Course Title: Introduction to Cultural Proficiency
Instructor:
Shannon Keeny, Cultural Proficiency Specialist, HCPSS
Shannon Keeny is a Cultural Proficiency Specialist in the
Howard County Public School System. Her previous
experience includes, Resource Teacher for Professional and
Organizational Development with a focus on support
Professional Development Schools and working with MSDE as
the liaison and support person for National Board
Certification teachers. Also, she has taught in the
classroom for five years and served as a high school
softball coach for three years. She is very committed to
the development of teachers and all professionals in her
field.
Razia Kosi, Cultural Proficiency Specialist, HCPSS
Razia Kosi a Cultural Proficiency Specialist in the Howard
County Public School System. She is a clinical social
worked who is also certified with MSDE as a School Social
Worker. Her previous experience includes, Resource Teacher
for Alternative Education, Behavior Specialist, Grants
Facilitator and Alternative Education Teacher. She has over
a decade of experience developing workshops and training
for the schools as well as professional workshops for
mental health professionals in the community.
John Krownapple, Coordinator of Cultural Proficiency, HCPSS
John Krownapple currently serves as the Professional
Development Coordinator for Cultural Proficiency in the
Howard County Public School System. He has served the
staff, students, and community of Howard County in the
roles of professional development facilitator, social
studies resource teacher, curriculum writer, and classroom
teacher. He has extensive experience designing and
delivering professional learning experiences within the
school system and, additionally, has served as adjunct
faculty at Johns Hopkins University since 2004.
Approval: John Krownapple, Coordinator of Cultural
Proficiency, HCPSS
Course Delivery Method:
blended/hybrid course.
The course will be a
Description of Experience:
This course will assist staff in achieving proficient and
distinguished performance according to the four elements
described on Indicator 5F: Commits to Cultural Proficiency
(Attachment A), a recently (2008) added indicator within
the HCPSS teacher evaluation system domains.
Cultural Proficiency is defined as:
• A mind set; a way of being that esteems culture as a
predominant force in shaping values, beliefs and behaviors
of individuals and organizations.
• The use of specific tools for effectively describing,
responding to, and planning for issues that emerge in
diverse environments
• Policies and practices of an school/organization and the
values, beliefs, and behaviors of an individual that enable
effective cross-cultural interactions between and among
employees, clients, and community
This course will focus on developing a foundational
knowledge of the tools of Cultural Proficiency (Attachment
B). Participants will surface and reflect on personal
values, beliefs, and assumptions, as well as organizational
policies and practice, and they will create a culture that
serves people to varying degrees. In the context of
Cultural Proficiency, participants will examine how to
engage and adapt to better serve all students, staff, and
community groups.
Instructors will use simulations, powerpoints, readings,
system-wide documents, and videos to facilitate critical
conversations surrounding values, beliefs and one’s
response to issues regarding race, class, and culture.
Rationale/Statement of need:
In order to comply with the State of Maryland Education
COMAR 13A.04.05, the Howard County Public School System has
institutionalized Cultural Proficiency. HCPSS has targeted
cultural proficiency as a cross functional strategy for
systemic improvement, targeting involvement of all staff
and stakeholders. Also, HCPSS has added cultural
proficiency to the teacher self-assessment tool, Framework
for Excellence in Teaching and Learning (Attachment A).
All teachers use this tool to identify growth areas and
yearly objectives. Additionally, HCPSS has two goals to
support its mission. Goal One focuses on high academic
achievement for all students and Goal Two; focuses on
providing a safe and nurturing school environment that
values our diversity and commonality. This course will help
support the effort. This course will provide an additional
strategy in meeting HCPSS’s Goal Two. This course will
support the HCPSS Vision of Exemplary Teacher for Student
Learning, (Attachment C) which affirms the value of
“Knowing Yourself and Your Influence on Others” and
“Knowing the Learner” to promote success for all.
Current Maryland School Assessment and High School
Assessment data indicate that disparities between student
demographic groups persist, despite progress in achievement
by all student groups. This achievement gap correlates with
other data, such as disproportionate representation of
student groups in programs such as special education and
gifted and talented education. These are referred to as
access gaps. The Howard County Public School System has
also identified disparities (e.g., gaps) among student
groups in attendance, suspension, and dropout data.
Addressing issues of educational gaps requires developing
the skill and engendering the will to examine one’s self
and organization. Cultural Proficiency provides the lens
to examine our values, assumptions, and beliefs in order to
develop and sustain a culturally proficient belief system
that facilitates culturally proficient actions. For
instance, culturally proficient educators understand that
students labeled “underperforming” have historically been
underserved by our educational system, so they frame their
professional focus and conversation around how adult
stakeholders are underserving students and families, not
around how students are underachieving.
The focus of this course allows participants to reflect on
their individual values and beliefs as well as the
organizational practices and policies. The course provides
the foundation for authentic learning and transformation in
which the participants become change agents in addressing
underserved students, families, staff and communities in
the Howard County Public School System.
Audience:
The course is primarily designed for certificated Howard
County Public School System employees and it is open and
relevant to, para-professionals, classified staff members,
contracted staff, and community members.
Performance Outcomes:
Participants will:
Build a foundational knowledge to advance understanding of
cultural proficiency.
Practice effective communication strategies by engaging in
critical conversations about culture, class, and race.
Develop an understanding of the dynamics of systemic
change, power, entitlement, and privilege.
Explore individual and organizational values, beliefs,
attitudes, and assumptions and identify how resulting
affect behaviors impact the work environment.
Use the Essential Elements of Cultural Proficiency as
standards for behavior:
•Assesses cultural knowledge
•Values diversity
•Manages the dynamics of difference
•Adapts to diversity
•Institutionalizes cultural knowledge
Recognize, describe, and analyze policies, practices, and
individual behaviors using the language of cultural
proficiency.
Delivery/Timeline:
This course will be delivered face-to-face during scheduled
class time, on-line to connect learnings, and 10 hours of
outside work in addition to scheduled class time and online learning. There will be nine scheduled face-to-face
sessions (27 hours), four three hour session that will be
on-line (12 hours), and six hours of outside work (6
hours). Outside work will consist of but not be limited to
readings, written assignments, discussions on-line,
conducting interviews, watching video clips and a final
project. This is a 3-credit CPD course. The course will
begin being offered in the fall of 2009 and offered each
semester during the school year. All assignments are due
prior to the instructor awarding credit for the course.
Credits: 3
Evaluation:
Participants will:
Complete outside and in class assignments for each session.
Actively participate in discussions, both in class and
outside of class through blog communication.
Complete a reflectivity journal that examines the course
outcomes through personal experiences.
Present a final product that reflects their understanding
of the course outcomes (For example: portfolio of personal
growth, professional development presentation, and
examination of individual instructional practices).
The participants are graded on all aspects of the course,
which include; attendance, participation during face- toface classes, the on-line discussions, all assignments and
the final project, which includes a presentation. The
course is pass /fail course for MSDE credit. Informal
feedback is provided to the instructor at least once during
the course. Formal feedback is provided at the last class
and is submitted to the Office of Professional and
Organizational Development for review. Copies of comments
are saved and reviewed by the instructor for future
planning.
Professional Learning Activities and Follow-Up:
o Professional Learning Activities
o Instructors will use scenarios, classroom
discussions, readings, system-wide documents,
reflective journaling, on-line discussions,
powerpoints and videos to facilitate critical
conversations surrounding culturally proficient
curriculum and instruction.
o Follow-Up Opportunities
o Influence and inform School Improvement Planning
by serving on school-wide committee, creating
opportunities to reach goals that connect to
HCPSS Goal 1 and 2.
o Opportunity to focus evaluation portfolio on
cultural proficient instruction.
o Influence conversations in the classroom, at the
team level, school-wide, and throughout the
school system to promote student achievement and
create a safe environment for learning.
o
Participate in Culturally Proficiency Inquiry
Group at school level for MSDE credit.