Home | How It Works | Stats Login | Register         Case: Food and Holidays My school principal told all the teachers at my school at the beginning of the school year that because of the recent changes in the demographics of the school, we had to develop and implement lessons that were Culturally Responsive. I had heard of the term "Culturally Responsive", but I am not the most knowledgeable person about it. So, I did lessons on holidays and traditions in different cultures. I had some lessons on food favored by different cultures. When appropriate, I brought guest speakers to my classroom. The other day I was having a casual conversation with the school principal and she asked me about how the culturally responsive teaching was going. I told her about the things I have done. She said I got it all wrong. I was shocked and hurt by her comment. How am I going to develop and implement culturally responsive lessons? I really do not know. What is wrong with my holidays, traditions, and foods? I thought I was doing a great job. By the way, I teach 4th grade and I have mostly Black and Hispanic children. Solution: (Rates are posted for this solution!) Oh no, it sounds like you were trying really hard. I believe that maybe you were researching different cultures, but just not the right ones. I think you need to do some research within your own school and find out exactly who the students at your school are. I think your principal's term "culturally responsive" means being aware of the diversity of cultures that exists within your school. As a teacher I would conduct surveys and interest inventories, find out what your students like and what their traditions are. I would adapt my classroom to meet the needs of my individual students. I would allow students to share their information about their culture and ethnicity by presenting projects or writing essays. I would also invite parents to get involved at school and within my classroom. Responding to your students and their needs is what "culturally responsive" means to me.                 Rating The suggested solution is respectful of the individual (student) Yes The suggested solution is relevant to the case Yes The suggested solution is reasonable (easy) for the teacher to implement Yes The suggested solution is likely to solve the problem/issue Yes The suggested solution is original Yes Comments: I love your idea of assigning project or essays to explore and share their own culture. Rated On: October 19, 2014 5:14 pm Rated By: Angela Avery                 Rating The suggested solution is respectful of the individual (student) Yes The suggested solution is relevant to the case Yes The suggested solution is reasonable (easy) for the teacher to implement Yes The suggested solution is likely to solve the problem/issue Yes The suggested solution is original Yes Comments: It would be really helpful to get the students to talk about themselves and their own families. Rated On: March 5, 2017 7:20 pm Rated By: uheVaX