Category: CRT

 

Culturally responsive teaching (CRT) was demonstrated in a multitude of ways throughout this first week of classes. Friday’s session was particularly engaging and impactful. I enjoyed being able to not only learn about but, participate in CTR with guest teachers and through the observation of master teachers speaking to the Goldbelt Heritage Academy. It was a privilege to listen to such powerhouse indigenous educators. The topic of discussion could not have been more perfect for our cohort as the essential question of the session was: “How do we embrace culture and wisdom through our resources?”

Some of the concepts reiterated by many of these master teachers were those of a pedagogy of place. Teaching about and through the culture and world view of the people who inhabit this place. The inter-connectedness of people with their environment and the animals they subsist upon was clear in the way they spoke about being thoughtful in interactions with the environment and resources. Cultural values are the lens through which each elder spoke about resources and their understanding of respect and reciprocity as caretakers of the land and its resources. Indigenous people were and are scientists. Paul Marks spoke about being taught that “Trees are the lungs of the earth”. This is just one example of how indigenous knowledge, that has been passed down for generations, holds scientific knowledge.

The elders also spoke about and demonstrated acknowledgment. Which I feel is an important skill as a teacher. To both listen to an acknowledge the words of others, especially students, and being willing to accept correction.

“Human cultures until very recently were emergent out of places; they were literally grounded in the experience of nature in particular places on the planet. If we indigenize or re-indigenize self-determination, then it will entail a re-ordering of values and signal an effort to live in a manor respective of the power, places, and persons surrounding us.”~ Daniel Wildcat

The opportunity to experience CRT strategies has been fantastic! Especially meeting Paula Savikko and Tina Pasteris. As a Juneauite who’s been involved in education I have seen these two phenomenal teacher’s work in Place-Based and Culturally-Responsive workshops.  So it was great to dig into them and discuss the process of building Culturally relevant lessons.

The connections I made to Paula’s, Tina’s and Angie’s math and science lessons were those of context and “grounding your teaching in place”, both characteristics of CRT. Each of the lesson, or investigations were tied to specific geographic locations and involved the community and local culture in some way. Either as partners, or as the audience to bring authenticity and immediate relevance to what was being learned.

The math trails with Tina and the science experiment with Angie had a high level of choice. Which allowed us to draw upon class mates different strengths and background knowledge.

On a personal note (yet totally related!) I had to share this brilliant little man’s creation while camping this weekend.

It’s a fire starter. He collected and constructed on his own based on knowledge from making fire starters from household items in boy scouts last winter.

“All learning should start with what the student and community know and are using in everyday life.” – Angayuqaq Oscar Kawagley

Culturally Responsive Teaching

What is CRT?

Culturally Responsive Teaching is more than creating little lessons that showcase culture. Its more in depth than presenting music, dance, geography, etc. Its about sharing how people think about things, and using that thought process to solve problems. This makes a lesson about more than just “answer this question.” Its about connecting culture to learning.

MJ

Katie Kroko and I had the joy of chatting with MJ – one of the students at the Goldbelt Heritage Institute culture camp at Eagle River Methodist Camp. We all stumbled through the first few minutes of conversation, but once she started showing us around the camp, the power of culturally responsive teaching began to shine through. We arrived at the smokehouse, where the students had smoked porcupine, seal, and salmon. MJ talked about how awesome it was to be outdoors in the camp and get hands on with the tradition. Again and again she kept saying how she hoped she could share the food they had prepared with us – even though we were just visitors and hadn’t been apart of the preparation process.

It was humbling and warming – it put a smile on my face. She was that open to offer us something meaningful so quickly. We got to chat with her more – we asked her about the language and her heritage. She was only part Tlin’git, and expressed she was glad she was able to participate in the camp. She said that the opportunities to learn the language, songs, and dances inspired her to hopefully keep teaching the language, too. We were both excited to hear this. She had many wonderful things to say about the value of preserving culture and sharing it with a new generation. It was clear to me the hands-on intensive culture camp had matured her view of the world in ways other experiences may not have.

She also taught us the flowers of the wild rice smell like poo :O

Culturally Responsive Music Teaching

This is incredibly important as a music teacher – without Culturally Responsive teaching, you can’t teach music. Even the most abrasive, unkind, and dry music teacher will still point out the scotch snap or Neapolitan chord in the music, and explain how import that is to that music’s cultural heritage.

I feel I’ve already done culturally responsive teaching in music. Two years ago I focused on the story of Muddy Waters and the history of the blues. I taught this to my cello/bass students at the Youth Orchestra of Northern Alberta. It gave me a chance to talk about racism, segregation, and spiritual music – it connected to my students in a way that the classical music we had previously learned couldn’t. Another valuable thing the blues allowed me to do in the classroom was to truly teach self expression – once the kids had the fundamental pitches of the blues scale down, they could improvise their own solos as we explored the blues! The class had several students with behavior problems, and the blues increased the challenge to know the notes to perform, but eased the rules so they could be themselves. They didn’t have to feel defensive or afraid to participate.

I also like listening to music in my classes – I try to draw upon a wide variety of musics from all around the world. I always make sure the kids get to learn something about that music before we move on in class. Often, I try to tie that music into the lesson.

I feel its very easy to purvey culture in music education, buts its also very easy to just showcase an ethic composition and slap a gold star on your chest and feel proud. Really, you have to teach about the culture and the history – the students need context to understand that music and why its important that they play it!

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CRT Update!!!

Michelle and the Full Story

First, I really like Michelle’s lesson on the Aleutian Islands in World War II. IF it was mentioned in my public school history classes (I don’t remember it being mentioned) it was probably boiled down to a fact to memorize, wherein it happened and would be on a test. What I do remember is watching a documentary about the invasion of islands on the History Channel. Luckily I was a teen when the History Channel was still a quality source for documentaries, because I learned about the fascinating lead-up, logistics, and conflicts which played out on the islands.

After Michelle’s lesson, I realized I never learned the whole story. Even that documentary mentioned nothing about the capture of Aleut peoples by the Japanese, nor the systemic discrimination and domineering of the Aleuts by the Americans. It was haunting to learn about the relocation of the families with the likely intent of keeping them essentially in the role of slaves. It was disturbing to know families were torn apart on purpose, and kept in a place unfit for living.

Teaching the whole story – even when its unpleasant and disturbing – is incredibly important. The status quo will remain with the heroic “USA v. Japan” story of the war unless we teach the whole story. If the Japanese are always the enemy mistreating POWs, and raping civilians in Manchuria while the USA is liberating islands and saving lives – we are sustaining a story about racism. We are placing all of the violence and horrible acts upon the Japanese when the truth is our country performed many atrocities during WWII also; the Japanese relocation and internment, and the manipulation and exploitation of the Aleut. By ignoring these stories in our schools and texts, we are enforcing national discrimination and racism and calling it education. It seems subtle – we are just telling a story of nationalism and patriotism – but its not. Secretly, the sludge creeps its way out of the box – the dirty truth is there, we cannot abide ignorance.

The Full Story … has Pictures!

And now for something completely different. I enjoyed the challenge of finding ways to make multicultural picture books relevant to a music classroom. Thanks, Kathy! I really enjoyed the story, “Secret of the Dance”, because it resonated with so much of what I’ve learned from studying the Yup’ik and Inupiaq for the iBook lesson plans. The view of that magical moment of the dance posed before the true loss of culture was deep and sorrowful. Reading about living people who know so little about their thousands of years of history because of 200 years of Westernization is disheartening. To think how insensitive and corrupt the American generations before us were to so harshly destroy the rich heritage of other human beings…

Saying it Like it Is

I loved Ernestine’s presentation of her book Blonde Indian. Her way of speaking was so closely tied to the poetry of her writings. It was enthralled while listening to her. Her words were so powerful, I daresay those words bore a similar weight of wisdom and emotion akin to an Elder’s. I was fascinated to learn how she writes her books from multiple streams of narrative – fiction, memoir, nature, etc. – and then weaves them into a seamless multi-faceted whole. I loved her analysis of the (essentially) flippant Princess and the Pea fairy tail and the hilarious (but eye-opening) analysis of Dick, Jane, and Spot as a racist tome.

Most important to me though was hear fearlessness to say it as it is. To hear her flat out state the reality that Alaska as a state, despite its outward statements about making progress, is failing its native people. The schools – now 36 years after the Molly Hooch Rural School decision (sorry, just started learning about that part of AK history…) still isn’t providing adequate education to most of its peoples. In class we are learning about and from teachers who are doing it right, but the statistics still show Native students are not succeeding. It was so powerful to hear Ernestine say it straight, things have to change now, because things are only marginally better than they used to be.

Also, I know what book I’m reading next. I also know sometimes I may be weighty in these blog posts considering I don’t come from Alaska, nor have I experienced discrimination in the ways others have. I do, deep inside, believe in education as a medium for social justice. I have worked towards it in the classes I have taught in the past few years, and know it is a core value to how I build lessons and approach the conveyance of information. Often, Whites and others of privelidges see themselves as saviors of the impoverished, the discriminated, and the kicked around. Ernestine’s words resonated with me and my mission as a musician and an educator – We are not here to save them, we are here to believe in them.

One the key elements that stood out when talking with a student at the Tlingit Language camp was when I asked him about the advice that he could give me for when I was in the class room. He said to speak to the students as an equal and not down to them. At the camp, the elders are held in high regard and respected, but no one is above anyone else. It was a refreshing view point and a good reminder to not talk down to students. I will take his advice to heart when entering the classroom in the fall. It was amazing to hear the wisdom of the elders resonating in the voice of the teenager’s voice. The dancing was also very humbling and character building. It was quite exciting to hear how pumped up the kids were for another dance.

I also had a really good time on the Math Trail and the moss diaper experiment. I was never much into formulated recipe like experiments, and I was a little surprised with how much I was caught up in the process as we delved into our experiments. Working with the moss and discovering the saturation point was very cool. I had read about the use moss as a diaper and other hygiene products, so seeing it in action really brought everything to a better understanding. If ever I know someone in a diaper jam, I will look to the forest floor to help!

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It was a great opportunity to listen to Ernestine Hayes, the author of Blonde Indian, read a few passages from her book which brought the reader to her classroom of Capital School and on the docks not far away.  Growing up in Juneau, I know of these places.  I heard stories of fetching halibut cheeks from the Juneau Cold Storage that burned to the ground.  Realizing there was a parallel history between Ernestine’s experience and my families as she read, made for an uncomfortable listening for me albeit an important uncomfortable feeling.  I worried that it was an aunt or an uncle that had been a part of her torment. Knowing there was an absence all together and how it shaped her and made her feel unwelcome, also proved to stir angst.  Something was amiss and it is disheartening to hear about, but it is a reality that many students of color face everyday.  She was also very adamant that little has changed.  I have taken her words to heart and hope to right the ship not by saving the kids but by empowering them to help themselves. I asked my mom if she knew Ernestine and her book.  She has read her book, but said she did not know of her growing up.  She is about the same age, but shared that though they lived near by everything and everyone was more often than not separated.

Ernestine has an amazing story to tell and a great gift for telling her story. Sharing her story in the classroom, would resonate especially here in Juneau with it being at the heart of her story.  Ideally, she would be willing to read another passage of her new book to a few more classrooms this year.  Here’s hoping!

Culturally Responsive Teaching (CRT) begins with the idea that students are all coming from somewhere. They are all coming from unique perspectives, and these perspectives inherently shape the way they will learn or assimilate new information. When a teacher attempts to be culturally responsive, he or she tries to understand where the students, as a group, have relevant knowledge that can connect them to the subject to be taught. Thus, for instance, when we did the science experiment with the moss, an assumption was made about the familiarity of the class with modern American childcare strategies and technologies. There was no question as to whether we knew there were such things as “diapers” and that these “diapers” contained absorbent materials. The lesson then moved from our knowledge of something we did know to something we probably didn’t: local Tlingit people used to use a certain type of moss for a similar purpose. Not only was this a very novel idea, but it connected the local people in the class to their own local history, thus expanding their own self-knowledge and sense of the place they were from. More importantly, the experiment generated genuine curiosity, since it was intriguing to think of how absorbent the moss was, relative to modern products. How effective were the technologies traditionally used? It’s a tantalizing question, and one which really generates interest for the student.

There are lots of ways to employ such strategies in disciplines beyond math and science. For instance, in order to help local students understand Jewish responses to the first century BCE Roman occupation of the Kingdom of Judea, one could invoke parallels between the Roman occupation and the American colonization of Alaska. In both cases you have a militarily irresistible world power laying claim to the territory of another people. In both cases the great power considered itself the halcyon of civilization and had little regard for the ancient civilization of the local people. In both cases the stronger power imposed its own form of governance on the weaker with ethnic members of the great power holding all of the ultimate authority. In both cases the world power brought new technologies and claimed that it had imposed law and order on the region (cf. this Monty Python sketch). So, laying all of this out, the stage would be set to ask students, based on local responses to the American occupation of Alaska, how the Jews may have variously perceived the Roman occupation. It would be hoped that students could extrapolate that there was a feeling of resentment, helplessness, cultural suppression, and a longing for a freedom that never seemed to come. It would also be hoped that students might anticipate cultural collaborators and those who capitulated to Roman rule or even appreciated and approved of it. Using the results of these speculations, we might be able to see the attractiveness of the religious and political messianism that was so widespread in Judea in the first century CE and why it took the varied forms that it did.

Another thought that comes to mind in the discipline of English might be an explanation of the way languages (including English) develop “loan words,” which are words taken from other languages with very similar or modified meanings. Thus, for instance, Yup’ik first-language students in my student teaching placement could be asked to come up with some English words that have been incorporated wholesale into Yup’ik. (I am not aware of any, specifically, but technology words like “laptop” and “internet” are a sure-fire bet.) I could then explain that English has many such words as well, including such things as “quesadilla,” where the loan is probably obvious and fairly recent, and “tyrant,” where the loan is very old and not necessarily obvious. This line of reasoning could also be used to promote discussion about whether or not words such as “internet” are truly Yup’ik or words like “quesadilla” are truly English. I think there are varying answers to this question, but ultimately what I would be trying to get across is that all languages borrow from one another to a greater or lesser extent and that there is no such thing as a “pure” or “uncontaminated” language (contra the official position of the French government). Progressing in this way, I would hope to help students understand the way their own language is working, the way English is working, and to be able to recognize and identify the broader principle of linguistic borrowing and the effect they should expect it to have on their language in their own lifetime.

Culturally Responsive Teaching. (CRT)

Just saying Thank You is the greatest speech a person can make. – David Katzeek

I have been reflecting on these words since Friday.  We had the privilege of hearing from a panel of Elders as well as participate in lessons created by educators mindful of place and culture.  Something that astounds me about great teachers is that they make learning so fun, you don’t even realize you are learning.  Although my general impression of schooling has always been a one way street of knowledge, that the teacher puts information into the students head, I believe CRT is about creating a two-way street.  One where educators learn alongside the student and facilitate learning to include the students own experiences and build off their backgrounds.  This means educators need to know their students so well that they can identify their strengths and use them to scaffold learning.   CRT fosters a community of respect and inclusivity that incorporates all students backgrounds.

David Katzeek shared knowledge and wisdom with us multiple times this week.  One of the many gems he shared was that no matter how old we are, we are still learning, and thus can be corrected and learn new things.  He encouraged us not to take offense and even if we think we know something, to listen anyway, repetition only solidifies learning.  I sat amazed as I heard these words.  I come from a culture where when your Elders speak, there word is law, and unchangeable, passed down from centuries of ancestors.  I felt that my culture was stagnant and rebelled against it and thought I knew better.  As I have gotten older, each year I realize how little I truly know about the world, and pushes me to want to discover more.  I have come to believe that we have two ears and one mouth, we should listen twice as much as we speak.  I have yet to master this, and feel it will be a lifelong study.  But David’s humbleness struck me and reminded me that I have much learning to do, and I will do it with a smile on my face.

Practicing CRT, I will no doubt be corrected a lot.  I will not be the smartest person in the room at all times, I will always have more to learn whether it is from my administrators, peers, or students.  Being humble is an important characteristic of CRT, as well as the desire to always learn more.  Being creative in your lesson planning process is key so one can include a multitude of perspectives.  Paula Savikko’s presentation on place-based learning was extraordinary.  She has effectively managed to incorporate place and relevance into her curriculum through field trips and local projects.  She fostered real skill development, for example; giving her students real tools they were responsible for and having them do a PSA on local stream health among other projects.  Later in the day Angie Lunda had us comparing diapers vs sphagnum moss and how they stacked up against one another.  She gave us a question and let us answer in any way we chose.  This kind of open-ended project allows the students to answer in their own forms of communication and reinforced there is no one “right” way, which I think is a bigger message about culture, there is no one “right” culture.

It has been an incredible first week, emotional, disarming, and thought provoking.  I know some of the questions posed on us here have begun a life-long dialogue.  I’m curious to see where we all go with it.

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Further Thoughts on CRT:

Our group did not have the privilege of meeting Alberta Jones, but Angie gave a good overview of her presentation to us.  I appreciated the knowledge on how to engage Elders.  While there were many points that I felt were common knowledge, it was great to see them laid out in this format.  I learned there are gracious ways to let someone say no, not just an Elder.

Ernestine Hayes was an incredible insight to culturally relevant teaching.  Her story of being a seagull vs. a bluebird really resonated with me.  Making sure we as teachers don’t categorize students to feel excluded is critical, we could inadvertently set them on an “excluded path” for life.  Hearing her story of the seagulls resonate within her years later as she stands among her peer professors at the University of Alaska – Southeast evoked a clear image of a young girl still feeling excluded.  Understanding and reaching out to all of our students and making sure they are all included, that was my take away from last weeks discussions.