The reading by Billings explained why culturally relevant pedagogy in schools. Culturally relevant pedagogy is committed to the empowerment of everyone, not just one person or group. It is critical to making all students feel like they have a place in school to learn and feel heard. In the Critical Race Theory reading, the authors Delgado and Stefancic described some elements of the movement. For starters, the Critical Race Theory movement is about studying and changing the relationships of race, racism, and power. Applied in schools, many scholars realize that discipline and hierarchy, tracking, affirmative action, high- stakes testing, controversies over curriculum and history, bilingual and multicultural education, and alternative and charter schools can have adverse effects on students. The Decisions that Matter showed how we have the power to change things. It showed very real and common situations which makes for great discussion starters in a classroom environment.
When I took EDU 150, my professor made sure his own teaching practices encompassed culturally relevant pedagogy so I was really lucky to see it in action because I cannot think of a single K-12 teacher who did. When I volunteer in a 5th grade classroom now, I see that the teacher tries to connect with her students and give them the platform to share. In addition, she often shares stories and ties lessons to her own Filipino culture. I have seen firsthand the effects that has on students since they often get excited and blurt out “OH my grandma does that too!”
Is using Decisions that Matter appropriate in schools? How young is too young?
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