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30 Jan 2015
Longform Essay

Opening the Doors to Opportunity for All: Setting a Research Agenda for the Future

Select Series Essays From the AIR Research Roundtable on Equity and Opportunity in Education

In 2014, the Equity Project at AIR hosted its first Research Roundtable. There, some of the nation’s top educational researchers drafted a research agenda addressing some of the long-term challenges facing American public schools educating students from low-income and minority families. Leaving micro-reforms to others, we asked tough questions that researchers could answer for those working to make public education as the gateway to opportunity for all.

What research priorities emerged?  They ranged from finding new ways to measure civic engagement to studying districts that are models of equity and access to opportunity. From this abundance of research ideas, six key research principles emerged: 

  • Promote diversity within the context of common high standards.
  • Deepen public understanding that there is clear evidence that education dramatically improves the life prospects of the poor, near poor, and the working poor.
  • Get the word out that student engagement and opportunities to learn are the right of all students.
  • Frankly acknowledge the power of social structure when proposing new avenues for equity research.
  • Make it clear to all that the social safety net is not about charity; it is about building an educational system and economy that provides opportunity for everyone.
  • Ensure that the research showing that college-going high school cultures raise the aspirations of low-income and minority students informs educational policy-making.

The essays in this Select Series collection reflect some of the voices at the Roundtable. The Select Series is primarily intended for researchers, policymakers, and educators. Each volume of the Select Series will feature authors who participated in an Equity Project Roundtable. Although there is a general theme for each volume, authors are encouraged to write about what they care most and channel their words from the depths of their own research and thinking.

PDF icon Opening the Doors to Opportunity for All: Setting a Research Agenda for the Future

Related Projects

Project

The Equity Project

Educational opportunity is a cherished part of the American story of upward mobility and social justice. The Equity Project at AIR is committed to building an inclusive and vibrant future through education.

Related Work

15 Apr 2014
Video

Equity Project Research Roundtable

On April 30, 2014, AIR in Washington, D.C., hosted 28 top scholars in educational equity for the first Equity Research Roundtable.

Topic: 
Education, Equity in Education
6 Jun 2014
Blog Post

Cookson,_Peter_3.jpg

Image of Peter Cookson

Opening the Doors to Opportunity for All

In this blog post, Peter Cookson outlines the goals of the Equity Project, dedicated to uncovering the structural limitations inherent in the current structure of schools and demonstrating through research that there are realistic alternatives that will open the doors of opportunity for all.
Topic: 
Education

Further Reading

  • Equity Project Research Roundtable
  • Opening the Doors to Opportunity for All
  • Can Higher Education Save Its Soul?
  • Creating Opportunities for Young Men of Color
  • Five Big Ideas from the Equity Project Research Roundtable
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Topic

Education
Equity in Education

RESEARCH. EVALUATION. APPLICATION. IMPACT.

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