Cultural Responsive Pedagogy: The Cherry on Top of Effective Learning

Cultural responsive pedagogy is a student-centered approach that includes cultural references and recognizes students’ cultural and linguistic background and experiences. In-service teachers participated in a research study to explore culturally responsive teaching. The research conducted explores the teaching perspectives of K-12 in-service teachers in low economic schools in the southeast region of the United States. The goal of this study is to contribute and inspire more conversations related to culturally responsive teaching and create environments for education professionals to engage in discussion on how to best adapt this framework in K-12 classrooms.

Even though there is a range of advantages of culturally responsive teaching, there are challenges as well. A potential difficulty is controversial topics that may cause discomfort to the teacher or student. For example, an in-service teacher, spoke of their resistance to discuss LGBTQ related issues. “ I always feel I must watch what I say or do. It is not that I don’t want to embrace and be welcoming to all of my students, but I just don’t agree with it.

It’s easier just not to talk about it.” Lastly, participants emphasized the challenging narrow understanding of cultures and assets of the student’s communities they serve and both personal and institutional biases that can decrease commitment and motivation to be culturally responsive.

There are No to little resources and strategies for teachers to position themselves as facilitators and learners of culturally responsive pedagogy. However, facilitating cultural responsive teaching has the potential to positively influencing the classroom environment, foster positive relationships, and solidify trust between the student and teacher.

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Students feel more included and important when their teachers include one’s culture and interests in daily lessons or conversations. The teacher has sparked a light in a child when she or he becomes empowered to be a positive influence on themselves and others thus inspired to keep their cultural identity.

A strategy to facilitate culturally responsive teaching in the classroom is to embrace a variety of opportunities for students to voice their concerns or questions. In the study, J. Samuels conducted, “Participants spoke most extensively about giving students voice and allowing that voice to be largely represented in multiple contexts.”  Also, collaborative work and allowing different methods to complete an assignment encourages creativity and uniqueness of students as an individual. In-service teachers in the study provided an example of what different methods of presentation styles looks like, “…rather than requiring all students to write a three-paragraph essay, teachers can give students a choice to write an essay, construct a poem, or act out a skit to demonstrate their learning related to a given learning outcome.”

Another way to enhance student engagement is to build student’s interests into the curriculum appropriately. As well as designing lesson plans that are inclusive, celebrate diversity, and encourage concerns or questions about cultural differences. Ultimately educators should embrace critical multiculturalism and begin with self-examination and reflection. To prepare for culturally responsive learning, educators have to educate themselves and figure out what works and what doesn’t, and then be able to reform one’s classroom into an engaging, learning, and safe environment for student’s curiosities to run wild. “If we truly desire to teach to transform, we must be able to promote and sustain both agency and advocacy for educational equity.”