Equity in the classroom:
Creating Culturally Responsive Learning Communities
Kyrene School District
September 16, 2011
JoEtta Gonzales, Director &
Seena Skelton, Co-Director
The Equity Alliance at ASU
Participants will:
Explore the impact
that identity and
context have on
teaching and
learning
Build an
understanding of
educational access,
participation, and
outcomes as they
relate to issues of
power and privilege
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Examine
characteristics of
culturally
responsive teaching
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Agenda
Time
8:30
Topics
Welcome and introductions
Everyday Anti-Racism
Personal and cultural identities
The cultural nature of learning
Lunch
The Social Construction of Race and Whiteness
Power and Privilege
Introduction to culturally responsive teaching
3:30
Wrap up day one
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How will we spend our time?
Facilitated Discussions
Reflection Activities
Video Discussions
Readings
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What’s in your packet of materials
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Equity
Everyday
Anti-Racism
Culturally
Responsive Teaching
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Everyday Anti-Racism in
Education involves:
Rejecting false
notions of
human
differences
Acknowledging
lived
experiences
shaped along
racial lines
Learning from
diverse forms
of knowledge
and
experiences;
and
Challenging
systems of
racial
inequality.
As the demographics have changed within many
school communities, educators have struggled with
proactively addressing the behavioral and learning
needs of an increasingly diverse student population
for a variety of individual and systemic reasons.
Achievement Gaps
Disproportionality
Key Ideas
Policy changes alone have not changed
outcomes
Educational gaps are due to pervasive
institutional racial, cultural, and ethnic bias
not simply poverty
Culturally responsive teaching creates
culturally supportive and inclusive learning
communities
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Linguistic
Differences
Cultural
Differences
Societal
Racism
Inferior
Education
Rationales
for Schooling
Au, 1998
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Educational Equity
When educational practices, policies,
supports, curricula, school resources,
and school cultures are such that all
students have access to, participate
and make progress in high quality
learning experiences in order to reach
academic success, regardless of race,
ses, gender, dis/ability, national origin,
religion, or other characteristics.
The Cultural Nature of Learning
Cultural Histories
What people bring
with them
What’s already
there
The work people
do together
The Institutional Culture
The Culture We Create
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nccrest@asu.edu
Pathway to Educational Equity
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Our own Cultural Histories
What we bring
with us
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Education
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Think and Write
What does “race” mean?
What determines race?
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Reflection
Individually Think about the selections:
• What points from the reading and video resonated with
you?
Pair and discuss:
• your reflections and questions
• implications for practice
Share:
• highlights from your discussion in large group
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View and
Discuss
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Mirrors of Privilege: Making Whiteness Visible
Conversations -Video Activity
Discuss the following questions:
• When did you first become aware of white
privilege?
• How does the intersection of privilege and
difference show up in your context?
• Have you ever thought about your “space”
(working, living, learning) as a racialized
space? How do you react to this concept?
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Break
“"If your actions inspire
others to dream more, learn
more, do more and become
more, you are a leader." John Quincy Adams.”
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How does Power and Privilege
relate to students in schools?
Cultural differences affect how behaviors are interpreted by
everyone as well as burden students and families with making
subtle and overt shifts in their behavior when school behavior
codes are not transparent.
The power for making judgments about behavior are made by
school personnel who may not understand or be conscious of
the relational nature of their cultural stances, and therefore
behavior differences become magnets for conflict among and
between students, families, and school personnel.
Where cultural differences exist, but are not adequately
considered, school personnel, families, and students may
exacerbate conflict rather than help to defuse, redirect and
negotiate new norms.
NCCRESt, 2005
The institutional culture
What’s already there
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We must consider the socio-historical context
in which schooling occurs to adequately
address the achievement of all students.
Economic Constraints
Cultural Practices,
Patterns and Histories
SocioHistorical
Context
Educational Mandates
and Policies
Demographic Shifts
Current Political
Climate
Approach to Work Cultural Practices
Home Culture
School Culture
Improvisation
Standardization
Multi-tasking
Single-task
activity
Relationship
Task
completion
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Communication Cultural Practices
Home Culture
Story Telling
Direct commands
Authentic questioning
High context
Home language
Casual register
Simultaneous Conversation
School Culture
Print Literacy
Indirect commands
Inauthentic questioning
Low context
English only
Formal register
Turn Taking
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The Culture we Create
The work people do together
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The cultures we create in shared learning and work spaces develop as
people work together and interact to define their community.
Understanding culture as a dynamic ingredient in human interactions
provides entry points where people can help each other make meaning
from their work and school experiences.
New cultures are created every time people come together on an ongoing
basis and engage in common experiences.
It is critical to be cognizant of our interactions, if left unexamined, the
norms that make up learning and work cultures could result in excluding
some from fully accessing, participating and progressing in quality
learning and work experiences.
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What’s needed to get students
college and career ready?
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A statement that is heard
from many teachers when
asked about student
differences is –
"I see all of my students the
same way.”
It is critically important that
teachers recognize the
individuality of each student
as cultural beings (Pollock,
2008).
Culturally Responsive
Teaching is…
the overall approach one takes to delivering instruction, using
curricular materials, making educational decisions, including student
discipline; and interacting with students and their families.
the lens through which teachers see their students and their
students' learning.
the filter through which teachers listen to how students express
their needs and desires.
Knowledge
Skills
Disposition
Practice
Culturally
Responsive
Teaching
Villegas and Lucas (2002) identify six salient
characteristics for preparing teachers to work
successfully in culturally and linguistically diverse
classrooms. These characteristics can be thought
of as important teacher dispositions necessary for
demonstrating culturally responsive teaching.
Dispositions Discussion Activity
Dispositions
Gallery Walk
Small Group
Discussion
Whole Group
Sharing
Dr. Geneva Gay University of Washington Seattle
WHAT IS CULTURALLY RESPONSIVE
TEACHING?
VIDEO VIEWING ACTIVITY
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Group Processing Activity
Individually
Think about what
questions you have
about
implementing the
culturally
responsive teaching
practices Dr. Gay
described in the
video.
Pairs
Both people
complete the
following statement:
“What comes up for
me when we start to
talk about creating
an inclusive and
culturally responsive
learning community
is …..”
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Quads
Discuss the challenges
related to culturally
responsive practices
and possible leverage
points that can be
used to facilitate full
implementation.
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Break
Culturally Responsive Teaching in
Action
Answer the following questions:
• What did you observe regarding the
teacher’s use of cultural referents and
cultural practices to encourage active
engagement of her students?
• How might a teacher use the curriculum
in ways that reflect multiple perspectives
and diverse cultural histories?
• What questions would you have for this
teacher?
Four foundational culturally
responsive teaching
strategies:
1) Actively
engaging
students in
learning
2) Connecting
students' new
learning to their
prior knowledge
and lived
experiences
3) Including
diverse cultural
representations
& multiple
perspectives
Instruction &
Assessment
4)Assessing
student
knowledge to
inform
instruction
Culturally responsive curricula reflect
multiple ethnic and cultural perspectives;
and incorporate everyday-life concepts of
various cultural groups in the teaching of
new content.
Curriculum is designed to develop
students’ critical thinking skills and is
integrated across all subjects and content
areas.
Curriculum
Safe
Organized
Welcoming
Environment
Belonging
• Students feel
share their
ideas.
Freedom/
Choices
Power
Fun
Climate
Read Pair Share
• Read the equity
indicators
• Discuss the indicators
with your partner and
write 1 or 2 additional
indicators for each area
• Share additions with
group
Classroom Equity Indicators
3 -2-1 Discussion
• 3 Key take-aways from today’s
session
• 2 Immediate next steps I will take
to forward my understanding of
my own cultural identity and the
cultural identities of my students
• 1 Question I have about
implementing culturally
responsive teaching
Equity exists, in part, to the degree that all
students feel they belong, are included,
and are empowered.
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