The Lens of Cultural Proficiency

1. The Lens of Cultural Proficiency Lindsey, R. B., Graham, S. M., Westphal Jr., R. C., & Jew, C. L. (2008). Culturally proficient inquiry: A lens for identifying and examining educational gaps. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

2. What is Cultural Proficiency? • Cultural proficiency is about being effective in cross-cultural situations…[ It] is about educating all students to high levels through knowing, valuing and using their cultural backgrounds, languages, and learning styles within the context of our teaching. • Cultural proficiency is a mindset; a world view that shifts from viewing others as problematic to viewing how one works with people different from one's self.

3. What is Cultural Proficiency? • The central tenet of cultural proficiency holds that change is an inside-out process in which a person is, first and foremost, a student of his own assumptions. One must be able to recognize one’s own assumptions in order to retain those that facilitate culturally proficient actions and to change those that impede such actions. It is this ability to examine one’s self and organization that is fundamental to addressing achievement gap issues

4. What Does the Research tell us About the Academic Achievement Gap? • The achievement gap is historical • The achievement gap is quantifiable • The disparity between student demographic groups is also evident from qualitative data • The achievement gap persists in urban, suburban, and rural schools

5. What Does the Research tell us About the Academic Achievement Gap? • The achievement gap is not just about test scores. It correlates also with gaps in wellness, school readiness, opportunities to learn, opportunities to access educational programs and support, grade promotion and graduation, post-school opportunities including college entrance, employment and employability, and earnings.

6. What are the Current Factors that Contribute to the Achievement Gap? • Ineffective, disengaging instruction • Underqualified teachers • Limited preschool attendance • Prejudice , stereotype threat, and poor self –concept

7. What are the Current Factors that Contribute to the Achievement Gap? • Low teacher expectations • Competing technology • Test Bias • Poverty • High mobility

8. The Four Tools of Cultural Proficiency The tools of cultural proficiency- (1) Guiding Principles, (2) Barriers, (3) Continuum, and (4) Essential Elements/Standards provide you with the framework for analyzing your values, behaviors as well as your school's policies and practices.

9. The Four Tools of Cultural Proficiency ( Guiding Principles) • Guiding Principles enable you to examine the core values of the school and how theory in action (what you espoused vs. what you do) differ when schools are undergoing academic self -study:

10. The Four Tools of Cultural Proficiency( Guiding Principles) • Culture is a predominant force in people's and organization's lives • People are served in varying degrees by the dominant culture • People have group identities and individual identities • Diversity within cultures is vast and significant • Each cultural group has unique cultural needs

11. The Four Tools of Cultural Proficiency( Barriers) Understanding the Barriers to achieving culturally proficient actions: • Resistance to change • Systems of oppression • Sense of entitlement

12. The Four Tools of Cultural Proficiency(Continuum) The Continuum of cultural proficiency defines/describes the level of proficiency or lack of: • Cultural Destructiveness- seeking to eliminate remnants of the cultures of others • Cultural Incapacity- Seeking to make the culture of others appear to be wrong • Cultural Blindness- Refusing to acknowledge the culture of others

13. The Four Tools of Cultural Proficiency(Continuum) • Cultural Precompetence- Being aware of what one doesn't know about working in diverse settings. Initial levels of awareness after which a person or organization can move in a positive, constructive direction • Culture Competence- Viewing one's personal and organizational work as an interactive arrangement in which the educator enters diverse settings in a knowledgeable manner, and is supportive to cultures that are different from the educator's

14. Five Essential Elements/Standards of Cultural Competence This allows the educator to examine cultural competence within the context of curriculum and instruction, assessment practices, parents and community, and professional development.

16. School Profile- Data Collection Process (Phase I) • The demographic group you will be studying will be the community/school/classroom of your place of employment • Describe the community in which the school belongs • Describe the mission and goals of the school • You will utilize the http://www.dpi.state.wi.us/sig/ URL to collect information for your analysis: • Student Demographics ( 2-4 tables) • Student Performance on WKCE ( 2-4 tables) • Teacher Qualifications( 1-2 tables) • Student Attendance, Behavior or Graduation rates (1-2 tables)

17. School Profile- Data Collection Process (Phase II) • As you walk through the school, what evidence do you see that the school practices culturally responsive practices? • In your classroom, how are issues of race, class, and culture addressed? • Look at the adolescent literature in your classroom or the school library. How well does it represent multiple cultures? Does it represent the cultures of the students who attend the school? • Interview someone at the school who is responsible for selecting and ordering literature. How is the issue of multicultural representation addressed in the book selection process? • Use the Rubrics as your guide, as you describe your school

18. School Profile- Data Collection Process (Phase III) • Discuss your findings using the following prompts: • What did you discover? Were you surprised? Briefly talk about an area you either found positive, supportive, or maybe toxic. • Discuss how you could begin to contribute, shape, or change the school culture.