Chapter 8: Equity Labs—Can They Increase Teacher and Leader Effectiveness?

In schools across our country, parents like Monica have children with similar inequities: inexperienced, out-of-field, and ineffective teachers and leaders (Garcia & Weiss, 2019). In the Parent’s Dilemma scenario, there are multiple equity issues in Ricky and Mia’s urban elementary school. One of the first issues is the school’s leadership. Dr. Smith, the school principal, was new and appeared overwhelmed. As a new and inexperienced leader, she may struggle to manage the multiple tasks associated with effectively leading a school, have limited knowledge of her role, and lack the confidence that comes with experience. The Assistant Principal (AP), the disciplinarian of the school for 26 years, is likely ineffective, evidenced by the absence of student respect, organizational skills, and lack of career advancement.