“Why Are We Making It Easier?” Negotiating Competing Logics of Rigor and Equity in Policy for English Learner Reclassification

• In Event: Supporting English Learner, Immigrant, and Undocumented Students

Abstract

Academic rigor and equity are often framed as competing priorities in educational policy discussions. In this paper, we examine how district and school staff across an eight-district research-practice partnership negotiate calls for rigor and equity in changing criteria for English proficiency reclassification. Using an institutional logics frame, we find that district staff used logics of equity and access, validity, and data to counter school staff's objections to lowering reclassification criteria for multilingual learners. We argue that district staff's strategic deployment of these logics gained the appearance of legitimacy for reforms, which facilitated implementation. These findings illuminate how competing logics and claims to legitimacy can help or hinder reform and highlight the key role of district staff in enacting equity-focused reform.

Authors

• Sebastian Castrechini, Stanford University

• Laurel Sipes, Stanford University