Culturally-Responsive Teaching

Reprinted from: http://www.ala.org/acrl/publications/keeping_up_with/crt -- since I wrote this article (along with my coworker/supervisee Cindy Conley), I think I can publish it on my blog as long as I give credit to ALA's Keeping Up With... online publication.

The United States will become more diverse in the next 50 years, with the percentage of minorities growing from 37% in 2012 to 57 percent by 2060 [1]. This change in population is reflected in higher education, and has implications for academic libraries and the services we provide. Librarians, as instructors and promoters of information literacy, must not only seek to understand the varied cultural backgrounds of their students, but must be responsive to these differences.

The term “culturally relevant teaching” was defined by Gloria Ladson-Billings in 1994 as “a pedagogy that empowers students […] by using cultural referents to impart knowledge, skills, and attitudes” [2]. Geneva Gay built upon this concept with the term “culturally responsive teaching,” which she defines as “using the cultural characteristics, experiences, and perspectives of ethnically diverse students as conduits for teaching them more effectively” [3]. Underlying the concept of culturally responsive teaching is the assumption of “otherness;” that is, in every society there are dominant ideas defined by the majority population, and those who do not fit into the dominant group are viewed as the “Other” while “the dominant ideologies embody power and influence educational policies and practices” [4]. Efforts should therefore be made to be more inclusive of “Other” students to compensate for this inherent inequality in our education system.

Understand Multiculturalism

Get to know your students, and build an understanding of multiculturalism. “[B]y being aware of the representative languages, cultures, and learning styles, librarians can make instruction more meaningful and relevant to their students’ lives” [5]. In order for our instruction to be as authentic and relevant as possible, “information literacy instructors must become sociocultural literate to demonstrate the uses for research in a variety of contexts” [6]. It is important for librarians to understand that “[c]ulture encompasses many things, some of which... have direct implications for teaching and learning. Among these are ethnic groups’ cultural values, traditions, communication, learning styles, contributions, and relational patterns” [7]. In the same way that teacher preparation programs are looking at better incorporating multicultural understanding in their curriculum [8], library science programs should also consider ways to educate librarians about cultural diversity.

Incorporate Students’ Backgrounds

Use examples in your lessons that reflect the cultural backgrounds of your students [9]. For example, faculty members might design case studies that incorporate multi-ethnic names and scenarios [10]. Similarly, librarians can teach about developing search strategies, identifying information needs, or evaluating authority using sample topics and keywords that are inclusive and sensitive to various cultural perspectives [11]. Furthermore, incorporating students’ backgrounds in instruction is a learner-centered approach to teaching which “places the student at the centre of the learning process” [12].

Diversify Your Teaching Methods

Design instruction that incorporates a variety of teaching methods, including active learning, group work, and open-ended questioning. Students from “Other” backgrounds have different ideas about learning “and respond to challenges in different ways” [13]. Many ethnic groups have different “protocols of participation in discourse” [14]. Some students may find answering questions intimidating because of language barriers, disability, fear of being “wrong,” or other reasons. Encourage students to share their experiences and opinions, but have alternate ways for students to submit responses or questions in order to accommodate different learning styles, abilities, and understandings [15]. Allowing students to work in groups can help support those students who learn better collaboratively [16] as well as allow English-language learners to practice language skills with their peers [17]. Bottom line: good instructional design leads to better student performance for all students.

Scaffold and Set High Expectations

Scaffold learning, and set high expectations for all students. The instructor should act as a bridge between students’ pre-existing knowledge and the next level of understanding [18]. “Starting with small goals and scaffolding upon student knowledge, teachers can create opportunities for students to experience academic success” [19]. Contrary to what some believe, being culturally responsive does not equate with “dumbing down” the curriculum. This misconception is largely due to the disparity between the backgrounds of most faculty and staff and those of the students they teach. “This disparity affects teachers’ expectations for their students’ optimal learning [...] the perceived differences in their students’ attitudes, lifestyles, and social networks define both their work and their responses to students” [20]. Librarians should keep these high expectations in mind in the classroom and in one-on-one interactions with students.

Collections and Programming

Libraries can influence culturally-responsive teaching through collections and programming.  Academic librarians can foster “diverse learning opportunities through culturally relevant library collections” [21] by purchasing works written by authors with diverse backgrounds and containing subject matter that reflects differing realities and perspectives, increasing opportunities for students to encounter views that might be different from their own. Libraries can also sponsor multicultural-themed exhibits and programs that promote diversity. These programs serve to educate students about different cultures while showing the library as a supportive, welcoming place for all students to study and learn.

Among the challenges many institutions of higher education face is their lack of diversity, especially among faculty and staff, as well as significant attainment gaps among minority groups.  Librarians as academics have the power to be “agents of change” and, indeed, have a moral responsibility to support and facilitate student learning [22]. As the “centers of campus” which serve all students, staff, and faculty, and by incorporating culturally-responsive teaching through our instruction, our collections, and our programming, academic libraries can have a significant impact on supporting diversity and student success at our institutions.

Notes

[1]  “U.S. Census Bureau Projections Show a Slower Growing, Older, More Diverse Nation a Half Century from Now.” United States Census Bureau. Last modified Dec. 12, 2012. https://www.census.gov/newsroom/releases/archives/population/cb12-243.html.

[2] Coffey, Heather. “Culturally Relevant Teaching.”  Learn NC. Accessed December 15, 2015. http://www.learnnc.org/lp/pages/4474. 

[3] Gay, Geneva. “Preparing for Culturally Responsive Teaching.” Journal of Teacher Education 53, no. 2 (2002): 106-116. http://www.uwec.edu/COEHS/upload/Pattee-Article.pdf.

[4] Atwater, Mary M., Tonjua B. Freeman, Malcolm B. Butler, and Jessie Draper-Morris. “A Case Study of Science Teacher Candidates’ Understandings and Actions Related to the Culturally Responsive Teaching of ‘Other’ Students.” International Journal of Environmental & Science Education 5, no. 3 (2010): 287-317. 

[5] Mestre, Lori. “Culturally Responsive Instruction for Teacher-Librarians.” Teacher Librarian 36, no. 3 (2009): 8-12. 

[6] Blas, Elise. “Information Literacy in the 21st Century Multicultural Classroom: Using Sociocultural Literacy.” Education Libraries 37, no. 1-2 (2014): 33-41.

[7] Gay.

[8] Atwater, et al.

[9] Ibid.

[10] Jabbar, Abdul and Glenn Hardaker. "The Role of Culturally Responsive Teaching for Supporting Ethnic Diversity in British University Business Schools." Teaching in Higher Education 18, no. 3 (2013): 272-284.

[11] Blas.

[12] Jabbar, et al 

[13] Ibid.

[14] Gay.

[15] Blas.

[16] Mestre.

[17] Blas.

[18] Jabbar.

[19] Coffey.

[20] Atwater, et al.

[21] Doll, Carol and Kasey Garrison. "Creating Culturally Relevant Collections to Support the Common Core: A Framework for Teacher Librarians." Teacher Librarian 40, no. 5 (2013): 14-18. 

[22] Jabbar, et al.

The Limitations of Teaching Sources as Objects

Reading Holliday and Rogers' article, "Talking About InformationLiteracy: the Mediating Role of Discourse in a College Writing Classroom," has turned my brain upside down in the way I think about our information literacy instruction, and has even informed the way I work with students at the reference desk and in one-on-one research consultations.  It had never occurred to me that the very language we use in instruction actually serves to propagate students' perceptions of sources as "containers" to be "located" and "incorporated." The idea of using sources of information for the purpose of "inquiry" -- something that the new ACRL Framework is leading us to do -- gets lost as information has become a commodity to be "retrieved."

Even when faculty, with good intentions, try to guide students to "better" sources by restricting certain kinds of sources (for example, certain websites,) this only serves to emphasize to students the idea of sources as something for them to obtain, as a consequence eliminating the understanding of sources being more or less valuable because of the information they impart. This is something that I think librarians and faculty have always known and try to convey, but we are coming at it the wrong way. The use of "evaluation criteria" checklists as the predominant tools used to teach how to evaluate sources (which I personally have come to despise and refuse to use in my instruction) tops off everything else to create a complete package of denigration of the use of information.

I love the ideas espoused in this article from George Mason University, The Learning Library in Context: Community, Integration, and Influence. While the college or university library is often described as the "heart of campus," the article describes how the arteries and veins of this heart can intertwine themselves with the entire campus and the academic curriculum.  The library "pumps blood" into the efforts to instill in students the critical thinking and lifelong learning skills that colleges and universities aim to help students develop.

Some pertinent quotes (emphases mine):

"Rather than an external "add on" to the educational experience, the library, as information resource and gateway, is a primary catalyst for cognitive, behavioral, and affective changes in students -- as they interact with information resources as directed by faculty, as they complete assignments and study with peers, [...] seeking connections and making meaning in more self-directed ways.  The learning library, rather than a repository of materials or a study hall, is therefore an agency of change in students' lives" (124).

"In the Vygotskian sense, the learning library is the constructivist laboratory for students to make their own meanings, but only by moving through a series of 'zones of proximal development' with research strategies and information sources and with the coaching and guidance of more knowledgeable others"(124).


"Because of the continually changing nature of information access[...] students need a conceptual foundation for research. This approach fosters the underlying processes, mainly critical thinking and problem solving, that allow them to adapt to new situations" (129).

College Handouts Don't Make the Grade

I can't say enough about the reports coming out of Project Information Literacy.  Report #3, How Handouts for Research Assignments Guide Today's College Students, gives a detailed analysis of the information conveyed to students in research assignment handouts, compared to the needs of college students during their research processes (as determined in a prior study).  It outlines how often specific resources are mentioned, including help from librarians.  Very eye-opening and great fodder for developing more collaboration between librarians and faculty in designing research assignment descriptions.

"Knowledge Building"

And here it is: higher education finally getting on the bandwagon and engaging in constructivist learning techniques (re-packaged, apparently, with the new label "knowledge building").  This article, I'm proud to say, comes from my own alma mater, Smith College: "What Do You Know? And How Well Do You Think?"

I will let the article speak for itself, but I'm glad to see that innovative instructional design involving active, constructive ("knowledge-building") learning is taking place at the college level.

The Purpose--and Mis-Use--of Formative Assessment

This article from Education Week very simply and clearly explains what formative assessment is supposed to be, and how it is often misunderstood and misused.

A poignant point from the article: "[I]t’s not the test per se that is formative or summative. It is the use to which the test’s results are put."

This to me is one of the most important things to keep in mind.  I have seen here at my institution "formative assessment" defined in such a way that the emphasis is on the assessment of the student progress rather than on how this data is being used to assess the effectiveness of the instruction. There is a big difference, but I think many educators (especially, I'd venture to say, those in higher education who do not necessarily have degrees in education fields) do not fully have this understanding. Giving quizzes or assignments throughout a course can be one means by which educators can employ formative assessment processes, but they are not the only, nor necessarily the most effective, means.

Regardless of the means by which formative assessment data is obtained, the purpose of formative assessment must be kept in mind:  to evaluate whether or not teaching and learning activities are effective, and then to make changes accordingly to the lesson design and instructional methods.  Formative assessment is a much more subtle, nuanced, and complicated process than simply monitoring students' quiz results or grades on assignments to assess their progress in class.  It is what is done with these grades, quiz results, or other more informal assessment techniques (such as simply asking questions in class to gauge students' understanding at a given moment in time) that distinguishes formative assessment from summative assessment; the latter is for the purpose of evaluating what students have learned; the former is for evaluating how instruction or learning processes can be improved.