Equity in education relies on equal access to learning experiences and fair play during those experiences. Too often policy makers, voters and even some educators define equity only in terms of equal access. Equity is less about the same treatment for all and more about holding everyone to the same high standards and high expectations. All…

Discusses the inherent inequalities of the child-care and education system in the United States, in which the middle and upper classes have access to well-funded private and community institutions, while the lower class has to make do with substandard and compensatory programs, such as Head Start, which are often poorly funded. (MDM)

Over the past three years, the Riverside County Office of Education's County Achievement Team, as a recipient of a California Department of Education (CDE) grant, has worked with eight pilot schools and districts in the state to bring about systems change with equitable attention and results for each subgroup. The project, Riverside County…

This paper draws on a four-year longitudinal ESRC funded project examining learning experiences of disabled students in higher education in four universities. The focus here is on institutional responses to the demands of audit culture and legislation in relation to making reasonable adjustments for students with impairments. The data comes from…

Describes an interdisciplinary seminar that addressed the topic of the "digital divide." Presents examples of how different types of classroom instruction--lecture, computer hands-on, reading, small-group discussion, and final paper--were used to highlight technological barriers, educational barriers, logistical and financial barriers,…

In this article, the author discusses the issues concerning selection of educational policy that leans towards educational efficiency or educational equity. The author examines whether it would be necessary to choose between the two and compares the advantages and disadvantages of these policy orientations. The author believes that equity is part…

This discussion of kindergarten education is intended to provide information that educators can use in their efforts to provide equal access to an excellent education for all children. Current and past approaches to kindergarten are delineated in discussions of changes in the nature of schooling, in society, and in the understanding of how…

In August 2000, the American Civil Liberties Union filed a class-action lawsuit on behalf of school children against the state of California. The suit, Williams v. State of California, alleged that the state failed to exercise its constitutional obligation to provide equal access to education for all students in the state by allowing deficient…

Class differences and class warfare have existed since the beginning of western civilization, but the gap in income and wealth between the rich (top 10 percent) and the rest has increased steadily in the last twenty-five years. The U.S. is heading for a financial oligarchy much worse than the aristocratic old world that our Founding Fathers feared…

In Canada over the past two decades many legal disputes have arisen concerning education for children with learning disabilities. Most often these disputes are concerned with equal access for children with disabilities and centre on the notion of appropriate education. Issues concerning equal access to appropriate education have a long history and…

Explains some dimensions of scientific literacy and introduces a framework for contemporary reform. Describes some aspects of the National Science Education Standards including its advocacy for equal access to science education. (19 references) (JRH)

Over the last 50 years, the United States Supreme Court has made several rulings that have had lasting effects on the American public educational system. But no ruling has been more influential than the "Brown v. Board of Education Topeka, Kansas," decision the Court handed down in 1954. 2004 marked the fiftieth anniversary of this…

Changes in affirmative action policies in some states create possibilities for "natural experiments" to observe the effect of public policy on racial and ethnic inequality in American society. This study measured the impact of Initiative 200, a ballot measure that eliminated affirmative action in Washington State, on the transition from…

The Internet, a major component of the information superhighway, has great promise for enhancing the capacity of schools to meet new learning and teaching requirements. In the first part of the video, the following six stories are presented showing students engaged in authentic tasks and collaborative learning with students and professionals…

Outlines the major barriers to independent living faced by disabled persons in communities, and suggests alternatives. Utilizes quantitative data from a survey of 13,000 disabled persons in 319 communities in 10 states and qualitative data from local town meetings and public forums. (FMW)