Education Policy Adoption at the Local Governance Level

This research examines Florida school districts' adoption of Reading First legislation passed into law as part of the federal No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. This research attempts to answer the fundamental question pertinent to the policy adoption process: Why do some school districts readily adopt the Reading First innovation while others do not adopt it? This research will test key factors based on the following explanations: 1) Political Institutions, 2) Need and District Characteristics, 3) Education Ideology, 4) Policy Entrepreneurs and Networks, and 5) Diffusion. A multivariate model representing the five competing explanations was created to determine what drives local governments (school districts) to adopt Reading First policy using Event History Analysis. The results show two significant variables, reading scores (need) and diffusion. School districts with fewer proficient readers are more likely to be early adopters of Reading First. The diffusion variable was also significant but unexpectedly had a negative relationship finding that districts with fewer contiguous districts that have adopted Reading First are more likely to be early adopters. While unexpected, it may be the result of the short timeline of the adoption process and the pressure by the media, political actors, and district personnel to be an early adopter.