Study Cites Problems of Equity in Education at San Diego Schools

A study of equity in San Diego city schools shows that, while teachers and administrators say they support the idea of equal access to challenging and high-quality courses for all, students assigned to slow tracks rarely move into faster tracks.

The study, prepared by the evaluation department of the city school system, also found confusion about the meaning of equity, variations in course curriculum, and in some cases unnecessary prerequisites.

“Practices relating to equity seem to be affected by inertia and by doing things as they have traditionally been done,” reads the report, released Tuesday. “Good intentions sometimes lead to practices . . . which hinder rather than promote equity in student placement.”

Equity, by the school board’s definition, is “equal access to the highest degree of quality education for all students.” That is, students should be admitted to courses if they meet established criteria for enrollment and should not be kept out for other reasons.

The board commissioned the study while discussing integration last year. At the time, the board hoped to eliminate tracking practices that hurt students, while encouraging “grouping practices” that legitimately serve those with special needs.

Tracking--placing students in classes based on perceived ability--is widely believed by teachers and administrators to improve learning and make teaching easier. But research suggests that it hurts students in slow tracks and does not help those in middle and fast tracks, the study said.

In San Diego, the study found that most administrators and faculty support the idea of equity and believe that it will not mean watering down the curriculum, eliminating remedial or advanced classes, or discipline problems.

However, members of minority groups believed more strongly than others in the idea of equity. While 88% of the minority members polled said equity would not lead to a watered-down curriculum, only 51% of the rest agreed, the study said.

It also found that students tend to remain in the academic track to which they are assigned. It found no reported case in which a student moved from a lower to a higher track in math, though students moved in the opposite direction.

High-track classes differ from low-track classes in the intensity of student involvement, the fast pace and cooperation between students and teachers, the report said. Course content, materials and quality of instruction also differ.

Finally, the study concluded that teachers are tracked--to the detriment of students. Inexperienced teachers are assigned to the lowest track of a course--that is, to the students with the greatest need for instruction, the report said.