Moving Beyond the Obvious: What is Highly

Effective, Culturally Responsive Pedagogy?

Dr. Socorro HerreraKansas State University

What do you see?

CIMA © 20122

Engagement, Access, & Hope

CIMA © 20123

What do you see?

The Question Persists…am I broken?

1st generation language learner in U.S. K-12 schools It’s about persistence—“being” and “behaving” like them. Am I broken?

Experience in U.S. higher education institutions Qualified Admission: Who belongs? Am I broken?

Working in U.S. prisons A sea of “students of color” who said, “My teachers hated me” and “No one

believed I could learn.” Am I broken?

Master’s in Counseling Maybe we are all pathological? Is the language of the oppressor on target? Does

poverty, culture and language difference = dysfunction? Am I broken?

Is A PhD the answer? Curriculum and Instruction? Educational Psychology

The Meaning Perspectives that teachers hold in relation to their Mexican American Students

Scapegoating, reductionist prescriptivism, mañana attitude, colorblind accommodative denial

Instead of students asking “Am I broken?,” culturally and linguistically diverse students should be pushed to ask “What are my assets?”

Instead of teachers being proleptic about their students of color’s futures, they should be asking “What are my students’ strengths?”

1971 United States Commission on Civil Rights

Report I: Ethnic Isolation of Mexican Americans in the Public Schools of the Southwest

The report concluded that:

1)Mexican American students were extremely isolated by the majority of district and school personnel.

1)Mexican Americans were underrepresented on school boards and in professional teaching positions.

1)Mexican American students were more likely to be in remedial programs.

1971 United States Commission on Civil Rights

Report II: The Unfinished Education

This report claimed that:

1)Mexican American, Black, and American Indian students do not acquire the same benefits of public education at the same rate as their white counterparts.

1)Retention of non-white students was significantly lower.

1)College acceptance and entrance rates were much lower for non-white students.

•Dropout rates increased among non-white students.

•Participation in extracurricular activities were much lower for non-white students.

1971 United States Commission on Civil Rights

Report III: The Excluded StudentThis report concluded that:

1)The Southwest school systems “have not recognized the rich culture and tradition of the Mexican American students.”

1)1/3 of schools discouraged the use of Spanish within the classroom.

1)Bilingual Education is the recommended program to meet the needs of English learners.

1)An overt omission of Mexican American history, heritage, and folklore from curriculum and textbooks caused cultural exclusion.

1)Schools only participated in “superficial and exotic elements” of Mexican American culture.

The Rise & Fall of Multicultural Education

Born out of the Civil Rights Movement, the school system moved from “multiethnic education” to “multicultural education”

Included issues of gender, socioeconomic class, and other marginalized groups

Failed to investigate and locate the deeper societal roots of racism, sexism, and classism

Left educators with an attempt to recognize cultural and linguistic diversity but never truly integrated and embedded cultural and linguistic diversity into the daily practice within our school system (Gotando, 2000).

…using the cultural characteristics,

experiences, and perspectives of ethnically

diverse students as conduits for teaching them

more effectively. It is based on the assumption

that when academic knowledge and skills are

situated within the lived experiences and

frames of reference of students, they are more

personally meaningful, have higher interest

appeal, and are learned more easily and

thoroughly. Gay (2002,

p. 106)

Culturally Responsive Teaching Is…

Critique of Culturally Responsive Teaching/Pedagogy

Sometimes educators approach culturally responsive teaching/pedagogy with a “checklist” mindset:

Read article on African American culture. CHECK! Attend professional development session on diversity.

CHECK! Cook Mexican food and bring to my students. CHECK! Watch a documentary on urban schools. CHECK! Add “diversity clothing & musical instruments” for play.

CHECK! Hang up motivational poster that includes people of color.

CHECK!

Social Justice or Social JustUS?

Teaching for social justice is currently theorized and discussed in higher education classrooms in order to prepare “teachers as change agents” by

• recognizing forms of oppression• Interrupting the cycle of oppression

BUT Social Justice can become Social JustUS when we:

• have different definitions of oppression based on our own biases.• present our views as superior to our students’ vision of a better

world.• participate in this movement merely to make ourselves feel

better.

Multiethnic Education

Civil Rights Movement

Multicultural Education

Culturally Responsive Teaching

Social Justice Teaching

What do these different educational movements have in common? Haven’t we had this conversation for over 100 years?

What were the OUTCOMES?

Efficacy Trainings, or rather “Effockus” Trainings

Laundry Lists

Us vs. Them Mentality

One-sided Dialogues

Where are we now? Why are we stuck?

Assuming A Deficit Perspective

Gorski (2008, 2010) explains that educators typically enter the classroom with adoration and “love” for their students but “hope fades” because teachers pair these good intentions with a deficit perspective.

Let’s Talk about the Deficit Perspective

Deficit perspective is the act of focusing on a student’s weaknesses rather than her/his strengths.

Complete Failure to Make It to Praxis

World of Theory

World of Reality

Praxis is the process in which theory is realized and embodied through practice.

School Situated Biography

LANGUAGEAssessment of:

Listening/SpeakingReading/Writing

ACADEMICPrior Schooling

GradesState Assessments

COGNITIVELearning Style

Learning StrategyProcessing

SOCIOCULTURALHome Visit

Interest SurveyEnvironment

Shuffling the DeckHigh Cards

Low CardsMiddle Cards

Home School

LANGUAGEComprehension L1 & L2Communication L1 & L2

Expression L1 & L2

ACADEMICAccess

EngagementHope

COGNITIVEKnowThinkApply

SOCIOCULTURALLife

LaughterLove

BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL HISTORY

While many of us might agree that relationship-building with our students is

the key their educational successes, what keeps us from building those real

relationships and connections?

Background Knowledge

Funds of Knowledge

Prior Knowledge

Academic Knowledge

Home Assets

•Traditions•Native Language•Home Literacy Practices

•Family Dynamics

Community Assets

•Language Brokering•Community Environment•Family Employment•Community Support Systems

School Assets

•Previous Content Knowledge•School Literacy Practices•School-based Cooperation & Collaboration Skills•Formal School Dynamics

Activate, Connect, Confirm

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Access: Grouping Configurations

i + TpsI

Small GroupPerspective Taking/Consensus

Building/Peer and Teacher

Facilitated

Total Group(Teacher Directed)

Partner(Student to Student/

Teacher Facilitated)

IndividualAffirmation/Accountability

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Three Phases of “Opportunity”

Moving Beyond the Espoused

Planned elements of teaching

Intentional efforts to build student trust and sense of belonging

Standards, curriculum, learning goals

Grouping structures and configurations

Physical aspects of the classroom

Contextual ProcessesZone Of Proximal Development

Contextual ProcessesZone Of Proximal Development

Teaching “in the moment”

Cycle of acting, observing student responses, and reacting

Attention to the interplay between students’ biographies and the lesson

Focus on supporting each learner to achieve the goals of the lesson

Situational ProcessesZone Of Proximal Development

Situational ProcessesZone Of Proximal Development

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Language & Literacy Development

andContextualization

Joint Productive Activity and

Instructional Conversations

Challenging Activities

Opening = Activate

Working = Connect

Closing = Affirm

Don’t Judge Me!

What Matters Most

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Where are you now? What is your plan?