To answer this question, we have to start with the question what do we want our schools to accomplish? Why do our schools exist? As a country, do we really want all students to master rigorous, grade level standards? Is that our goal for our public education system? Or are we okay with some students receiving a subpar education that then provides them a lifetime of minimum wage employment, often accompanied by governmental assistance, hindering the economic health of our country and robbing it of citizens that are engaged in solving the problems that threaten our country’s and our world’s very existence?

We could easily conclude that we do want all our students to master rigorous, grade level standards after a cursory examination of federal and state legislation and policy over the past several decades. The passage of the No Child Left Behind Act was heralded as a big step forward in holding schools accountable for ensuring that all students mastered rigorous grade level standards in literacy, mathematics and other content areas. The legislation included collecting yearly data on student outcomes in literacy and mathematics and disaggregating the data by various student groups to ensure that all students regardless of race/ethnicity, disability, first language, or socioeconomic status were achieving at high levels. Schools that had groups of students not achieving at high levels created plans for ensuring all students did achieve at high levels after a specified period of time.

The No Child Left Behind Act and its successor, The Every Student Succeeds Act, made it very visible that not all of our children were graduating high school ready for college and/or career. The outcomes of a kindergarten to grade 12 education for students even in the same school and district varied widely. With this public awareness, some schools made tremendous progress in improving outcomes for all their students. Many schools however continue to have significant numbers of students still not mastering grade level standards and matriculating to the next grade or even graduating with a lessor education than their peers who demonstrate proficiency in grade level literacy and mathematics standards.

How is it that students in the same school could graduate with such different results? Were they not receiving the same general instruction? Does not every elementary school teach reading? Do not all high schools teach Algebra I? When inequalities in outcomes were found there was a call to provide all students access to advanced opportunities classes, computers, science labs and so forth. There has been significant progress in providing students with access to digital learning devices (partially thanks to the pandemic), increasing the number of high schools with advanced opportunities classes and so forth. However, providing the access alone has not resulted in equality of outcomes where all students master rigorous grade level standards. In fact, a study by Chatterji, Campbell, & Quirk (2021) found that providing access to advanced opportunity classes did not close the gap. The gap was closed only when access along with supports for mastering the content were provided.

We have conflated equality in process with equality in outcomes. Rather equity is critical to the process of education in order to ensure equality in outcomes. What is equity and why is it important for ensuring all students master at a minimum grade level standards?  The Oxford Language Dictionary defines equity as the “quality of being fair or impartial.” So, what does this mean for educators? We are keenly aware that students come to us with a rich variety of backgrounds, experiences, and interests. We understand and value that each student is a unique individual. We espouse that all students can learn. However, we don’t always apply what we know to how we act in our schools. Equity in school is doing whatever it takes for each child to master rigorous grade level standards. We cannot assume that providing the same educational processes to each student will result in equality of outcomes.

Rather than doing whatever it takes to ensure each child masters rigorous grade level standards, we often fall back on traditional thinking and processes in school. These include such norms as:

1. The material was taught; however, the student didn’t get it because they didn’t do their homework, wasn’t listening, is too far behind to understand the material, or needs a remedial class first. However, the teacher taught it.
2. The student lives in a very dysfunctional environment so they often miss school, comes to school hungry or comes to school angry, and therefore cannot attend to learning. Their home life is a mess.
3. The student is not motivated to learn. They see their parent getting by without much education and believe they will too. Their parent does not support their learning by making them do their homework or even ensure they come to school every day.
4. English is not their first language so it is very hard for them. They need to learn English first which takes 5 to 7 years and then they can engage in more rigorous learning. It is unfortunate that they do not know enough English right now.

When we fall back on these ways of thinking or deficit thinking, we are not acting on a belief that each student is unique, capable of learning, and valuable to our world. Rather than doing whatever it takes for each child to master rigorous grade level standards, we are falling back on excuses of why it is not happening for many of our children.

If we provide each of our students with whatever it takes for them to master rigorous grade level standards, we will not be providing them all with the same educational experiences. Some will need more support to learn including mental, emotional, and physical support in addition to academic support. Students come to the school house with a wide variety of different needs. We will not be distributing resources equally, but rather equitably or in a fair and impartial way. That is what equity is.

Are we willing to expect each child to master grade level standards and provide the instruction to ensure it happens? Are we willing to send our best teachers to students who have the largest gap in their learning to close? Are we willing to provide the pre-teaching needed by some students so that they succeed alongside their peers in rigorous classes? Are we willing to provide the resources for some students to have a longer school day and/or year if need be. Are we willing to provide mental and physical health supports they need in school? Are we willing to overtly welcome the marginalized students into the group? Are we willing to take the time to reassure parents who worry that their child will not be ahead of others, if every child is mastering rigorous grade level standards, that their child will flourish and our country will flourish when all students are education to a high level?

Providing equity in schools requires recreating our school and community cultures so that our beliefs and actions say that we believe that all students can master rigorous grade level standards and we do whatever it takes to make it happen. Providing equity in schools requires recreating our school systems so that each student is provided what they need to master rigorous standards rather than marginalizing some students to remedial or lower-level classes, harsher discipline, or the classrooms that do not believe that all students must and can master rigorous grade level standards. Equity is providing what each student needs to master the rigorous standards as mandated by our statutes and administrative codes. If these standards are what we want for our own children, then we must expect and support schools to provide that for all children.

It is not easy work. It requires meeting each individual child’s needs for learning and some of those needs are huge and the resources scarce. For those educational teams making it happen, we cannot thank them, honor them, or pay them enough. They are a critical resource for our children’s futures and our country’s future. We need more educators and schools like this. These educators are our heroes, accomplishing what our laws expect of schools often with not enough resources and too little gratitude. They are miracle workers.

Reference:

Chatterji, R., Campbell, N., & Quirk, A. (2021). Closing advanced coursework equity gaps for all students. Washington, D.C.: Center for American Progress.

This blog is written by Dr. GwenCarol Holmes, a long time educator and passionate advocate for all students mastering rigorous standards.