Educational Leadership: Addressing Social Inequality in Education

This essay delves into the critical issue of social inequality within educational institutions, examining its multifaceted impact on students, teachers, and the broader educational landscape. The paper explores how student differences, institutional racism, teacher and societal biases, and discriminatory practices contribute to low expectations and unfair school policies, including tracking and standardization tests. It investigates the long- and short-term consequences of discrimination, racism, and prejudice on the education field, highlighting structures that limit human potential. Furthermore, the essay provides implications for school reform, addressing the need for improved teacher training, equitable resource allocation, and the elimination of discriminatory practices. The analysis underscores the importance of creating inclusive and equitable learning environments to foster student success and promote social justice.

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Student’s Name
Professor’s Name
Institutional Affiliation
Date

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Introduction
The social inequality issues witnessed at education institutions in many democratic states
should be given more attention. Inequality issues are critical since in determining the outcome of
every school. Every learning institutions is expected to create unity and togetherness for
individuals from different age groups and socioeconomic status. That's why many educational
researchers are focusing on the impact of social inequalities within the learning institutions
(Walton et al., 2014). Therefore, the first objective of this paper is to examine how the complex
interplay differences of students, institutional racism, teacher and societal biases and
discrimination led to low expectations. Secondly, how unfair school practices and policies affect
the nation's schools and learners. Thirdly, the Long and short-term impact of discrimination,
racism, and prejudice for the education field. Fourthly, highlight some of the structures
encountered in daily personal and professional life that limit the potential of human education.
Lastly, provide some of the implications for school reform considering structures, interplay, and
affects addressed in this paper.
How the complex interplay differences of students, institutional racism, teacher and
societal biases, and discrimination led to low expectations.
Sibley & Brabeck (2017) claim that learning institutions present the image of the more
significant part of society. Nevertheless, Institutional racism is more evident in these learning
institutions in almost all democratic countries across the world. Institutional racism incorporates
school practices or policies that disadvantage indigenous students. These practices include
tracking procedures or resource allocation. Racism in learning institutions can be expressed in
various forms like physical and psychological abuse, denial, marginalization, and verbal abuse.

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Institutional racism has dramatically impacted the low expectations, according to recent research
conducted recently. Teachers are likely to support education by meeting the high expectations of
every student. However, racism has negatively impacted these expectations, where some teachers
have undermined the success of many students by holding too low hope for individual students.
For instance, research conducted by (McGee, 2015) has shown how racism is the crucial reason
for the little expectation outcome for Aboriginal students when compared to Non-Aboriginal
individuals. Teachers are required to set higher expectations for all the students through teachers/
student relationship. Achieving the high expectation will be determined by the impact made by
the teachers through appropriate guidance and decision provided to the students. D’hondt,
Eccles, Van & Stevens (2016) noted that students from the Aboriginal communities were over-
represented and discriminated against on specific academic pathways.
How unfair school practices and policies affect the nation's schools and learners
The tracking technique is one of the undemocratic policies leading to low expectations.
Tracking involves placing individual students into various categories that look like similar
capability categories in a given classroom. For instance, the high performing students' category,
low and average categories. This kind of segregation lowers the self-esteem in some students due
to that feeling of discrimination which makes them not to perform as expected (Ford, & King,
2014). The next practice that leads to low expectations is the excessive use of standardization
tests. The test is combined with the tracking technology when placing students in various
categories. However, many teachers or educators do not use the test to improve the expectations
since it’s not one of the best gauges for the teachers. The research conducted by Steenbergen,
Makel & Olszewski-Kubilius (2016), student-tested better with Core State standard used at "Los
Angeles unified school district "when compared to tests that place a student to various groups.

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Some schools also have unfair practices that undermine the expectations of many
students. For instance, various teachers display unfavorable and prejudiced behaviors that affect
the learning of many students from minority groups. Most students that find themselves in this
situation are students from non-English speaking states, and teachers tend to label them as
disabled students or students not interested in learning. Students like Black Americans, American
Indians, and Latinos are also subjected to heavy punishment like corporal punishment, which
makes many of them drop from schools. Researchers have termed this kind of practice unfair
school practice as the "Racial discipline gap." The racial discipline gap is not a fair treatment and
comes as a result of poor communication between the students and teachers (Freeman &
Simonsen, 2015).
Long and short-term impact of the discrimination, racism, and prejudice for the education
field
There are several long and short effects linked to discrimination, racism, and bias for the
education field. These include;
Discrimination may affect the student in their early childhood education and later transform them
in the colleges.
Institutional racism can affect the disadvantaged groups of students, primarily the
indigenous in their elementary level, which could increase the opportunities of unsatisfactory
grading in their coursework. The poor grading practices may affect them to higher educational
levels and cause the students to drop out of school due to discouragement.
Prejudice practices can as well result in short and long-term effects. In the first stages, prejudice
lowers the self-esteem of the student in the class. Later, self-esteem is transferred in future
practices like when seeking a job, applying for bank loans, and housing (Thornicroft et al, 2016).

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The structures encountered in daily personal and professional life that limit the potential of
human education
One of the structures that limit the possibility of social education is the improper
procedures used by school administration in the student placement. Student placement is never
effective since it's associated with racial discrimination by the involved school department.
Secondly, the student undergoes a test that is used to determine where they can be placed. Such
an analysis discourages many students from enrolling during their first days at school (Ford, &
King, 2014).
Secondly, an inappropriate lesson plan. The lesson plan in individual schools does not
favor the learning of students from various ethnic groups, life experiences, age groups, and
cultures. The reduced lesson plan is a critical reason for the high rate of turnover, which has been
experienced in early childhood and primary adulthood education.
The third structure is the funding the innovative programs. Some of the teachers have no
professional skills due to a lack of funds to pay their professional seminars. This issue is
significantly undermining the potential of human education due to the lack of trained teachers
(Archer, DeWitt & Wong, 2014).
The implications for school reform considering structures, interplay, and effects discussed
above
One of the impacts associated with structures, interplay, and effects discussed above is
the lowering of the school's expectations for the performing minority individuals. These minority
later leaves the school to join criminal groups because such groups will fit their profile. Such

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decisions by the minority students are dishearting because some of the structures of the school
are set to punish and admonish them (Thornicroft et al, 2016)). Students from the minority and
low socioeconomic status also have to tolerate and deal with anything that has a less perfect
character like teachers who embrace unfair practices and policies and discrimination form the
stumbling blocks to the training of the teachers on how to deal with a student from indigenous
communities. Discrimination and prejudice have been observed during the allocation of funds
hence a need to establish proper structures that will remedy the financial crisis that continue to
plague many schools within the country (Green & Gooden, 2014).
The next implication is the high attrition experienced in adult learning programs. Most of the
professionals in this field are not well equipped with teaching skills. Thus, the need to attend
seminars that aim to develop professionalism among the teachers. This will solve the issues
experienced during the retention, enrollment, and student placement process (Green & Gooden,
2014).
Lastly, teachers can be put under probation, where personal traits are first examined
before employed. Teachers can also be put into several training workshops while under
probation. These workshops will enable the teachers to comprehend and deal with different
cultures to meet high student expectations.
Conclusion
This paper has been able to examine how the complex interplay differences of students,
institutional racism, teacher and societal biases and discrimination led to low expectations.
Secondly, how unfair school practices and policies have affected the schools and learners within
the nation. The Long and short-term effects associated with discrimination, racism, and prejudice
for the education field. Then the research paper has also highlighted some of the structures

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encountered in daily personal and professional life that limit the potential of human education.
Lastly, the paper has provided implications for school reform considering structures, interplay,
and various effects addressed in this paper.

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References
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