Tier #2 Ambitious Science Teaching (AST) Session #6 Culturally Relevant Pedagogy

Instructor(s): Peney E. Wright

Description of Activity: Culturally Relevant Pedagogy

To make science learning available and relevant to all students, teachers should create learning experiences that are designed to involve students' different levels of knowledge, appreciate cultural and language differences and help them feel like they belong in the classroom. A student's experiences are important in helping them understand science in a way that is relevant and meaningful to them and when we create a space for these ideas to be shared, learning flourishes.

Students do not come to school as” blank slates.” They have varied experiences with the natural and man-made/designed world that build their funds of knowledge. This prior learning contributes to the learning space that can universally support the instruction of the whole class.

To ensure that science teaching and learning is accessible and relevant to all students, educators need to prioritize intentionally designed learning tasks that engage students' varying knowledge bases, value cultural and linguistic diversity, and promote a sense of belonging.  

To make sure that science is taught in a way that everyone can understand and connect with, teachers should focus on creating learning experiences that take into account the different backgrounds and experiences of their students. This includes considering their cultural and language diversity and helping them feel like they belong in the classroom.

• In this session, we will focus on methods of
• Drawing on student prior knowledge
• Maintaining rigor and high expectations for all students
• Creating a safe space/community of learners where all feel safe to participate
• Valuing cultural and linguistic diversity by framing cultural and linguistic diversity as an asset
• Applying Cultural Relevance to the unit you begun planning in Session #2

Highly Recommended:  Visit https://ambitiousscienceteaching.org/ to preview the website (Getting Started) and watch the Eliciting students’ ideas video,16;39. Also read Ambitious Science Teaching: Chapters 13-14

Prerequisites include:

• At least one Tier #1 PL
• AST Session #1 - #5

Note: Selected sessions will be recorded and made available for an asynchronous option. Asynchronous work to include pre-reading of the website and/or AST paperback, viewing AST videos, posted reflections regarding the readings and videos, and applying what is learned to participants’ contexts. Participants may join in-person, work completely asynchronously or attend as a hybrid mix. Please contact Peney at pwright@tiu11.org for complete details.