Schools: Reinforcing Social Hierarchies and Gatekeeping Success

Reflection on Accessibility and Equity

 After a discussion of accessibility and equity in my EC&I 834 class, I sat and pictured the intended learners for my blended course. It was a pretty homogenous picture. All of the staff are middle to upper class members of society who have completed their grade 12 and higher education. None of the staff have disabilities and 90% of the staff benefit from white privilege. This group will be responsible for ensuring that our student body (where 50% of our learners are BIPOC and where 20% of our learners have disabilities or exceptional learning needs) experience equitable outcomes. “I worked hard to get where I am today” and “That’s not how it works in the real world” are common discourses of those with positional power in our school. 

The Bates Chapter on Epistemology and Theories of Learning further highlighted a big issue for me to consider: Schools reinforce social hierarchies and gatekeep success. Students whose truth and skills are not considered valid make up those who do not graduate. Students with disabilities or adverse factors affecting their education do not have educators that understand their position. Students must not only navigate an unjust society, but also navigate an unjust social hierarchy that is perpetuated in school. The judgement of what constitutes success is granted, or withheld, by those who already have a bigger piece of the pie than most. Based on my staff, the gatekeeping worked.

Now, all of this might be a bit obvious, but putting these understandings to words helps me with the instructional design of my course and the needs of my learners. This analysis helps with intentionally planning learning experiences with the intended outcome in mind.

It is also important to note that despite the makeup of the learners, there is still much diversity and individual circumstances which affect accessibility. There are those with long commutes, single parents, and those whose digital literacy is limited. While I call all of the learners “educators”, there are learners who have their Grade 12 education working alongside learners who have their Masters of Education. There are learners in an age range of 20s to their 60s, all with broad and varied roles and experiences.

Applications of New Understandings to my Course Prototype

What do my learners need to know and be able to do: They need to collaborate in person, or in an LMS to plan and work towards learning improvement goals. They need to have common understandings and skills to consider the diverse cultural and ideological makeup of our community and student body.  They need to build new skills to engage and provide equitable experiences for this complex group, and they need to reframe their ideas of positional power and inclusion so that they can work towards building authentic relationships and creating complex change.

Ethical/Social Considerations: Flexible attendance and a variety of ways to engage with the learning are provided so that all learners may participate, despite obligations outside of work, family composition or geographical location. Courses are focused and concise to be mindful of time, so that professional learning does not further increase workload and negatively impact educators’ mental health and wellbeing. In addition, activities and chosen digital apps will be well explained and their application to the classroom will be highlighted.

Issues Related to Accessibility: There is a range of digital literacy, which resulted in the choice of a blended learning experience. Learners may engage in person or online. Learning experiences may be completed asynchronously, or synchronously. There is one professinoal learning activity per month, and these are numbered with expandable tabs in the Google Classroom. Google Classroom was chosen due to staff familiarity with the platform and existing account provided by the school division. Some of these activities may be printed and those who need support accessing the digital tools or videos will have the opportunity for support during the synchronous sessions.

Due to the broad experiences, interests and abilities of staff, multi-media approaches and varied learning modes were selected so that all staff will feel confident in some areas, and will be able to grow in other areas.

Intended Outcomes: In addition to demonstrating reflection, collaboration and action on improving learning and equitable outcomes for students, I also hope to see growth in the digital literacy and digital citizenship of our students and communities. The digital barrier is one more gatekeeper for students and families accessing education in the 21st century. This work must start with educators. A focus on equity and accessibility in my class will be important to model if I hope to see it in their classes and in our communications. I appreciated the opportunity to learn more and reflect on my existing work and design so that I can share new knowledge and resources with my colleagues.