 ........................................... 76 Policy Debate of Preschool, 1987-1989 ....................................................... 79 The Governors, 1987-1989…...………………………………….79 Local, 1987-1989…...…………………………………………....82 Federal, 1987-1989………………………..……………………..83 State, 1987-1989………………..………………………………..84 Overview of the Prototypes, 1987-1989…………………………..87 Policy Debate of Preschool, 1990-1994………………………………..88 The Governors, 1990-1994……...……………………………… 88 Local, 1990-1994…...…..……………………………………….89 Federal, 1990-1994.…….....…………………………………….89 State, 1990-1994………..………..……………………………...90 Overview of the Prototypes, 1990-1994………………..………..97 Policy Debate of Preschool, 1995-2001………………………………..98 The Governors, 1995-2001……..…………………...…………...99 Local, 1995-2001…..…...………………………………………100 Federal, 1995-2001……………………………………………..101 State, 1995-2001………………..……………………………....102 Overview of the Prototypes, 1995-2001………………………..106 Policy Debate of Preschool, 2002-2006………………………………107 The Governors, 2002-2006..…………………………………...108 viii CHAPTER Page Local, 2002-2006…..…………………………………………...110