Pursuing Equitable Education and Learning Systems: The Promise of Continuous Improvement and Design Methods

• In Event: Systems Change for Equity: Insights from Design, Network, and Continuous Improvement Approaches

Abstract

This proposal responds to the call for research that supports “futuring for education and education research.” We argue that advancing educational transformation requires change that is (1) fundamental—at the level of core habits and assumptions; (2) systemic—across central offices and ultimately all schools (3) and equitable—centering the knowledge, experiences, opportunities, and outcomes of historically marginalized groups. We use this conceptual framework to inform a systematic review of four specific “continuous improvement” and “design” methods that have been used across the globe as strategies for helping educators and leaders work toward creating equitable education and learning systems. We review the distinct affordances of each method for fundamental, systemic, or equity-focused change and discuss implications for scholars and leaders.

Authors

• Maxwell Yurkofsky, Radford University

• Meredith I. Honig, University of Washington

• Noy Sabag, University of Washington

• Jal David Mehta, Harvard University