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a ready-to-run workshopCulturally Responsive Teaching
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Culturally Responsive & Sustaining Teaching (Workshop)

Students learn best when they feel seen and when their backgrounds are treated as assets, not obstacles. Culturally responsive teaching connects learning to students' cultures, identities, and experiences, and holds high expectations for all, so more students engage and achieve.

Key takeaway

Culturally responsive teaching treats students' cultures and experiences as assets and connects learning to them, while holding high expectations, so more students engage and achieve.

Format
PLC / team meeting
Length
45 minutes
Group size
Any (works 4-40)
Who can run it
Any teacher-leader
You will need
Slides (5)Printed handoutA lesson in mindA timer
Aligned to
Learning Forward: Transformational ProcessesInTASC 2: Learning DifferencesResearch on culturally responsive teaching
Share / assign

Why it works

Research on culturally responsive and sustaining pedagogy finds that connecting instruction to students' cultural backgrounds, identities, and prior knowledge, while maintaining high expectations and rigor, improves engagement and achievement, especially for students whose cultures are underrepresented in the curriculum. It is an asset-based approach: students' backgrounds are resources to build on, not deficits to overcome.

The research: Gay; Ladson-Billings; Hammond's Culturally Responsive Teaching and the Brain.

The run-of-show

Choose your slot. The agenda, timings, and length update to match.

    The core activity: make one lesson more culturally responsive

    Teachers leave with one lesson connected to students' assets while keeping expectations high.

    Assets, not deficits, and high expectationsCulturally responsive teaching builds on what students bring and keeps the bar high. It is connection plus rigor, not one at the expense of the other.

    Facilitator notes

    Connection without rigor is not the goalCulturally responsive teaching pairs affirmation and connection with high expectations. Keep both; do not trade rigor for relevance.

    Adapt it

    Participant handout

    One page for every teacher. Print it, or save it as a PDF.

    K12 Academics · Professional Learning

    Culturally Responsive Teaching: assets + rigor

    <b>Connect and challenge:</b> build on students' experiences and identities while holding expectations high.

    1. The lesson:
    2. How I connect it to student experiences or communities:
    3. How I build on what students bring as an asset:
    4. How I keep expectations high:
    5. How I get to know my students:

    Make it stick

    Connect and keep rigor:

    Common questions

    Isn't this just about diverse examples?
    Diverse materials help, but it goes deeper: building on students' prior knowledge and ways of knowing, affirming identity, and keeping expectations high. It is a pedagogy, not just a reading list.
    Does being culturally responsive mean lowering rigor?
    The opposite. It pairs high expectations with the support and connection that help more students meet them. Asset-based, not watered down.
    How do I start if I don't share my students' backgrounds?
    Get to know your students, learn about their communities, build on what they bring, and connect content to their lives. Curiosity and respect go a long way.

    Go deeper

    Build it into a bigger day

    Workshop
    Building Relationships
    Workshop
    Student Engagement & Motivation
    Workshop
    Supporting Multilingual Learners