CULTURALLY RESPONSIVE TEACHING PLAN

Ohio schools are becoming increasingly diverse and a culturally responsive approach by

teachers is important for the growth and development of each student and fosters student

participation and achievement. Students bring their culture and backgrounds with them into the

class room every day, and teachers must create a bridge to bring diverse students together. It is

important to connect a students cultural knowledge, prior experiences and preferred learning

methods to academic curriculum and use this knowledge to provide access to information and

avenues in learning. Educators have a responsibility to learn about and respect their students

culture, design instruction to meet their diverse needs, promote positive student interactions,

create an environment of respect and appreciation for human differences and help students feel

comfortable exploring differing opinions and viewpoints.

Ethno-Cultural identity is rooted in our family and may include language, ethnicity, race,

social class, gender, religion, political affiliation, social class and neighborhood association. This

affects an individuals world view and a student may bring his or her own beliefs, values, dress,

speech, traditions, behavior and views on roles or relationships to school. Ohios cities have

European ethnic clusters stemming from immigration as well as a rise in African and Hispanic

students in schools. Although rural schools tend to be more homogenous, Ohio has one of the

largest presence of Amish. The role of socio-economics also plays a part in a students world

view, values and beliefs. It may affect a students readiness for school and access to tools and

resources outside of the classroom.

Teachers must identify our own cultural backgrounds and understand how it may

influence interactions with students, setting performance expectations, creating classroom

management plans and designing instruction. It is crucial that educators use strategies to

reduce and eliminate any perception of bias and nepotism in the classroom.
CULTURALLY RESPONSIVE PRINCIPLES:

1. Positive Perspectives on Parents and Families

Parents and families of students are the biggest influence in the impact of his or her

education, and it is vital to create positive, open and continuing communication between

the parents or family and the educator. Through this communication parents may share

insight into the students culture and background, as well as any concerns, hopes or

suggestions that will aid in teaching. Hosting a Family Art Night where students invite

their families to share their work is a great way to create positive support and meet

parents face to face. At the beginning of the school year, I would also like to send

students home with a letter to their parents inviting them to speak freely and openly

about any concerns, expectations and how their son or daughter learns best, as well as

my desire to have parental involvement in student learning. Lastly, I believe it is crucial

to educate myself on acceptable behaviors, courtesies, customs or expectations when

visiting a students home.

2. Communication of High Expectations

Teachers must convey the same level of respect, confidence and high expectations of all

their students to foster learning, and avoid behavior that may incur unintended low

expectations. When instructing, I intend to be clear, concise and specific in what is

expected, the goals of the assignment, share the projected timeline and what the rubric

for grading will be. I will maintain high expectations of all my students, and not protect or

favor students based on their cultural differences as it may undermine their self-esteem

and give a biased and unfair climate to the classroom. I also will praise students when

the standards of the assignment are met and make certain to recognize achievement of

all students.
3. Learning Within the Context of Culture

Children learn about themselves and form worldviews based on their culture, and people

from different cultures may have different expectations, methods and values relating to

learning. Teachers must educate themselves on the cultures of their students and use

this information to adapt their curriculum to create effective and positive learning

opportunities, while supporting students differences and helping them embrace their

beliefs. I would like to include a project that focuses on an issue that is personal to the

student or his/her culture and have students share with their classmates to learn about

differences, values and appreciate cultures. I intend to use an inclusive curriculum and

include lessons in underrepresented groups in the arts and their contributions to society.

I would also like to invite guest artists from students communities to come speak and

share their art with the class.

4. Student Centered Instruction

Student centered learning shifts the focus of instruction from the teacher to the student

and will help students develop skills necessary for success in college and life. It is

important for teachers to give some of the control back to the students and play more of

a supportive role rather than directive. Including students in planning, goal setting,

method/technique used and assessment helps promote a deeper understanding,

confidence and leadership potential. Students may choose an artist to examine, and with

my help and the help of their peers will develop a project to express their ideas about

this artist. This focuses on setting personal goals and objectives, and promotes self-

learning, motivation and engagement of the art world. I would also like to begin the year

with open discussions about art objects. I will show a presentation of various works and

let the students comment and discuss what they see and feel. I feel this will help develop

their understanding of aesthetics and cooperatively explore visual imagery and foster an
 appreciation for diversity. Lastly, I would like to have students work on a collaborative

painting. Everyone will have an equal piece of the painting to complete and will

assemble the painting together at the end. Students will need to work together to match

colors, shapes and perspective, and will share in the success of the painting while

engaging and interacting with one another.

5. Culturally Mediated Instruction

Utilizing culturally mediated instruction allows students to become active in their learning

and is beneficial to all students regardless of their differences. The classroom

environment supports multicultural viewpoints and informs and demonstrates to students

that there are many ways to interpret, learn, understand and express information. I

would like to give students a survey to complete with their parents about their interests,

learning styles, expectations, concerns, and access to tools and materials outside of

class to gain insight. I could also have students complete a project involving a tradition,

belief or folktale that they grew up with and have them share with the class. As a group

project, I could share a story of a chosen culture with students and then have an open

discussion about what they read or heard and how it makes them feel. Each student

would be assigned a particular part of the story to illustrate and we would assemble it

together after completion.

6. Reshaping the Curriculum

It is important to foster student procurement of new knowledge by integrating information

and experiences from students cultures and creating instruction that is student centered

and interdisciplinary. This will help students gain a deeper understanding of information

and utilize new knowledge and skills into real life situations. I will execute an inclusive

curriculum in the teaching on the history of art; lessons on artists that are women, people
 of color and learning about a history that is not only centered around European white

males will be included. Relating this knowledge to world history will help in

understanding. I also plan to focus on interdisciplinary learning and correlate lessons

and topics with other teachers to build knowledge. I would also like to use my knowledge

of students cultures to create projects that may focus on a cultures art objects, artist

biographies, art within the structure of the culture, and the traditions of art within the

culture. Discussion and demonstration of how art is made, materials used and how it is

viewed or valued in society will help expand their world view, and by using cooperative

learning students will depend on one another to form a complete picture and

understanding.

7. Teacher as Facilitator

Creating a positive learning environment that is supportive and nurturing while being

culturally responsive and reflective is crucial to helping students connect new learning to

real life situations. The educator must act as teacher, advocate, guide, mediator, and

knowledgeable consultant in addition to being the instructor. I would love to have guest

artists from student communities visit and give demonstrations on how they make art

and what it means. Students could also complete a project on his or her family tradition,

history, culture or background and together we brainstorm ideas on how to express it

into visual art. Students will need to include a description and how it illustrates the

aspect of their family life or heritage. I would also like to ensure comprehension to ELLs.

Verbal instruction can be hard to understand and I will include written directions that are

explained in detail by pictures. I will also put labels including a picture on items around

the classroom to help students connect words to objects.