Using Equity Audits to Create Equitable and Excellent Schools

 Skrla, Linda, Kathryn Bell McKenzie and James Joseph Scheurich. Using Equity Audits to Create Equitable and Excellent Schools. 2009. 132p. ISBN 978-1-4129-3932-4. Available at 379.26 SKR on the library shelves.

With the adoption of No Child Left Behind, there has been a movement to ensure that all schools can meet the needs of all students. Yet, decades later, institutional resistance remains in ensuring that all students are treated equitably. This is most glaringly reflected in lower graduation rates for students who require special education services, who are English Language Learners, and those from minority groups and lower socio-economic levels.

One  of the ways to begin the process of addressing these equity issues is knowing they even exist. An equity audit can be conducted to find the blind spots in a school district so that they can then be addressed. In order to improve awareness, Equity Audits proposes three areas where this process can be started. First, the quality of teachers is paramount, and studies have shown that a qualified teacher makes the most impact in a student's school year. However, due to structural directives like seniority and hiring practices, low-performing schools and students often get the new teachers, while better-performing schools are staffed with experienced and competent teachers. Equity requires that all students have the opportunity to be taught by quality teachers.

A second area to consider is program design. Is the proportion of special education students consistent among all ethnic groups? Among diverse language speakers? Are students consistently disciplined in the same way, regardless of race or ability? Answers to these questions provide fertile ground to investigate and audit.

Student achievement is the third area that can start this process. Are students from certain groups funneled in specific classes? Do all students have the opportunity to take advanced classes, or are those limited to a certain segment of the population? Are all students proportionally on track to graduate? Are dropout rates similar for all segments of student population? Once again, searching for the answer to these questions lead to a better understanding of the challenges facing a school or a district.

Understanding which areas require attention is only the first step. Providing a high quality education for every child in a school and in a district will translate into all teachers and staff working together to ensure that each individual has an equitable opportunity to participate in this high quality education.