Although the focus of this class is on curriculum and pedagogy (and, in some cases, severe and multiple disabilities, and challenges in literacy) the reality is that an increasingly multicultural presence (races, ethnicity, languages, religions) in both greater American culture and our particular Long Island demographic is requiring teachers to rethink and reform more traditional classroom practices. The interaction between cultural, disabilities, and other at risk factors can further complicate this issue. The Culturally Responsive Pedagogy activity will help you to explore the complex interactions between these issues, and how it may be dealt with constructively and affirmatively in your classroom.
This project is intended to be put together over time. All of the topics we discuss will be contributive, and there are also a number of requirements of the assignment that you can complete early in the course. This is a sizable project, so please be sure to keep it in mind and develop it throughout the course for best quality and manageability.
Pretend that you have been hired by a school district to provide a workshop for teachers about culturally responsive teaching and literacy. Your approach will be to provide THREE (3) books that teachers should read to learn how to be more culturally responsive to their student population, and FIVE (5) books for children/young adults that represent their culture in a culturally responsive manner. You will then create ONE (1) sample lesson plan based on one of the books you chose for the students. PLEASE BE SURE TO COMPILE ALL OF YOUR MATERIALS INTO ONE POWERPOINT/GOOGLE SLIDES FILE to be uploaded to Canvas in the Assignments area. Be sure the following points are included in your presentation:
- Identify and contextualize the classroom population.
- Identify the 3 books for the teachers and the 5 books for the children/young adults.
- Explain/justify why you chose each book. NOTE: THERE MUST BE A PARTICULAR REASON THAT EACH BOOK IS CHOSEN—REASONS MAY NOT BE REPEATED.
- A lesson plan including: (i) Curriculum Rationale; (ii) Behavioral Objective; (iii) Introduction, Instructional, and Closure Procedures; (iv) adaptive procedures/modifications; and (v) Assessment procedures
- Fully functional lesson materials, including at least ONE modification for a student that has a reading comprehension challenge (e.g., TWO SETS OF MATERIALS: ONE STANDARD, ONE MODIFIED).
See below for classroom descriptions and assignments.
Vignette 1:
This seventh-grade multisubject [ELA, Math, and Science] class is comprised of 37 children in a Title I [low socioeconomic] urban junior high school, but the physical space of the classroom is supposed to hold only up to 30 children. In order to preserve some space, the teacher only has two small tables in the back, which are rarely used, and students sit on a set of mismatched chairs. Of the 37 children, 30 are Hispanic (mostly Puerto Rican, Dominican, and Ecuadorian), 4 are Korean, 2 are Chinese and 1 is White (but identifies as Russian, and is from Ukraine but has lived in the US for 8 years). All students are able to speak English, but the students who speak other languages often converse with their classmates in that language rather than English. The child from Ukraine does not socialize much, but speaks English when he does. 30 of the children (27 Hispanic, 1 Korean, and 2 Chinese) typically score no less than 2-4 grades below reading level when tested (though these students have not been assessed in over 3 years). 3 students (Russian, 2 Korean, and 1 Hispanic) is regarded as an “on-grade level reader,” and 3 students (2 Hispanic and 1 Korean) are considered above grade level (these students were assessed 1 year previous when entering the Middle School). A majority of the children in this class come from single parent homes, and contact between school and home is sparse.
Vignette 2:
This sixth-grade multisubject [ELA and Math] class is comprised of 35 children in a socioeconomically challenged suburban middle school. The physical space is tight, but is not overcrowded as per the building code. Students in this class are grouped in “clusters” of 4-5 students assigned randomly. These clusters do not change throughout the year. 25 of the students are Black [15 Haitian, all born in the US; 5 Jamaican, all but one born in Jamaica; and 5 Nigerian, 2 born in the US]. The remaining 10 children are Hispanic [6 Puerto Rican, all born in the US; 4 Dominican, all born in the Dominican Republic but relatively fluent English speakers]. The 5 highest level readers in the class read 1 grade below level, while the remaining 30 read between 2 and 3 grade levels below. Roughly half of the children in this class come from single parent homes (15 Black, 7 Hispanic), but contact between home and school is consistent for roughly 25 of the families.
Vignette 3:
This eighth grade multisubject [ELA and Social Studies] class is comprised of 22 children in socioeconomically advantaged suburban middle school. The physical space is ample, and the classroom is organized into 6 versatile “center areas” that can be “staged” (set up with materials” as needed, as well as a general classroom instruction area. 18 of the children are white (15 Christian, 3 Jewish), 3 of the children are Indian (born in the US), and 1 student is Cuban (born in the US). 19 of the children read at or above grade level (15 white, 1 Cuban, 2 Indian), while 3 of the children (2 white, 1 Indian) read between 1 and 2 grade levels below. 4 children (all white) come from single parent homes, and contact between home and school is consistent for all families (including both parents from the single parent homes).
