We examine how district administrators' conceptions of equity relate to the implementation of finance reform. We use sensemaking theory and four views of equity-libertarian, liberal, democratic liberal, and transformative-to guide a case study of two districts, finding evidence of two conceptions of equity: (1) greater resources for students with greater needs and (2) equal distribution of resources for all students. One district demonstrated an organization-wide belief in the first conception, whereas the other conveyed individual-level understandings of both conceptions. These beliefs were mirrored in resource allocation decisions and informed by districts' student demographics, organizational identities, and perceptions of adequacy.Although state and federal policies have made progress toward goals of equity and adequacy in K-12 education (Odden and Picus 2014), students from traditionally marginalized backgrounds continue to have limited access to
Purpose
There is a growing consensus in education that schools can and should attend to students’ social-emotional development. Emerging research and popular texts indicate that students’ mindsets, beliefs, dispositions, emotions and behaviors can advance outcomes, such as college readiness, career success, mental health and relationships. Despite this growing awareness, many districts and schools are still struggling to implement strategies that develop students’ social-emotional skills. The purpose of this paper is to fill this gap by examining the social-emotional learning (SEL) practices in ten middle schools with strong student-reported data on SEL outcomes, particularly for African American and Latinx students.
Design/methodology/approach
Case study methods, including interviews, observations and document analysis, were employed.
Findings
The authors identify six categories of common SEL practices: strategies that promote positive school climate and relationships, supporting positive behavior, use of elective courses and extracurricular activities, SEL-specific classroom practices and curricula, personnel strategies and measurement and data use. Absence of a common definition of SEL and lack of alignment among SEL practices were two challenges cited by respondents.
Originality/value
This is the first study to analyze SEL practices in outlier schools, with a focus on successful practices with schools that have a majority of African American and/or Latinx students.
In recent years, some U.S. school districts have shifted away from direct management of schools, toward systems in which some or all schools operate under enhanced autonomy, accountability, and parental choice. Yet dynamics driving these changes are understudied, and there are few comparative studies of system-level governance shifts. To address these gaps, we use extensive qualitative data to analyze change in Los Angeles, Denver, and New Orleans. Drawing on evolutionary theories, we find that external crises, state policy, and new actors triggered change, yet distinct contexts and change processes resulted in markedly different systems. Finally, in all three cities, concerns that emerging systems exacerbated long-standing inequities indicate that governance change is both an organizational and highly contentious political process.
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