March 2008 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

Cooperative LearningPeer-assisted Learning

Supports for ELL

Explicit Instruction in Critical and foundational Skills

Multicultural Education

Collaborative Problem Solving, Direct Assessments, and Multi-tiered Supports

Culturally Responsive Practices

Culturally Responsive Educational Practices

Include…

PBS

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

Cultures in the system

B/V/M

What’s Prized and Valued at the school

Structures

Processes

Functions

Organizational Culture

Adults/Professions/

Children/Families

Beliefs, Values, Ways of Knowing

and Doing

Building

District

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

When we don’t focus on culture we are in danger of

perpetuating institutionalized bias

Institutional bias can be defined as a system 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).

March 2008 10

Indicators of Institutionalized Bias

•Opportunity Gaps •Achievement Gaps

•Disproportionality

Understanding the challenges some culturally and

linguistically 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

A Critical Understanding: The Potential Impact of Cultural

Mismatch

School norms reflect– White– Middle Class – Protestant– Mainstream culture

Students’ norms reflect their own Ethnicity/RaceSocial economic statusFamilyReligionCommunityEtc.

Cultural Mismatch

AuthorityCommunicationVocabulary

• 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.

What Behaviors are Students

Referred 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

Culturally Responsive Strategic Planning

• Attention • Discourse• Decisions• Practices

Toward the goal of increasing the achievement of all students, closing achievement gaps, and eliminating disproportionality

•Who is Teaching

•What is being taught and how

•Who is learning

March 2008 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.

PeoplePeople

PoliciesPoliciesPracticesPractices

Where can Institutionalized Bias Be Where can Institutionalized Bias Be Demonstrated: We Examine Systems Demonstrated: We Examine Systems VariablesVariables

Complex systems are multi-layered and

multifaceted

People

PoliciesPractices

Core Instruction

School Climate

Support Services

March 2008 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• 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)

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

• Curriculum

• Instruction

• Assessment

March 2008 24

Practices

Classroom Instruction

The 5 Rs • Relevance

• Respect

• Responsive

• Rigor

• Research-based

Connecting to current real life situations; practical and socially applicable

Giving particular attention and consideration; of diverse viewpoints and contributionsEngaging in an action responding to a need or requestConsistently challenging and meaningful Demonstrating evidence of effectiveness

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.

March 2008 27

The Journey Towards Creating Culturally Responsive Schools

• Self examination and reflective practice

• Focused discussion and planning

• Strong Leadership • Collaboration • Cultural Competence