Navigating Cultural Competence in Grades 6-12: A Compass for Teachers

by Nancy P. Gallavan

Overview

Chart your course with the Gallavan cultural competence compass

All children have one important thing in common—the need to be treated with dignity, respect, and care. This handbook shows teachers and administrators how to ensure that the cultures of all peoples are considered and valued. The author’s eight-point cultural compass guides you in crafting a respectful and inclusive curriculum. Each chapter includes frequently asked questions, specific strategies, and activities for:

• Broadening your knowledge about cultural diversity
• Increasing your confidence in teaching about culture
• Creating a welcoming learning environment

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781412978484
Publisher:	SAGE Publications
Publication date:	10/12/2010
Pages:	161
Product dimensions:	6.90(w) x 9.90(h) x 0.60(d)
Age Range:	3 Months

About the Author

Nancy P. Gallavan, Ph.D., is Professor of Teacher Education at the University of Central Arkansas where she specializes in classroom assessments and cultural competence in the Department of Teaching and Learning MAT Program, which she helped to start in 2006. The UCA MAT Program was recognized as the Distinguished Program in Teacher Education by the Association of Teacher Educators in 2010. Dr. Gallavan also serves as the UCA Academic Liaison to Institutional Diversity.

Receiving university and college awards for her teaching, scholarship, and service, Dr. Gallavan has expertise in K-12 education, classroom assessments, curriculum development, cultural competence, social studies education, and teacher self-efficacy. With more than 120 peer-reviewed publications in journals, as chapters in books, and as books, Dr. Gallavan authored two versions of Developing Performance-Based Assessments, one for Grades K-5 and one for Grades 6-12 with Corwin Press in 2009. She also authored two versions of Navigating Cultural Competence: A Compass for Teachers, one for Grades K-5 and one for Grades 6-12 with Corwin Press in 2011. With Ellen Kottler, she co-authored Secrets to Success for Beginning Elementary School Teachers with Corwin Press in 2007 and Secrets to Success for Social Studies Teachers with Corwin Press in 2008. Most of these books have been republished in multiple languages.

Her research agenda focuses on classroom assessments and teacher self-efficacy. Her chapter, “If you want your students to change, then you need to change: Mediating the sources and benefits of teacher self-efficacy with teacher candidates,” will be published in the Handbook of Research on Professional Development for Quality Teaching and Learning in 2016. Dr. Gallavan serves as the editor of the Arkansas Association of Teacher Educators Electronic Journal (Ar ATE EJ) and co-editor of the Association of Teacher Educators (ATE) Annual Yearbook of Research.

An active member of American Educational Research Association (AERA), Association of Teacher Educators (ATE), Kappa Delta Pi (KDP), National Association for Multicultural Education (NAME), and National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS), she is involved with the AERA Classroom Assessment Special Interest Group and serves as Chair of the ATE Commission of Online Teaching, Learning, and Schooling. Dr. Gallavan is a Past President and a Distinguished Member of the Association of Teacher Educators (ATE), a Kappa Delta Pi (KDP) Eleanor Roosevelt Legacy Chapter inaugural member, and a member of Phi Delta Phi (education honor society).

Prior to joining the University of Central Arkansas, Dr. Gallavan was an Assistant/Associate Professor with the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, specializing in social studies education and cultural competence. She began her career in education as an elementary school and middle level classroom teacher primarily in the Cherry Creek School District in Colorado. She earned her undergraduate degree in Elementary Education with an emphasis in Literacy from Southwest Missouri State University (now Missouri State University); her master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction with an emphasis in Gifted and Talented Education from the University of Colorado, Boulder; her school administrator license from the University of Colorado, Denver; and her doctoral degree in Curriculum Leadership with a cognate in Cultural Competence from the University of Denver. At the University of Denver, she received the Phi Delta Kappa Outstanding Dissertation Award.

Table of Contents

Foreword Francisco Rios vii

Preface x

Acknowledgments xiii

About the Author xiv

Introduction 1

1 Explore Cultural Competence 9

Examine Fairness 9

Delve into Definitions 10

Establish Firm Foundations 11

Understand the Purpose of Cultural Competence 13

Set Your Goals 13

Ensure Respect 15

Acquaint Yourself With the Vocabulary 16

Link Cultural Competence to Learning 17

Develop Your Self-Efficacy 18

Take Responsibility for Cultural Competence... 18

Extending Activities for Teachers 19

Extending Activities for Learners 19

2 Begin Your Transformation 23

Appreciate the Change Process 23

Be Yourself and Stay Open 24

Frame Your Questions 25

Cope With Disequilibrium 26

Demystify "Dealing With Diversity" 26

Rethink Being "PC" 28

Meet "Norma" or "Norman" and "Abby" or "Abner" 28

Understand Hermeneutic Phenomenology 29

Follow the Gallavan Cultural Competence Compass 31

Connect With Culturally Responsive Pedagogy 34

ACT NOW... 35

Extending Activities for Teachers 36

Extending Activities for Learners 36

3 N: Notice Culture and Cultural Characteristics 40

Account for Senses, Sensibilities, and Sensitivities 41

Examine Sensations 41

Deconstruct Thinking 43

Analyze Emotions 43

Recognize Selectivity 44

Connect Through Value Theory 44

Investigate the Context of Culture 45

Expand Your View 46

Describe Yourself 48

Check Your Reactions 49

Plan Your Travels... 49

Extending Activities for Teachers 50

Extending Activities for Learners 51

4 NE: Negotiate and Evaluate Curriculum and Content 55

Understand Curricular Development 56

Identify Content, Processes, and Context 58

Align Curriculum With Instruction and Assessment 59

Relate to Information, Access, and Opportunity 60

Connect With Teaching, Learning, and Schooling 60

Make Meaning Through Social Constructivism 62

Transform Your Approach and Check Yourself 62

Watch for Biases and Hidden Agendas 64

Strive for Social Action 66

Keep Curriculum Honest, Natural, Holistic, and Authentic 66

Design Your Plan... 67

Extending Activities for Teachers 67

Extending Activities for Learners 69

5 E: Establish Community and Context 73

Create a Sense of Place 74

Initiate Cultural Competence From Day One 76

Emphasize Classroom Appearance and Movement 77

Ensure That the Classroom Reflects Everyone 77

Welcome and Get to Know Your Students 78

Help Your Students to Know One Another 80

Avoid Unintended Consequences 81

Connect Fairness With Learning 82

Feature Classroom Meetings 83

Become a Reflective Decision Maker 85

Share the Space... 86

Extending Activities for Teachers 86

Extending Activities for Learners 87

6 SE: Seek and Engage in Collaboration and Construction 91

Network With Colleagues 92

Realize the Power of the Propinquity Effect 94

Visit Other Teachers' Classrooms 94

Find a Partner and a Mentor 96

Expand Your Resources 97

Infuse Cultural Competence 98

Create a Student-Centered and Learner-Driven Classroom 100

Incorporate Families 102

Feature Student-Led Conferences 103

Model Resilience 104

Map Your Changes... 104

Extending Activities for Teachers 105

Extending Activities for Learners 105

7 S: Spark Conversation and Climate and SW: Strengthen and Weave Together Complexities and Controversies 108

Assess Expectations 109

Recognize Context 110

Establish Boundaries 110

Accept Complexities as Opportunities 112

Integrate Complexities into Content 112

Include Controversy into Management 113

Seize the Teachable Moment 114

Encourage Higher-Order Critical Thinking 115

Practice Problem Solving and Decision Making 116

Examine Rationality 117

Practice Conscientization... 117

Extending Activities for Teachers 118

Extending Activities for Learners 119

8 W: Waken Compassion and Commitment and NW: Nurture and Welcome Challenges and Changes 122

Understand the Concept of Care 123

Feature Compassion in Your Classroom 124

Examine Challenges in Education 126

Connect With Cultural Competence 127

Overcome Resistance 128

Teach Democratic Principles 129

Ensure Educational Equity 130

Champion Human Rights 131

Promote Social Justice 132

Commit to Commitment... 133

Extending Activities for Teachers 134

Extending Activities for Learners 134

Resource A Gallavan Cultural Competence Compass 136

Resource B Review Checklist 137

Resource C Websites 143

References 154

Index 156

Editorial Reviews

"Like a compass guiding travelers on their journeys, the Gallavan cultural competence compass supplies teacher candidates, classroom teachers, school administrators, and educational researchers with a well-crafted tool that addresses all players and aspects of education. Each of the eight compass points delves into a segment of teaching and learning that educators must make visible in all of their endeavors. "

Porter Lee Troutman