The Truth: What Is Culturally Responsive Pedagogy?

By Maurice McDavid, Ed.S.

What Is Culturally Responsive Pedagogy and Why Does It Matter?

I wish that I could say that I am surprised that the term Culturally Responsive Pedagogy or Teaching has gotten caught up with all of the other terms loosely thrown together under the open attack on “DEI.” The truth, however, is that I am not. One thing that has made it easy to attack DEI, Culturally Responsive Teaching, and other phrases like it is that we simply have not done a good enough job defining them in ways that are accessible to everyone hearing them. With that, right-wing politicians and their talking heads have done a masterful job of vilifying words that otherwise have been a part of doing good, just, American things. And while we have approached this topic in an overarching conversation about the attack on certain words, Culturally Responsive Pedagogy is of particular import to us and so we offer this article as a place to talk through the concept in its own right. 

Culturally Responsive Pedagogy: It already has a definition.

As a school principal, I have often asked teaching candidates about culturally responsive teaching and what it would look like in their classroom. I have very rarely been satisfied with the answers I have received. In the minds of many educators, culturally responsive teaching about about representation in the classroom. It is about ensuring that students see themselves in the texts they are reading and in the posters on the wall. This is a great thing to do. However, we have always said that if children of color still are not able to access the books with these characters because they are reading below grade level, we have missed out on the purpose of culturally responsive teaching. 

As we endeavor to define culturally responsive teaching, I will take a moment to note that the origin of the idea was actually coined Culturally Responsive Pedagogy and was researched and championed by Dr. Gloria Ladson-Billings. From that original phrase, which I will talk more about in the remainder of this article, spawned similar but distinctive ideas like culturally responsive teaching, culturally sustaining pedagogy, and historically responsive literacy. All of these are powerful ideas in the field of education and, most importantly, have research that backs them as effective pedagogical positions.

Dr. Ladson-Billings, the former Kellner Family Distinguished Chair in Urban Education at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, was a classroom teacher and also a pedagogical theorist. Initially, her research focused on Black children in urban population centers but has been proven effective across all areas of the populus. She worked to find out what was happening in the classrooms of educators where Black children were having success, even in the cities of America. These happenings would later be what she defined as Culturally Responsive Pedagogy. I pause here to add a definition of pedagogy, as it is a word that may not carry much meaning outside of education.

Pedagogy-The method and practice of teaching, especially as an area of research.

While representation and the many tenets of multicultural education are key, her findings revealed something more. It was not even a particular style of teaching that was required. It can be summed up in the three following ideas.

1. An intense focus on learning. If the outcome of your lessons is not learning for all students, it is not culturally responsive pedagogy. High expectations for all students to struggle and grow through challenge is a must. 

2. The development of cultural competence in multiple cultures. Students who developed an understanding of their own culture and at least one other culture showed marked improvement. This learning gave students a perspective of the world beyond the one in which they lived and also helped them to see the strengths in the perspectives of the world in which they lived. 

3. The development of a critical lens of the socio-political environment. Students must be able to see the world around them, assess the injustices, and look for solutions to those problems. The ability to think critically about the community, state, country and world in which they live gives students hope that with additional learning, they can be a part of the solution.  

What do I do with that definition?

Now that we have clearly defined Culturally Responsive Pedagogy, there are still a few questions to consider. How do I get this information to people who have already bought into the demonized version of it? What should this actually look like in my school building? What do I say to people who, knowing the definition, are still against culturally responsive teaching? This last question is of particular importance because we must acknowledge that there are people in our country who fully understand what culturally responsive teaching is and don’t like it because it calls into question the sanctity of our nation. We have an answer, but it is only one of many. 

• Clarify misinformation- For people who simply do not know or understand what Culturally Responsive Pedagogy is, share this article with them. Or, if it is easier, cut and paste the three definitions from above and share those. I sincerely believe that there is a large group of Americans who simply want what is best for their family and communities. Culturally Responsive Pedagogy is good for all students and is based on years of research. 

• Contemplate what this definition means for your school/classroom- This is perhaps the most impactful thing you can do. If you are a classroom teacher or an educational leader reading this article, I implore you to consider what is in your circle of control. There are many things that are happening in the community, state and country around us that we can only influence if we are lucky. However, what happens in our schools and classrooms is within our realm of action. Discuss with your colleagues what mental models and what attitudes  you bring to school every day. What are the ways you are thinking about your students of color and students of need? We must ensure that with these students and all students, we are focused on learning, explicitly teaching cultural competence, and asking student to consider the world around them and their place in it. 

• Actively pushback on pushback- The cry of the political right, who are leading this crusade against Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, is to just focus on learning. They may then agree with that part of culturally responsive teaching. However, the idea of cultural competence and a critical lens may garner pushback. This is where we must hold our ground. Teaching cultural competence is teaching the “unwritten” curriculum. It is making explicit the things that happen implicitly in the world. Every time we encourage a student to use certain language or dress a certain way for an interview, we are teaching culture. What Dr. Ladson-Billings would say is that we must simply expand that teaching to include more than the dominant culture. It is an acknowledgement that there is a “dominant” culture and there is a culture that belongs to every student. Additionally, the concept of a critical lens oftentimes draws the ire of conservatives who believe that it is in fact teaching students to hate America. However, when done well, it instead simply asks students to consider the ideals of America in contrast to the lived reality of themselves and others. More than that, critical thinking is about asking students to be a part of creating a world that is closer to those ideals or even that pushes past those ideas further on in justice. We are not wrong in asking our students to think critically. 

I must acknowledge that the urge to better define this term came as part of a conversation between Lissette and I about our book title. Your Words Are Fire  is subtitled 10 Culturally Responsive Teaching Strategies That Speak the Language of Belonging… We feel it is necessary to read our book with a proper understanding of Culturally Responsive Pedagogy. We hope that you will indeed read our book when it is released later this spring and that it may serve you well in service to our students.