Because everyone from policymakers to classroom teachers has a role in achieving greater equity for children from poverty, this book provides a sweeping chronicle of the historical turning points—judicial, legislative, and regulatory—on the road to greater equity, as background to the situation today. It provides succinct policy recommendations for states and districts, as well as practical curricular and instructional strategies for districts, schools, and teachers. This comprehensive approach—from the statehouse to the classroom—for providing children who come to school from impoverished environments with the education in which they thrive, not merely one that is comparable to others, truly enlists everyone in the quest for opportunity and performance. The next step toward equity may be taken by a governor, but it may also be taken by a teacher. One need not wait for the other. Press Relaease Redding, S. (Ed.). (2021). Opportunity and performance: Equity for children from poverty. Information Age. Copyright: Academic Development Institute • historical and legislative background for understanding current situation • analysis of poverty’s impact on learning from multiple perspectives • likely effects of COVID pandemic on learning and what to do about it • proximal (classroom) and distal (system) levers for change • actionable steps for teachers, schools, districts, states • what can be done to disrupt poverty’s impact on learning, "right here, right now” • disproportionately positive effects (DPEs) of high-impact strategies • goalposts for measurement of progress by schools, districts, states • glossary of terms and discussion prompts Last year, 2021, saw a host of books and articles addressing aspects of “equity,” some mounting the bandwagon of advocacy and some arguing what the term itself actually means. But where were the clear-eyed analyses and practical solutions for educators? After more than a year of focused attention to equity by five education scholars, their book, Opportunity & Performance, entered this stream of publications. The team is associated with the Academic Development Institute and their collaboration was supported by the National Comprehensive Center. This book is unique and distinct from others in several ways. First, the authors agreed early on to put boundaries around a topic that could otherwise run loose with ambiguity. As they were all educators, the book would focus on equity in education. As equity could be viewed from the perspective of a variety of groups that seek it—racial and ethnic groups, children with disabilities, and English learners prominent among them—the team of authors chose to devote the book to the one historically underserved group that most pervasively suffers in terms of academic achievement and that includes the other groups. That group is children from poverty. The five authors are not only researchers, their careers bristle with experience in schools and agencies that work with schools. From different disciplinary fields within education, they have all created and implemented strategies to improve learning and to measure that improvement. The authors were determined to logically and persuasively link their conclusions from the research on poverty, on learning, and on the nexus of the two. They wanted the book to be useful. They sought a respectful tone that would encourage common ground and constructive action to open doors of opportunity and achieve greater learning for students from impoverished environments. The book’s authors and external advisors brought to the work a diversity of professional background and expertise on historically underserved students, children from poverty, effective instruction, systems change, and methods for evaluating progress. Equity of opportunity: Each student—despite family income, race, ethnicity, gender, language, or disability—has the opportunity to attend schools, access courses and programs, and be taught by teachers that meet standards of quality on a par with schools attended by their peers. Equity of performance: The schools, courses, programs, and teachers that serve students from historically underserved groups reorient their curriculum, instruction, and support services to ameliorate disadvantages these students may disproportionately bear, optimizing learning results for these students. The Book's Authors Linda Cavazos, Ph.D., is a researcher and technical assistance provider with more than 25 years of experience in education supporting the needs of culturally and linguistically diverse learners and directing projects in the areas of equity, diversity, inclusion, literacy, and cultural and linguistic competence, responsiveness, and sustainability. Allison Layland, Ph.D., is the Chief Education Strategist for the Academic Development Institute (ADI) with projects in several regional centers. She has con¬sulted with 11 state education agencies on effective implementation of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and has more than 20 years of teaching and leadership experience in general and special education at the school, district, and state levels. Sam Redding, Ed.D., is Chief Learning Scientist and a consultant to three regional centers. Dr. Redding also served as the Associate Director of the Center on School Turnaround (WestEd) and as Senior Learning Specialist for the Center on Innovations in Learning (Temple University), and Director of the Center on Innovation & Improvement. As a Senior Research Associate at the Laboratory for Student Success, he headed the Lab’s research and implementation of comprehensive school reform. Janet S. Twyman, Ph.D., BCBA, LBA, Dr. Twyman is a consultant for the Academic Development Institute. Throughout her career as a preschool and elementary teacher, school principal and administrator, university professor, instructional designer, distance learning architect, and educational consultant, Dr. Twyman has been a proponent of effective learning tech¬nologies that produce individual and system change. She has presented to and worked with education systems, organizations, and institutions in over 50 states and countries, including speaking about technologies for diverse learners and settings at the United Nations. Bi Vuong, MPA, is the Managing Director, Education Practice with Project Evident. Before joining Project Evident, Bi was the Director of Proving Ground at the Center for Education Policy Research at Harvard University. She also launched the National Center for Rural Education Research Network. Prior to Proving Ground, she served as the Deputy Chief Financial Officer for the School District of Philadelphia. Bi serves as a consultant for the Academic Development Institute with project assignments for several regional centers. The Book’s External Advisors Patricia Edwards, Ph.D. is professor of language and literacy at Michigan State University, a member of the Reading Hall of Fame, with research and publications on multicultural literacy, parent involvement, and related topics, especially among poor and minority children. Sheneka Williams, Ph.D. is professor and chairperson of the Department of Educational Administration at Michigan State University with a outstanding body of research on educational opportunity for African American students. T. V. (Joe) Layng, Ph.D. is a behavioral scientist with a distinguished career in research and practice, advancing learning through effective instruction for diverse students; Dr. Layng’s work focuses on the integration of technology with instructional design and systemic behavior interventions. Contact: Dr. Sam Redding at [email protected]

This Elgar Introduction provides an overview of some of the key theories that inform human resource management and employment relations as a field of study.

Explore why some schools are making more progress than others, so you can focus on what works and build the capacity of high-performance, high-poverty schools.

Employee Apathy is ContagiousMost of us have experienced this first hand...Think back to a team you were apart of that performed well. Each person on the team knew the standard, and put in effort to meet it.Everything was going well, until someone new joined the team...This person half-assed everything they did - and got away with it for the most part.As the weeks go on, a few of your teammates start submitting lower and lower quality work. Without warning, the new standard has become the lowest you can get away with... You're no longer asking 'what can I do better', but 'what can I get away with?'When one employee doesn't care, other employees stop caring. What was once a sufficiently performing team, now barely functions... Instead trying to go above and beyond for the customer, employees start putting in the bare-minimum amount of effort - and sometimes less. It's almost as if they're trying to see what they can get away with. And the worst part is, your customers pay the price. Underperforming Employees Hurt Your TeamIt's okay to admit it. We've all been there.We show up to work, and realize we'll be working closely with Janet.Our shoulders slouch and we instantly get a headache... Somehow Janet has the ability to make an already long day, twice as long...We'll have to do most of the work, because she barely puts any effort in. Yet you know she'll be complaining about the project afterwords...All Great Businesses Deserve A Fight ChanceThe survival of a great idea or business shouldn't hinge on the employees motivation. A great business deserves a chance to stand on its own, regardless of whether or not it has the highest performing employees.What are your employees ACTUALLY costing you? According to the Bureau Of Labor Statistic, the average turnover-rate for small businesses is 45%. And the Center for American Progress reports that replacing a single minimum-wage employee costs over $2,000. That's an extra $1,000 per employee, per year. Of the employees that stay, 67% of them are chronically underperforming - directly effecting your sales and customer experience... This cost alone averages around $8,000 for every minimum wage employee.The average $20,000 Employee Costs You nearly $30,000. Your employees are burning your cash, but what can you do? You can't afford to keep them, but you can't afford to fire them...I suggest that (in most cases) the employees are not the problem. The system is.

Because everyone from policymakers to classroom teachers has a role in achieving greater equity for children from poverty, this book provides a sweeping chronicle of the historical turning points-judicial, legislative, and regulatory-on the road to greater equity, as background to the situation today. It provides succinct policy recommendations for states and districts, as well as practical curricular and instructional strategies for districts, schools, and teachers. This comprehensive approach-from the statehouse to the classroom-for providing children who come to school from impoverished environments with the education in which they thrive, not merely one that is comparable to others, truly enlists everyone in the quest for opportunity and performance. The next step toward equity may be taken by a governor, but it may also be taken by a teacher. One need not wait for the other.