Culturally Responsive Teaching

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Teachers must learn about the communities where they work. Researchers have argued that the overall impact of CRT will be minimal if [non-local] teachers do not acquire the knowledge and skills needed to integrate and reinforce local community cultural norms in the classroom. Some research has shown a high correlation between teachers’ awareness, understanding, and appreciation of cultural knowledge and students’ successful academic performance.

Essential Questions:

• To what extent am I able to conceptualize and understand my own privilege and social location as it pertains to students’ learning?
• Do students have the opportunity to give back to their school and wider community through what they’ve learning in your class?
• Do students understand that you have high expectations of them because you care about their learning and well-being?
• Do you actively model your core values? Do students have the opportunity to witness you demonstrating your core values?

Academic Relevance

Academic Relevance at NISN is the lens and guide on learning that anchors (core/anchor/guide/framework) curriculum in students’ cultural experiences, histories, and languages.

Identity Development

Healthy identity development is an ongoing process of growth in self awareness, understanding, actualization and resiliency that includes one’s culture, race, beliefs, land, and social impacts.

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Holism/Holistic Wellness

Understanding the interconnectedness of the physical, mental, emotional and community wellness within a person, community, or organization. Ex: Including but not limited to land, ceremony, songs, language and being.

Relationships

When teachers partner with community and families, they are able to enlist support for student learning outside of the school day and year. Teachers are more likely to stay in schools where there are high levels of trust with parents which increases teachers’ feelings of support and respect. When school staff demonstrates that they value parents and honor the various roles that families play in students’ lives, they contribute to a positive school climate that supports student learning.

Native American World-views

More advanced racial identity development correlates with higher psychological well-being. Native communities that took steps to preserve their heritage and culture were dramatically more successful in insulating their own children against risks of suicide. Important aspects of cultural knowledge, that scholars have suggested teachers must acquire, include:

• Spiritual traditions
• Past and present issues facing tribal nations
• Characteristics of the local culture, as well as tribally specific histories
• Common manifestations and impacts of racism among Indigenous peoples
• Differences between and within tribal nations
• Issues surrounding language preservation
• The history of Indigenous educational policies and practices
• The history and continuation of colonization.

Finally, having native teachers has been shown to bolster native students’ educational attainment.

Placed-based Learning

Place-based learning, with emphasis on working together in pairs or groups has led to positive and significant differences in participation in local issues, civic engagement, greater school participation, and higher reading and math scores. Components of school such as advisory or mentoring programs have shown to develop strong relationships between students and advisors that support more effective learning and socio-emotional development. Advisories and group-work have proven to build relationships, increase self-esteem, mediate academic and social concerns, & support a strong school community.

Key Factors:

• Lesson connects to the local community, balances contemporary and historical content, and/or includes other local tribal knowledge.
• Lesson concepts are contextualized in a scenario or problem that is relevant and significant to local tribal community(s)/culture(s).
• Content is practical, with potential benefits to local tribal communities.
• Content reflects respect for Indigenous science knowledge, Western science knowledge, and multiple worldviews.
• Content is presented from a holistic perspective, addressing relationships, interactions, and/or cycles.
• Lesson addresses the responsible and ethical use of science and technology.
• Content is inclusive and accurate, with no stereotype or bias (by omission, defamation, imbalance, generalization, etc.)
• Cultural content is significant and designated as appropriate for sharing in classrooms by local tribal communities (content is not presented as a sidebar, extension or novelty; is not taboo or offensive.)
• Content is inclusive and accurate, with no stereotype or bias (by omission, defamation, imbalance, generalization, etc.)
• Content is practical, with potential benefits to local tribal communities.
• Content is presented from a holistic perspective, addressing relationships, interactions, and/or cycles.
• Content reflects respect for Indigenous science knowledge, Western science knowledge, and multiple world-views.
• Cultural content is significant and designated as appropriate for sharing in classrooms by local tribal communities (content is not presented as a sidebar, extension or novelty; is not taboo or offensive.)
• Lesson addresses the responsible and ethical use of science and technology.
• Lesson concepts are contextualized in a scenario or problem that is relevant and significant to local tribal community(s)/culture(s).
• Lesson connects to the local community, balances contemporary and historical content, and/or includes other local tribal knowledge.

Resources:

Books:

Culturally Responsive Teaching: Theory, Research, and Practice The achievement of students of color continues to be disproportionately low at all levels of education. More than ever, Geneva Gay’s foundational book on culturally responsive teaching is essential reading in addressing the needs of today’s diverse studen By: Geneva Gay Published: January 1, 2000

Teaching Diverse Populations: Formulating A Knowledge Base This book presents current knowledge about teaching culturally diverse populations, traditionally underserved in the nation’s public schools. By: Etta R. Hollins Published: January 25, 1994

Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?: And Other Conversations About Race Beverly Daniel Tatum, a renowned authority on the psychology of racism, argues that straight talk about our racial identities is essential if we are serious about enabling communication across racial and ethnic divides. By: Beverly Daniel Tatum Published: September 5, 2017

Widening the Circle Culturally Relevant Pedagogy for American Indian Children By: Beverly J. Klug, Patricia T. Whitfield Published: October 25, 2002

Publications:

Research: