Readings to support my hypothesis

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Share 3 pieces of academic or professional reading and explain how they and other sources helped you form hypotheses about aspects of teaching that might contribute to current patterns of learning. 

If I want my learners to be coming to school on time, motivated, and ready to learn, I need to make sure that I am being culturally responsive in my teaching practice and setting them up for success.


"Culturally responsive teaching... strives to increase engagement and motivation of students"

Michael Valvurs (2008)
Culturally Responsive Teaching 

Throughout this reading, the 'why' of a culturally responsive practice is unpacked. Increase in student engagement and increase of student motivation, transforming perspectives and empowering learners by using meaningful cultural connections, just to name a few. My target group are a group of Year 7/8 Pasifika boys who are all operating below, mostly well below their expected level. Not only are they operating behind their peers, they didn't see themselves and learners and school for some of them wasn't where they wanted to be. They were disengaged and disconnected with their learning environment.

"Culturally responsive teaching acknowledges and infuses the culture of ... students into the school curriculum and makes meaningful connections with community cultures" (Michael Valcurs, 2008). As noted in my student voice that was collected, my learners didn't feel valued or that opinions mattered in their classroom. The biggest change that I've seen with my boys at the moment is their eagerness and willingness to meet. They are mostly on time to school and they know and understand the expectations of this group. Their project "A taste of the Pacific" - an integrated authentic learning experience that they have created and are planning for at the moment, is their 'baby' as they say. They are checking in with me everyday to see when we are meeting, sharing with me their writing and what they've read to support this project. Engagement and ready to learn with me, a change in attitude from a group of Year 7/8 boys who were, only about a month ago, turning up to school late. There has been a shift, already evident in this group, and their attitude and motivation towards their learning is so encouraging. On time. Righ attitude. Most times are ready for our guided sessions. Competency Works: Foundations for Young Adult Success: A Developmental Framework sums this up really nicely in saying, "Our sense of self; how we see ourselves is critical to our overall competence." While I know and understand that they are operating well below and there is A LOT of work that needs to go into these boys to show accellerated learning, I'm working on building that relationship with them, understanding their stories. 

The biggest influence on student achievement is the quality of teaching. 

What is culturally responsive teaching? The Education Hub (2018)

What is culturally responsive teaching? The Education Hub further supports the importance of understanding and knowing learners, using their stories and frames of references to teach.

"Teachers need to move beyond cultural blindness to cultural responsiveness. Although what is experienced as good teaching will vary across cultural groups, there are some principles for culturally responsive teaching that research demonstrates can be very effective" (p4). 

"Culturally responsive teaching is about making school learning relevant and effective for learners by drawing on students' cultural knowledge, life experiences, frames of reference, languages, and performance and communication styles" (p5)

Culturally responsive teaching is 
- validating: the curriculum values the diverse knowledge and practices of its students 
- comprehensive: incorporates preferred ways of knowing and the cultural and life experiences of students, as well as the history and culture of the group
- empowering and trasnformative: it transforms the way students see themselves in terms of their personal efficacy. It is also transformative and emancipatory in that it reveals that multiple versons of 'truth' are valid and no single version is total and permanent" (p5)






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