Investigating the North Carolina charter school movement: a critical discourse analysis of editorial-page items from 1995 to 2014

UNCG Author/Contributor (non-UNCG co-authors, if there are any, appear on document)
Nora K. Carr (Creator)
Institution
The University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG )
Web Site: http://library.uncg.edu/
Advisor
Carl Lashley

Abstract: Charter schools remain hotly contested nationally and in North Carolina, where the number of charter schools has grown rapidly from 100 in 2011 to 148 in 2014. Interest shows no signs of abating. North Carolina has approved 11 new charter schools to open in 2015, along with two new virtual charter schools. The state has received 40 applications from charter operators hoping to open new schools in 2016. This dissertation conducts a critical discourse analysis of 114 randomly selected editorial-page items and 60 news articles about charter schools published by 20 North Carolina newspapers from 1995 to 2014. The findings indicate that the strategic use of political discourse, consistent message framing, and editorial board support helped charter school proponents gain more social, economic, and cultural power in North Carolina, despite charter schools' tendency toward hyper-segregation by race and class, limited gains in student achievement, and lingering doubts regarding equity of access, scalability, oversight, and public accountability. Key words: critical discourse analysis (CDA), frames, editorial(s), news, charter schools, race, class, equity, North Carolina, school reform, public policy.

Additional Information

Publication
Dissertation
Language: English
Date: 2015
Keywords
Charter schools, Critical discourse analysis, Editorials, Frames, Policy, Race
Subjects
Charter schools $z North Carolina
Critical discourse analysis
Charter schools $x Political aspects $z North Carolina
Charter schools $x Social aspects $z North Carolina

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