Equality vs Equity

There is the common picture everyone uses to help show the difference between equity and equality; the one with the two people watching an event but being obstructed by a fence. I think it is an excellent way to showcase the difference between the two terms. 

Equality is treating everyone the same no matter the circumstance. Equity is giving people what they need in order to succeed, even if that means giving certain people a little bit more or less. Treating everyone the same is not good enough. 

This plays into an equitable learning environment. To me, this means treating your students with equity but also teaching more than what is required by the curriculum. If certain students need extra help, then you give them extra help. You should, however, be careful about not drawing too much attention to that student. Some people are embarrassed about needing extra help. An equitable learning environment also includes teaching more than what is in the curriculum. Some things need to be talked about more in the classroom than other things because there are many topics that have not been discussed in the past and they need to be brought up.