In her book "The Schoolhome," Jane Roland Martin favors a curriculum that "brings new voices and perspectives into the course of study so that everyone will feel at home" (209). The number of diverse students is dramatically rising in our schools. Companies in the United States rely on employees in different countries. Our world is becoming increasingly global. To meet the demands of our global world, it is essential that teachers design their curriculum inclusively with culturally relevant literature. Furthermore, teachers need to provide all perspectives on a historical event.
An inclusive curriculum occurs when teachers design lessons that educate diverse students about themselves while also exposing students to cultural backgrounds that are different from their own. Because our cultural practices have been ingrained within us, it can be easy to be accidentally culturally insensitive. Here are some great strategies for culturally responsive practices to incorporate into teaching. One tip I received from a professor easily changed how I make my curriculum more inclusive. If we are presenting information on an author, artist, athlete, etc., we should always provide a little background. We can inform the students that the person is a female, black, from a different country, or gay. The teacher does not have to make a big deal about the information, but this fact can impact one student. The student will feel like he is not alone and can better connect to the curriculum.
During my student teaching internship, I saw the importance of opening my students' eyes to the world. Many of these predominantly white students did not have the opportunity to travel to cities in the United States or go outside of the country. Spanish culture was an essential topic of study since students only had stereotypical viewpoints. My mentor teacher told me to assume that the students had no background knowledge on the people and countries that speak Spanish. For every unit, we explored housing, schooling, clothing, and more in a variety of Spanish-speaking places. I hope that these little cultural lessons have an impact on these students when they leave high school and interact with a more diverse population. On the other hand, my students in Illinois are significantly more diverse and well-traveled. It has been awesome to use my students' personal experiences to drive our cultural conversations.
Within an inclusive curriculum, teachers must incorporate culturally relevant literature. Choosing culturally relevant books allows students to engage with authentic texts about their experiences, presents real-world situations that empower students, and has positive consequences for students of color. These new voices bring an understanding of different cultural perspectives. Since we cannot change our race or background, we can begin to empathize with others through literature.
As I reflect on my high school reading experience, I see how our English curriculum did not include many culturally relevant books. We read the classics such as Romeo and Juliet, Of Mice and Men, The Great Gatsby, and more. However, we did read The House on Mango Street. This story, written by a Mexican-American author, details the life of a young Latina girl living in Chicago. Although I did not appreciate this book at the time, it truly allows students to understand difficulties that the Mexican community experiences in the United States. Students can compare and contrast their life with the life of the main character. Hopefully, students will gain a greater appreciation for Hispanics in our country after reading the novel. Complementing literature, many culturally relevant movies and TV shows exist. Showing clips of Switched at Birth can expose students to the challenges of the deaf community. Perhaps students will be more accommodating and accept a person's speaking American Sign Language after watching the show.
It is very manageable to incorporate culturally relevant literature in any classroom. By searching on Google, you can find great ideas. This database from Loyola University in Chicago has an incredible list of culturally relevant books! When choosing a book, you can use this rubric to measure the cultural relevance, or it can serve as a starting point for a group discussion.
In addition to using culturally relevant literature, providing multiple perspectives to a historical event is imperative in a culturally inclusive curriculum. Our current curriculum frequently ignores the contributions and perspectives of minorities and women. It usually favors the contributions of white males. Unfortunately, traditional textbooks often give only the "American" side to our country's history. For example, I did not learn of the indigenous perspective of Christopher Columbus' arrival until I was a senior in high school! From the time we are young children, we are conditioned to recite how Columbus discovered America. He is a positive, heroic figure who is honored with a holiday. It was not until I was 17 that I learned of the atrocities that Columbus committed by bringing disease and slavery to the New World. His horrific treatment of the indigenous people led other conquistadores to follow suit. I am now for celebrating El Dia de la Raza (Indigenous People Day) instead of Columbus Day. This day celebrates the multi-cultural society that exists today rather than the cruel deeds of Columbus. If teachers can provide students with the contributions and perspectives of minorities, we can help create a more understanding population.
As our world becomes more global and diverse, it is our responsibility to give students the skills they need to interact with people of different backgrounds. This can only happen if we develop a culturally inclusive curriculum with culturally relevant reading and offer a variety of perspectives on historical events.
Katherine, thank you for your thoughts on the relationship between schools and homes. In looking back on some of your previous posts, I see that we have some things in common! I too majored in Spanish and am now a Spanish teacher in an immersion setting. I also spent some time abroad in northern Spain. I lived in Oviedo, Asturias for a semester. What city were you in? Spain is a beautiful country full of such rich history!
ReplyDeleteI love your comments about being inclusive to other cultures, whether using culturally relevant texts or being culturally welcoming in teaching practices. This is something I strive to do despite being in a school that is not incredible culturally diverse. In fact, in this type of setting, it may be even more important to be culturally aware so that students learn to understand and appreciate differences around them!
Thank you for sharing the list of culturally relevant practices and sharing the suggestion from your professor about giving background information about a text. Subtle additions to a lesson or activity can make a world of difference! Seeing a list or hearing concrete ideas make the task of being culturally relevant less overwhelming.
I also appreciated your take on using the students’ background knowledge, or rather, lack of background knowledge, to steer the lessons. Teaching Spanish is more than sombreros and fiestas so it is important to dive into the culture behind the language! It is also important to differentiate between Spanish speaking countries, as they are all diverse in their own ways! During a unit on the Caribbean, I had a student who had traveled to Puerto Rico give a mini-presentation on cultural practices that she noticed while there. This was a beneficial way to use her knowledge to share with the class; it was also helpful to distinguish Puerto Rico from other Spanish speaking countries.
And lastly, I could not agree more with your comment about textbooks and teaching American history. The irony of teaching Social Studies in my setting is that although my textbook is entirely in Spanish, it still written in the American perspective. Often I intentionally have my students read a portion of the text and then reflect on how other groups of people may have felt because of what the Americans did. For example, in looking at Manifest Destiny, students read about how the US gained many new territories but then I ask the questions, “What were the effects of us taking the land?” and “Was it worth it?” Obviously, the last question isn’t a right or wrong answer but it gets at the idea that what the Americans did wasn’t always perfect. I will also be doing a new lesson this year on Christopher Columbus and the age of exploration in which students will be assigned a role (Christopher, Indigenous People, King and Queen of Spain, etc.) and must defend their perspective of the events taking place. The intent of the activity is to think beyond the heroic acts of Christopher Columbus and recognize that the event is more complex.
Hi Katherine,
ReplyDeleteThank you for your post and the conversation it generated.
I love the story of the Martha's Vineyard deaf community that Martin shares in her book. From wikipedia:
"Martha's Vineyard Sign Language (MVSL) was a village sign language once widely used on the island of Martha's Vineyard off the coast of Massachusetts, U.S., from the early 18th century to 1952. It was used by both deaf and hearing people in the community; consequently, deafness did not become a barrier to participation in public life. Martha's Vineyard Sign Language played a role in the development of American Sign Language.
The language was able to thrive on Martha's Vineyard because of the unusually high percentage of deaf islanders and because deafness was a recessive hereditary trait, which meant that almost anyone might have both deaf and hearing siblings. In 1854, when the island's deaf population peaked, the United States national average was one deaf person in 5728, while on Martha's Vineyard it was one in 155. In the town of Chilmark, which had the highest concentration of deaf people on the island, the average was 1 in 25; in a section of Chilmark called Squibnocket, as much as a quarter of the population of 60 was deaf."
These are amazing numbers to contemplate. But what is so essential to me is that a difference led to a shared cultural practice that was inclusive in nature. I think we can learn a lot from this example. What are the barriers to full participation and inclusion in any setting? What changes need to happen for that to take place? When we are asking those questions--about our families, our schools, our cities--then I think we have another helpful way to think about what an inclusive curriculum sets out to provide.
Great post!
Kyle