Journal 3

Villa, R.  Restructuring for caring and effective education:  The possible futures of education.  Summer Leadership Institute.  July 17, 2008.

To commence the Summer Leadership Institute, Rich Villa gave an inspiring keynote address.  The presentation began by highlighting the elitist, inequitable history of education, a system that has long been excluding people based on gender, race, and socioeconomic status.  Among the people excluded from the educational world are persons with disabilities.  According to Villa, the concept of a "disability" is a social construct.  As a society, we create standards for excellence and people who are unable to meet those standards are arbitrarily branded "disabled."  Once given this label of a disability, people perceived as different are marginalized in our society.  Students with disabilities are sent to separate rooms, placed in separate programs, given separate teachers; these students are isolated in a system that supposedly outlawed segregation decades ago with Brown v. the Board of Education.

In order to remedy this practice of segregation and generate social justice in our schools, Villa proposed reform centered on "equalence" in education.  Equalence is based on the coexistence of excellence-based education and education equity.  The goal is to strike a balance in our schools.  On one hand, excellence should be valued to promote motivation and achievement in our students.  On the other hand, equity must be made a priority through the inclusion of all students.  Students with disabilities, who may not meet socially defined standards of excellence, must be provided the opportunity to participate in the educational community.  Equalence allows achievement without abandoning social justice.

Is inclusive education a civil rights issue?

Yes.  Despite decades of reform movements, segregation is still present in our schools.  Student in special education who are denied access to the general education classroom are victims of segregation.  Separate is not equal.  Furthermore, our current practices over identify students from ethnic minorities and low socioeconomic status for special education, recreating discriminatory practices of decades past.

How can teachers find a balance between excellence and equity?

The key to achieving "equalence" is to keep standards high while allowing for individual differences.  Students in special education generally do not need "easier" work; instead they need the same curriculum presented in a different way.  Teachers must be sensitive to differences in learning styles and needs and differentiate their instruction to suit their students.