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Centering Equity

By Cathy Buyrn, M.Ed.


View Administrator's Corner

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By Daria Lorio-Barsten, M.Ed., Christine Peterson, M.Ed., and LaShauna Britt, M.Ed.

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As we reflect on the previous year filled with numerous challenges, we hope you look forward to the new school year with much excitement and anticipation. Our May issue of Link Lines highlighted lessons learned from educators, students, and community members who reflected on the previous year. They shared a resounding theme of the importance of forming connections and building relationships. Educators foster positive relationships with and among students when they create inclusive learning communities. As you plan for ways to build an inclusive learning community in your classrooms where all students can maximize their potential, we invite you to consider how placing equity at the heart of your practices would benefit your students.


Last year, the Office of Equity and Community Engagement at the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE, 2020) developed a collection of efforts entitled #EdEquityVA. Among these initiatives is Virginia’s Equity 5Cs framework, also known as the EdEquityVA Compass. The five Cs of equity are as follows: culturally responsive practices, courageous leadership, curriculum reframing, compassionate student and family engagement, and continuous reflection. These Cs are not hierarchal in nature, but rather interconnected.


In this lesson, we cover a brief explanation of each C, paired with actionable steps to take in your classrooms. We hope these strategies and resources will be helpful in your planning for a successful 2021 academic year.

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Culturally Responsive Practices


The first C is culturally responsive practices. Culture impacts our attitudes, values, and behaviors (Krasnoff, 2016). Culturally responsive teachers view cultural differences as assets. They leverage students’ cultures as vehicles for learning while holding high expectations for all students, and cultivate positive, mutually respectful, and affirming relationships (VDOE, 2020). Additionally, these teachers challenge negative stereotypes and any form of intolerance and injustice in the classroom (VDOE, 2020).


One example of a culturally responsive classroom practice involves structuring learning opportunities in ways that actively seek and present multiple perspectives (Krasnoff, 2016). As you design your lessons, consider how you are offering opportunities for students to share their views. Make sure you validate all students’ perspectives by acknowledging their thoughts and lived experiences. It is not necessary to agree with a given point of view, but acknowledgments and validations encourage students to engage in dialogue, build listening skills, and foster interpersonal communication. You will likely need to model these communication skills first and provide some affirming conversation stems for your students. Affirming interview from Learning for Justice (2021) is one activity that you may find useful for structuring student discussions.

 

Courageous Leadership


The second C is courageous leadership. According to #EdEquityVA, courageous leaders are educators who steer and encourage others through uncomfortable situations (VDOE, 2020). They willingly make difficult decisions that benefit others and challenge the status quo as they seek to cultivate and promote equity. They speak up when they witness injustice and actively pursue ways to include those who are vulnerable, marginalized, or ignored. Courageous leaders are aware of their own shortcomings and seek to understand individual and institutional biases as it relates to inequity and oppression in terms of race, class, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, disability, language, religion, and immigration status (Equity Literacy Institute, 2021).


Courageous leadership is possible even if you are not in a position of authority. According to Virginia’s Equity 5 Cs, we are all called upon to be courageous leaders within our buildings and classrooms. To foster your courageous leadership, we invite you to explore the following resource from Equity Literacy Institute, in which Gorski (2020) outlines seven actionable principles for achieving equity: Basic Principles for Equity Literacy.


Curriculum Reframing


The third C, curriculum reframing, can be a potent means of challenging and dismantling structural injustices (Luckett & Shay, 2017). As teachers, we have the power to evaluate, modify, and change the materials we use to support our curriculum. We need to review materials currently in use by asking, Who is represented? How are they represented? Who has been left out?


Our classrooms need to be spaces where everyone is affirmed and included. For example, it is important for our students to see themselves and their personal lived experiences represented and portrayed accurately in the fiction and nonfiction they read. Teachers can take action by auditing their classroom libraries and teaching materials to determine if and how diversity is represented. One example of a quick library audit is Bookshelf Bingo (Fishman-Weaver, 2019). A more comprehensive audit might be undertaken using the Classroom Library Questionnaire (Seed the Way, 2018).

 

Compassionate Student & Family Engagement


The fourth C addresses compassionate student and family engagement. Compassionate student and family engagement is a way to involve all stakeholders with a particular focus on students and their families. According to #EdEquityVA, the following are ways in which schools can foster compassionate student and family engagement: intentionally engage non-English speaking families; ensure that students, their families, and caregivers have access to information and understand the school’s expectations for students; finally, be sure to engage in purposeful collaboration with families and community stakeholders (VDOE, 2020).


The key to compassionate student and family engagement is not only to be intentional but to leverage and honor students’ and families’ strengths in building authentic partnerships. Such partnerships are inclusive and welcoming of families’ voices. As you start the new school year, consider how Cultural Synchronization Questions, developed by the National Equity Project (2021), can help build rapport and relationships with all of your students and their families. For supporting your students and families with linguistic diversity, the VDOE resource Social Emotional Wellness: Considerations for English Learners (Family Tips) may be useful. Schools can implement the suggestions at any point in the school year and should continue to reflect on ways to foster compassionate student and family engagement.

 

Continuous Reflection


Finally, the last C is continuous reflection. What is continuous reflection? #EdEquityVA defines it as “the ability to reflect on actions, strategies, outcomes, and processes to achieve desired results and goals” (VDOE, 2020, p. 31). For classroom teachers, continuous reflection involves embedding cultural responsiveness in all areas of learning; examining our own biases and the ways they impact our classroom practices; and identifying equity gaps in our data. Continuous reflection is essential to creating an equitable school environment for all. As you gather data in your classroom this school year, we encourage you to apply the equity lens to your data analysis. Specifically, consider if achievement gaps exist between groups of students or if any group is over- or underrepresented in behavior, academic, or other data areas. One helpful support for such data analysis is the Data Equity Walk toolkit from The Education Trust-West (2021).


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By engaging in practices around culturally responsive practices, courageous leadership, curriculum reframing, compassionate student and family engagement, and continuous reflection you can ensure that you are on your way to creating an inclusive learning community for all your students. Advancing educational equity by infusing practices around Virginia’s Equity 5Cs framework will be an ongoing learning experience. At times, you may feel unsure or become uncomfortable, but we encourage you to join us in our commitment to embracing lifelong learning. Our students, families, and fellow educators can teach us much if we listen to them and remain open to learning. If you have a strategy that advances education equity in your classroom or building, we would love to hear and learn from you. Please share at this link.

References


Education Trust-West. (2021). Data equity walk toolkit. https://west.edtrust.org/data-equity-walk-toolkit/

 

Equity Literacy Institute. (2021). Equity literacy: Definition and abilities.

https://www.equityliteracy.org/equity-literacy-definition

 

Fishman-Weaver, K. (2019, December 3). How to audit your classroom library for diversity. Edutopia.

https://www.edutopia.org/article/how-audit-your-classroom-library-diversity

 

Gorski, P. (2020). Basic principles for equity literacy. Equity Literacy Institute.

https://08a3a74a-dec5-426e-8385bdc09490d921.filesusr.com/ugd/38199c_75fb386a758c4c21834dce207d917a4c.pdf

           

Krasnoff, B. (2016). Culturally responsive teaching: A guide to evidence-based practices for teaching all students equitably. Region X Equity Assistance Center at Education Northwest. https://educationnorthwest.org/sites/default/files/resources/

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Learning for Justice. (2021). Affirmation interview.

https://www.learningforjustice.org/classroom-resources/teaching-strategies/community-inquiry/affirmation-interview

 

Luckett, K., & Shay, S. (2020). Reframing the curriculum: A transformative approach. Critical Studies in Education, 61(1), 50-65. https://doi.org/10.1080/17508487.2017.1356341

 

National Equity Project. (2021). Building rapport: Cultural Synchronization questions.

https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5e32157bff63c7446f3f1529/t/5f173d7d7d2c0c271703d543/1595358590081/Building-Rapport-Cultural-Synchronization-Questions.pdf

 

Seed the Way. (2018). Equity audit: Self-assessing your classroom library.

http://literacyworldwide.org/docs/default-source/resource-documents/classroomlibraryequityaudit.pdf

 

Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) Office of Equity & Community Engagement. (2020). Navigating EdEquityVA: Virginia’s road map to equity. http://www.virginiaisforlearners.virginia.gov/edequityva/

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