Using Socioeconomic Status for School Integration

Using Socioeconomic Status for School Integration – Podcast Episode 172 | Classnotes Podcast 172

Classnotes Podcast (May 30, 2017) There is no doubt that diverse classrooms have significant benefits for students both socially and academically, while segregated learning settings are not just benign but detrimental to students and their communities. School integration, then, is critical. Regrettably, many schools across the country have re-segregated along racial and ethnic lines. David Hinojosa, J.D., director of the federally-funded IDRA EAC-South, discusses how some school districts in the South have turned to using students’ socioeconomic backgrounds to help integrate schools.

David is interviewed by Hector Bojorquez, associate director of the IDRA EAC-South.

Show length: 13:59

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Resources

Using Socioeconomic Indicators as a Tool for School Diversity and Integration
by David Hinojosa, J.D., and Erica Frankenberg, Ed.D., IDRA Newsletter, April 2017
http://www.idra.org/resource-center/using-socioeconomic-indicators-tool-school-diversity-integration/

A New Wave of School Integration: Districts and Charters Pursuing Socioeconomic Diversity
by H. Potter & K. Quick, E. Davies, 2016
https://tcf.org/content/report/a-new-wave-of-school-integration/

The Complementary Benefits of Racial and Socioeconomic Diversity in Schools
by J. Ayscue & E. Frankenberg, G. Seigel-Hawley, March 2017, National Coalition on School Diversity
http://school-diversity.org/pdf/DiversityResearchBriefNo10.pdf

The Problem We All Live With, This American Life
“Right now, all sorts of people are trying to rethink and reinvent education, to get poor minority kids performing as well as white kids. But there’s one thing nobody tries anymore, despite lots of evidence that it works: desegregation. Nikole Hannah-Jones looks at a district that, not long ago, accidentally launched a desegregation program.”
https://www.thisamericanlife.org/radio-archives/episode/562/the-problem-we-all-live-with

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Show Notes

David opens by giving a brief history of school desegregation in the US, and then the resegregation we’ve experienced in more recent years.

David explains why school leaders are now using students’ and families’ socioeconomic statuses (SES), rather than race, to help push new integration efforts. He also touches on the many benefits of integrated schools, including higher student achievement and increased critical thinking skills.

David considers how districts can better distribute financial and personnel resources, as well as other emerging tools and best practices, to build greater integration into their schools.

David also warns against certain SES approaches, such as the former “freedom of choice” models, that can lead to stigmatizing students.

David talks about the importance of school districts collaborating with their communities when exploring and designing integration models.

David shares some resources that school districts can turn to, including a forthcoming IDRA framework, when researching and developing SES integration programs.

David discusses how districts can self-identify the need to desegregate.

Resource Center