Culturally Responsive Pedagogy (CRP) Institute

Definition

Culturally Responsive Pedagogy (CRP) recognizes the importance of centering students’ cultural references in all aspects of learning (Ladson-Billings,1994), a.k.a. culturally relevant teaching/pedagogy, or culturally sustaining teaching/pedagogy.

Some characteristics of CRP are:

Rationale

The academic equity gaps affecting minority and underrepresented groups, such as our African American male students, are a critical matter for Guttman Community College. To address these serious issues, dedicated time and space are needed to explore, learn, and change how our faculty, staff, and the curriculum tackle many underlying biases. The proposed CRP Institute will provide the necessary attention and focus for faculty to begin aligning course curriculum with best practices that address these equity gaps.

Design

The CRP Institute is a semester-long professional training where faculty and staff will explore the best practices of CRP. In cohorts that meet on a monthly basis, participants will engage with CRP methods and the curriculum through assigned readings, video clips, journaling, and peer support.

CRP Institute Goals

  • Explore what CRP means, including the social, historical, and political factors that have shaped US education and the ways different racial/ethnic groups experience education.
  • Offer faculty the opportunity to critically reflect on themselves through questions like: What attitudes and biases do I hold about intelligence, learning, and the students I teach? How do these “show up” in the classroom through my behavior?
  • Support the modification of existing syllabi, courses, programs, and/or new course development, as needed.
  • Share best practices and reflections with broader faculty and staff bodies.

Eligibility

Full-time faculty are encouraged to apply. Applications from part-time faculty and staff members such as Student Success Advocates and Career Strategists may be considered.

Deliverables

Pre-, mid-, and post-CRP Institute reflections, feedback on readings and assignments, peer review (as assigned).

Repository of Materials

All revised materials emerging from the Institute will be held in a folder on the N:/ Drive.

Post-Institute Assessment

Survey and Reflection.

Module Descriptions

2019 CRP Institute Module Descriptions

What Is CRP? Implementing Rigorous, Inclusive Teaching

In this session, participants will delve into culturally responsive/relevant teaching and the ways it should manifest as rigorous learning in their classroom and the Guttman Community College environment. A state-approved rubric for CRP will be offered as a guideline for lessons, classroom discussions, and overall understanding of the theory and practice.

Readings & Materials

European-American Collaborative Challenging Whiteness. (2005, October). Critical humility in transformative learning when self-identity is at stake. Paper presented at the Sixth International Transformative Learning Conference, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI. Retrieved from http://iconoclastic.net/eccw//papers/eccw2005c.pdf

Gay, G. (2018). Chapters 1 & 2 in Culturally responsive teaching: Theory, research, and practice. New York, NY: Teachers College Press.

Milner, H. R., & Laughter, J. C. (2014). But good intentions are not enough: Preparing teachers to center race and poverty. The Urban Review, 47(2), 341–363. doi: 10.1007/s11256-014-0295-4

Teaching in Tumultuous Times: An Historical Literacy Approach to Teaching in Current Sociopolitical Contexts

In this session, participants will engage in an overview of moments in history that have significantly shaped our society. A connection between historical literacy and other concepts that build racial literacy will be discussed, including the Archeology of the Self and Teacher as Interrupter.

Readings & Materials

Gay, G. (2018). Chapter 3 in Culturally responsive teaching: Theory, research, and practice. New York, NY: Teachers College Press.

Guinier, L. (2004). From racial liberalism to racial literacy: Brown v. Board of Education and the interest-divergence dilemma. Journal of American History, 91(1), 92. doi: 10.2307/3659616

Teaching about Race and Ethnicity in Diverse Classrooms: A Critical Media Approach

In this session, participants will consider how the media shapes, reinforces, and reports on race and racism in this country. Participants will explore the media they engage with and how it influences their understanding of people and their experiences, including their own.

Readings & Materials

Gay, G. (2018). Chapters 4 & 5 in Culturally responsive teaching: Theory, research, and practice. New York, NY: Teachers College Press.

hooks, bell. (2018). Preface, Introduction, & Chapter 2 in All about love: New visions. New York: William Morrow.

Sealey-Ruiz, Y., & Greene, P. (2015). Popular visual images and the (mis)reading of black male youth: A case for racial literacy in urban preservice teacher education. Teaching Education, 26(1), 55–76. doi: 10.1080/10476210.2014.997702

Teacher as Interrupter: Counting the Costs

In this session, participants will be introduced to the concept of Teacher as Interrupter and carefully examine what they might be interrupting, how they go about interrupting, and what are the benefits and consequences of interrupting for them and the students they teach.

Readings & Materials

Gay, G. (2018). Chapters 6 & 7 in Culturally responsive teaching: Theory, research, and practice. New York, NY: Teachers College Press.

hooks, bell. (2018). Chapters 4, 11-13 in All about love: New visions. New York: William Morrow.

Alternative Modules

What is CRP?

Since its emergence in the mid-1990s, CRP has been embraced by educators and institutions to more effectively address and meet the needs of students marginalized within the educational system and society at large. This workshop will trace the evolution of the paradigm and introduce the frameworks and practices currently associated with the CRP movement.

Implementing Inclusive Teaching Principles

Research on teaching and learning highlights the importance of an explicitly inclusive classroom climate for student learning. This includes the value of learning collaboratively with diverse peers and the benefits of intentionally connecting course content to students’ life experiences and goals for the future. This workshop will introduce and explore specific activities to deliberately cultivate learning environments where all students feel valued, respected, and supported in learning. Instructors will experience and reflect upon teaching strategies to help students engage and learn across their differences, as well as to present course material in ways that productively draw upon students’ various backgrounds and perspectives.

Teaching in Tumultuous Times: How To Address the World in Your Classroom

Racist flyers, hateful graffiti, devastating storms, mass shootings, and threats of violence are all too common. Students report feeling alienated or confused when instructors do not acknowledge unsettling events going on outside of the classroom. Some also find it more difficult to learn in the midst of apparent crisis. Courses across the curriculum can offer students tools for understanding and navigating a broad range of relevant issues. This workshop provides an opportunity for instructors to discuss how to engage with students about events on campus and beyond. Participants will consider a variety of strategies, ranging from brief acknowledgment to substantial lesson plan revision and paying particular attention to best practices for framing classroom conversations about potentially sensitive topics.

Teaching About Race & Ethnicity in Diverse Classrooms

Teaching about race and ethnicity is both implicit in content across the curriculum and an intentional component of instruction for many faculty. The diversity and differences within a classroom, as well between instructor and students, can affect and complicate the dynamics of covering difficult and potentially sensitive topics. This workshop will explore how to ethically and effectively teach about race, ethnicity, and inequality in diverse classrooms; acknowledge varied power dynamics within and outside of the classroom; and prevent issues such as tokenism, misrepresentation, silence, and resistance.

Ask A Student: Consulting with Students About Course Materials

Students are an invaluable source for feedback about course materials and should be consulted for their experiences with them. In this workshop, instructors will discuss and practice different ways of eliciting and collecting student reactions and opinions on the inclusivity of course materials and content. Instructors will review their own course materials for suitable Ask A Student opportunities (portion of syllabus, assigned reading, writing prompt or assignment, a series of exam questions, a slide deck, etc).

Understanding Latinx College Student Diversity and Why This Matters in Your Classroom

As postsecondary enrollments increase among Latinx people, understanding their diversity is vital to creating and cultivating inclusive campus climates and enhancing Latinx student success. This workshop will present demographic, socioeconomic, and historical overviews of the Latinx population in NYC, highlighting the existence of diverse communities within it. Participants will also discuss how to address ethnic, national, and cultural identities and differences while preventing tokenism and misrepresentation.

Can CRP Be Overly Relevant? When Content Hits Too Close to Home

Research in culturally relevant pedagogy has yet to investigate CRP’s possible negative outcomes in classroom practice. Can this theoretical model be too culturally relevant? Could its use further marginalize students in certain contexts? Based on curricular examples from Guttman’s first year coursework and the qualitative research of Guttman faculty, this workshop will explore and analyze how culturally relevant topics of study can both include and exclude and engage and disengage students. Participants will discuss how to ensure that culturally relevant course content and materials are as inclusive and effective as possible.