Examining Educator Expectations and Equitable Learning Opportunities

Educators incorporate information from various sources as they form their academic expectations for students. The student record of prior achievement is the most salient factor that educators use to form their expectations for children’s achievement. Research on the factors that influence educator expectations has primarily focused on the ways teachers assimilate various pieces of information about students. More recently, there is an interest in moving away from this perspective and focusing more on teacher factors that may influence these differing expectations. The purpose of this research is to explore the factors that contribute to the formation of educator expectations in full-day play-based Kindergarten in Ontario. This study examines reports from Early Childhood Educators (ECEs) and teachers on their teaching beliefs, roles, teaching practices, and interactions that support students in meeting curriculum expectations. This study examines the differences in the two groups in terms of how their expectations are formed and in turn how they affect processes leading to child outcomes.