Equity and Research-Practice Partnerships (Poster 1)

• In Event: Centering Equity in Research-Practice Partnerships

Abstract

Research-practice partnerships (RPPs) are a prime example of how long-term collaborative approaches to research can address persistent challenges and systemic inequities in our schools and communities. This poster will present findings from a recent national landscape analysis of partnerships, focusing specifically on how the goals pursued varied with regard to equity.

An RPP’s equity orientation first matters because it animates the partnership’s work. An RPP’s conception(s) of equity is likely to inform which partners are at the table. Second, it likely influences the partnership goals, such as whether partners focus on “given” system outcomes—or propose outcomes valued by stakeholders whose voices typically are not at the table when goals for improving education are set. Third, the equity orientation likely shapes whether the RPP foregrounds systemic processes as primary or secondary targets of change. Further, the degree to which equity is a central frame for RPPs also can vary. Some may center their work around an equity agenda and explicit goals for equitable outcomes or systems change. Others may seek to support similar types of goals but do so without framing their work in terms of reducing inequities.

The RPP leaders we interviewed conceived the equity in their work in multiple ways, which likely reflects the diversity of understandings of equity in the broader environment (Philip & Azevedo, 2017; Henrick et al., 2019). For some, conceptions of equity centered on the outcomes their partnerships sought to achieve. The goal of some RPPs is to understand persistent differences in outcomes for various ethnic groups or socioeconomic levels (Allensworth, 2015; Booth, Oyer, et al., 2015; Durham et al., 2015). After identifying a disparity in outcomes, an RPP might seek to address the inequity through changes in educational practice, new or revised policy, or adoption of an intervention. Progress can be measured by closing gaps or raising overall outcome levels. Other RPPs focus intently on the ways in which equity is present and reflected in the processes of their work together, that is, through distributed decision-making and joint authority for research activities. Still other RPPs described their equity goals in terms of addressing the systems that contribute to or reproduce inequality. These RPPs explicitly focus on attending to the historical, political, social, and economic systems that (re)produce social injustice related to race, income, language and immigration status, disability status, and gender and sexual identity, among other injustices (e.g., Anyon et al., 2018; Leonardi & Staley, 2018; Campano et al., 2016).

Characterizing the field in this way provides a frame for current and would-be RPP participants to consider the affordances and constraints of each unique approach to partnership work. Prospective partners can use the ideas shared to inform how, why, and with whom they may organize an RPP, while existing RPPs may draw on the ideas when planning and implementing next steps. For funders and policymakers, these ideas can help clarify what RPPs are and offer first-hand insights on their potential to transform outcomes for students, communities, and educators.

Authors

• Caitlin Farrell, University of Colorado - Boulder
  Presenting Author

• William R. Penuel, University of Colorado - Boulder
  Presenting Author