Towards a unified understanding of educational equity: Integrating narratives of access and outcome

Educational equity is plural and contested, with two prominent narratives concerning inequities in access to education and inequities in student outcomes. This paper argues that, although both narratives have generated valuable insights, their separation can obscure important educational processes and leave key equity questions only partially specified. In response, it proposes a more unified understanding of educational equity in which backgrounds, accessed educational opportunities and experiences, and student outcomes are considered as part of a single system. The argument is developed conceptually and empirically illustrated through secondary analysis of data from the UK Effective Provision of Pre-School Education study. Language-reasoning preschool quality, though not associated with higher average value-added cognitive development, was associated with greater equity in cognitive development for children with less stimulating home learning environments, while also being less likely to be experienced by these children. The paper concludes with implications for educational policy, practice, and research.