Week 28 - Indigenous Knowledge and Cultural Responsiveness.

This has been a really interesting week in which to consider my Indigenous Knowledge and Cultural Responsiveness. The halls and grounds have been ringing with the stirring sounds of hundreds of girls practicing for the House Haka competition and Matariki celebrations have provided a rich background to my reflection.

What does it mean to be culturally responsive?

Being culturally responsive means teaching to and through students' particular cultural identity. As teachers we use that knowledge and responsibility to filter through what students know, do and understand.

Culture is not only defined by race, gender or ethnicity but also by community, practices, language and identity - all facets of what help 'locate' an individual in their world. The increasingly diverse nature of our society is reflected in the faces of the students we see in front of us every day - each bringing their own lived cultural experience with them.

Creating opportunities for continued authentic and relevant engagement with Maori learners continues to be a vital consideration in carrying out the promises of protection, partnership and participation outlined by the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi.

So, how to be responsive to that?

Culturally responsive pedagogy has been described as holding 5 main components 

• knowledge about the culture diversity

• culturally integrated content in the curriculum

• development of the learning community

• ability to communicating with culturally diverse students

• culturally responsive delivery of instruction (Gay, 2001).

The student-teacher relationship is pivotal for cultural responsiveness (Bishop, Berryman, Cavanagh and Teddy (2009). To know our students' culture can only be achieved by knowing our students. This was reinforced to me in a recent activity led by our PRT leader. Each of us were asked to stand and think of three words that would describe us.

We were asked to sit down if the word related to cultural background, ethnicity, gender strengths, job description, personality traits etc. It was obvious that a ethnic or gender related description was not commonly used to define oneself (by our varied group of staff). It made me consider how my students may define themselves - how I would be able to achieve that in order to respond to their cultural diversity and needs?

Get to know them.

Bishop, Berryman, Cavanagh and Teddy (2009) emphasise the importance of considering the student-teacher relationship in culturally responsive teaching.

Responsiveness in My Practice

Student relationships are at the core of my practice and a focus on building these is an inherent aspect of my school. We are encouraged to lead pepeha style introductions at the beginning of the year, identify our Maori and Pasifika learners and encourage links to family and community. Lately I have begun surveying my students on how they are feeling about their learning, what skills they have outside the classroom and what they may like to include in the classroom. This is helping me build a stronger picture of who my students are and what motivates them in the classroom. 

Baradene acknowledges and supports the diversity of its student population in many ways - vision, values, goals, pastoral care, activities and school-culture.

Links to whanau and the wider community are in evidence and the focus on relationships and pastoral care does much to support improving the educational achievement of Maori. Students have many opportunities in which to express their culture, to see that their teachers care for them and their learning and to know that this is a celebrated part of the school and the culture of their school. School-wide expressions and celebrations of Maori and Pasifika culture reinforce this.

I had the pleasure of attending out Matariki celebration this week. It was very special to share reflections, song and prayer as we welcomed the Maori New Year with fellow staff and students.

Areas for improvement? I discussed this with staff and had some interesting feedback, on the whole it was felt that the school is working really well to enhance and encourage whanau relationships and reinforces the value of culture at many levels. Continuing to embed Te Reo use into the classroom and introducing bi-lingual signage were suggestions for improvement.

On a personal note I intend to continue to develop my knowledge of my students' lives, to attempt to make links with their interests, whanau and community, to improve my pronunciation and use of Te Reo and to incorporate new and inventive methods allowing a responsive practice.

References
Bishop, R, Berryman, M., Cavanagh, T. & Teddy, L. (2009). Te Kotahitanga: Addressing educational disparities facing Māori students in New Zealand. Teaching and Teacher Education, 25(5)734–742.
Gay, G. (2002). Preparing for culturally responsive teaching. Journal of Teacher Education, 53(2),106-116.