Culturally Responsive Teaching
Sean S.
Culturally Responsive Teaching
Culturally Responsive Teaching is a pedagogy that recognizes the importance of including students' cultural references in all aspects of learning (Ladson-Billings, 1994). This approach to teaching encompasses how knowledge is both communicated and perceived by the students. The teacher must have a good relationship with the parents, have high expectations, learn about their students culture, have culturally mediated student-centered instruction, willing to reshape the curriculum, and be a facilitator in order to accomplish this method of teaching. These are key points a teacher must be willing to do if they intend to be an effective teacher especially in a highly culturally diverse area like central Texas.
Having a good relationship with the parents is extremely important because nobody knows your students best. Conversations about where the student needs improvement, where they succeeding, their disabilities, and how they can help each other help the child succeed. “When families share their "funds of knowledge" with the school community, teachers get a better idea of their students' background knowledge and abilities, and how they learn best (Moll, Amanti, Neff, & Gonzalez, 1992, 134-135).” Having multiple open houses throughout the year is a good example of how to keep a good relationship with the parents. The normal once a school year open house only allows the families to meet the teacher for just a few minutes. That’s barely enough time to learn each other’s names and faces. Host one per month will allow a closer relationship with the parents and they will be able to see the progress the class is making first hand. Requiring parents to sign weekly progress reports with a section to communicate any issues or praises is another way to keep a good relationship with the parents. Normal progress reports are only given once every three weeks and there is only a place for the parents to sign which makes them almost
Culturally Responsive Teaching
Culturally Responsive Teaching is a pedagogy that recognizes the importance of including students' cultural references in all aspects of learning (Ladson-Billings, 1994). This approach to teaching encompasses how knowledge is both communicated and perceived by the students. The teacher must have a good relationship with the parents, have high expectations, learn about their students culture, have culturally mediated student-centered instruction, willing to reshape the curriculum, and be a facilitator in order to accomplish this method of teaching. These are key points a teacher must be willing to do if they intend to be an effective teacher especially in a highly culturally diverse area like central Texas.
Having a good relationship with the parents is extremely important because nobody knows your students best. Conversations about where the student needs improvement, where they succeeding, their disabilities, and how they can help each other help the child succeed. “When families share their "funds of knowledge" with the school community, teachers get a better idea of their students' background knowledge and abilities, and how they learn best (Moll, Amanti, Neff, & Gonzalez, 1992, 134-135).” Having multiple open houses throughout the year is a good example of how to keep a good relationship with the parents. The normal once a school year open house only allows the families to meet the teacher for just a few minutes. That’s barely enough time to learn each other’s names and faces. Host one per month will allow a closer relationship with the parents and they will be able to see the progress the class is making first hand. Requiring parents to sign weekly progress reports with a section to communicate any issues or praises is another way to keep a good relationship with the parents. Normal progress reports are only given once every three weeks and there is only a place for the parents to sign which makes them almost
Bibliography: Ladson-Billings, G. (1994). The dreamkeepers. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishing Co. Moll, L. C., Amanti, C., Neff, D., & Gonzalez, N. (1992). Funds of knowledge for teaching: Using a qualitative approach to connect homes and classrooms. Theory Into Practice, 31(2), 132-141. Rist, C. (1971). Student social class and teacher expectations: The self-fulfilling prophecy in ghetto education. Challenging the myth: The schools, the Blacks, and the poor (Reprint Series No. 5). Cambridge, MA: Harvard Educational Review. Sheets, R. (1999). Relating competence in an urban classroom to ethnic identity development. In R. Sheets (Ed.), Racial and ethnic identity in school practices: Aspects of human development. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Daniels, H. (2002). Literature circles: Voice and choice in book clubs and reading groups. Portland, ME: Stenhouse. Nieto, S. (1996). Affirming diversity: The sociopolitical context of multicultural education (2nd ed.). White Plains, NY: Longman. Padron, Y. N., Waxman, H. C., and Rivera, H. H. (2002). Educating Hispanic students: Effective instructional practices (Practitioner Brief #5). Available: http://www.cal.org/crede/Pubs/PracBrief5.htm