Building Equity

Imagine a school with a diverse student body where every student feels safe and valued, and all students—regardless of race, culture, home language, sexual orientation, gender identity, academic history, and individual challenges—have the opportunity to succeed with challenging classes, projects, and activities. In this school, teachers notice and meet students’ individual instructional needs and foster a harmonious and supportive environment, and students feel empowered to learn, grow, and pursue their dreams.

In this symposium, we focus on the School Equity Taxonomy, a new model to clarify the structural and interpersonal components of an equitable and excellent schooling experience, and the School Equity Audit, a survey-based tool to help school and teacher leaders uncover equity-related issues and organize their efforts to better address

· Physical integration.
· Social and emotional engagement.
· Opportunity to learn.
· Instructional excellence.
· Engaged and inspired learners.

This virtual symposium will use real-life examples to highlight the many opportunities for building equity within the K-12 academic curriculum. In this unique environment, participants will have the chance to interact with the authors directly via a live stream, while processing their learning in virtual break-out rooms with professional facilitators from their region of Michigan.

Participants will
· Examine the five levels of the equity taxonomy.
· Assess various classroom instructional routines for their usefulness in delivering on the promise of equity.
· Examine aspects of their classroom or school that need attention and develop an action plan.