Culturally Relevant Teaching Approach

Impact of Culturally Relevant Teaching on Literacy Development of African American Students in Urban Education

Culturally Relevant Teaching and Literacy Development

Culturally relevant pedagogy has emerged as one of the interventions to help enhance the learning outcomes of different student populations. The concept emerged from reform initiatives of educational programs across the country, which have contributed to the development of various educational interventions and programs. Ladson-Billings (1995) developed this concept and define it as the inclusion of aspects of the students’ cultural environment in the arrangement of and instruction in the classroom. Culturally relevant pedagogy could play an important role in student engagement and achievement in the modern learning environment. Byrd (2016) contends that culturally relevant teaching is a potent intervention and strategy for lessening achievement gaps and improving student engagement and achievement. While culturally relevant pedagogy could help lessen gaps in student achievement, today’s learning environment is still characterized by disparities in student outcomes. The academic outcomes of African American students are significantly lower than Latino, White, and Asian American students in both special and general education classrooms. The study demonstrates that culturally relevant pedagogy should be adopted in urban educational settings for literacy development of African American students.

Problem Statement

The learning environment in the United States has continued to experience changes including demographic changes. Currently, the learning environment comprises students from different racial and ethnic backgrounds. The number of minorities in today’s classroom has continued to increase rapidly in recent years though the majority of student populations and teachers are Whites. African Americans account for a significant percentage of modern student populations. As a result, American teachers face new demands and need to adopt teaching practices and instructional strategies that meet the learning needs and styles of all students, particularly Black students. As the number of Black students in the modern classroom increases, the discrepancy in academic performance continues to widen. Despite efforts by educators and other stakeholders in this field to enhance the academic outcomes of all students, disparities in performance still exist. The U.S. public system has witnessed a growing increase in the discrepancy in student academic performance as certain groups are likely to excel than others. Howard & Terry Sr. (2011) contend that African American students continue to lag behind in their academic performance compared to other student populations like Asian American, White, and Latino students. In essence, Black students are disproportionately affected by the current approaches to learning adopted in the classroom as evident in their relatively poor academic performance in comparison to other student groups. The gap in academic performance is an indicator of systematic racism existing within the school system.

Review of Existing Literature

The discrepancy in the academic outcomes among different student populations has been the subject of numerous studies in the recent past. Existing studies have examined this issue from different perspectives including the potential causes of the achievement gaps and how they can be addressed. Scholars in the field of education have conducted studies to examine this issue as it has gained the attention of policymakers and other relevant stakeholders.

Cultural Factors in Student Achievement

As evidenced in existing literature, the discrepancy in the academic performance between different student populations is attributable to various factors. Cultural differences are seen as one of the major contributing factors towards the poor academic performance of African American students. Paulk, Martinez & Lambeth (2014) contend that African Americans generally have a unique communication pattern that is not similar to the patterns adopted in most classrooms. The unique communication patterns have contributed to the lack of communication between teachers and students, which is brought by the different cultural backgrounds of the individuals. Together with race and socioeconomics, culture generates tensions among teachers and students in different areas including academic achievement. It is estimated that nearly 49% of African American children live in rural communities while 62% live in low-income families (Paulk, Martinez & Lambeth, 2014). In addition, approximately 52% of African American children live in single-parent homes in rural settings. The living conditions of these children shape their cultural practices and communication patterns in the classroom. Given their experiences in rural settings, African American students have different communication patterns and cultural practices that affect their learning and academic achievement.

Ladson-Billings (1995) suggests that home and community cultures of African American students have significant impact on their learning and academic success in schools. Teacher-student interactions and participation structures demonstrate a strong link between culture and academic achievement. For example, teachers who utilize language interaction patterns that are linked to the students’ home cultural patterns facilitate improved student academic performance. In concurrence, Howard & Terry Sr. (2011) state that the incorporation of cultural aspects in instructional strategies has been found to have positive impacts on the learning and academic achievement of students of color. According to Gay (2010), African American students are disproportionately assigned to special education since teachers/educators do not have knowledge regarding their socialization and cultural values. This in turn contributes to the relatively poor academic performance of these students by affecting their learning behaviors.

Culturally Relevant Pedagogy and Student Achievement

The concept of culturally relevant pedagogy was developed in 1995 by Gloria Ladson-Billing whose landmark article has acted as a coherent theoretical statement for this approach to teaching (Paris, 2012). This concept was developed following insights obtained from the experiences and outcomes associated with teaching and learning using an approach that is relevant and responsive to cultural practices, literacies, and languages of students (Ladson-Billings, 1995). The concept was developed on grounds that pedagogy should be a major focus of the investigation into measures to enhance education, diversity, and equity. Culturally relevant pedagogy emerged as an effective means for the reformation of teacher education instead of programmatic reform that characterized teacher education programs across the United States. It was influenced by the work of anthropologists who examined suitable ways in which teaching can mimic the home and community cultures of black students.

Culturally relevant pedagogy seeks to promote and foster cultural, linguistic, and literate pluralism as part of a school’s democratic project (Paris, 2012). This approach helps teachers to effectively respond to the multiethnic and multilingual classroom environment. Culturally-relevant pedagogy is rooted in the strong link between teaching and culture as suggested by Ladson-Billings (1995). This link becomes the premise upon which this instructional approach enhances student learning and achievement. In an increasingly, multiethnic and multilingual modern classroom environment, culturally relevant pedagogy enhances teacher-student interaction and increases student engagement in the learning process.

Gay (2010) suggests that the educational quality of these students can be improved significantly by adopting instructional practices and programs that reflect their cultural perspectives, heritages, and experiences (Gay, 2010). Therefore, culturally responsive teaching is viewed as an approach that could help improve their learning behaviors, experiences, and outcomes. Howard & Terry Sr. (2011) contend that culturally responsive teaching has been touted to be a teaching approach that could overturn the persistent poor academic performance of these students. According to Paulk, Martinez & Lambeth (2014), culturally relevant pedagogy contributed to improved student learning and achievement by enhancing teachers’ cultural awareness. This instructional strategy or approach does not require teachers to essentially be culturally proficient or competent in order to be effective in satisfying the cultural needs of their students. Once teachers become culturally aware, they will be able to communicate with their students of color in an effective manner that increases their achievement in different subject areas such as science (Paulk, Martinez & Lambeth, 2014).

Byrd (2016) reminds us that elements of culturally relevant pedagogy have proven essential in improving student achievement and engagement, which in turn lessens achievement gaps. This implies that culturally relevant pedagogy is linked to positive academic outcomes and experiences that are relevant in today’s educational settings. Culturally relevant teaching incorporates cultural awareness and other elements that are critical in improving ethnic-racial identity development and student learning and achievement. Consequently, without culturally relevant teaching, education and learning can never be the best it should be for students, especially those who are not part of the mainstream or majority of the society, communities, and schools (Gay, 2010).

Discussion

Existing literature provides significant insights into the role culturally relevant pedagogy plays in enhancing student learning and achievement. As evident in existing literature, discrepancies in student achievement continue to exist in the United States despite numerous efforts and measures undertaken to enhance learning. African Americans and other minorities are disproportionately affected by current teaching or instructional strategies. These strategies fail to effectively integrate cultural aspects in the learning process and inadvertently affect African American students by contributing to poor academic achievement in comparison to other student groups or populations. In this regard, cultural elements should be incorporated in teaching practice to help meet the diverse needs of students in an increasingly multiethnic and multilingual modern learning environment.

Culturally relevant pedagogy is a suitable intervention that can help improve teaching practice and contribute to better student achievement. The integration of cultural elements and cultural awareness in the teaching process has been found to enhance the learning experiences and outcomes of African American students. Culturally relevant pedagogy improves the learning and academic achievement of students by enhancing cultural awareness among teachers. Once teachers become culturally aware, they utilize suitable communication tools and strategies that mimic the home and community culture of African American students. As a result, these student increase their engagement in the learning process, which leads to better learning experiences and improved achievement. Therefore, culturally relevant pedagogy should be adopted in urban educational settings to help reduce achievement gaps among African American students.

In conclusion, the modern learning environment is characterized by the emergence of different student populations. While a significant portion of teacher and student populations in American schools are Whites, the number of minorities like African American students has increased rapidly in recent years. Teachers face the need to adopt teaching/instructional strategies that cater to the diverse needs of these students. As the number of African American students continue to increase, achievement gaps continue to widen. Culturally relevant pedagogy is a suitable intervention that could help reduce these gaps and promote literacy development among African American students.