EQUITY AUDIT 1

Equity Audit: Cluster Springs Elementary

Stephanie L. Watts

Virginia Commonwealth University

Cluster Springs is a rural elementary school located in the southern part of Halifax County Virginia, serving students Kindergarten through fifth grades. With a total student enrollment of 560 students, Cluster Springs is comprised of 395 white students, 147 black students and 18 Hispanic students according to the most current data. Cluster Springs is also home to 56 students with special needs, 63 students who are identified as gifted and only 8 of the Hispanic students are served through the English Language Learners program.Other factors affecting the student population identify the average daily attendance at 95.78% with a 12.48% mobility rate as well as the free and reduced lunch percentage, which is 51%. Cluster Springs continues to be identified as a Title 1 school.

Educational Equity

During the summer of 2014, Cluster Springs was identified as a school in Focus. An extraordinary label, considering the school met its state accreditation for reading, math, science and social studies. The Focus label was achieved due to the low performance of Gap Group 2 in the area of math. Gap Group 2, black students, scored in the bottom 10% for the state of Virginia. This achievement gap was identified through SOL scores and became the focus for teachers, students, administrators and district administration.

Professional development including data disaggregation, math instruction, Virginia Tiered System of Support (VTSS), increasing student engagement, remediation and intervention strategies began immediately. Data became the most powerful tool in moving toward eliminating the achievement gap in math for black students at Cluster Springs.

Programmatic Equity

Instructional settings provide students with access to a variety of programs designed to meet students’ unique needs. For the purpose of this audit, four areas were selected in order to identify potential inequities within the school. Special education, gifted and talented education, bilingual education and student discipline are areas of importance in analyzing educational inequity. According to Skrla, McKenzie and Scheurich (2009), “It is our attitudes, assumptions, and practices that produce the data we see in these areas, and those things are all within our control and can be changed” (p.46).

Special Education

Traditionally, black students and those who are identified as low socio-economic status fill classrooms designated as special education. In Cluster Springs, there are 56 students qualifying for special education services. For the purpose of this audit, students receiving only speech and language were not included. Of the 56 students receiving special education services, 39 males were identified leaving only 17 females requiring services. Students identified as low socio-economic numbered 82% of the total population of special education.

Figure 1. A comparison of the total percentage of the subgroup within the schoolas it relates to the actual percentage of the subgroup within special education.

The school divisionhired and assigned lead special education teachers to each school within the division in 2013. This position was created in order to address the rising numbers of child study referrals, which was identified as an area of concern over the course of the most recent federal audit. The role of the lead special education teachers was to actively assist teachers during the child study process in seeking and utilizing classroom strategies while meeting the needs of instructional differentiation. Most of the strategies utilized have addressed areas of concern and reduced the need to refer students to child study. Using a variety of strategies along with professional development, teachers are more confident in presenting curriculum that appeals to learners from all modalities: visual, auditory, kinesthetic and tactile.

Figure 1 reflects a proportionately dispersed population of the three subgroups present at Cluster Springs. It appears the efforts of the lead teachers, special education teachers as well as the general education teachers are appropriately addressing students’ academic needs.

Gifted and Talented Education

Sixty-three students at Cluster Springs participate in the Exceptionally Gifted Program (EGP). Once a week students from each grade level attend EGP from 8:30 – 3:00. The students are required to complete any missed daily assignments at home in addition to their assigned homework. Projects are given, completed and presented as the main portion of the EGP coursework. These students utilize computers during their sessions and attend additional field trips during the school year. Students identified as low socio-economic status comprise only 38% of the population in this particular program.

It appears that the Hispanic population is accurately represented in the gifted and talented program. Blacks are underrepresented in this area of education, as whites are overrepresented.

The 10% discrepancy for blacks and whites, as shown in Figure 2, between the overall student

Figure 2. A comparison of the total percentage of the subgroup within the schoolas it relates to the actual percentage of the subgroup within the gifted and talented program.

population as compared to the population identified as gifted and talented is noteworthy for the school to consider as a future area of concern.

Bilingual Education/English Language Learners

This area of programmatic equity is of most concern for Cluster Springs. The numbers of students are low in proportion to other areas, but appear to be the most rapidly changing. The most significant factor for this population is in teacher quality. In the last 3 years, this group of students has had two very different teachers. Both teachers were certified by the state, however are not able to speak Spanish fluently. Hispanic students span from first to fifth grades with varying ability in the English language as well as with limited ability in speaking their own native language.

Parents of these students are most concerned about the quality of education their children

are receiving. Most of these families continue to speak Spanish in the home while the students

are immersed in English at school.

Of the 18 students identified as Hispanic, only 8 receive English Language Learner (ELL) services. The ELL teacher visits Cluster Springs one day each week. The small amount of time she spends with these students is a point of continued concern for the students and their families.

Student Discipline

According to Skrla, McKenzie and Scheurich (2009), discipline is a critically important area to consider although it appears somewhat out of place when compared to English Language Learners, gifted, and special education. The main reason discipline should be considered has more to do with students having equal access to education. Students with chronic behavior may be removed from their classrooms and school as their behavior dictates.

Ninety-nine discipline referrals were handled in the office by the principal and associate principal this past academic year. This number appears to be low considering there were 560 students. Teachers at Cluster Springs take pride in taking care of small discipline problems. This year a new discipline plan was initiated in which students were given think time in another classroom for minor discipline infractions. Students were given a form to carry with them to a same grade classroom. Once an appropriate amount of time was spent thinking about their actions, they would return to class and present the form to their teacher. Higher-level offenses were sent to the office for the principals to address. A deliberate increase in parent contacts were also part of an overall school SMART goal. Teachers and principals set goals and doubled the amount of contacts made to parents in an effort toward enlisting parents’ assistance in reducing discipline infractions as well as in an effort to create positive school-to-home communication.

Most of the discipline referrals addressed in the office, 86%, involved males leaving 14%

Figure 3. A comparison of the total percentage of the subgroup within the schoolas it relates to the actual percentage of the subgroups receiving discipline referrals.

of the referrals with females. White males accounted for 54% of the referrals, 41% were cases involving black males, which left only 4% of the incidents occurring with Hispanic males. Female incidents mainly resonated around black females with an overwhelming 75% of all cases. White females accounted for the remaining 25%. No Hispanic females were addressed in the office for discipline infractions. Students identified as low socio-economic status were attributed with 71% of the total discipline incidents.

Inequity Identified

The most critical problem of inequity at Cluster Springs lies within the area of discipline. There was a significant disproportionality between the black population and discipline percentages. The inverse was true for white students in that there were a significantly lower percentage of discipline referrals than the total population. Males, overall, appear to have more discipline referrals than females. More white males had referrals however black males were disproportionately higher with discipline referrals according to the overall student population.

This year steps were taken at Cluster Springs in order to keep students in the same grade classrooms for both think time as well as in-school suspension. This effort was taken as principals found it important to keep students exposed to on-grade-level instruction as much as possible asa measure to reduce the amount of academic time lost as discipline was dispensed. In only a few of the cases, out-of-school suspension was deemed necessary according to the level of discipline in which the infraction had occurred.According to preliminary SOL data, Gap Group 2, black students, met the Annual Measurable Objective (AMO) outright. Last year Gap Group 2 scored 34.17%, placing this group in the bottom 10% for the state. This year Gap Group 2 scored 67.78%, which exceeded the 62% target set for Virginia for this specific subgroup. The principals felt the change in discipline placement was a positive factor as test scores increased for Gap Group 2.

Cluster Springs’ principals also worked closely with the teachers of special education. One chronic offender, who was also a Gap Group 2 student, was becoming a daily offender both on the bus and in the classroom. In order to reduce consequencesthat would need to be dispensed for inappropriate behaviors in an effort to keep him in school, he was placed on special transportation in lieu of suspending him off the bus. His Individual Education Plan (IEP) was also amendedto increase the amount of time spent in the special education classroom. Most of his chronic behavior occurred in the general education classroom setting.He was able to receive more instruction and experience an increase in academic success.

The principals worked with other special education teachers in identifying other students who needed more or less time as a direct result of academic and discipline data. Communication

was key in addressing student’s needs in all areas of student success.

Equitable Leadership Action

Cluster Springs is not unlike most schools as teachers and administrators have historically avoided the topic of race. After the announcement was made in regards to the Focus status associated with the school, teachers immediately made excuses about students’ home lives as the main culprit for the achievement gap. Discussions about family, neighborhoods and genetics began as further evidence of low academic performance. What more could teachers analyze?

Cluster Springs Action Plan

Marshall and Oliva (2010) recommend an application of equity audit findings as schools move forward in making necessary changes towards reducing achievement gaps. They identify the following steps in order to create a positive change in addressing areas of inequity.

  1. Create a community of relevant stakeholders. Assemble a school leadership team of influential teachers and parents who serve on the Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) to discuss site-based processes, assist in planning as well as decision-making processes in an effort to collaborate in work focused on equity.
  2. Present the data to the committee and have everyone graph the data.Teacher quality would be in the forefront of this discussion. Experience, education, mobility and certification are important factors relevant to the success of specific populations of students. Teachers need to be placed with the students with which they can affect the greatest level of achievement. Principals must place teachers, the most obvious resource in the school, in the areas that will benefit the school the most. Teachers often resist changing grade levels. Conversations must take place that explain the reason behind the necessary moves. The needs of the student should outweigh the discomfort of the teachers.
  3. Discuss the meaning of the data and possible inclusion of experts, which should be led by a facilitator.Teachers from other divisions who have experienced success in reducing teacher quality gaps should be sought out and brought in as experts to discuss issues of racism.These experts must use positive talk in an effort to avoid becoming derailed in discussing difficult issues.
  4. Discuss potential solutions and possible inclusion of experts, which should also again be led by a facilitator. The expert would continue to guide the team toward possible solutions. An open discussion and positive facilitator assists in identifying strengths and weaknesses on the path toward positive change.
  5. Implement solution(s). The leadership team needs to present their plan to the faculty and create the necessary buy-in as the school moves forward. Building an environment of trust between the leadership team and the faculty is crucial. Open, honest dialogue, willingness to share data, as well as answering any relevant questions assists in overcoming feelings of hesitation and resistance.
  6. Monitor and evaluate results. Resistance to change will remain by some faculty members, however the data will speak for itself. If the desired outcome is not achieved, the principals need to be the first to admit this point and move forward as another strategy is identified as a potential solution.
  7. Celebrate if successful; if not successful, return to step 3 and repeat the process.

Additional Professional Development Needed

Skrla, McKenzie and Scheurich (2009) offer a plan in the process of changing teacher’s mindsets in relation to achieving equity. Steps A through D would further encourage a positive change at Cluster Springs that would sustain the effort toward reducing the gaps identified from present and future equity audits. These steps should run concurrent with the above steps, one through seven, and be considered additional professional development.

  1. Develop teachers’ equity consciousness. The first step for Cluster Springs was in making positive parent contacts a school-wide SMART goal this past year. This practice needs to continue. Professional development needs to occur on the topic of social justice through a guided book study, shared reading of professional journal articles or incorporation of interactive media. The faculty needs to begin uncomfortable conversations as they acknowledge the elephant in the room and begin to address the needs of all students. Videotaping lessons and having teachers reflect on their own practices is a most beneficial activity. This should be utilized especially with teachers who ask for assistance on a specific area of need or require it as part of a performance improvement plan to assist teachers who exhibit no equity consciousness. Blaming the students, families and culture for students’ lack of success is a practice that needs to be discouraged. Reframing these statements and getting to the root of the lack of academic success for some students should be encouraged. This can be done through caring principal-teacher relationships. A kind word and skilled mentor-teacher modeling respect and cultural responsiveness may be the subtle nod teachers need to move away from deficit thinking (Skrla, McKenzie & Scheurich, 2009).
  2. Develop high-quality teaching skills. As teachers develop high-quality teaching skills, discipline problems may just fade away. Students who are authentically engaged in instruction have significantly less time to get into trouble.Skrla, McKenzie and Scheurich (2009) identify nine skills that teachers have and use everyday as they ensure the success of every child:
  • Using consistent and reliable classroom procedures and routines.
  • Clearly communicating expectations for learning.
  • Stimulating students with high-level and complex tasks.
  • Ensuring students are actively, cognitively engaged.
  • Extending student learning through teacher-to-student and student-to-student discussion.
  • Frequently assessing individual student learning.
  • Differentiating instruction to meet individual student needs and capitalize on individual assets.
  • Using an asset model to respond to students’ varying cultures.
  • Demonstrating respect and care in all interactions with all students and students’ families.

Teaching and learning tours continue to assist in developing these nine skills. Similar to peer observations, these tours offer teachers a specific protocol for teachers to look-for during their visits.

Peer observations began at Cluster Springs last year. Teachers enjoyed getting to watch other teachers in action. Teaching has long been the profession associated with stealing smart. Most great ideas are often found while visiting other teacher’s classrooms. Peer observations should continue and become more frequent as principals prioritize their importance. This practice needs to become part of the school culture, scheduled throughout the year and consistently done according to Skrla, McKenzie and Scheurich (2009).

Each month, beginning in August, one of the nine skills should be the focus of instruction and topic for discussion. A brief description of the focus skill should be shared with the faculty. Creating a discussion thread, would provide a safe venue to reflect out loud with colleagues and create the perfect forum for uncomfortable conversations to begin and continue throughout the equity learning process. Strategies could be shared and questions asked in a safe environment that is most conducive to learning.