Tag: Cultural Competence

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The grand experiment that we know of as public education continues to be our best hope to inspire freedom and prosperity across all races and eradicate the grim realities of economic inequality. Teachers, administrators, students and staff boldly engage in this experiment daily and continue to champion the cause that has yet to live up to its promise. In honor of our successes and in recognition of our persistent struggles, it seems only right to review what Dr. King taught us as we wrestle with the complexities of culturally relevant instruction or cultural engagement or whatever term you want to use for engaging all kids.   Lesson #1: Judge students not by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. “I…

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I can personally and professionally attest to the fragility of the human spirit. That’s because I have been there, along with the rest of us. One minute we believe we can change the world and the next minute we are giving up on it. The thin veil of self-confidence that envelopes each of us, and our children in particular, brings into question the propriety and opportunity we have as educators in the words that we use and the actions that we take. For just a moment, let us all think back as far as we can remember, for it is there among memories pieced together that we might recall the first time someone suggested that we could be good at something, that we had some…

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freedom, success, students

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Students, no matter who you are and no matter the depth of sadness and struggles that you face, please allow me to be one of many adults who stand in testimony that better days lay ahead.   The pangs of youth bring so much heartache that it is a wonder how any of us survive it. The hard realities of poverty, the gripping tensions of strained relationships, and the gross amalgam of competing messages from parents, teachers, friends, and social media know-it-alls have you struggling to sort it all out. No matter what you hear, trust me on this one. There is a place for you in this world. And you too can be free. When I was a child, I witnessed and survived a great…

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High Expectations in School, boy with book

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We have no better evidence of inequity and blindness than that which is found in our public schools every day across America. No matter the dedication, passion and training of our educators and school leaders, the devastating impact of generational poverty has led to a number of related and varied biases that can emerge when our neediest students learn among and from adults who have never experienced (and cannot picture) such challenging life circumstances. No matter how caring and well-meaning our educators are (and they are), many cannot comprehend the struggles and even trauma that our students experience. As a result, we are often lost in our attempts to compensate for the deficits that these students face. Or worse, we believe that we are doing…

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High Expectations, Boy Peeking Out Window

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The more I interact with the best teachers and leaders in our profession, the more they make this complex thing we call “educating all children” much simpler for the rest of us. If we have learned nothing else after years of research in education, we know that we must listen to, study and repeat the actions of our most effective teachers and leaders in compiling a list of what we call “best practices.” The most overlooked of all such conclusions is this one: All student success begins with setting high expectations.   Success begins with high expectations. Period. No further debate necessary. There is simply no research anywhere, nor any practical reality, that would suggest that some kids can learn while others cannot. It is…

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mlk, advice for educators

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The grand experiment that we know of as public education continues to be our best hope to inspire freedom and prosperity across all races and eradicate the grim realities of economic inequality. Teachers, administrators, students and staff boldly engage in this experiment daily and continue to champion the cause that has yet to live up to its promise. In honor of our successes and in recognition of our persistent struggles, it seems only right to review what Dr. King taught us as we wrestle with the complexities of culturally relevant instruction.   Lesson #1: Judge students not by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a…

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Boy, Alone

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I have no name.  Only a number. I sit in the back row. The desk next to me is open. The one in front of me is taken by a girl with soft skin. I know her well from the back, for I have gotten lost many times in the darkness of her long, straight hair. The teacher seems nice but I don’t know her name and she doesn’t know mine. She talks a lot but her words don’t make sense to me. Some in the class nod their heads when she talks. Others just look down. She doesn’t look my way much. She has sometimes asked me for an answer, though I am quick to say that I have none to give. And now…

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Lesson Plans, Student Engagement Strategies

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The daily dance around student engagement and lesson planning has been made much too complex in recent years, and I’m not sure why. We have countless definitions of what engagement is and what it is not, and we have varied opinions on how we should rate this concept when we observe a classroom lesson. Let’s be clear that true engagement is a highly advanced instructional skill and is much easier said than done. Still, I don’t think the definition itself is as complex as we are making it out to be. For me, I prefer to think of student engagement as synonymous with “thinking” or “learning,” and with a nod to things like student interest, choice and real-world application. The real caution here is that…

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Cultural competence, confidence

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I can personally and professionally attest to the fragility of the human spirit. That’s because I have been there, along with the rest of us. One minute we believe we can change the world and the next minute we are giving up on it. The thin veil of self-confidence that envelopes each of us, and our children in particular, brings into question the propriety and opportunity we have as educators in the words that we use and the actions that we take. For just a moment, let us all think back as far as we can remember, for it is there among memories pieced together that we might recall the first time someone suggested that we could be good at something, that we had some…

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student hands of hope

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Personalized learning to improve student engagement Though all educators are quick to tell you that schools are about children and meeting their needs, the level of disengagement among kids paints a much bleaker picture. In fact, most students do not describe their schools and classrooms as “child-centered.” The good news is that we are getting better at it. We are learning and growing as an industry and don’t let anyway tell you that schools are not more engaging than they used to be. We’ve come a long way in the past 20 years in giving more learning over to students and providing more time for students to engage with each other. These are good steps for a community of educators that is evolving in positive…

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