Leadership magazine Nov/Dec 2015 V45 No 2 | Page 8
Ensuring
Equity in
Teaching
TO THE NEW
STANDARDS
– A CASE STUDY
Working through
an equity lens, Bay
Area educators
have succeeded
in building the
framework necessary
for addressing all
students’ needs.
8
Leadership
Education equity is about closing
and eliminating the achievement and opportunity gaps. Horace Mann said, “Education ... beyond all other devices of human
origin, is a great equalizer of conditions of
men, the balance-wheel of the social machinery.” Similarly, social justice is the view
that everyone deserves equal economic, political and social rights and opportunity.
Social justice aims to open doors of access and opportunity for everyone, particularly those in the greatest need. Therefore,
the real issue becomes “how,” which is
viewed as both a challenge and opportunity. Common Core State Standards, as
adopted by California, have their emphasis on academic rigor. However, Common
Core alone does not eliminate or narrow the
achievement gap. Before Common Core
was adopted many schools tried to address
the issue of low levels of support consistent
with poor academic achievement. There is
no significant and consistent increase in student achievement until there is a sound educational systems approach to learning, with
a focus on equity facilitated by leadership.
One such school in the San Francisco
Bay Area that went through four principals
in just 18 months dealt with the issues of low
achievement and support. The superintendent hired yet again another principal and
warned him that, if the staff had faith and
trusted the new guy, they would walk on hot
coals for him; if they did not, the principal
would be thrown into the hot coals.
Needless to say, this did not provide the
principal with a lot of confidence. But he reflected on what he could do different from
his predecessors. He only needed to do a few
things: First, he needed to listen and gain an
understanding of the school’s culture. Second, he needed to support the staff on what
they said they needed. He understood that
teachers need to feel supported and valued.
Finally, after listening, learning and supporting, he was able to share with staff what
he thought was necessary for addressing all
students’ needs. He intended to provide a
By Frank Wells