Category: equity in school
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What We Lose When the Department of Education is Eliminated
The chaos in Washington DC regarding what schools should do is being compounded. First DEI was declared a threat that needed to be eradicated. Now efforts are focused on eliminating the US Department of Education. Should we care about the US Department of Education? Is it useful? Is it helpful to the goal of educating…
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Do We Still Provide Equity in Schools?
The directives coming out of our nation’s capital these days have many educators questioning what they may do in their schools and classrooms and what should they avoid? Do we include Black history as a part of American history? Do we provide mental health support to students traumatized by their life circumstance? Do we provide…
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More Trauma for Students
Some of our country’s most marginalized students are once again dealing with trauma that significantly interferes with their learning. As federal agents ramp up raids on immigrants, tensions have heighted in minority communities, schools, churches, hospitals, and many places of business. News media is already sharing stories of citizens caught up in these raids due…
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The Election is Over Now What?
Are you an educator asking now what after the most recent presidential election? As educators, we work relentlessly day after day to ensure all students master rigorous standards and graduate high school college and/or career ready. Providing students whatever it takes so that all students achieve at high levels is not for the faint of…
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The System Is Designed for Poor Student Achievement
The system is perfectly designed to achieve the results we are getting. Have you heard that sentiment before? If you are an educator, you mostly likely have heard a similar statement when talking about student achievement results or continuous improvement planning. Public education in our country is largely designed to sort students and provide differing…
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Heroic Educators Do Whatever It Takes
It is that time of the year when schools start the new school year. Many students look forward to this exciting new beginning and prepare with new school clothes and supplies. They look forward to meeting their new teachers and reconnecting with their friends and all the fun extracurricular activities. There are also students who…
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Equity in Education: Overcoming Barriers of Poverty for Student Success
The multitude of barriers, created by poverty, to achieving an rigorous education must be overcome in order to have equity in schools. Many years ago, I was principal of a very large elementary school in a midwestern city. It was the only non-housing structure in the neighborhood. There were no other services in that neighborhood:…
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The Science of Reading with a Dose of Caution
The science of reading is quite the rage these days. School districts and even whole states are requiring that students are taught to read based on what we know from the science of reading. That is a great development and one to be handled with caution. The publication of the report Preventing Reading Difficulties in…
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The Punishing Impact of Deficit Thinking on Schools
Gorski and Swalwell (2023) conclude that “inequity is the accumulative impact of the largely predictable and persistent outcome and experience disparities.” (p. 25) This succinctly summarizes the reality happening in the majority of our schools. The predictability of educational outcomes for students is maddening to educators who are working hard to help all students succeed…
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Cooperative Learning: A Powerful Tool for Equity (Part II)
Cooperative learning is a powerful tool for helping to create equity in our schools and classrooms. Highly effective cooperative learning structures help ensure all students master rigorous grade level standards. This instructional model is constructed so that students are working together to ensure each one learns and masters the content that has often been initially…