Candidate Name: Ben Watkins Date 1/22/2014

Checking My Systems for E!ity

A teacher who is checking his/her equity systems frequently checks the assumptions he/she is
making of students and their families on the basis of their culture, language, race, and class. He/she
considers how his/her own culture, language, race and class shape these assumptions.
Directions: Check your equity systems using the questions from each of the categories by "!tting a
# $%&!s' in front of !estions yo! reg!&ar&y ask yo!rse&f and a $De&ta' in front of !estions
yo! don(t reg!&ar&y consider) Given the patterns you see, consider goals you can set for yourself to
finetune your equity systems. !n the reflection section at the end e"plain what you would like to do
and why.
*cti+ities and ,eso!rces for -nstr!ction
#hich students in terms of gender, culture, immigration and socioeconomic status can relate
to these activities and this material$
How can ! relate these activities to the e"periences, prior knowledge and goals of all students$
#hat e"amples/illustrations can ! use to connect the key concepts to students% lives$
Nat!re of the .earning /ask
#hat do ! want my students to learn from these tasks$
Have ! introduced a range of tasks to engage the realities of e"periences in the room$
!s the purpose of the task clear and challenging to all students$
!f students are not on task, what are they doing instead$
!s there a pattern in terms of gender, culture, language, background, race, seating
arrangements and or/ status in the classroom among those who are ontask and those who are
not$
St!dent /a&k
#hich students are talking while ! am teaching$
!s there a pattern among those who are talking and among those who appear to be listening$
&e.g. pro"imity to me, relationship to the topic ! am teaching$
#hat are the students talking about$
#hat are some of the times when these same students have been engaged$
#hat are the agreements we have in place for listening to and learning from everyone in the
room who is part of our learning community$
St!dent %artici"ation
#hich individual students are not participating$
#hich groups of students are not participating$
#hat is the nature of the participation ! am e"pecting$
#hat have ! put in place to encourage whole class discussion or to create opportunities for
many voices to be heard during the class &e.g. offering students an opportunity to rehearse their
answers in pairs$'
!s the climate of my classroom accepting of mistakes$ Are mistakes looked upon as
opportunities for learning$
Am ! giving appropriate wait time for different students depending on their need or strength$
How much am ! talking in comparison to the students% talking$
Adapted from Enidlee Consultants
#hat opportunities and support have ! created for students to the lead discussion and ask
some of the questions$
/eacher *ttention
#here do ! seem to direct my questions$
(o ! seem to get answers from the same students most of the time$
#hat is my pro"imity to those students who seem to be engaged and those who do not seem
to be engaged$
(o ! move around the room and make contact with different groups of students in terms of their
seating arrangements, their familiarity with the language of instruction and/or racial
backgrounds$
(o ! address my questions or attention to the students who are not raising their hands$
/eacher /one
#hat words and tone of voice do ! use to e"press my e"pectations of the class$
(o ! begin by threatening, highlighting negative consequences that will ensue if the students
don%t comply with my e"pectations$
(o ! e"press high e"pectations of all students in terms of my knowledge of them as individuals
who are capable of demonstrating their best effort$
(o ! redirect students to the task at hand by finding out what has taken them away from it$
(o ! redirect their attention by reminding them of an instance when they did good work and
made a sincere effort$
(o ! e"press the positive intrinsic outcomes that will be e"perienced through their participation$
/eacher Directions
#hich individual students and which groups are following my directions$ #hich ones are not$
!s there a pattern with either group$
#hat strategies have ! used to ensure that my directions are heard, understood and that the
logic of my directions is clear$
(id ! attract the attention of the whole class before ! began giving directions$
(id ! give directions in both spoken and written form$
(o ! offer opportunities for questions and clarifications after the directions have been given$
(o ! build in opportunities for the students to review the directions with the class so that ! can
see if they are understood and whether or not they reflect my intentions$
(o we have agreements in our class that encourage students to help each other in the spirit of
a learning community$
#hat are the students doing when they are not following directions$
How can ! use this information to change the situation$
When - ref&ect on 0hat - ha+e &earned from ans0ering these !estions ho0 can - fine1t!ne my
e!ity systems tomorro02 &)ype in formfield below or attach typed response to this document.'
)his tool was very helpful in getting me to think about the things that ! am doing to support my specialneeds students%,
and the things that ! need to work on in order to provide a more equitable learning environment for students. )here are
some things that ! can start working on tomorrow when ! am observed for my )C*+ format lesson. ,or my !-+ students !
will be.
/sing +eer 0uddies
Adapted from Enidlee Consultants
Copies of +ower+oints and 1otes ahead of time for students to annotate
+reteach concepts and cues
2ral (elivery of )e"t
-"tended time for completing assignments
-"tra small group practice time
3erbal responses instead of written
(emonstrate rather than describe
+rompt students with correct answers privately before calling on student to respond in class
! noticed that most of these questions seem to pertain to cultural and socioeconomic status, however there are a few
questions scattered in that make me think and take into account !-+%s. 4uckily, our 5+-( rep, Christinia 4emar, helped
me to come up with a )eacher *eflection 5heet of required academic accommodations that should help our students in
need.
Adapted from Enidlee Consultants