NGSA Educational Equity 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A student with dyslexia is allowed extra time on a test. Other students who do not have dyslexia are not given extra time. Is this equitable?
- No, because all students should get extra time
- Yes, because the accommodation removes a barrier caused by the student's disability (Correct answer)
- No, because it gives the student an unfair advantage
- Yes, because all tests should be untimed
Correct answer: Yes, because the accommodation removes a barrier caused by the student's disability
Providing extra time to a student with dyslexia is an equity measure that removes a disadvantage caused by their disability, not an unfair advantage.
Question 2: Research shows that students of color are disproportionately suspended from school compared to white students for similar behavior. This is an example of:
- Educational equity in action
- Disciplinary inequity (Correct answer)
- A fair school policy
- Random statistical variation
Correct answer: Disciplinary inequity
When students from certain groups receive harsher punishments than peers for similar behavior, it is called disciplinary inequity.
Question 3: A school introduces a program to mentor first-generation college students — those whose parents did not attend college. What gap does this program aim to address?
- The sports participation gap
- The information and support gap for students without college-educated parents at home (Correct answer)
- The teacher hiring gap
- The transportation gap
Correct answer: The information and support gap for students without college-educated parents at home
First-generation college students often lack guidance about the college process that students with college-educated parents receive at home, so mentoring programs help close this gap.
Question 4: Why is access to advanced courses like AP or Honors classes an equity issue?
- These courses are only available in private schools
- Not all students have equal access to rigorous coursework, limiting some students' opportunities (Correct answer)
- Advanced courses are only for college students
- All schools are required to offer the same number of AP courses
Correct answer: Not all students have equal access to rigorous coursework, limiting some students' opportunities
When only some schools or student groups can access advanced coursework, it creates unequal preparation for higher education and careers.
Question 5: The 'school-to-prison pipeline' refers to which of the following?
- A program that teaches law in schools
- Trends where school discipline policies push students, especially marginalized youth, toward the criminal justice system (Correct answer)
- A career pathway for students interested in criminal justice
- A transportation route between schools and courthouses
Correct answer: Trends where school discipline policies push students, especially marginalized youth, toward the criminal justice system
The school-to-prison pipeline describes how harsh discipline, often applied unequally, can push students out of school and into contact with the justice system.
Question 6: Which of the following is an example of a 'hidden curriculum' that may affect educational equity?
- A science textbook chapter
- Unwritten expectations about behavior and communication styles that favor students from certain cultural backgrounds (Correct answer)
- A math worksheet
- A school lunch menu
Correct answer: Unwritten expectations about behavior and communication styles that favor students from certain cultural backgrounds
The hidden curriculum includes implicit norms and expectations that students from certain backgrounds may not know, creating unequal experiences in school.
Question 7: A district offers free before- and after-school tutoring only at schools in wealthier neighborhoods. What equity problem does this create?
- Students in wealthier schools get more academic support than students who may need it more (Correct answer)
- It creates a scheduling conflict
- It reduces the school day for poorer students
- It is not an equity problem because tutoring is optional
Correct answer: Students in wealthier schools get more academic support than students who may need it more
Placing additional academic resources in already well-resourced schools widens the gap between students rather than reducing it.
NGSA Educational Equity 3
A student with dyslexia is allowed extra time on a test.
Other students who do not have dyslexia are not given extra time.
Is this equitable?