This volume offers a critical examination of educational policy in Ontario, Canada, and critiques the success of such policies in ensuring diversity and equity of access in teacher hiring.Providing comprehensive coverage of historical marginalization in the Canadian education system, the book explains the rationale and objectives of policies enacted with the aim of ensuring "bias-free", or "colourblind" hiring. Drawing on qualitative data to illustrate how educators’ lived experiences often sit at odds with the inclusivity that such policies claim to achieve, the book presents the "Equity Hiring Toolkit" as a practical framework enabling educational administrators to recognize how unconscious biases and relative positions of power can implicate hiring decisions. This text will benefit researchers, doctoral students, and academics in the fields of teacher education, educational policy, and multicultural education more broadly. Those interested in the school leadership and management, as well as race and ethnic studies will also enjoy this volume.
Zuhra E. Abawi is an Assistant Professor of Education at Niagara University, Ontario.
Foreword by Ann E. LopezChapter 1: Introduction: Situating Myself in my WorkChapter 2: Historical and Contemporary Racial Inequity in the Ontario Education SystemChapter 3: Policies of Teacher Diversity: The Myth of Bias-Free HiringChapter 4: Challenging the Myth of Bias-Free Hiring through Qualitative Research with Teachers Chapter 5: Teacher Experiences and the Effectiveness of Equity and Inclusive Education Policy in Relation to Hiring Chapter 6: Social Location and Identity Construction in Teacher Hiring Applications Chapter 7: Looking Forward to Enhance Equitable Teacher Hiring: The Equity Hiring Toolkit Chapter 8: Conclusion