Supporting New Teachers: The “Extra” in Teaching Culturally

Diverse Learners

Dr. Desha L. Williams & Scholars Ian Frame, Santhi Prabahar, &

Bonnie Roydes Kennesaw State University

Kennesaw, GA

Why is content and pedagogy not enough?

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What do you see?

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Traditional MAT program

• 18 hrs. - graduate mathematics content

• 9 hrs. – educational foundations

• 6 hrs. – educational research methods and application

• 6 hrs. – mathematics methods

• 9 hrs. – field experience

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Increasing Mathematics Teachers for ALL Students

• Voices from Principals

• Voices from Teachers

• Using Manipulatives in Secondary Classrooms

• Safe Spaces for LGBTQ Youth & ALL Youth

• Social Justice Mathematics

• Faces of Homelessness

• Culturally Responsive Mathematics

• Working with ELLs and Their Families

• Working with Refugee Students

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• State Mathematics Conference

• National Mathematics Conference

• State TESOL Conference

• University TESOL Conference

• TESOL Endorsement

• Books on Teaching Mathematics to ELLs, for Social Justice and through tenets of Cultural Responsiveness

• Regional Noyce Conference

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Culturally Relevant/ Responsive Teaching

Santhi Prabahar

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Levels of Multicultural Change

Exclusive Lesson

It teaches minor aspects of diversity at the lowest level

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Inclusive Lesson

It adds diversity content but retains the traditional structure

Transformed Lesson

It challenges traditional views and encourages new reconceptualization and new ways of thinking

Kea, C. & Campbell-Whatley, G.

Which lesson is Culturally Relevant?

1. Teen Gun Statistics

2. Credit Card Debt

3. Polar Graph Project

4. Tower of Hanoi Game

5. M&M Math

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•Is it Culturally Relevant Teaching?

•Can they be changed?

What is culturally relevant /response teaching?

• "that empowers students intellectually, socially, emotionally and politically by using cultural referents to impart knowledge, skills and attitudes” (Ladson-Billings.G.,1990)

• “In order to teach to the different learning styles of students, activities would reflect a variety of sensory opportunities-visual, auditory, tactile” (Gay, 2000).

Culturally relevant teaching in mathematics classroom

What?• Recognition of presence of

Mathematics in every culture since we have had societies

• Effect of mathematics on any culture and its people

• Math instruction would incorporate everyday-life concepts, such as economics, employment, consumer habits, of various ethnic groups.

Why?• It is an effective way to reach the

intellectual and social needs of the students from different culture

• Academic success

• Cultural competence

• Ability to critique the existing social order

What are teacher’s role?• Treat students as competent

• Provide students instructional “scaffolding” in order for students move from what they know to what they need to know

• Extend students’ thinking abilities

• Possess in-depth knowledge of both students and subject matter

• Teachers need to be reflective

How do we do that as teachers?• Acknowledgement of different ethnic groups’

heritages to be taught in the formal curriculum• Building bridges between home and school• Using wide variety of strategies that connected

to the students’ learning style• Teaching students to praise their own culture

and others• Implementing multicultural information,

resources and materials as a teaching routine

• Student-centered teaching

• Self-regulated learning

• Teacher as a facilitator Know your students heritage and include their beliefs in the curriculum

• Teaching social justice using math

How do we do that as teachers?

What are some strategies we can use in mathematics curriculum?

Examples•Using movie clips or TV episodes to engage students learning.

•M&M (fractions, percent, statistics etc..)

•Jelly beans (fraction, percent, statistics etc…)

•Hershey's Bar (fractions)

•Using grocery shopping to find unit price

•Include social problems like obesity , credit card debt and teen gun problems

Poverty & Homelessness in the Classroom

Ian Frame

Just what is the Poverty Threshold?

Number of People in Household

Estimated Poverty Threshold ($)

1 11,4912 14,6673 17,9224 23,0185 27,2746 30,841

Source: United States Census Bureau

Financial Definition of Poverty

Poverty in Atlanta

• Atlanta is the poorest city in the US for children

• 44.9% of children aged 6-17 in female-headed home with no spouse are in poverty

• HUD 30% rule - $250/month on rent

Source: Metro Atlanta Taskforce for the Homeless

Defining and Identifying Homeless Students• Lack regular and adequate nighttime

residence

• Increased sleepiness

• Regularly wearing same clothing

• Deterioration in school work

• Isolated or disconnected from classmates

• Absences Source: National Association of School Psychologists

Defining and Identifying Homeless Students

• Our address is new; I can’t remember it.

• I don’t know where we live.

• I’m living with relatives/friends right now until we get settled.

Source: National Association of School Psychologists

Remediation Steps

• Relationship with students

• Basic necessities

• Attendance & grading policy

• Peanut Butter & Jelly Club

Peanut Butter & Jelly Club

Academic support

Quiet and safe workplace

PB & J and Milk

Total Startup Cost: $10.89

Creating Safe Spaces for LGBTQ

StudentsBonnie Roydes

A Few Statistics• 24% of lesbian, gay, and bisexual-identified youth in Massachusetts reported having attempted suicide at least once over the course of a year compared to 5% of their peers (Mass. Dept. of Ed., 2005)

• In a nationwide survey, 85% of LGBT students reported being verbally harassed and 40% physically assaulted in the past year based on their sexual orientation (Kosciw, Greytak, Diaz, & Bartkiewicz, 2010).

• 30% of LGBT students in Massachussets reported missing at least one day of school in a month due to safety concerns (Kosciw et al., 2010).

• According to a nationwide survey, 20-40% of homeless youth identified as LGBT (Ray, 2006).

Some Encouraging Findings

A positive school climate reduces the negative effects of homophobic teasing (Robinson and Espelage, 2011).

LGBT students in schools with Gay-Straight Alliances (GSAs) are less likely to hear homophobic remarks daily or miss school because they feel unsafe (Georgia Safe Schools Coalition, 2009).

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Lesbian: a woman whose enduring physical, romantic, and/or emotional attraction is to other women. Some lesbians may prefer to identify as gay, or as gay women.

Gay: the adjective used to describe people whose enduring physical, romantic, and/or emotional attractions are to people of the same sex (e.g., gay man, gay people).

Bisexual, Bi: an individual who is physically, romantically, and/or emotionally attracted to men and women.

Transgender: an umbrella term (adj.) for people whose gender identity and/or gender expression differs from the sex they were assigned at birth. Transgender people may identify as female-to-male (FTM) or male-to-female (MTF). Transgender people may or may not decide to alter their bodies hormonally and/or surgically.

Questioning: the adjective used to describe people who are unsure of their sexual orientation

6/30/11 but wait, there’s more…Source: GLAAD, 2010

Who Are LGBTQ People?

LGBTQQIAAP…

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Queer: traditionally a pejorative term, queer has been appropriated by some LGBT people to describe themselves. However, it is not universally accepted even within the LGBT community and should be avoided unless quoting or describing someone who self-identifies that way.

Intersex: describing a person whose biological sex is ambiguous. There are many genetic, hormonal, or anatomical variations that make a person's sex ambiguous (e.g., Klinefelter syndrome). The term intersex is not interchangeable with or a synonym for transgender.

Asexual: an individual who is not physically, romantically, or emotionally attracted to others.

Ally: a person who is not lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, intersex, asexual, or pansexual but who supports the LGBT(QQIAAP) community.

Pansexual: a person who is attracted to others without taking gender or biological sex into account.

Steps ALL Teachers Should Take

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1. Never assume heterosexuality

2. Starting the first day of school, establish your classroom as a supportive, welcoming, inclusive environment for all students

3. Immediately and directly intervene in teasing and bullying and address ignorant comments such as “That’s so gay”

4. Be a positive role model by using respectful language and not discriminating against LGBTQ students

LGBTQ-Inclusive Math & Science Lesson Ideas

When teaching about sex chromosomes, discuss Klinefelter Syndrome (XXY)

When teaching statistics, use a data set about LGBTQ-identifying people

Frame word problems around diverse social scenarios

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Make Your Classroom a Known Safe Space

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Step up and let your classroom be a known safe space for all students.

Go to www.glsen.org for a Safe Space Kit (free download) that includes stickers, a poster, and more information on being an ally to your LGBT students.

Also look for a Safe Space training session at a university near you.

NOTE: I am not a representative of GLSEN and do not intend to advertise GLSEN or any organization

More Inclusive Classroom Decor

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From www.safeschoolscoalition.org

Take Action at the Whole-School Level

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Help to found or get involved in sponsoring an existing Gay-Straight Alliance (GSA) at your school – straight allies are especially needed & encouraged to do this!

Make sure your school anti-bullying and anti-discrimination policies contain LGBTQ-inclusive language. If not, lobby to have them changed.

Correct other faculty and staff members if they make ignorant comments like “That’s so gay” or discriminate against LGBTQ students

Videos

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"That's so gay“ PSA -- Hilary Duff

"That's so gay" PSA -- NBA

Student-Made PSA

"That's so gay" -- teacher/student discussion

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All links and resources found at:

http://urli.st/4qY

(Case sensitive)