Culturally Relevant Pedagogy in the Preparation of Teachers to Work in High-Need School Districts

November 28, 2018 3:30 pm - 5:00 pm

Continuing the discussion from our Active Learning Week webinar around supporting learners of all abilities, this session delves into how to ensure teachers are equipped to enact classroom practices that are culturally responsive—fully grounded in the lived experiences of students, inclusive of all races/ethnicities, genders, sexual orientations, and socioeconomic statuses.  Presenters share evidence and best practices around 1) practice-based teacher preparation; 2) fostering and assessing critical science teaching agency; and 3) teacher leadership for promoting a growth mindset to support the development of underserved students.  It is hoped that participants will seek to implement these active learning pedagogies in their practice and work as change agents at the forefront of STEM teacher education reform.

The topic will be explored through engagement of the following multiple stakeholder perspectives:

Etta Hollins, Ph.D.
BIO
University of Missouri,
Kansas City

A Nationally Recognized Researcher -

will address preservice policies and practices that support candidates in learning to teach traditionally underserved students in high needs schools. These include: well-designed, developmentally sequenced experiences where courses and field experiences are correlated and interrelated; a focus on the development of the whole child (academically, socially, and psychologically) within the context of home, community, and school; and performance-based expectations demonstrated in evidence from validated key assessments that habituate specific epistemic practices through regular application across the program. The continuous improvement of preservice programs requires practice-based research focused on the relationship among candidates’ learning experiences and performance on key assessments, as well as the learning outcomes for traditionally underserved students taught by program completers.

Vishodana Thamotharan, Ed.D.
BIO
Laird Kramer, Ph.D.
BIO
Florida International University

Preparation Program Principal Investigators -

will provide an overview of their NSF Track 1 Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program grant – Breaking the Cycle: Preparing Future STEM Teachers for the Highest Need Urban Schools by Embracing Culturally Responsive Instruction – and its implementation in a majority minority setting.  The project embraces the diversity of FIU’s student body, over 78% of which are from historically underrepresented groups, and develops their culturally responsive instructional practices through seminars, field experiences, leadership experiences, and induction. How program elements have contributed to recruitment and participant increased interest in taking action through teaching will be shared. Presenters will also share their preliminary work developing a quantitative instrument to measure critical science teaching agency and their on-going data collection on teacher identity.

Darbie Valenti
BIO
St. Joseph School District
St. Joseph, MO

A STEM Teacher Leader -

and 2017 Missouri Teacher of the Year will reflect on her own childhood to discuss how she connects her lived experiences to instruction in the modern-day classroom to help meet the needs of students of diverse socioeconomic backgrounds. With the end goal of using STEM as a tool to help break the ties of generational poverty, ideas will be shared to promote a more inclusive learning environment that focuses on using STEM as the great equalizer to provide equitable learning experiences for all.

Participant Learning Outcomes:

By the end of this webinar, participants will:

• develop a deeper understanding of the importance of studying how best to meet the needs of learners through implementation of culturally relevant pedagogy, fully grounded in the lived experiences of students;
• increase familiarity with culturally relevant pedagogy associated with the growth and development of learners of varying backgrounds, as illuminated by research literature and teacher practice;
• understand how practice-based research can advance teacher preparation program improvement;
• recognize the relevance of research on culturally relevant pedagogy to their role; and
• identify an action step to apply something gleaned toward their own research/program/practice.

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