ERIC EJ1135596: Culturally Responsive Teaching: Implications for Educational Justice

2016·0.17 MB·English

by  ERIC

education
sciences
Article
Culturally Responsive Teaching: Implications for
Educational Justice
MagnusO.Bassey
QueensCollege,TheCityUniversityofNewYork,65-30KissenaBlvd.,Queens,NY11367,USA;
[email protected];Tel.:[phone]
AcademicEditor:JudithKönemann
Received:14June2016;Accepted:25October2016;Published:2November2016
Abstract: Educationaljusticeisamajorglobalchallenge. Inmostunderdevelopedcountries,many
studentsdonothaveaccesstoeducationandinmostadvanceddemocracies,schoolattainmentand
successarestill,toalargeextent,dependentonastudent’ssocialbackground. However,ithasoften
beenarguedthatsocialjusticeisanessentialpartofteachers’workinademocracy. Thisarticleraises
an important overriding question: how can we realize the goal of educational justice in the field
ofteaching? Inthisessay,Iexamineculturallyresponsiveteachingasaneducationalpracticeand
concludethatitispossibletorealizeeducationaljusticeinthefieldofteachingbecauseinitstrue
implementation,culturallyresponsiveteachingconceptualizestheconnectionbetweeneducation
andsocialjusticeandcreatesthespaceneededfordiscussingsocialchangeinsociety.
Keywords: socialjustice;culture;education
1. Introduction
In her recent book, Geneva Gay defines culturally responsive teaching as “using the cultural
knowledge, prior experiences, frames of reference, and performance styles of ethnically diverse
students to make learning encounters more relevant to and effective for [students]” [1] (p. 31).
GloriaLadson-Billingsmaintainsthatculturallyresponsiveteachingis“apedagogythatempowers
studentsintellectually,socially,emotionally,andpolitically[becauseituses]culturalreferentstoimpart
knowledge, skills, and attitudes” [2] (p. 20). Teachers who use a culturally responsive method in
theirteachingseecultureasastrengthwhichcanbeusedeffectivelytoenhanceacademicandsocial
achievement[2].Accordingtoscholarswhohavestudiedthismethodofteaching,culturallyresponsive
teachersaregroundedinpedagogicalpractices,teachingconceptions,andsocialrelationshipsthat
enhancesocialjusticebecausetheseteachersrelatethecurriculumtostudents’backgrounds,establish
connectionswithfamilies,understandstudents’culturalexperiences,establishconnectionswithlocal
communities,createsharedlearningexperiences,andrecognizeculturaldifferencesasstrengthson
whichtobuildprograms[1–10]. Teacherswhopracticeculturallyresponsiveteachingunderstandthat
educationisnotapoliticaland,asaresult,theyhelpstudentstounderstandtheirrolesaschangeagents
insociety. Theseteachersinspire,motivate,instillvaluesandknowledge;theynourishracialprideand
theneedforequality[1,2,5–7,11]. Inherexemplarybook,Ladson-Billings[2]identifieseightteachers
whoshedescribesassuccessfulteachersofAfrican-Americanstudents. Theseteachersaresuccessful
becausetheyutilizestudents’cultureasavehicleforlearning;theyhaveastrongfocusonstudent
learning;theyarecreative;theydevelopculturalcompetencesandcultivatesociopoliticalawareness
intheirstudents. Indeed,inthisremarkablestudy,Ladson-Billings[2]tellsushowoneoftheteachers
usedrapmusicasavehicleforteachingpoetrytoAfrican-Americanstudentsenablingherstudentsto
outperformstudentsfromotherschoolswhodidnotusesuchanapproach;anotherteacherinvolved
parentsinherclassroombycreatingan“artistorcraftsperson-in-residence”programthatenabled
parents to share their wisdom and knowledge with students by allowing students to learn from
Educ.Sci.2016,6,35;doi:10.3390/educsci6040035 www.mdpi.com/journal/education
Educ.Sci.2016,6,35 2of6
parentsinthecommunity. Parentswereofteninvitedtothisteacher’sclassroomtosharetheircultural
knowledgewithstudents. Inadifferentdirection,ateacherencouragedherstudentstousetheirnative
languagesinclasswhilelearningthestandardlanguagesimultaneously, resultinginherstudents’
remarkableabilitytobefluentinbothlanguages[2]. Similarstudiesofculturallyresponsiveteaching
byGehlbach[12];Johnson,Nyamekye,ChazanandRosenthal[13];Gay[1];Delpit[6];Lipman[7];
Maiga[8];Shujaa[9]andTate[10],recordedsimilaracademicsuccessesbystudentsindifferentsubject
areas. Thereasonwhyteacherswhopracticeculturallyresponsiveteachingaresuccessfulisthatthey
areenthusiasticabouttheirwork;theyarerespectfulofparents,andtheyunderstandBlackchildren’s
dualityofoperatinginmanyworlds: thatis,intheworldoftheirhomeenvironment,intheworldof
theschoolcommunity,andintheworldoftheglobalcommunity. Othercharacteristicsofempowering
teachersarethattheysupportcultureasanintegralpartoftheschoolexperience,theyhaveveryfew
disciplineproblemsintheirclassroomsandhaveveryhighattendancerates. Asaresult,studentsscore
atthehighestpercentileonstandardizedtestsintheirclasses[1,2,5,6].Becausestudentsintheseclasses
experience academic success they develop critical competence and critical consciousness. Indeed,
after a careful review of numerous educational studies, Gay [1] concluded that African-American
studentsperformbetterinschoolswhereteachingisfilteredthroughtheirownexperiences. Tobe
effective,teachersofminoritystudentsmusthavethecourage,confidenceandcompetencetoteachin
aculturallyresponsivemanner. Recentscholarshipsonempoweringpedagogyforminoritystudents
includethosebyBassey;Ladson-Billings;Gay;Johnsonetal.;Gehlbach;Hammond;Delpit;Lipman;
Maiga;ShujaaandTate[1–10,12–14]. Thesestudiesunderscoretheimportanceofculturallyresponsive
teachingbecause,astheseresearchersfoundout,culturallyresponsiveteachingisgoodforallchildren.
Inculturallyresponsiveclassroomsallchildrenarevaluedandtheircontributionsrecognized;teachers
areresponsivetotheneedsofallchildren;theycareforallchildren;theybeginwithcommonground
butcelebratetheuniquecontributionsofeverychild;theyusemultipleteachingandlearningstrategies
toengagestudentsinactivelearningthatencouragesthedevelopmentofcriticalthinking,problem
solvingandperformanceskills;andindeed,theseteachersareabletoadaptinstructiontomeetthe
needsofindividualstudents[1–5,7–9,14,15]. Empoweringteachersmakegoodteachingchoicesby
eliciting,motivating,engaging,supporting,andexpandingtheintellectualabilitiesofallstudents[14].
Byusingaculturallyresponsivemethodofteaching,civiccitizenshipandsocialjusticecanbe
achieved because culturally responsive teaching encourages students to be active participants in
thefightforsocialchangeandsocialjusticethroughsocialactivismbyvolunteering,doingcharity
work, engaging in civic duties and civic values [2]. Chilcoat & Ligon [16,17], Perlstein [18] and
Levy[19]describeanexampleofsuchacurriculumforAfrican-AmericanstudentsinMississippithat
wasdesignedtomakestudentstobecomeaforceforsocialchange. Thecurriculumwasinitiated
to empower students to critically examine their existing conditions so as to “gain knowledge and
confidencetoactivatechange,andtopreparethemselvestocontributecreativelyandpositivelyin
their communities” [17] (p. 2). The students were “acquainted with different points of view; to
stimulate,challenge,andexpandideasandopinions;toexplorepossibilitiesofcommunityandsocial
improvementthroughcollectivedecisionmaking; and,hopefully,toeffectthosepossibilities”[17]
(p. 3). Intheirclassrooms,studentsweretaughthowtochanneltheirfrustrationsappropriatelyto
initiate change becauseculturally responsive teaching encourages students’ involvementin social
developmentprojectsthroughcollectiveactionasawayofeffectingchangeintheirowncommunities.
Furthermore,byenhancingstudents’capacityfordemocraticparticipation,studentsbecomeactive
andengagedcitizens.
2. CulturallyResponsiveTeachingasSocialJusticeEducation
An important overriding concern I raised in my introduction was: how can we realize the
goalofeducationaljusticeinthefieldofteaching? Whilethereisagreatdealofcontentionabout
what social justice in education means, Jessica Heybach [20] provides three perspectives of social
justicewhichIfindinterestingandrelevanttothisdiscussion. Theseare: socialjusticeasameans
Educ.Sci.2016,6,35 3of6
of exposing and altering the institutions which perpetuate systematic oppression; social justice as
ameansofperceivingoppressivepatternsthataffectstudentsasindividualsandothersinsociety;
andsocialjusticeasameansofdevelopingwide-awakeness[20](p. 239). GloriaLadson-Billings[5],
oneoftheleadingscholarsinculturallyresponsiveteachingmaintainsthat,“[b]eyond... individual
characteristicsofacademicachievementandculturalcompetence,studentsmustdevelopabroader
sociopolitical consciousness that allows them to critique the cultural norms, values, mores, and
institutionsthatproduceandmaintainsocialinequalities”[5](p. 162). Inanumberofarticles,Chilcoat
and Ligon [16,17], Perlstein [18], Ladson-Billings [5], Levy [19], describe innovative instructional
programsinFreedomSchoolsforAfrican-Americanstudentswhichallowedstudentstoparticipatein
community,criticalthinkingandpoliticalactivitiesusingprogressivedemocraticinstructionalmethods.
Themethodsusedintheseschoolsincludeddiscussioninart,socialaction,creativewriting,drama,
newspapercommentaries,socialactionprojectsandroleplayinginclass. Studentswereallowedto
examinepublicpoliciescriticallysothattheycouldparticipateincivictransformationseffectively.
Theyexploredformsofsystemicoppression,inequalityandsocialhierarchy. Thecurriculumsetfor
itselfthetaskofuncoveringhowpowerisusedtoeitherframeordistortprocessesorinteractions
and unraveled, unmasked and critiqued domination and discrimination [5,16–19]. Students were
requiredtoconfront,contradict,andcontestinequalityandunequalpowerrelationsparticularlywhen
differenceswereusedtojustifysystemicinequalitiesinsociety.
Culturallyresponsiveteachingisinformedbytheprinciplesandpracticesoffreedom,equality
andsocialjustice[4,5]. Itsintegratedfocusisdemonstratedbyitsinvolvementinconcretestruggles
forthefreedomofallpeoples. Inherstudy,Ladson-Billingsstatesthatshewentintotheclassrooms
“toexamineboththepoliticalandthepractical”[2](p. 15),andnotes: “Iwantedtoseenotonlywhy
acertainkindofteachinghelpedthestudentstobemoresuccessfulacademicallybutalsohowthis
kindofteachingsupportedandencouragedstudentstousetheirpriorknowledgetomakesenseof
theworldandtoworktowardimprovingit”[2](p. 15).
Indeed,whatGloriaLadson-Billings[2]envisionedandinsomeinstancessawinsomeofthe
schoolsthatshestudiedwasalinkagebetweenacademicworkandcommunityengagementinthe
classrooms[2](pp. 156–157). Theexaltingthingabouttheworkingsoftheseclasseswasthatstudents
were not only challenged to ask the ‘why’ questions, they were challenged to uncover the causes
ofinjusticeandtoenvisionthemselvesasagentsofchangebecauseculturallyresponsiveteaching
emphasizessocialjusticeoutcomesoverandabovemerecitizenshipobjectives. Itshouldbepointed
outthatsocialjusticeoutcomesincludenotonlypatriotismtocountrybutalso“allegiancetouniversal
humanvalues,democraticideals,andhumanrightsanddignityofallpeopleintheworld”[21](p. 10).
Recognizingtheimportanceoftheseintersectionsenablesteacherstodevelopateachingapproach
thatemphasizestheimportanceofbeingabletorelatetoothersandtoempathizewiththeirthoughts
andfeelings,whichlendsitselftothedevelopmentofmutualrespect.
Culturallyresponsiveteachingfocusesonsocialchangeandsocialjusticeandencouragesstudents
toengageincivicandsocialjusticeinitiatives. Itinsiststhatstudentsdevelopacommitmenttoservice
as well as to social justice ideals. It starts from the premise that society is not perfect, therefore, it
encouragesstudentstouncovertherootcausesofsuchimperfections. Byunderstandingsociety’s
imperfections, a student’s consciousness is raised about issues of society’s injustice. In culturally
responsiveclasses,studentsaretaughttobalanceclassroomcomponentswithsocialresponsibilityas
wellascommitmenttocommunitychange[2]. Asaresult,duringthesemester,studentsareengaged
intheirchosensocialjusticeendeavorsorinsomeformofcommunitypoliticalactivismwhichmay
includeregisteringvoters,participatinginschoolboardmeetings,servinginsoupkitchens,helping
at homeless shelters, taking care of the poor etc. The consideration here is for students to acquire
civicparticipationskillsincluding,“organizingandconductingpublicmeetings,preparingagendas,
writingletterstonewspapersandpoliticians,publicspeaking,conductingopinionpolls,campaigning,
utilizingleadershipskills,andvolunteering”[21](p. 18). AccordingtoMitchell[22],“Theconcepts
and issues of identity, oppression, power, and privilege raised through dialogue in the (culturally
Educ.Sci.2016,6,35 4of6
responsive)classroomintandemwiththeactionofmeaningfulserviceinthelocalcommunityand
reflectiononbothoffersthepraxisthatcanleadtotheperspectiveandactiondesiredfromstudentsin
developingcommitmentstosocialjustice“[22](p. 109).
Otherrallyingpointsinfavorofculturallyresponsiveteachingisthatitcementstheconnection
between social justice and pedagogy and creates the space needed for discussing social change in
the classroom [2,5,23]. Rather than wallow in or blame their students’ lack of resources for low
performance,culturallyresponsiveteachersdosomethingtocreateavibrantlearningenvironmentfor
theirstudents.Forexample,aleadingadvocatetellsushowhecollaboratedwithhisAfrican-American
fifthgraderstoacquirethelearningresourcesthathisstudentsneeded[24]. Theteacher,Mr. Schultz,
co-createdayear-longauthentic,transformativeandintegratedcurriculumwithAfrican-American
fifthgradersinChicago,Illinoistogetanewschoolbuildingforhisstudentsandtheircommunity.
Hewrote,“Intheirquesttoreplacetheirunder-fundedandmarginalizedschool,thestudentswere
‘abletoidentifyrootcausesofproblems’andalsoreadyandwillingtoimplement‘strategiesthatmight
bringaboutsubstantivechanges’”[24](p. 166). Havingidentifiedthepoorconditionoftheirschool
buildingasthemajorproblemconfrontingthem,Mr. Schultz’sfifthgraderscameupwithstrategies
toactandeffectchange. Theirmostcriticalissuewastheirdecayingschoolbuilding. Thestudents
identifiedhowtheywouldmaketheirproblemknowntothecommunitybypinpointingpeopletotalk
to,makingtheirplightknownthroughpublicationsinnewspapersandmagazinesandbuttonholding
politicians. Thosethatthestudentstargetedwerelawmakers,membersoftheschoolboard,school
administratorsandstaff,politicalleadersandmajorcorporations. Twonewspaperswerechosenby
theclasstohelpinthepublicity. Thestudentsalsodiscussedwaysofputtingpressureonmembersof
thecommunitytoachievetheirgoals. Theirapproachincluded“surveyingstudents,teachers,and
staff;petitioning;interviewingpeoplewithpowerinthecommunity;writingletterstothelegislature
and inviting politicians to the school; holding a press conference; and producing a documentary
video”[24](p. 169). Otherapproachesadoptedbythestudentsincludedcomposingletterstothe
media,writingtopeoplewhomatteredinthecommunityaswellaswritingletterstothepolitical
elitesinthecommunity. Withinaveryshortperiodoftimenewspapersandtheentirecommunity
pickedupthestudents’storyandpeopleinthecommunitystartedtodemandanswers. Academically,
thestudentslearnedseveralskillsintheprocessincludingcooperativework,howtoconductsurveys,
howtomakedocumentationsandhowtotakephotographs. Theyalsolearnedhowtowrite,make
assessments,analyzedataandsolvemathematicsproblems. Hemaintainedthatthestudents’hard
workwashealthilyrewardedwithabetterschoolbuildinginsubsequentyearsandnumerouspublic
serviceawards[24]. Heconcluded:
[The students’] initiative and perseverance paid off. Although there was some
disappointmentandfrustrationinnotgettinganimmediateresponsefromthe‘decision
makersattheboardofeducationandthecity,’otherpeoplecertainlyresponded,hearing
thecriesforequityinschooling.Fromlocallegislatorsvisitingandlobbyingonthestudents’
behalf... ,toinquiriesfromuniversityprofessorsinterestedinwritingabouttheproject,
toconcernedcitizens—includingRalphNader-payingvisits,thestudentswereapplauded
andawardedfortheirfinework. [24](p. 171)
Culturallyresponsiveteachersviewthecycleofsocial,educationalandotherinjusticesinsociety
throughthelensofpoliticalanalysisofpowerandlegitimationofmeanings. Theimportantargument
hereisthatprivilege, identityanddisadvantagehavebeenusedtojustifysystemicinequalitiesin
societythroughthedynamicsofpower.Initsefforttocontestinequality,culturallyresponsiveteaching
thereforeinstillsinstudentsasenseofselfandpoliticalconsciousnessdesignedtoempowerthemin
transformingthepoliticallandscapeasawayofusheringinamoreequitabledemocracy[23]. Thisis
to say, culturally responsive teaching rejects the view that schools are apolitical. On the contrary,
itconstruesschoolingasaformofculturalpoliticswhichinfluencesnotonlytheconstructionand
production of meaning but how identities are formed and reproduced in society. Its overarching
purposethenistotransformstructuralinequalitiesasitaffectsvariousgroupsinsociety. Therefore,
Educ.Sci.2016,6,35 5of6
culturallyresponsiveteachingnotonlyteachesstudentshowdifferenceshavebeenusedastoolsfor
justifyinginequalitiesbutinformsthemhowtotranscendtheboundariesofinjusticeanddebilitating
restrictionsimposedbythewidersocietyonsomecitizens[3,4].Assuch,itprovidesnotonlyawareness
of,butthemeansforconstructingcountervailingplatformsofstrugglebyteachingstudentshowto
interlockwithcivilsocietyinordertochangedespairintohopeandhopeintooptimism. Inother
words, culturally responsive teaching is critical of domination, discrimination, subjugation and
dehumanization of individuals and groups. It calls for public policy to be informed by the spirit
ofequity,socialjusticeandfairnesstoall[3,4].
3. Conclusions
Thisarticlemaintainsthatatrulytransformativeagendaofsocialjusticecanbeachievedbyusing
culturallyresponsiveteachinginourclassroomsbecauseculturallyresponsiveteachingactivatescivic
citizenshipofallstudents,keepsstudentsawake,andmakesthemactiveparticipantsinthefightfor
socialchange. Also,studiesbynumerousscholars[1,2,5–10,12–14],showthatstudents,particularly
minoritystudents,dobetteracademicallyinschoolswhereteachersuseculturallyresponsiveteaching
thaninschoolswhereteachersdonotusesuchamethod.
ConflictsofInterest:Theauthordeclaresnoconflictofinterest.
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