Understanding Congressional Coalitions - A Discourse Network Analysis of Congressional Hearings for the Every Student Succeeds Act

Oct 15, 2026

The study investigates policy coalitions of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) in U.S. congressional hearings using the advocacy coalition framework and discourse network analysis. By analyzing 30 testimonies from the act’s passage in 2015, the research categorizes policy actors into eight groups and identifies four coalitions grounded in their policy claims. The coalitions address equity, assessment and accountability, state legislative alignment with ESSA goals, and inconsistencies in U.S. Department of Education state plan approvals with ESSA provisions.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages33

Reading Time1 h 23 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Keywords

Introduction

SPECIAL ISSUE Researching 21st Century Education Policy Through Social Network Analysis education policy analysis archives A peer-reviewed, independent, open access, multilingual journal Arizona State University Volume 28 Number 119 August 17 , 2020 ISSN 1068-2341 Understanding Congressional Coalitions: A Discourse Network Analysis of Congressional Hearings for the Every Student Succeeds Act Yinying Wang Georgia State University United States Citation: Wang, Y. (2020). Understanding congressional coalitions: A discourse network analysis of congressional hearings for the Every Student Succeeds Act. Education Policy Analysis Archives, 28(119) . [https://doi.org/10.14507/epaa.28.4451](https://doi.org/10.14507/epaa.28.4451) This article is part of the special issue, Researching 21st Century Education Policy Through Social Network Analysis, guested edited by Emily Hodge, Joshua Childs, and Wayne Au. Abstract: The purpose of this study is to investigate policy coalitions of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) at U.S. congressional hearings. This study is grounded in the advocacy coalition framework, which argues that advocacy coalitions are forged by policy actors who have similar policy preferences. To identify the coalitions, according to the policy claims articulated by policy actors, discourse network analysis was performed to examine 30 testimonies in the congressional hearings on ESSA since its passage in 2015. The policy actors fall into eight categories: (1) federal administrative and executive offices, (2) state administrative and executive offices, (3) teachers unions, (4) interest groups, (5) superintendents, (6) teacher, (7) education professor, and (8) Congress members. The results of discourse network analysis suggest four coalitions based on the actors’ policy claims on (1) equity, (2) assessment and accountability, (3) states have changed/passed legislation to align the state accountability systems with ESSA goals, and (4) the U.S. Department of Education’s state plan approval was inconsistent with the ESSA statutory provisions. The findings provide timely insights into the ongoing process of ESSA implementation at the federal, state, and local levels. Keywords: Accountability; assessment; Congress; discourse network analysis; education policy; equity; Every Student Succeeds Act; network analysis; policy making Comprender las coaliciones del Congreso: Un análisis de la red de discursos de lasaudiencias del Congreso para la Every Student Succeeds Act Resumen: El propósito de este estudio es investigar las coaliciones políticas de la Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) en las audiencias del Congreso de EE.UU. Este estudio sebasa en el marco de la coalición de defensa que sostiene que las coaliciones de defensa son forjadas por actores políticos que tienen preferencias políticas similares. Para identificar las coaliciones, de acuerdo con los reclamos políticos articulados por los actores políticos, serealizó un análisis de la red del discurso para examinar 30 testimonio s en las audiencias del Congreso sobre la ESSA desde su aprobación en 2015. Los actores políticos se dividen enocho categorías: (1) federal administrativo y oficinas ejecutivas, (2) oficinas administrativas yejecutivas estatales, (3) sindicatos de maestros, (4) grupos de interés, (5) superintendentes,(6) maestros, (7) profesores de educación y (8) miembros del Congreso. Los resultados del análisis de la red de discurso sugieren cuatro coaliciones basadas en los reclamos de políticas de los actores sobre (1) equidad, (2) evaluación y rendición de cuentas, (3) los estados han cambiado / aprobado legislación para alinear los sistemas estatales con las metas de la ESSA, y (4) La aprobación del plan estatal del Departamento de Educación. Fue incompatible con las disposiciones legales de la ESSA. Los hallazgos brindan información oportuna sobre el proceso continuo de implementación de la ESSA a nivel federal, estatal y local.

FAQs

What question does the study address about ESSA hearings?

It examines policy coalitions of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) within U.S. congressional hearings.

How are coalitions identified in this research?

Coalitions are identified from policy claims articulated by actors and analyzed via discourse network analysis.

What major coalitions does the analysis find?

It suggests four coalitions focused on equity; assessment and accountability; state legislative changes aligning with ESSA goals; and inconsistent U.S. Department of Education state plan approval with ESSA provisions.

Oct 15, 2026

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