Educational Excellence and Equity / James Knight.

Academic achievement is increasing in schools, but so is the dropout rate. Excellence in schools must be defined more broadly than the scores students earn on achievement tests. Concerns such as equity must be a part of the definition of excellence in education. It is essential that for some programs with disproportionate enrollments, educators must actively work to reduce and eliminate, whenever possible, the barriers that prevent students from entering programs. These barriers exist in the form of discrimination, bias, and stereotyping. It is clear that disproportionate dropout rates occur for minority, handicapped, disadvantaged, and nontraditional students. It is just as clear that the dropout problem is closely associated with student self-image. The concern for excellence in education tends to focus upon student achievement scores, yet the concern of equity is to ensure excellence for all students, regardless of their test scores. The excellence movement cannot achieve its intended purpose unless it responds appropriately to these needs. Ten strategies to achieve educational excellence include: (1) make student feel important; (2) make students feel invited; (3) deal with needed changes in others from a positive point of view; (4) learn to make appropriate nonverbal cues; (5) get to know each student personally; (6) learn to empathize; (7) establish parameters; (8) use student-centered instruction; (9) learn to know and understand the difference between discipline and punishment; and (10) be enthusiastic about teaching. (ABL)

Monograph, v2 n4 Sum 1987. ericd

Teachers. ericd

Practitioners. ericd

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