Transcript Using Student Voice to Foster the Equity Journey:

Voices of Color: Using Student
Voice to Transform Learning
Environments and Achieve
Educational Equity
February 9, 2007
Cheryl Greene, Ed.D.
[email protected]
480-783-1780
I invite you to:
• Listen with an open heart and
mind to the voices of students.
• Engage in “courageous
conversation.”
• Consider how student voice can
foster your equity journey.
“The real voyage of discovery
consists not of seeking new
landscapes
but of seeing through new
eyes.”
-Marcel Proust
Courageous Conversations
To understand the impact of
race on the achievement
gap…we need to engage in
“Courageous Conversations”
in order to deeply examine
the effects of race.
--Glenn E. Singleton
Courageous
Listen with an open heart
and mind.
Conversations
Maximize the power of
conversations to envision
new possibilities and create
a culture of change
The Kyrene Story:
“Academic Excellence”
Kyrene School District
•
•
•
•
Kindergarten – 8th Grade
Located in Phoenix, Tempe, Chandler
6 Middle Schools (Grades 6 – 8 )
19 Elementary (Grades K – 5)
Student Demographics
71% White 13.5% Hispanic
7% Asian
6% African American
1.8% Native American
“Kyrene students excel academically.
Since the 2000 administration of the
Arizona Instrument to Measure
Standards (AIMS), Kyrene students in
grades 3, 5, and 8 have consistently out
performed the state in the percent of the
Meet or Exceeds Category.”
Kyrene School District
A Top Performing District
The Arizona Department of Education provides
each school with a rating based on the state's
school accountability system, Arizona
Learns. Based on 2006 performance:
• All 25 schools met or exceeded state
performance and progress goals
• 19 Kyrene schools, including all 6 middle
schools, received the "Excelling" Rating
• All 25 schools ranked "Excelling" or "Highly
Performing"
Kyrene and Arizona
8th Grade Math AIMS 2003
Mean Standard Score
490
485
480
475
State
470
Kyrene
465
460
455
450
All Students
Kyrene School District
AIMS-Math 2003
Kyrene School District
Falls Far Below and Approaching
8th Grade Math AIMS 2003
Kyrene 8th Grade Math AIMS 2003
District and State Mean Standard Score by Ethnicity
550
Mean Standard Score
525
500
State
475
Kyrene
450
425
400
All
W
A
B
H
Kyrene School District
Challenges and Barriers
• A focus on aggregate v.
disaggregated data.
• Avoidance of courageous
conversations.
• Unwillingness to acknowledge
the racial achievement gap.
Think about the racial and ethnic
diversity within your organization,
school or district.
Consider the achievement of students in
your school or district.
What are your challenges?
Successes?
Reflect on your experiences regarding
educational equity.
Voices of Color
The Power
of Student
Voice to Foster
Courageous
Conversations
Voices of Color
What spoke
to you?
• Stereotypes
• Expectations for Student
Achievement
• Making School Real for Students
• Parental Support of Education
• Finding Your Voice
Student Voice
What are some ways you have
utilized student voice to transform
your organization?
What are some additional ways
you could utilize student voice to
address issues of educational
equity?
Utilizing Student Voice to
Transform Learning Environments
• Race matters! Recognize it!
Embrace it!
• Embark on your own racial
identity/equity journey.
• Respect students’ need for safety.
• Talk less, listen more!
• Seek multiple voices; value
multiple perspectives.
• Co-create/team up with students.
Voice is…
Unique personal significance –
significance that is revealed as
we face our greatest
challenges
and which makes us
equal to them.
--Stephen Covey, “The 8th Habit”
The Kyrene Story Post Script
Core Beliefs that Guide Our
Equity Work:
• Equity is a priority.
• All children can learn (at
high levels).
• A focus on in-school
factors is essential.
The Kyrene Story
Post Script
• New mission and vision
statements: include “all” and
“every” child
• District Equity Team
• School-based Equity Teams
• Moving toward disaggregated
data analysis
Find your voice.
Express your voice.
Help others find theirs.
Together, be the voice
of equity.
“Not everything
that is faced can
be changed, but
nothing can be
changed until it
is faced.”
--James Baldwin