(This is the final post in a multipart series that began last month. You can see Part One , Part Two , Part Three . and Part Four .)
Today鈥檚 question is:
What will our schools like look in the fall (or What should they look like)?
Dr. PJ Caposey, a district superintendent, shared his thoughts in .
In , Lorie Barber, Cathleen Beachboard, Manuel Rustin, and Jeffrey Garrett offered their responses (Manuel and Jeffrey鈥檚 comments were presented via video from their must-watch video series ).
In , Sarah Said and Holly Spinelli described how they saw the future.
In , Wendi Pillars, Mary K. Tedrow, Dr. Elvis Epps, and Mike Anderson contribute their commentaries.
Today, David E. DeMatthews and Terri N. Watson offer their thoughts.
You might also be interested in as well as .
鈥淩eimagine education鈥�
David E. DeMatthews is an associate professor in the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy at the University of Texas at Austin. Previously, he has worked with urban districts as a high school teacher, middle school administrator, and district administrator.
Terri N. Watson is an associate professor in the Department of Leadership and Human Development at the City College of New York. She will spend the 2020-21 academic year as a Distinguished Visiting Scholar at the University at Buffalo鈥檚 Center for Diversity Innovation.
The COVID-19 pandemic has schools working to safely reopen, which we believe is a fool鈥檚 errand considering the rising rates of community transmission and the likelihood that many schools will quickly reclose as students, educators, and staff get sick. The time and resources spent preparing, opening, and reclosing schools could be better spent rethinking how public education operates in districts across the nation.
The modern public school district was established partly to assimilate large populations of immigrant children and to prepare children for their place in the economy according to their social class. Today, schools remain relatively the same, and educational inequities have been solidified in schooling, including curriculum, instruction, assessment, and school-community engagement.
As education researchers and former public school teachers, we implore the states and districts across the country to take this once-in-a-lifetime moment as an opportunity to reimagine education and address some of public education鈥檚 most pressing equity issues.
Racial and economic segregation is one of the nation鈥檚 most pressing equity issues. As some affluent parents are likely to exacerbate education inequities with the creation of districts have an opportunity to integrate educational experiences via online platforms.
Policymakers have an immediate chance to desegregate schools or at least provide new opportunities for students from diverse backgrounds to engage across schools.
Large districts can create inclusive and desegregated online classrooms where students from across the district can learn together and from each other. For example, under these conditions, geographic boundaries would not constrain a 2nd grader in the South Bronx from being educated with a child living on the Upper Eastside. Online learning also creates an opportunity for students with disabilities who are bused out of their neighborhood school to now be included with their community peers.
Another pressing equity issue is related to testing and the persistent opportunity gaps that manifest as unequal student outcomes between low-income students of color and their white affluent peers. Testing in the 2020-21 school year would have limited efficacy given that many of the nation鈥檚 100,000 teachers and 50 million students will be disrupted by COVID-19. Testing data could not be used to make decisions, even at the aggregate level.
Instead of investing time and resources into a testing regime that has not improved educational outcomes, state policymakers, district administrators, and principals can rethink curriculum, instructional practices, and testing. Virtual planning sessions can include educators, families, students, and community-based organizations that have a stake in what students learn and how they should be assessed. Researchers have found that authentic curriculum that is rooted in the lived experiences of students and communities can help close opportunity gaps currently disguised as achievement gaps.
A third critical equity issue involves building authentic and meaningful family and community engagement. Researchers consistently highlight how important families and communities are to school improvement and educational outcomes, yet many large districts struggle to include low-income families and communities of color. As schools remain physically closed, nonteaching school personnel can actively work to connect and build relationships with families and their respective communities.
Virtual school improvement processes can include families and community-based organizations in critical decisions about curriculum, instruction, assessment, and supporting the diverse needs of students. Online forums can raise family and community voices and allow educators to request support.
We offer these recommendations to states and districts across the nation, but we would be remiss not to acknowledge that this work will be difficult, taxing, and likely to confront challenges, because we are for transformation of public education. Yet, in the last 100 years, there has never been a time like now.
Inequities and achievement gaps have persisted despite decades of so-called reforms that are based on testing and competition. Right now, affluent families are building private learning pods that hoard resources and further advantage their children over the children of less affluent families. Future budget cuts due to a substantially shrinking tax base will only add to educational inequities if policymakers and leaders do not act.
Now is the time to reimagine public education, desegregate schools, and authentically engage educators and families in decisionmaking processes. If we are honest and we really believe that public education is about making every child matter, then these are steps we must take immediately.
Thanks to David and Teri for their contributions!
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