CLEARvoz Journal (Center for Leadership, Equity and Research)
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Examining the Role of Poverty in Teacher Grading Decisions
Full text linkPoverty has a significant impact on the education of America’s youth, causing an income achievement gap in American PreK-12 schools. A large amount of research has been done on poverty’s effect on many aspects of schools, but few studies have addressed poverty’s role on student grades. A century of grading research has shown that teacher grading practices are rarely an accurate representation of student academic achievement, but rather a construct of unclear meaning containing both objective and subjective factors. Because these practices are so difficult to understand, several studies have investigated teacher grading decision making to attempt a more analytic assessment of the process that produces these grades. The purpose of this study was to investigate teachers’ grading decisions and the relationship to school poverty level in order to better understand the effectiveness of teacher grades in high-poverty schools. Using a causal-comparative design, the study was set in an urban California school district and used a sample of 251 high school teachers from 17 different high schools. A 35-item survey questionnaire was primarily used to determine the extent to which teachers used 17 different grading practices and were influenced by 13 different grading influences when creating report card grades. Results showed that teachers in low-poverty schools assigned significantly more A’s than in mid- and high-poverty schools, while most grading practices and grading influences were consistent across school poverty levels. A discussion includes an interpretation of results within the context of grading literature, including the importance of four grading influences in high-poverty schools: student success, teacher philosophy, school administrators, and student absenteeism. The study concludes with recommendations for teachers and administrators in high-poverty schools to create and utilize effective report card grades in an effort to address the income achievement gap
California Restorative Justice in Education: Stakeholders Finding Common Ground in Concepts and Practices
Full text linkRestorative Justice in Education (RJE) is a positive alternative to zero tolerance disciplinary policies that can help reduce school suspensions and dropouts, reduce revenue losses, and improve the lives of youth and communities. This article describes work to define core practices in Restorative Justice in Education (RJE) efforts in California to enable practitioners to employ standardized concepts and develop programs whose outcomes can be evaluated. One hundred and seventy-four practitioners and stakeholders attended regional meetings to discuss and prioritize promising practices. These discussions were then analyzed, and the concepts were categorized into core and supportive practices in order to develop agreed-upon working definitions. Codification of concepts enables RJE practitioners and stakeholders to develop standardized practices and further RJE’s role in advancing equity in schools
Whole Child Framework: Supporting Educators in Their Plight toward MTSS and Equity
Full text linkThe Whole Child Framework (WCF) was created to assist educators globally seeking to develop or refine a comprehensive system to meet the needs of all their students through the lens of equity. The WCF is rooted in social ecological model (SEM) and the various interventions approaches to the strategies within this framework are also rooted in empirical evidence from neuroscience, biology, psychology, and educational best practices. The WCF intentionally separates the academic, behavioral, and social-emotional learning (SEL) domains and provides framework in each domain and tier that is rooted in evidence based educational techniques and wellness research. The academic domain is represented upside down on the trapezoid in between the SEL and behavioral pyramids that make up the trapezoid. The purpose is for educators to understand that SEL and behavior systems do not stand alone, and that they both serve as the pillars to completing the ‘whole child’ in education. SEL is considered as the process where students acquire and effectively apply the knowledge, attitudes, and skills critical to understand and manage emotions, as well as the capacity to feel and demonstrate empathy, maintain positive relationships, and make responsible decisions (Colorado Education Initiative, 2014). Generally, factors that hinder student success overlap and are multifaceted. These complex issues raise challenges when attempting to measure exactly how to support students through their academic journey. WCF was developed to help educators have a framework that is evidence based around academic, behavioral, and SEL interventions, since several notions are being presented de novo
Black Teachers: Surrogate Parents and Disciplinarians
Full text linkThis article uses aspects of critical race theory (CRT) to examine the uncommon emotional and psychological and other school-related responsibilities experienced by Black teachers as they discharge their duties as educators. The CRT tenet color blindness explores the degree to which schools fail to acknowledge the color of non-white teachers. The interest convergence principle of CRT critiques how school districts are served by Black teachers serving as school disciplinarians. Intersectionality refers to the discrimination against teachers on the basis of race and another identifiable factor. Despite their best efforts, Black educators are regularly typecast as disciplinarians for Black students. Additionally, Black teachers are charged with serving as veritable parents within educational settings, rendering scores of exceedingly qualified educators willing to serve, but also overburdened and sometimes disillusioned with the additional duties. This writing prompts additional research to further examine this understudied phenomenon
High School Biology in the Age of the Next Generation Science Standards: A Student-Centered Approach
Full text linkThe article describes a biology teacher’s approach to inquiry-based instruction grounded in a sociocultural learning perspective. The course designed by the Biology Teacher includes references to the literature and epistemic practice-based routines and procedures. The urban students in this study integrate the practices to design an investigation to solve a problem with soil quality. Specific details describe the epistemic practices enacted by the students and their responses to the learning experience. The study illustrates how the Biology Teacher used the students’ culture, experiences and knowledge to promote meaningful science practice related to the lives of the students. The study was conducted in an urban environment; however, approaches are conducive to science instruction in all NGSS classrooms
Infusing Neuroscience and Education to Create Equity
Full text linkEducational leaders of today are faced with the responsibility to promote equity within their setting despite the zip code or type of populations they serve. The field of education has the opportunity to significantly impact the academic and behavioral outcomes of students that interface with the system. Bradshaw, Goldweber, Greenberg, and Fishbein, (2012) suggest that transferring knowledge rooted in neurological, cognitive, and emotional regulatory factors in the educational field can lead to effective preventative programs that also support academics. The absence of this type of perspective in the educational field confounds the growth of theory as well as the advancement of educational practices in general (Anderson et al., 2016). Strengthening theoretical practice is what can help educators and politicians alike understand how to best develop enriching experiences for all students in all educational settings (Duckworth & Yeager, 2015). With the explosion of literature in neuroscience and the medical field in referencing how human beings respond to various stimuli and how this stimulus can hinder human beings from learning, it is crucial that educational leaders and policymakers find ways to infuse research from neuroscience into educational practice as well as policy for the sake of equity. This paper attempts to illuminate how the educational field can codify research from neuroscience along with the biology of trauma to help educational leaders and policy makers understand how to work best with underserved populations within school settings to promote equity and a healthier society
Examining Cultural Mental Health Care Barriers Among Latinos
Full text linkThe proliferation of the Latino population in the United States portends the urgency to understand their mental health care needs. It is well documented that Latinos are the largest ethnic minority group in this country, yet Latinos are the least likely to utilize mental health care services. This paper identifies and examines cultural barriers and current practices that may affect mental health care service utilization among Latinos. It presents a discussion and conclusion and implications to enhance cultural sensitivity in education and training for the next generation of mental health care practitioners
The Transformative Nature of Restorative Narrative Justice In Schools
Full text linkRestorative justice (RJ) over the last several decades has had a positive impact on school cultures that have begun to shift from cultures of punishment and exclusion to ones of understanding and compassion. This article provides the tools to continue this transformation through an understanding of how narrative processes when merged with neuroscience help us gain deeper understandings of the effective use of restorative processes. Narrative processes encourage the examination of the whole person and his or her identity. Our lives are lived within a socio, cultural, and gendered setting. Being aware of this context, and recognizing the often problematic nature of educator-student relationships, we need the skills to try to prevent problems from arising, and when they do arise, respond to them with compassion, not react to them with anger. Narrative processes encourage and promote the separation of the problem from the person, and the deconstruction of power dynamics that allow for a more equitable, non-judgmental educational pedagogy to emerge. Neuroscience lends strong scientific support for our compassionate nature
Perceptions of Latina K-12 Leaders' Experiences with Mentorship and Career Advancement
Full text linkThe purpose of the study reported in this article was to explore Latina leaders' perspectives about their mentorship and career advancement in K-12 education. Potential school administrators who are Latina are at particular risk to achieve a position of leadership within the educational setting for a variety of reasons (Méndez-Morse, 2000; 2004; Magdaleno, 2011). This article describes how six Latina leaders within California describe their mentoring and career progression, including their perceived barriers and sources of support from family and other mentors. Implications are presented for purposes of building the capacity of Latina K-12 school leadership in a way that is reflective of the ethnic community they serve
Understanding Leadership within Comprehensive Early Childhood English Learner Reform
Full text linkEnglish Learners represent a significant student population in California, yet schools and districts have persistently been unable to support their learning needs. The current policy setting of new standards that situate language in more prominent and cross cutting manners make this an ideal context to study reform leadership focused on English Learners. This is a critical case study of one district implementing a comprehensive early childhood reform model focused on English Learners. The concepts that frame this inquiry are rooted in the socio-political context, shared-ownership, and the crafting of coherence within reform implementation. Findings indicate that leaders enact implementation by building a coalition while navigating critical socio-political factors. Implications suggest that practitioners, policy makers, and researchers committed to understanding and improving education for English Learners should consider the deeply political nature of school improvement efforts that centralize English Learners’ needs