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Promoting Equity in Education: Five Takeaways from RAPSA For Charter School Leaders & Educators

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By Jeremy Divinity, Marketing Specialist
December 2020

Last month, I attended a virtual conference, RAPSA Forum, hosted by the Reaching At-Promise Students Association. The event focused on leading educational accountability and providing equitable education solutions for ‘at-promise’ students. These students are typically minority, black and brown, and come from a background of poverty. These same students are disproportionately impacted by the pandemic and risk further learning loss. The recent racial injustices are also at the center of the discrepancies faced by ‘at-promise’ students across the nation. The objective of the conference was to provide a forum for educators and educational advocates, along with students, to learn from each other and collaborate on how to combat these inequities.

While the conference included representation from charters, districts, and private schools, charter schools are uniquely positioned to implement changes and initiatives to better serve ‘at-promise’ students. Here are five takeaways from the conference on ways charter school leaders and educators can work to improve outcomes and promote the success of ‘at-promise’ students:

#1 Equity is the Destination but Healing is the Driver

The goal of equity is to provide more for the most vulnerable students. While equity was a central theme of the conference, there was also a heavy focus on mental health and wellness topics. We are all experiencing a prolonged state of uncertainty and anxiety, which has brought to light the importance of professional wellness, self-care, and critically reflective practice.

To sustain the positive work they do in the long run, educators need to do the internal work and take care of themselves first as no one can pour from an empty cup. Self-care for educators can take many forms, including exercise, yoga, meditation, sleep, and therapy. During this time of crisis, there is also a strong need for healing connection in our schools, which educators can facilitate through restorative practices, a framework for building community in the classroom while deepening human relationships between teachers and students. Restorative practices in your school can take the form of mindfulness, restorative circles, and collaborative class agreements.

#2 Address the Mental Health of Students of Color

As your school shifts more towards a social justice mindset, it is critical to support the mental health of students of color. Although it may seem like a taboo topic, educators must prepare for the pandemic’s mental health effects on their most vulnerable students. In addition to the trauma triggered by the pandemic, many students of color also face the consequences of generational trauma from poverty, racism, and adverse childhood experiences.

As a school leader, it is critical to understand the impact that these realities have on students of color and how they may influence their experience in schools. For example, trauma has a long-lasting effect on cognitive development and learning which may present itself in many different ways in the learning environment, including flight, fight, or freeze. Instead of disciplinary actions, educators can take an asset-based approach to education. An asset-based approach is key to achieving equity in the classroom and sees all students’ potential by focusing on their talents. By implementing an asset-based approach, educators will build relationships with an understanding of students rather than punishment.

#3 Equity is Access, Opportunity, and Belonging  

Many students of color feel isolated, misunderstood, and seen as ‘defective products.’ This feeling of not belonging has led to students of color dropping out mentally and physically, resulting in lower graduation rates that we see in the widening achievement gaps. Although the term ‘at-promise’ was coined to do away with some of the stigmas attached to these students, as one student pointed out in a conference session, it is still a label that categorizes them as ‘other’ or ‘unwanted’ or ‘unachieved’, which is furthest from the truth. The fact that these students are showing up in the face of poverty, trauma and racism speaks to their resilience and potential.

It is the job of educators and education leaders to nurture an environment of community, belonging, respect, identity, and worth, so that all students feel empowered to reach their potential. An equitable learning environment facilitates a feeling of belonging – of being connected to the community. Schools can foster this belonging by hiring more teachers that look like students as representation matters. Educators can also create a support system and a ‘safe space’ or ‘brave space’ to encourage dialogue and foster a sense of belonging. Most importantly, it’s essential that educators talk, listen, and connect with students. Be in their corner.   

#4 Education Equity Requires A Strong Foundation for All Learners

Quality education must be accessible to all members of society. Across the country, there is a history of segregation in our school system that continues to impact BIPOC students today. Students from marginalized communities are prone to second guess their belonging and worth, leading to many students having ‘impostor syndrome’ – where they ask, am I good enough, and do I belong? 

Impostor syndrome is a psychological pattern in which an individual doubts their skills, talents, or accomplishments. Education leaders can empower these students to step into their greatness by providing access to quality education and educating them on the history, contributions, and impact of communities of color. One way to do so is by including ethnic studies in the curriculum. Representing students of color in the school’s curriculum through ethnic studies can positively impact how students of color view themselves. 

#5 Zoom Fatigue and Anxiety is Real 

Students, just like educators, also have Zoom fatigue and anxiety. This Zoom fatigue hinders learning. Engaging virtually looks different for every student and comes with many challenges. Some students may not be comfortable showing their home environment and some students may not feel comfortable being on camera. For teachers, it is important to remember that cameras on doesn’t guarantee that learning is or isn’t taking place.

Equity within teaching and learning during the pandemic means meeting the needs of students where they are at, attending to their socio-emotional needs, and providing multiple pathways of engagement. This may mean that your school will have to broaden its definition of engagement and rely on multiple sources of information to document and verify student engagement.

The pandemic has revealed that we are at a reckoning point on how we are going to transform society, and education, to be equitable for all children. As advocates for high-quality, flexible education options, charter school leaders are uniquely positioned to play a prominent role in creating an equitable learning environment for future generations!   

Four Ways School Leaders Can Promote Equity-Driven Distance Learning

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September 4, 2020

Equity is a driving force for charter schools in their quest to provide high-quality education options for all students, regardless of zip code. The COVID-19 pandemic and related school closures have created new challenges in this quest. As we learned this past spring, low-income students are at a greater disadvantage due to disparities in access to infrastructure needed for distance learning. Many schools across the country are starting the new year with either distance or hybrid learning, putting pressure on school leaders to determine how their school will continue to provide equitable learning opportunities for all students and families.

We’ve been following what charter schools are doing in this area and put together a list of suggestions for how school leaders can practice equity-based distance learning in the upcoming school year.

1. Check-in on Students and Families to Ensure Needs are Being Met

The students who are most in need are less likely to have access to a conducive learning environment, technological devices, internet connectivity, and parental supervision. Schools can play a role in helping to connect families to organizations that provide access to technological devices and internet service for reduced or no cost. You might want to check your state department of education’s website for a list of local companies providing discounts. For example, the California Department of Education shares information about special offers by various internet providers across the state. Common Sense Education also shares information about organizations helping to facilitate access to low-cost and free internet service, devices, and educational content.

Schools can also provide families with information about community organizations that can help to meet basic needs such as food, shelter, and childcare. For example, schools can create a list of community resources with instructions on how to initiate contact and make the list easily accessible to all families by sharing it in newsletters and posting it on their website. Alpha Public Schools created a microsite Alpha Family Resources Hub to provide families with information about resources related to distance learning, housing, food, and more.

2. Prioritize Staying Connected with Students to Support Academic Success and Mental Wellness

During distance learning, regular live interaction between teachers and students is important to maintain connection and encourage stronger learning outcomes School leaders are tasked with overseeing the quality of communication between students and teachers while ensuring check-ins are done regularly with different modes of communication such as text, phone, video, small groups, and social media. Maintaining a consistent, open, two-way communication between your school and students and families will allow insight into how students are adjusting to the new learning environment and coping with other issues.

School leaders can create a space for informal and formal conversations with students by implementing virtual advisory groups or individual online meetings. For example, Memphis Merit Academy created a hotline for parents and students to call for help with schoolwork, LifeWork Hotline | Virtual Teacher, to support students’ academic success. A similar model could work to connect students to counselors to support students’ mental health and wellbeing and help students cope with the stresses brought about by the pandemic. School leaders may also call upon social and mental health services by directing families to their teletherapy services while emphasizing mindfulness, playtime, and exercise to help parents and guardians structure time at home.

3. Provide Flexibility That is Responsive to Students’ Unique Needs and Abilities

It’s important to consider students’ unique needs and experiences when planning your school’s distance learning strategy for the 2020-2021 school year. School leaders might consider distributing surveys that solicit student and family feedback on digital learning experiences as well as their home environments. This feedback will make you aware of any barriers to learning such as access to technology, home language, caretaking responsibilities and/or the presence of caregivers, and can help to inform your distance learning strategy and tailor your approach to serve different groups of students. For example, the survey results can help to identify which students have familial obligations during the day and need access to asynchronous instruction, as well as those who require synchronous instruction to keep them engaged and on track.

A survey can also help improve family and student engagement. For example, at the start of distance learning and after noticing that only a few students were engaged in daily learning, Rocketship Public Schools surveyed their families each morning to inquire what students needed to learn at home and worked to address those needs throughout the day. By the end of the school year, nearly every student was engaging in daily learning.

4. Focus on Mitigating Learning Loss

A recent study by NWEA predicts that students will experience a learning loss of 30 percent in reading and 50 percent in math due to school closures related to the COVID-19 crisis. To help mitigate potential learning loss, school leaders can focus on strategies that accelerate student learning. Accelerated learning strategies require that students consistently receive grade-level materials, tasks, and assignments while making the work accessible. This Learning Acceleration Guide might be a helpful starting point for planning your strategy. To make up for the learning loss, the accelerated student learning plan should start as soon as possible, and ideally should be put together by a diverse team of teachers, administrators, and school leaders in a series of planning sessions. It is helpful to plan several instructional delivery scenarios and have a high-level plan for each scenario. You’ll also want to identify what unfinished learning needs to be addressed, and when and how. This document from Achieve the Core helps educators identify instructional content priorities in math and ELA in order to stay on grade level while addressing related prerequisite skills.

School leaders across the country are tasked with the challenge of developing strategies that maximize equity outcomes and address the diverse needs of their students during this unprecedented time of school closures. Equity-based distance learning helps to ensure that the most vulnerable students are supported during and beyond the pandemic. The resources cited here can help school leaders to implement school policies and processes that support equitable learning outcomes, as well as to train teachers to diagnose unfinished learning while providing acceleration support to the students most in need. What is your school doing to achieve equity in distance learning? Let us know in the comment section below!