Creating and Sustaining Culturally Responsive Educational Systems

1. Creating and Sustaining Culturally Responsive Educational Systems High Achievement for All Students, Closing Gaps and Eliminating Disproportionality March 2008

2. What do we mean when we talk about culturally responsive practices? March 2008

3. Culturally Responsive Educational Practices Specific educational practices, instructional strategies, curricula content, and [teaming processes] which have been established by research to increase the achievement of historically underachieving culturally diverse students (NCCRESt 2004) March 2008

4. Instructional practices not supported by research Intervention Effect Size Modality Matched Instr. (Aud.) +.03 Modality Matched Instr. (Vis.) +.04 Right Brain/Left Brain .?? Cultural Learning Style .00 Adapted from Reschly, Innovations 2006 March 2008

5. Culturally Responsive Educational Practices Include… Explicit Instruction in Critical and foundational Skills Collaborative Problem Solving, Direct Assessments, and Multi-tiered Supports Cooperative Learning Peer-assisted Learning Culturally Responsive Practices Multicultural Education PBS Supports for ELL

6. To bring about sustainable change in the performance of culturally diverse students, school improvement efforts must move discussion about culture from the background of consideration to the foreground of planning

7. District Building B/V/M What’s Prized and Valued at the school Adults/Professions/Children/Families Beliefs, Values, Ways of Knowing and Doing Structures Processes Functions Organizational Culture Cultures in the system

8. Schools and school systems that are predicated on continuous improvement and responsiveness to the changing needs of new generations of students work to deepen their understandings of race, class, gender, language, culture, and democracy and develop practices that promote the success of all students. NCCREST Position Statement 2005

9. When we don’t focus on culture we are in danger of perpetuating institutionalized bias Institutional bias can be defined as asystem of advantage based on race, culture, gender etc. which includes systems of cultural messages, institutional policies and practices as well as beliefs and actions of individuals (adapted from Beverly Daniel Tatum).

10. Indicators of Institutionalized Bias • Opportunity Gaps • Achievement Gaps • Disproportionality March 2008

11. Understanding the challenges some culturally andlinguistically diverse students face in schools today • Opportunity Gaps • Accessing and connecting to the provided instruction • Missing instruction due to responses to behavior problems • Often not encouraged or recruited for more rigorous studies

12. Students’ norms reflect their own • Ethnicity/Race • Social economic status • Family • Religion • Community • Etc. A Critical Understanding: The Potential Impact of Cultural Mismatch School norms reflect • White • Middle Class • Protestant • Mainstream culture

13. Cultural Mismatch Authority Communication Vocabulary

14. When expected classroom behaviors are a mismatch with those that children experience in their home and community problems or “cultural clashes” can occur. • Researchers theorize that a cultural mismatch between school culture and the cultural expectations of students as the reason for many of the difficulties experienced by culturally and linguistically diverse students.

15. What Behaviors are StudentsReferred For? By Race • White students referred more for: • Smoking • Vandalism • Leaving w/o permission • Obscene Language • Black students referred more for: • Disrespect • Excessive Noise • Threat • Loitering

16. Culturally Responsive Strategic Planning • Who is Teaching • What is being taught and how • Who is learning • Attention • Discourse • Decisions • Practices Toward the goal of increasing the achievement of all students, closing achievement gaps, and eliminating disproportionality

17. Culturally competent organizational practices are … A set of congruent behaviors, attitudes, and policies that come together in a system or agency or among professionals and enable the system, agency, or professionals to work effectively with diverse populations. March 2008

18. People Practices Policies Where can Institutionalized Bias Be Demonstrated: We Examine Systems Variables

19. People Core Instruction Practices Policies Support Services School Climate Complex systems are multi-layered and multifaceted

20. Is there evidence of institutionalized bias in your system: Asking the right questions Is our system working? For whom is our system not working? In what areas is our system exhibiting performance gaps? March 2008

21. Policies Policies • Reflect and support research • Non-discriminatory and allows for equitable access • Provide clear parameters but allow for decisions based on local data and situation specific information • Regularly examined for unintended outcomes resulting in institutionalized bias towards any student group (e.g. Zero Tolerance policies) March 2008

22. People • Educators’ beliefs about their own ability to teach students from diverse backgrounds • Educators’ belief that all students can achieve at high levels when taught to high levels • Cultural competence • Knowledge of subject matter • Skills in effective/research-based teaching strategies • Sense of self as a continual learner • Commitment to problem solving People March 2008

23. Practices • Universal use of prevention and intervention strategies • Consistent implementation of research-based/evidence-based curricula and instructional methods • Use of multicultural curricula and instructional practices • Reflective Practice • Collaboration and problem solving • Data-based Decision Making Practices March 2008

24. Classroom Instruction • Curriculum • Instruction • Assessment Practices March 2008

25. The 5 Rs Connecting to current real life situations; practical and socially applicable • Relevance • Respect • Responsive • Rigor • Research-based Giving particular attention and consideration; of diverse viewpoints and contributions Engaging in an action responding to a need or request Consistently challenging and meaningful Demonstrating evidence of effectiveness

26. Culturally responsive educational systems Culturally responsive educational systems are sustaining learning communities where all adults work to ensure that all students but specifically culturally and linguistically diverse students (1) feel that their culture is respected, (2) understand the relevance of school-based learning experiences and their life success, (3) have a connection to the school community, (4) experience adults who are responsive to student needs, (5) and where high expectations for all are demonstrated through consistent rigorous instruction that is research-based and high standards.

27. The Journey Towards Creating Culturally Responsive Schools • Self examination and reflective practice • Focused discussion and planning • Strong Leadership • Collaboration • Cultural Competence March 2008