Equitable Education: Maintaining Fairness and Inclusivity in Higher Learning Institutions - Essay Sample

Introduction

A conceptual framework defined by the OECD indicates the institutional impact of equity in higher learning institutions, especially at the district level as the macro impact. The institutional impact of equity in institutions of higher learning can be understood in two different dimensions, including fairness and inclusivity of students. Maintaining equity at the institutional level ensures that the students meet the minimum level of skills. Equitable education promotes fairness which consequently supports all students in meeting their potential levels without necessarily having to informally or formally pre-set different barriers that may result in a reduction of their expectations.

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Promoting equity at the institutional level can consequently result in a reduction in the broader social and economic inequalities. In a learning context, equity ensures all parties involved in education take full advantage of training within their respective institutions without necessarily considering their backgrounds. Based on fairness within the institutional level, the background may sometimes serve as a barrier towards the performance (Widiputera et al., 2017). Such students include the ones affected by the low socio-economic status or even those from a first or second-generation immigrant background. The boys still have a higher likelihood of recording lower performances.

However, the two-dimension of equity in higher learning institutions have a higher likelihood of overlapping. The disadvantaged students are affected by a higher risk of recording lower performance compared to the more advantaged peers in the same institution. For example, a study conducted by PISA shows that a student from a less privileged background is 2.37 times more likely to score low grades compared to their counterparts coming from the affluent families (Goldstein Hode & Meisenbach, 2017). As part of maintaining equity in higher education at the district level, the education systems need to ensure there are equitable educational outcomes among all the students.

The idea that equity is based on the student's shortcomings has started to get superseded by the idea of higher learning institutions failure. Student's failure is today understood as a deficient of education mainly by the extension of school systems. While addressing the equity issue, higher education encourages schools to provide education that is based on the needs of its students. In schools where failure is highly recorded, then it shows there are higher incidences of inequality, and the vice versa is true. Therefore, reorienting the education systems towards ensuring there is equity is necessary while addressing the students failures.

Meso Impact

Equity in the education system is mostly focused on equalizing access to education at the school level, grade level and by the social groups. While maintaining equity at the group level, it is important to use different holistic and integrated approaches. Implementation of such approaches can result in making higher learning institutions truly egalitarian institutions. Equity promotes the belief that different group levels should be equal in the education system regardless of their diverse live conditions. Equity focuses on ensuring all group levels acquire equal prospects for a good life in higher education but not trying to make inequalities fairer.

Equity in higher education institutions is mostly associated with promoting higher productivity levels and maintaining a higher output growth. However, investing in maintain equality among higher education facilities may lead to variations in the social traditions in different group levels. Different nations experience the challenge of raising the necessary resources that promote equality in the education system (Griffin, Cunningham & George Mwangi, 2016). Most higher education institutions experience the challenge of tax revenues, especially at times when they are working hard at ensuring they acquire the necessary resources to ensure equity in different groups. However, combating social exclusion may cause pressure in the higher learning institutions, especially when trying to maintain equality in different group levels.

Higher education systems continue to appear successful in the 21st century in meeting equity in different group levels as part of meeting their social needs. Such equality results in the provision of new kinds of education and training among the different group levels. Different researchers have continued to increase the intensity of significance of their research activities of promoting equity among the higher education institutions which has consequently promoted better public knowledge about the importance of equality (Squire et al., 2018). In other nations, equity among the different social groups results in the provision of education relevant to the demands of their working lives.

Expansion of higher education enrolment has consequently resulted in equity among the different group levels. Provided with the simultaneous increase in the returns to higher education, equity among the different group levels in higher education continues to widen. The responsibility of higher education institutions towards maintaining equality in the different group levels has greatly contributed to doing away with the different inequalities existing in the education system. Such forms inequalities that have been done away with include the ones introduced during either primary or secondary schooling and revealed by the Programme on International Student Assessment (PISA).

Micro Impact

Although equity may add value to the society as a general, it still has different impacts towards a personal level. Therefore, equity helps in maintaining an equal representation of the teachers and administrators in the education sector hence eliminating any possibilities of race discriminations and any race relation discriminations that may be widespread within the educational institutions. Equity within the education system ensures that teachers are posted to different schools without considering their racial backgrounds (Goldberg Smith & Beemyn, 2019). Equity ensures that teachers are promoted based on their competence but not based on their racial backgrounds.

Equity in the education system provides the teachers with an opportunity of participating in different educational programs regardless of their race. However, racial concerns may vary from one country to another. However, they all work towards eliminating any possibilities of racial discrimination in the education system. The US Department of Education provided a declaration of a national urgency in ensuring there are equity and excellence in higher education once and for all. Such historic blueprint can be considered as a dream of promoting equity and ensuring there are world-class education standards provided by all teachers in the country.

The struggle for ensuring there is equity in the education sector helps in maintain formal access to education. Equality of the excellent educational outcomes contributes a significant part in the history of education as its mainly connected to the history of different parties connect to education (Rhoads, 2016). Different countries initially experienced educational outcomes that were part of the history of education. Such equalities experienced by such countries contributed to the positive social history of the people connected to the education system. Different nations have implemented different approaches that assist in maintaining equity in the education system, where teachers forming the minority groups are not discriminated.

Higher education plays a significant role in making proper preparation to the students before entering the employment market and active citizenship. Such active citizenship is based on both national and international levels. Through the process of encouraging equity in their teaching and learning, students are provided with different experiences and values. Ensuring there is gender equity among the different students in higher education is an underlying problem that continues to affect growth and prosperity for women. Equity helps in minimizing harassment incidences and promoting freedom for all students while at the same time, ensuring there are enough opportunities for all students regardless of their gender and race.

Implications for Students Impacted

Different obstacles exist that prevent female students from receiving the quality education they deserve. The discrimination of females in education is based on gender roles and gender-based violence. Socialization of gender roles in many countries continues to affect females to access adequate education (Baker, 2018). Mostly, the females are usually socialized based on their gender roles once the parents realize the child's gender identity. Nevertheless, with the increased civilization in different nations, girls have continued to access equal education.

The group of students is significant because it remains to be at a higher risk of being attacked in different nations. Such attacks can mainly take place since many people in the countries do not believe women have a right to accessing education. Different countries continue to record harassments against females (Booker, Merriweather & Campbell-Whatley, 2016). The group is still significant because it is greatly separated from their men counterparts in the job market. Young female students face double discrimination, particularly in higher education intuitions. The education policies targeting young women in education facilities need to be restored as a way of promoting balance.

References

Baker, C. A. (2018). The education bridge: A longitudinal analysis of the ACT 101 programs' effectiveness on student success. Journal of Access, Retention, and Inclusion in Higher Education, 1 (Fall), 1-16. Retrieved from https://www.wcupa.edu/universityCollege/asp/documents/ADP%20Journal-2018-First%2 0Edition-corrected.pdf

Booker, K. C., Merriweather, L., & Campbell-Whatley, G. (2016). The effects of diversity training on faculty and student's classroom experiences. International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 10 (1), 1-7. doi: https://doi.org/10.20429/ijsotl.2016.100103

Goldberg, A. E., Smith, J. Z., & Beemyn, G. (2019). Trans activism and advocacy among transgender students in higher education: A mixed-methods study. Journal of Diversity in Higher Education. https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2019-28913-001

Goldstein Hode, M., & Meisenbach, R. J. (2017). Reproducing whiteness through diversity: A critical discourse analysis of the pro-affirmative-action amicus briefs in the Fisher case. Journal of Diversity in Higher Education, 10(2), 162. https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2016-04485-001

Griffin, K. A., Cunningham, E. L., & George Mwangi, C. A. (2016). Defining diversity: Ethnic differences in Black students’ perceptions of racial climate. Journal of Diversity in Higher Education, 9(1), 34. https://psycnet.apa.org/journals/dhe/9/1/34/

Rhoads, R. A. (2016). Student activism, diversity, and the struggle for a just society. Journal of Diversity in Higher Education, 9(3), 189. https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2016-40688-001

Squire, D. D., Kelly, B. T., Jourian, T. J., Byrd, A. M., Manzano, L. J., & Bumbry, M. (2018). A critical race feminist analysis of men of color matriculating into a higher education doctoral program. Journal of Diversity in Higher Education, 11(1), 16. https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2016-26500-001

Widiputera, F., De Witte, K., Groot, W., & van den Brink, H. (2017). Measuring Diversity in Higher Education Institutions: A Review of Literature and Empirical Approaches. IAFOR Jo...