Equity in Education:
Promoting Equity in Education refers to the idea that every student has equal access to educational resources and opportunities that help them to reach their goals. In an equitable class, the following factors shouldn’t be a hurdle for the student to reach their goals:
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Race
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Gender
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Culture
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Economic status
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Immigration status
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Religion
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Ethnicity.
Equity in education goes beyond mere equality, recognizing that different students require different resources and support to live. It emphasizes providing additional resources, interventions, and support to those who have faced significant challenges due to factors such as socioeconomic status, race, gender, abilities, or language barriers. By ensuring equitable access to quality education, promoting inclusive practices, closing achievement gaps, valuing diverse cultures, providing social and emotional support, fostering fair discipline practices, engaging families and communities, and implementing continuous improvement and accountability measures, equity in education aims to transform education systems. Equity also seeks to address and close the achievement gap in education by ensuring that all students have equitable access to resources, opportunities, and support. (Hutmacher, W., Cochrane, D. and Bottani, N., 2001)
Equity vs Equality difference:
Equality means every student is receiving the same benefits, resources, and opportunities, which is technically not possible in today’s world, while equity is what students are getting to succeed or reach their goals. They both seem to be the same but there is a major difference between these two.
Promoting Equity in Education:
Promoting equity in education requires collective efforts, and here are some strategies to promote equity in educational classrooms.
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Introducing Inclusive Policies and Practices: Implement inclusive policies and practices that value and respect diversity. This involves creating a cultural curriculum that reflects the experiences and perspectives of all students, providing support for students from linguistically diverse backgrounds, different traditions, and cultures, and ensuring that an inclusive environment is provided to all students.
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Equitable resources: Ensure equitable distribution of resources, including funding, technology, instructional materials, and qualified teachers. Allocate resources based on the needs of individual students and schools, like professional assignment writer to help in the assignment of business students, Grammarly for literature students, etc.
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Achievement gap:
Develop targeted tools and support systems to address achievement gaps. This may involve providing additional academic support, tutoring, mentoring, or enrichment programs to students who are academically at risk of failure. Implement instructional strategies that meet the diverse learning needs of all students, help in closing the achievement gap, and provide an inclusive environment for every student.
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Family engagement:
Engage families and communities as partners in the education process. Develop strong connections between schools, families, and communities by promoting two-way communication, involving families in decision-making, and providing opportunities for community involvement in education initiatives.
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Collaboration and Partnerships:
Develop collaboration and partnerships among teachers and students as well as educational partners, including schools, districts, community organizations, and policymakers. Collaborative efforts can increase the amount of resources, share best practices, and create a collective impact that promotes equity in education. For example, many business students face problems with how to write Mba assignment, so either responsible teachers themselves collaborate with students to provide them with resources that will assist them in doing their assignments, respectively.
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Continuous Monitoring and Accountability:
Regularly monitor and evaluate the progress toward achieving equity goals. Keep an eye on and analyze data on student outcomes, access to resources, discipline practices, and other related factors. Use this information to inform policy and practice improvements and hold educational institutions responsible for promoting equity.
Achievement Gap:
It is the measure of disparities in education, students are categorized based on gender, race, culture, and religion. It involves differences in academic performance as well as personal preferences. The achievement gap is a very complex and long-lasting issue. Some factors also contribute to the increase in the differences are funding, access to resources, and the quality of education. Socioeconomic status and ethnicities are also responsible for creating the achievement gap.
•Socioeconomic status: It has been observed that a student’s socioeconomic background plays a vital role in marking grades of one, according to the research it was noted that low SES students achieve about 10% less score in exams as compared to those of higher SES.
•Ethnicities: Another major factor in social and academic inequality or achievement gap is a difference in race, students belonging to the black race or Asian students are mostly not just bullied by white students but also by their professors, in UK schools.
Lack of acculturation and the achievement gap: Lack of acculturation is the lack of understanding of other people’s values, beliefs, customs, and traditions. This can also occur when a dominant and recessive minority are living together, for example in UK English and whales are prioritized over Black British, Africans, and other ethnic belongings.
Common problems that cause achievement gap:
Following are some common problems faced by students that cause achievement gaps: (Bestassignmentwriter,2019)
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Socio-economic status:
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Students from low-income backgrounds often face challenges such as inadequate access to educational resources, unstable living conditions, limited healthcare, and less exposure to enriching experiences outside of school.
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Language Barriers:
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English language learners (ELLs) face unique challenges in academic achievement due to language barriers.
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Lack of cultural relevance:
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A lack of culturally relevant teaching practices can increase disparities and inhibit the development of a positive self-identity and sense of belonging.
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Limited Parental Involvement:
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Lack of parental involvement and support in education can contribute to the achievement gap.
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Ways to identify achievement gap:
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Deep view of student’s academic progress
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In checking the attendance of every child (it was found that those students who have the most absences belong to big families).
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By capturing data on the social and emotional learning (SEL) initiative of students.
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Rich view of every child’s family background.
Addressing the achievement gap:
Addressing the achievement gap includes, reducing disparities and providing equitable opportunities for all students. Here are some key strategies to address the achievement gap.
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Equitable Resources:
Ensure that resources, such as funding, instructional materials, technology, and qualified teachers, are distributed equitably across schools and districts. Direct additional resources and support to schools serving marginalized and disadvantaged students to address the resource disparities that contribute to the achievement gap.
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Early Childhood Education:
Invest in good-quality early childhood education programs that provide a strong base and foundation for future academic success. By ensuring access to quality early learning experiences, children from diverse, poor, and disadvantaged backgrounds can develop essential skills and narrow the gap before entering formal schooling.
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Social and emotional support:
Provide counseling services, social-emotional learning programs, and create a positive and inclusive school environment that supports student success and progression.
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Professional development:
Training on effective strategies for addressing the achievement gap and creating an inclusive classroom environment can support educators in meeting the diverse needs of their students.
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Culturally Responsive Teaching:
Implement culturally responsive teaching practices that recognize and value the cultural backgrounds and experiences of every student. Integrate diverse perspectives, cultural references, and relevant examples into the curriculum to foster engagement and enhance the learning experiences of all students.
Conclusion:
Promoting equity in education and addressing the achievement gap requires comprehensive efforts. By implementing equitable resource allocation, inclusive practices, and fostering collaborative partnerships, we can create a fair and inclusive education system that empowers all students to succeed.
References:
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Hutmacher, W., Cochrane, D. and Bottani, N., 2001. Available at < https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/0-306-47579-0 >
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BAW.2019. Common issues faced by students. Available at <https://bestassignmentwriter.co.uk/blog/common-issues-faced-by-students/ >
