Transcript Reviewing Our Progress - Claremont Graduate University

From Tolerance to Transformation:
Developing Cultural Proficiency: Educating for
Diversity, Equity,
and Success for All Students
Stephanie Graham, Consultant
School Equity & Student Achievement
Los Angeles County Office of Education
(562) 922-6410
Outcomes
• Shift conversations from equality to equity, and
from tolerance for diversity to systemic
transformation cultural proficiency.
• Deepen understanding about gaps that indicate
that one or more groups are being better served
than others.
• Understand how the dynamics of difference and
cultural power contribute to equity gaps.
• Learn to use the Cultural Proficiency Continuum
as a tool to assess and analyze school policies,
practices, and behaviors.
• Plan next step to lead for cultural proficiency.
It’s All About Students Equity and Equal Access
Focusing on gap reduction is the moral
responsibility of all educators. They must
understand the bigger picture and reach out
beyond themselves to work with others.
Educational reform: reducing the gap between
high and low performers at all levels (classroom,
school, district, state) is the key to system
breakthroughs.
Fullan, Change Forces with a Vengeance
Educational Equity
“Equity is the principle of altering
current practices and perspectives to
teach for social transformation and
to promote equal learning outcomes
for students of all racial, cultural,
linguistic and socio-economic
groups.”
Enid Lee, New Teacher Center
(Next Four Quotes)
“Equity can mean treating some
students differently in order to treat
them fairly.”
“Different treatment is needed
because students from some social
groups enter our schools on an
uneven playing field.”
“To ensure that all students, regardless
of background have equal
opportunities and outcomes in
learning, system-wide transformation
must occur that will create the chance
for students on the margins of our
educational system to become central
to it and perform to their fullest
potential.”
ONE Shared Vision for Cultural Proficiency
Equity will be a reality when children
from minority racial, cultural, socioeconomic, and linguistic backgrounds
experience statistically similar rates of
meeting high standards as do children
from the majority culture.
(Bay Area Educational Equity Task Force)
What We Can Learn From Multicultural
Education Research
Gloria Ladson-Billings

Beliefs About Students Matter

Content and Materials Matter

Instructional Approaches Matter

Educational Settings Matter

Teacher Education Matters
So What is Cultural Proficiency?
•
•
•
•
A model
A mind set
A way of being
The use of specific tools for effectively
describing, responding to and planning for
change that meets the needs of under-served
populations.
• Policies and practices at the organizational level
and values and behaviors at the individual level
that enable effective cross cultural interactions
among employees, clients, and community.
What does it look like?
•
•
•
•
Your core values
Your organizational structure and systems
Your language and behavior
Your organizational norms, traditions and
practices
– Infused, transformed, and bolstered with the tools
of Cultural Proficiency
What are the Four Cultural
Proficiency tools?
1. The Continuum
– Language for describing both healthy and nonproductive policies, practices and behaviors
2. The Essential Elements
– Five behavioral standards for measuring, and
planning for growth toward cultural proficiency
3. The Guiding Principles
– Underlying values and assumptions of the model
4. Understanding the Barriers to Change
_ Unawareness of and resistance to difference
– Privilege, entitlement, and agentry
– Unawareness of the need to adapt
1.
The Continuum
 Cultural
destructiveness
There are six points
 Cultural incapacity
along the cultural
 Cultural blindness
proficiency continuum
 Cultural
that indicate unique
pre-competence
ways of perceiving and
 Cultural competence
responding to differences.
 Cultural proficiency
Six Levels of Cultural Proficiency
Cultural
Destructiveness
Cultural
Incapacity
Cultural
Blindness
“See the difference;
stomp it out.”
“See the difference;
make it wrong.”
“See the difference;
Eliminating
other people’s
cultures
Believing in the
superiority of
one’s own
culture and
behaving in
ways that
disempower
another’s
culture
Acting as if
cultural
differences do
not matter or as
if there are no
differences
among/between
cultures
act like you don’t.”
Cultural
Precompetence
“See the difference;
respond to it
inappropriately.”
Recognizing the
limitations of
one’s skills or an
organization’s
practices when
interacting with
other cultural
groups
Cultural
Competence
“See the difference;
understand the
difference that
difference makes.”
Interacting with
others using the
five essential
elements of
cultural
proficiency as
the standard for
behavior and
practice
Cultural
Proficiency
“See the difference;
respond positively.
Engage and adapt.”
Esteeming
culture;
knowing how to
learn about
organizational
culture;
interacting
effectively in a
variety of
cultural groups
2.
The Essential Elements
1. Value Culture
2. Assess Culture
3. Leverage and
Manage the
Dynamics of
Difference
4. Use Knowledge to
Adapt to Diversity
5. Engage Others and
Institutionalize
Cultural Knowledge
The Essential Elements
of cultural proficiency
provide the standards
for individual behavior
and organizational
practices
The Five Essential Elements of
Cultural Proficiency and
FROM:
TOLERANCE FOR
DIVERSITY
TO:
TRANSFORMATION
FOR EQUITY
Destructiveness,
Incapacity & Blindness
The focus is on them
Precompetence,
Competence & Proficiency
The focus on our practices
Assessing One’s
Own Cultural
Knowledge -
Assessing One’s
Own Cultural
Knowledge -
Demographics are
viewed as a challenge
Demographics are used
to inform policy and
practice
Valuing Diversity -
Valuing Diversity -
Tolerate, assimilate,
acculturate
Esteem, respect, adapt
Dealing with Conflict- Dealing with ConflictPrevent, mitigate, avoid
Manage, leverage,
facilitate
Integrating Cultural
Integrating Cultural
Knowledge - Information Knowledge - Information
contributed or added to
existing policies,
procedures, practices
integrated into system,
provoking significant
changes to policies,
procedures, practices
Adapting to Diversity -
Adapting to diversity -
System-wide
accountability to meet
changing needs of a
diverse community and
reduce cultural dissonance
and conflict.
System-wide
accountability for
continuous improvement
and responsiveness to
community. Staff
understands, operates,
and perseveres on the
edge of often rapid and
continuous change.
3.
The Guiding Principles
• Culture is a predominant
force
• Acknowledge group
identities
• Respect unique cultural
needs
• Diversity within and
between cultures is
important
• People are served in
varying degrees by the
dominant culture
The Guiding Principles
are the core values, the
foundation upon which
the approach is built
Barrier n. 1. Anything built or serving to
bar
passage
Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary
4.
Understanding the Barriers
• Difference
• Privilege
• Unawareness of the
need to adapt
The barriers to cultural
proficiency are
resistance to difference,
unawareness of one’s
privilege entitlement and
agentry, and
unawareness of the need
to adapt to difference.
Removing Barriers to Cultural Proficiency
Dynamics of Difference
Dynamics of Cultural Power
Privilege
Entitlement
---------------------------------------------------------------------
TARGETS/ AGENTS
Dimensions of Cultural Identity
Functional Level/
Classification
Geographic
Location
Management
Marital
Status
Income
Status
Parental
Status
Work
Content/
Field
Age
Gender
Race
Personal
Habits
Division/
Department/
Unit/
Group
Personality
Appearance
Sexual
Orientation
Ethnicity
Work
Experience
Physical
Ability
Religion
Educational
Background
Work
Location
Seniority
Adapted from Marilyn Loden and Judy Rosener, Worldforce America” (Business One Irwin, 1991)
Primary Cultural Identity
race
ethnicity
age,
age-group
gender
Income
level,
class
sexual
orientation
(optional)
ME
physical
ability
capacity
religion
+
+
racism
-
sexism
-
+
classism
-
+
heterosexism
-
ME
+
ageism
-
+
ableism
-
+
antisemitism
-
TARGET

EMPOWERED
TARGET
AGENT

ALLY
CULTURAL IDENTITY PROFILE QUESTIONS
1. What do you notice about your profile?
What “isms” are you an agent of? What
“isms” are you targeted by? What
thoughts, feelings or emotions are
triggered by this awareness?
2. How might your profile impact your
effectiveness as a leader?
3. How does your understanding of the
dynamics of cultural power inform your
next steps as a leader for cultural
proficiency?
Given our review of Cultural Proficiency
today, what two next steps will you take to
provide leadership for Cultural Proficiency
and closing learning and achievement
gaps in your school/department?
To honor diversity is to
maintain the dynamic
tension between
“pluribus” and “unum.”
Essential Element of
Cultural Proficiency
VALUE DIVERSITY
-___________+
1
2
3
4
5
6
Classroom, School and Districtwide
Practices and Behaviors
- Believe and expect that ALL students can achieve
high standards and do rigorous work.
- Believe and expect that all students, parents, and
staff make valuable contributions.
- Teach and lead with a culturally and linguistically
inclusive approach.
- Teach and expect students, parents, and staff to
seek and understand multiple perspectives about
issues, themes, events, and concepts.
- Seek and value ideas, solutions, and
approaches different from one’s own.
- Assess progress by allowing students and staff
to demonstrate and apply knowledge and skills in
a variety of ways.
- Learn about your students, their families, and
staff members in authentic contexts.
Essential Element of
Cultural Proficiency
ASSESS CULTURE
-___________+
1
2
3
4
5
6
Classroom, School and Districtwide
Practices and Behaviors
- Identify and assess multiple aspects of one’s
own cultural identity.
- Examine how one’s cultural identity affects
ones
communication, work, teaching, and/or
management style.
- Assess how one’s cultural identity influences
his/her work effectiveness and productivity.
- Respect and expect students and staff to
apply knowledge and demonstrate skill in a variety of
ways.
- Learn about self, students, families, and staff
in authentic contexts.
-
Essential Element of
Cultural Proficiency
LEVERAGE,
MANAGE THE
DYNAMICS OF
DIFFERENCE
-___________+
1
2
3
4
5
6
Classroom, School and Districtwide
Practices and Behaviors
- Understand, use and model conflict and difference
of opinion, misperceptions, as tools to learn and
grow.
- Teach and use conflict resolution skills.
- Discourage competition and promotion based
on
hierarchy and status. Promote
cooperation/ cooperative learning.
- Seek inclusion and multiple contributions to
common learning/work decisions and tasks.
- Understand that racial, linguistic, gender,
economic and other cultural differences may require
varied and flexible learning opportunities and
alternate ways of demonstrating classroom/work
effectiveness and school/work success.
- Collect, disaggregate, analyze, and track data
about
student achievement and staff effectiveness
to ensure that all student/staff groups are making
progress and achieving outcomes equitably.
Essential Element of
Cultural Proficiency
Classroom, School and Districtwide
Practices and Behaviors
- Adapt your communication, work, management,
ENGAGE AND ADAPT
TO DIVERSITY
and teaching style to meet the needs of others, not your
own needs.
-___________+
to increase your knowledge about culture and language
to enhance your skills in cross cultural
communication. Don’t just delegate this to others.
1
2
3
4
5
6
- Make time for and engage in on-going opportunities
- Observe and learn from others who have been
successful in cross-cultural communication, interaction,
and teaching.
- Serve as a resource to others. Share successes as well
as challenges. Solicit input and involvement
from colleagues.
- Provide and solicit input about culturally
proficient policies, practices, and procedures, especially
for
working with all student groups.
- Partner with students and parents to learn how to
better meet the needs of students in all cultural
communities.
- View and promote all students, parents, and staff
Essential Elements of
Cultural Proficiency
USE, INSTITUTIONALIZE,
INTEGRATE CULTURAL
KNOWLEDGE
-___________+
1
2
3
4
5
6
Classroom, School and Districtwide
Practices and Behaviors
-Model and share the ways that learning about
yourself and others has shifted your own attitudes,
perceptions
and behavior.
- Teach students how to become smart.
- Ask for feedback about your own cultural competence.
- Create environments that acknowledge, include,
and respect student, parent, and staff
cultural/religious differences, and multiple work and
communication styles.
- Learn and use the language of students, parents, and staff.
- Assess student/staff progress and skills in a variety
of ways.
- Give frequent, timely, specific,relevant feedback
about
progress.
- Provide accommodations to meet the cultural,
linguistic, communication, learning, and work styles of
students
and staff.
- Interact with students, parents, and staff who are
SEVEN STAGES OF CULTURAL IDENTITY
“Target Cultural Identity”
Pre-encounter
•
Stage 1
Internalizes negative stereotypes.
•
May not be aware of this.
Encounter
Stage 2
“Agent Cultural Identity”
Contact
Stage 1
•
Not aware of oppression of others or of
own privilege.
•
Curious about and intrigued by difference.
Disintegration
Stage 2
•
Acknowledges personal impact of
prejudice, discrimination, oppression.
•
May feel guilty or ashamed about one’s
advantage.
•
Anger at “other” group.
•
May try to “convert” others.
•
Cognitive dissonance.
Immersion/Emersion
•
•
Stage 3
Surrounds self with obvious symbols
of one’s identity and avoids experiences
of “other” group(s).
“Other-focused” anger dissipates and
sense of self is reaffirmed.
Reintegration
Stage 3
•
Re-direct, refocus anger at “other” group.
Blame “other” group.
•
Cannot continue to challenge close friends
or abandon long-held beliefs.
•
Continued dialogue needed to move to
next stage.
Plateau: Cultural Equilibrium
Stage 4
Plateau: Cultural Insulation
Stage 4
• Prefers interactions with own group;
maintains polite, politically correct
interactions with members of dominant
group.
• Awareness of issues of others and own good
intentions leads to political correctness;
pseudo-relationships with members of other
groups’ denounces racism in others.
• May not challenge members of dominant
group out of frustration/cynicism/ fear; may
not seek to educate members of other group.
• May wish to blame problems not on race/
ethnicity/culture and conditions of
otherness, but on “the system,” i.e., class
and socio economics.
Internalization
Stage 5
• Less need to assert “super__” attitude.
• Coalition building (with same and “other”
groups).
Internalization-Commitment
Stage 6
• Can perceive and transcend race.
Pseudo-Independent
Stage 5
• With encouragement, can question
own attitudes and relationships.
• Actively begin to affiliate with “other” group.
Immersion/Emersion
Stage 6
• Seeks out new, improved, alternative ways
to belong to his/her group.
• Seeks out ways to become ally.
Autonomy/Interdependence
Stage 7
Autonomy/Interdependence
Stage 7
• Has good relationships with other
group without feeling guilty/
compromised.
• Constantly re-evaluating own attitudes,
beliefs, behaviors.
• Has good relationships with “other group
without feeling guilty/compromised.
• Forms alliances/advocacy for others.
• Forms alliances/advocary for others.
• Constantly re-evaluating own attitudes,
beliefs, behaviors.
Adapted by Graham, S. 1999 From Cross, W.E. Jr, Helms, J.E., and Tatum, B.D.
Four Levels of Curriculum Reform
James A. Banks, “Approaches to
Multicultural Curriculum Reform”
Levels of Integration of Ethnic Content
Level
4
The Social Action
Approach
Students
make decisions on
important
social issues and take
actions
to help solve them.
Level 3
The Information Approach
The structure of the curriculum is
changed to enable students to view
concepts, issues, events, and
themes from the perspective of
diverse ethnic and cultural groups.
Level 2
The Additive Approach
Content, concepts, themes, and perspectives are added to the curriculum
without changing its structure.
Level 1
The Contributions Approach
Focuses on heroes, holidays, and
discrete cultural elements.
Insights
Next Steps