Using Equity Audits in the Classroom to Reach and Teach All Students

Raise your equity awareness quotient In this time of changing demographics and increased diversity, many teachers find that existing strategies to promote equity are only successful with some of the students in their classes. This book provides teachers with new strategies and tools that will work for all children, including those with diverse needs. The authors outline a wide range of methods to help teachers: Assess their competency in teaching all students Embrace self-reflection and be open to change Evaluate and assess student achievement Develop high-quality teaching skills and an equity consciousness that leads to success with all students Every chapter of this easy-to-read and content-rich text contains a wealth of assessment tools and discussion tools that guide educators to greater equity and excellence. Teachers will find practical strategies for raising student achievement and closing the achievement gap.

Table of Contents:
Foreword Acknowledgments About the Authors 1. Introduction A Brief Overview of Our Work on Equity Audits Previews of Chapters 2-9 Chapter Conclusion Section I. Conceptual and Historical Frameworks 2. Equitable and Excellent Teaching Equity Consciousness Preassessment Equity Consciousness Defined Research on Equity Consciousness Research on High-Quality Teaching Skills Chapter Conclusion Discussion Questions and Activities 3. Qualities of Equitable and Excellent Classrooms An Example of an Equitable and Excellent School: Tice Elementary Classroom Equity Assessment Chapter Conclusion Discussion Questions and Activities 4. Auditing for Equity and Excellence Equity Audits in International Settings Equity Audits in U.S. Education Refining Equity Audits Into a Usable Tool Chapter Conclusion Discussion Questions and Activities Section II. Equity Auditing in the Classroom 5. Auditing for Teaching and Learning Active Cognitive Engagement What Our Critics Might Say Zone of Self-Efficacy An Auditing Tool: Teaching and Learning Tours Chapter Conclusion Discussion Questions and Activities 6. Auditing for Discipline Research on Discipline Reasons for Discipline Disproportionality Auditing Tools for Examining Classroom Disciplinary Practices Chapter Conclusion Discussion Questions and Activities 7. Auditing for Parental Involvement What Research Says About Parental Involvement Classroom Parental Involvement Inventory Chapter Conclusion Discussion Questions and Activities 8. Auditing for Programmatic Equity Advanced Placement Gifted and Talented Programs Special Education Chapter Conclusion Discussion Questions and Activities 9. Conclusion References Index

About the Author :
Kathryn Bell McKenzie is professor emerita of Advanced Studies in Education at California State University, Stanislaus and associate professor emerita of Educational Administration and Human Resource Development at Texas A&M University. At California State, Kathryn was director of the EdD program in Educational Leadership and at Texas A&M, she was coordinator for the PhD in K–12 Educational Leadership.Prior to becoming a professor,Kathryn was a public school educator serving as a teacher, curriculum specialist, assistant principal,and principal for nearly twenty-five years. She was also the deputy director of the Austin Independent School District Leadership Academy. She has an international reputation with both P–12 and university educators who have used her work on equity traps and equity audits to improve educational practices that advance equity and excellence. She has numerous journal publications and books and is an educational consultant,writer, and speaker. Linda Skrla is Professor of Educational Administration at Texas A&M University. Prior to joining the Texas A&M faculty in 1997, Linda worked as a middle school and high school teacher and as a campus and district administrator in public schools. Her research focuses on educational equity issues in school leadership, including accountability policy, high success school districts, and women superintendents. Linda is Vice President of Division A of the American Educational Research Association (AERA) and Editor of Educational Administration Quarterly. She has published extensively in academic journals and has co-authored and co-edited five other books, the most recent of which is Using Equity Audits to Create Equitable and Excellent Schools (Corwin Press, 2009).

Review :
"Equity audits are critical to improving the services we provide in today′s diverse classroom. It is crucial that teachers and administrators see the inequities in the system and establish the protocols necessary to level the field."  “It is essential, but woefully insufficient, to desire excellence and equity. We need detailed, evidence-based, practical maps and guides.  This powerful, useful book will chart our path beyond current inequities toward the assurance of quality teaching and learning for all.”