Culturally Sustaining Teaching and Learning

We work with educators to help them reimagine and create school sites that recognize the unique cultural assets students bring with them to school and to leverage those assets to improve teaching and learning for all students.  Educators learn how to shift deficit beliefs and enact instruction that honors and sustains the heritage and cultural practices of their diverse student population.  This professional learning opportunity engages schools in understanding how to intentionally center and support linguistic and cultural pluralism through instruction, and how to create dynamic classroom spaces where all cultures are represented and valued equally.

Aspects of the Professional Learning include:

• unpacking identity and bias to recognize deficit thinking and actions
• redefining success and rethinking school practices that value students’ cultural backgrounds
• centering the cultural agency of students in schools as the primary lens for instruction
• examining the historical context of schools and communities
• focusing on equity by questioning, analyzing and shifting current dominant norms and policies
• implementing culturally relevant content for authentic student learning
• enacting culturally sustaining teaching practices for increased student engagement

Our work with schools and districts is customized and collaborative.  If you are interested in collaborating around culturally sustaining teaching and learning in your school or district, please contact us.