In Democracy in America, Alexis de Tocqueville suggests that the central tensions in a democracy are between liberty and democracy and freedom and equality. In these times, this tension is mainfested in education around issues concerning equality and excellence. Though "equality" and "equity" are not precisely the same, many of the current debates in education revolve around the question of whether we can have equity AND excellence in our public school system. This issue is central to arguments about single-gender schools, inclusion for special needs children, "gifted programs", bilingual education, Afro-centric schools, school choice, privatization of public schools, bond levies, magnet schools, automatic promotion, "mastery" programs, pay-to-play sports programs . . .

To help you to begin to prepare yourselves to address these issues as professionals, we have designed four options for investigating questions related to equity and excellence in public schools. Please read the following options carefully and select the one that feels most comfortable and inviting to you. Please do not select an option that you think you SHOULD choose simply because it would be a good thing to do. Rather, select the option that appeals to you the most.

OPTION 1

RESOURCES:

* Videos on reserve in the library,

* Children’s books that address what it’s like to be poor,

* Articles in Section 2 of the course "Anthology",

* Books by Jonathan Kozol, Robert Coles, Herbert Kohl, Carolyn Persell,

* Professional journals and newspapers.

You could check the reserve shelf in the TESC library, consult with the children’s librarian at Olympia Timberland Library, and consult with Sara Pederson or Karyn Cline about using references in TESC library.
 

TASKS: The resources you have availabe will provide you with a sense of what it feels like in a democratic society for schools and for children who are "poor".

Using the recommended resources:

a. Write a journal entry, before you begin your research, that explores your current understanding of "equity" and "excellence" in relation to public schooling.

b. View video tapes, and read children’s books, newspapers, current journals, articles in the anthology and books of your choice related to the topic. Write regularly in your field journal about what you’re finding out.

c. Discuss in small groups what you learned from these sources, what was most meaningful to you and why, and how what you learned affected your understanding of equity and excellence in the public schools.

d. Reflect in writing about what you think schools or communities as a whole could do to address inequities that exist.

e. Choose a way to share with other program members your realizations about the impact these inequities have on students and your insights about how to address the inequities. You might do this through writing a short story or poem, creating posters, or leading a small discussion group of program members who are in other research groups. You need to decide with your group how you will share your findings with the whole program.
 
 

OPTION 2

RESOURCES:

* Washinton Administrative Code,

* Sara Pedersen in the TESC library,

* Data from the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction,

* Meetings and minutes from school boards,

* Various school district superintendents’ offices,

* Documents from the State Legislature,

* Offices of the Washington Education Association,

* World Wide Web,

* Platform statements of candidates for Superintendent of Public Instruction.
 

TASKS: Using the resources listed above:

a. Attend school board meetings or site council meetings if this would be helpful.

b. View , Bill Moyer's Children in America

c. Contact appropriate organizations and individuals or use appropriate library or computer sources to gather documents and information about school funding and how the State of Washington allocates money to schools.

d. Discuss what you discovered in small groups and work together to
 

1. list major sources of funding for public schools in the State of Washington,

2. create a chart that illustrates what percentage of school funding is from local, state and federal sources,

3. create a format to display differences in per pupil expenditure in selected districts with high, medium, and low income residents,

4. develop information packets for other program members about the information you have learned, and,

5. decide how to present your charts to the whole program.

e. Write a brief individual paper about the relationship, if any, of school funding to equity and excellence in public schools.
 
 

OPTION 3

RESOURCES:

* Sara Pedersen in the TESC library,

* Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction,

* Commission on Student Learning and the "Essential Learnings"

* School boards,

* Governor’s ethnic commissions and other special interest commissions,

* Washington Round Table reports,

* Documents from the State Legislature,

* Offices of the Washington Education Association,

* World Wide Web,

* Platform statements of candidates for Superintendent of Public Instruction,

* Local newspaper articles and editorials on vouchers, charter scools, home-schooling, etc.,

* TESC faculty with backgrounds in history and political economy,

* Culture Wars,

* Professional education journals.
 

TASKS: Using the resources above:

a. Define, in your journal, vouchers, charter schools, church sponsored schools, home-schooling and public schools. Then articulate the underlying social and economic assumptions of each.

b. In small groups, identify some of the equity and excellence arguments made by the proponents and opponents of each of these types of schooling. Can you have excellence and equity in schools in a democracy?

c. Write a brief position paper on your conclusions about which of these alternatives, if any, is more likely to produce both excellence and equity in a democracy. Plan how to share your conclusions with the program.
 
 

OPTION 4

RESOURCES:

Teachers, staff members, administrators, community members, relatives, school board members, various commission members, politicians, and resources on reserve in the TESC library.
 
 

TASKS:

a. Questions about excellence, equality, and equity are at the center of many current debates about education. Given the time you have for this assignment, make a plan individually or with other members of your group to talk to people about their issues and concerns about equity, equality, and excellence in the public schools. This could involve talking with teachers, community members, politicians, commissions, educational assistants, administrators, and folks walking past you in the mall, on campus, or in your town. You need to talk with people from a variety of categories and school settings.

b. You could watch the videos on reserve and read materials available in addition to talking with people.

c. After some time of exploration, conversations, reading, and journaling, create ways to report what you learned from the people you talked with.

d. Write a brief individual paper and create a supporting demonstration (slide show, video, dance, story telling, skit, oral interpretation, art exhibit...?) that demonstrates a variety of other people’s perspectives on the question of equity, equality, and excellence in the public schools.