Cultivating Equity Literacy in Schools and Communities: Stories to Redefine School Quality

This book draws on research in community‑based literacy, geospatial literacy, family literacy, and ethnography to examine the complex dynamics of school choice and decision‑making, and the role literacy plays in advancing equity in schools and communities. Cultivating Equity Literacy in Schools and Communities begins by introducing the topics and intersections of school equity, advocacy, and place‑based literacy, and by describing the unique methodology of Multigenerational Collaborative Ethnography used in this book to understand schools’ material, social, and reputational change over time. Chapter 3 examines case studies of elementary schools across the Hillsdale Public Schools (HPS) district, highlighting two schools at opposite ends of the socioeconomic spectrum. The following five chapters present perspectives and counterstories from families, educators, and children about school choice in their communities, demonstrating how literacy—for children, families, and educators—is an essential tool for navigating school decision‑making processes. Finally, this volume reflects on how we can and should define a ‘good’ school through ethnographic understandings of the counterstories discussed. This book will be beneficial reading for scholars and advanced students of Literacy, Sociology of Education, and Social Justice Education, as well as those interested in school choice and decision‑making, community‑based research, qualitative research methods, and education policy.