When I first started teaching, it seemed all the faces in our classroom were the same as were all of our backgrounds. I sure was wrong. Every child has a different story even if we come from similar backgrounds. Fast forward to today.

The face of the American classroom is changing and the importance of a culturally and linguistically responsive classroom is imperative. I live in an area of Southern Colorado that has a significant Native American population specifically from the Southern Ute tribe. I know very little about this culture but I realize that it is essential that I learn. And I look forward to it! My classroom will reflect the diversity of my students. My classroom library will have many books reflecting the area in which I live. My parent-teacher conferences will be different. I can’t just suggest how homework time should be conducted at home without first listening, really listening to what an evening is like in their household. I hope that I can bridge the gap and make connections in my classroom like I have never done before.

Teaching has changed over the years. It is better.

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies are important because they help every student feel as if they matter and so that they can have access to the material being taught in a manner they can understand and connect with. The challenge in this is the fact that every student is at a different spot in their own life marathon and they each have their own unique abilities, needs/wants, and challenges. Because of this I try to meet students where they are that day, but making sure to check in with each student/table group on a daily basis just to see how they're feeling before we start the lesson for the day. I do this just so they know someone (me) cares about them as people, but it also serves as instant feedback to me to make sure I am tailoring the lesson for the day to each class and their own unique needs for that day. This also helps me build a relationship with each student and is a easy way to create conversation with students to learn about them to help me be able to use CLR strategies. It definitely takes time and energy, but in doing so I do think it helps create an environment where each student can feel safe to be who they are without fear of judgment.

I have been in my role as a Title One contract teacher for over 4 years. I am currently placed in a school where there is little or no diversity. Families have limited access to television and computers. The families are carefull about which books their children can read as is the school. I find myself trying through reading materials to bring in diversity and expose my students to other cultures. I try to encourage the students to read books with students that look different than them and come from other backgrounds.

We have students that decide to come online for many different reasons and because they are from all over the State of Colorado, we get many diverse student and parent perspectives. These CLR strategies are important because the goal for every school is to support the growth of students. As we know students come into any learning situation with strengths and struggles and what these strategies are doing is enabling them to make a cultural or linguistic connection and become part of the community. This acceptance and acknowledgement of the differences and similarities enables students to feel comfortable and do their best work.

I actively teach Growth Mindset to all my students because I know from experience that if you are looking at your learning as an opportunity and not as your enemy, you will be successful over time in what you want to accomplish. Students are facing extreme amounts of change and in some cases trauma, so connecting with their culture and language allows them a safe place to escape and learn what we would like them to.

The hope is to connect with every student, however, it is difficult to do completely online because of the choices that students can make to attend class or not. The challenges that I face from all students is the willingness to turn on their cameras in CC and engage or participate in what is occurring (even the thought of having a notebook and writing down a problem to work on it can be too much). This could be because of fear of being wrong, not wanting to give too much information (keeping their family or situation safe), or they just don't want to (not really defiance, but they think they already have it mastered).

I think that CLR strategies are very important in my classroom because they help students feel safe, valued, and heard. The population I work with is already stigmatized heavily, so adding additional biases, even unknowingly, can be detrimental to my students. I have worked with students from a variety of backgrounds with varying beliefs, ethnicities, races, and values and teaching them that they are all equally important and that we respect each of them is a really cool way to create an atmosphere of respect.

The most challenging part of that is teaching our students about honoring other backgrounds and opinions. Many of my students can struggle with social pragmatics and rigidity. Because of these factors, many of them can feel "stuck" in the ways that their parents teach them to think and feel like they can't delve into other beliefs. The can also unintentionally say things that are inappropriate regarding culture, race, religion, etc. because they struggle with knowing what is appropriate in various settings.

Hello! My name is Angelica Bonet. I am currently a Guest Teacher from Jefferson County (Jeffco) in Denver, Colorado. I have been teacher for 39 years from Elementary to High School in the Dominican Republic and in Colorado. I am Math and Spanish teacher. I have been working in Bilingual School/ Dual Language.

My role as an educator is to create an environment where the students can feel acceptable. In the last year, my role has been as a Tutor and substitute teacher helping students with Math and Spanish language. I try to find many ways where the students can understand the concepts taught in the classroom and cooperate with the teacher. Many concepts are taught in the English language and many students struggle to understand it.

In most of the schools where I am substituting, many students are struggling with the English language and many of them have many family problems with situations. All these situations together affect academic performance.  

For this reason, Culturally and Linguistic Responsive strategies are important in every classroom today because more and more students with diverse cultures are coming to schools every day, and schools must respond to their academic needs.  CLR gives answers to all cultural diversity if we work as an educational community where all members (parents, educators, administrators, and districts) take part in this.

In my opinion, working with students from diverse cultures will always be a challenge for every educator. The biggest challenge is about the curriculum in the school which does not consider the needs that many students bring to school. All students are evaluated with the same curriculum no matter the language barrier.

As a middle school teacher, I find Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies are paramount in creating an inclusive educational environment. They allow me to acknowledge and celebrate the diverse backgrounds of my students, promoting understanding and empathy within the classroom. This approach aids in engaging students more effectively by making lessons relevant and relatable to their own experiences. It helps them to feel safe in sharing their thoughts and ideas.

Admittedly, the challenge can be there is not a lot of diversity in my area. Luckily, as a Spanish teacher, I get to incorporate cultural projects and activities into my regular curriculum. For example, I loved seeing a quiet student interact with the class and do a presentation on Peru, where his mother was from, and where he'd visited family.

I also get to teach a Food Around the World elective class, and students love to talk about food and holidays in different cultures. Building individual relationships first is key, and I love it when students then feel safe to share how their own family celebrates the Day of the Dead, for example, and how their traditions are slightly different than what we studied about Mexico.

Despite the challenges in the lack of diversity and the sheer number of students to get to know individual backgrounds, the benefits of using CLR strategies outweigh the hurdles. They enhance mutual respect, understanding, and educational outcomes.

Initially, I needed to assure that my physical space could support connection circles, universal instruction, intentional small groups, while still providing choices for how and where to work independently. I knew I needed to foster a mindset and culture of academic risk-taking where learning flows harmoniously between all members of our community and brain research normalizes learning from our mistakes. I knew I needed to get to know my students through rigorous shared experiences that simultaneously allowed access for all learners. To do so, I must find ways to create spaces where our community prioritizes holding space to honor our various cultures, languages spoken, racial identities, neuro-divergences, lived experiences, as well as our individual academic/social insecurities/gifts.

I knew that with a constructivist approach and a collectivist mindset, we can achieve greatness. HOWEVER, even with that sense of knowing, I still know there is so much that I DON'T know. Currently, I can continue my own journey on rewiring my thoughts and actions around the biases I am conscious of: Where do I think students should be? What do I think I should be able to accomplish in a given time frame? Who's needs are easiest for me to support? Who or what do I find challenging to be patient, loving, and kind? How and when do I connect with families? I can continue my own work around letting go of old beliefs such as, We could get there faster if I just tell them what to do (the teacher is the keeper of the knowledge and power) and I am what I produce (if I do more, I will get my desired result, making me less uncomfortable).

I feel that Culturally and Linguistically Responsive strategies are important because we have such a diverse group of students who have all had a variety of experiences. I feel that it is especially important for me because I grew up in a small town in Michigan where, when I graduated in 1990, there was one black student and a handful of Asian students. I was brought up in a very "white" area and did not have the opportunity to see and learn about other cultures. The TED talk "The Power of a Single Story" really resonated with me because I felt like that was my life growing up. I would hear a stereotype (or story) about a certain group of people and that was my basis for who they were. Obviously, 30+ years later and having taught for over 20 years, I have seen and learned that there is more to people than their single story. As a teacher now, I am more able to see my students as individuals who have their own background, experiences, culture and norms rather than a stereotype.

What is difficult for me is getting to know them as much as I would like to. I feel like there is never enough time to get to know students when there is the ever present 'I have to get through the content' dilemma. I find with math it is especially difficult to try to incorporate CLR strategies to help enhance the experience os all of my students (afterall, math is a language all its own!) I want to be able to gain and use some strategies that could potentially help my students feel a sense of ownership and belonging in our class.

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies are important to ensure that all students feel a sense of belonging and have an environment where they can achieve academic success.  It provides equity and access for all students.

For me, one of the biggest challenges honestly is just keeping up with the growing diversity and needs of all of my students.  It has only been in the last few years that our school population is beginning to grow and change. As we continue to grow and change, I think our school will face further challenges.  One being professional development to equip our teachers with the tools and strategies they need to meet the needs of all students.  Secondly, providing our staff with the appropriate resources to build a culturally responsive classroom. As an EL school, we already implement a lot of the key features of Culturally Responsive Teaching, so I’m hopeful that we can overcome any of the challenges we might face quickly and easily. 

I felt challenged by re-reading and re-experiencing a number of these texts in the context of my role as school leader. Though I used to launch one of my English units with Adichie's TedTalk, I have not leveraged it while training and developing new staff that I entrust with our students' learning every day. However, I was proud to reflect on the power of centering Bishop's concept of mirrors, windows, and sliding glass doors in our work to explore, select, and implement new English and math curricula that met our vision for culturally diverse and responsive. I deeply believe that strong materials and development are key to effective CLR instruction. As principal, I have the opportunity to uplift and increase the effectiveness of Culturally and Linguistically Responsive strategies leveraged in every classroom, rather than only my own.

Jones and Shindler's "Exploring the School Climate" article was simultaneously painful and inspiring. It was hard to read that students largely experience a decline in climate as they progress through their schooling experience. Yet, it was inspiring to read the conclusion that dimensions of climate are interdependent in a way that allows one improvement to have a ripple effect. I look to semester 2, now, thinking of what dimension I can positively impact for my own students' experience that will create waves across the school.

I feel that I have to start with Adichie and The Danger of the Single Story. This is, afterall, where change needs to take place first. As an elementary school teacher, I feel that I work with the most impressionable and vulnerable of the K-12 population. I think back to curriculum that was used in the early years of my career and the curriculum that is used today across all subjects and while there is a significant improvement, it still falls woefully short in my opinion. And I guess the question is why?

Well, maybe part of the answer can be found in the Cohen Podcast and the School Climate article. I have a story to tell and I think it is relevant to this topic, but it is long and I'll save it for another time, but it involves A Week of Black Lives Matters that was promoted by the union. The curriculum was based on the 13 Guiding Principles of Black Lives Matters which included empathy, loving engagement, diversity, restorative justice, and globalism to name a few. Topics that are addressed in most SEL/Bullyproofing curriculums. Of course,it was going to be grade and age appropriate. Well, it didn't happen everywhere. Why? To me, it was a combination of the threat of belonging and the psychology of failure. The threat of uneasiness, anxiety and social pain felt by those who hold the greatest amount of power and structures related to psychology of failure led to a "do it at your own risk" ultimatum. My kids loved it, learned a lot and strengthened some already pretty positive relationships amongst themselves. I will not let any of my children feel devalued because they can not find themselves in our classroom.

So, what are the challenges? We live in a time when offering multiple perspectives, a new way of thinking, and even an alternate story can be illegal depending on where one lives. In our classroom we enjoy having courageous conversations and we structure our conversations around the four agreements.

I am passionate about this topic and look forward to learning even more from this class.

As mentioned in Dr. Cohen's podcast, people need to feel a sense of belonging throughout their lives. There are times when people are more vulnerable on this level. In teaching 5th grade I've come to know that these students are very vulnerable. This is a huge transition period for kids. They are nearing the end of some of the most familiar and nurturing years of their lives. These students want independence yet, they also need the reassurances that a trusted and empathic teacher can give them. This is especially true of many of our culturally and linguistically diverse students. I feel that by embracing their backgrounds and establishing a strong sense of pride and confidence, these students can feel a much stronger sense of belonging moving forward. The strategies used for culturally and linguistically responsive teaching can be applied to all students.

However, there are still many challenges with utilizing CLR strategies. As educators, we are held to the state learning standards yet, our district's curriculum doesn't always give us the tools needed to connect with our culturally diverse students. This creates challenges for educators to find teaching materials that not only addresses our learning standards but, also engages our students so that they feel a strong sense of belonging which leads to confidence and a continued love of learning.

My name is Cari Fox. I teach at a private school, Colegio Nueva Granada, in Bogotá, Colombia. This is my first international teaching post, although I have been teaching secondary math/science for 23 years in California, Washington and Colorado. Before teaching at CNG, I worked in Academy District 20 in Colorado Springs. I was there for 15 years of my career at Challenger Middle School. This is my second year at CNG. The learning curve has been steep! This has honestly been one of the most challenging and wonderful times of my personal and professional life.

Currently, I teach 7th grade science to my classes in English. I would say that about 90% of students in my classes are Colombian, the other 10% are an eclectic mix of international students: embassy kids, teacher's kids and children of our community of expats. Most of my students are bilingual. Some speak three or more languages and regularly travel the world.

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive strategies are more important to me than ever - mostly because I am now the person struggling to find my sense of belonging in a new culture. Navigating Colombian culture has been a challenge. Paying bills on time and doing simple administrative tasks can sometimes feel overwhelming because I am not as familiar with Spanish and have a hard time communicating. Cultural expectations and norms are different as well and I have had to adjust. It is so different from how I have grown up and behaved as a professional to begin every email with some sort of bid for connection, asking how someone is or how their mother is doing or what happened over vacation, rather than just getting to the point and asking for what I need help with. The difference between my American culture and Colombian culture is vast. It is more important than ever to intentionally bridge gaps and use wise strategies. As Dr. Cohen said in his podcast, it is what you do in day-to-day social life to convey that a person is fully seen that is exceptionally important. Connecting with my students, their parents and my colleagues is imperative.

There are many challenges to implementing CLR strategies. I thought it was interesting that Dr. Cohen said that it takes about 2 decades for research in psychology to find application in the real world. This puts many teachers perpetually behind in methods and strategies that have been scientifically shown to be effective, unless meaningful and consistent efforts are made to seek out how the current research can be applied in the classroom.

I also feel compelled to mention the current political climate surrounding public education in the US. When initiatives like "Diversity, Equity and Inclusion" are weaponized and forced to rebrand, it makes using CLR strategies even more difficult in the classroom. I was very interested in the section of the podcast that talked about how strong political affiliations may be a result of other types of belonging disappearing from American culture. It makes me pause and think a little deeper.

In my role, Culturally and Linguistically Responsive strategies are important because every student matters! I teach student to learn how to "Get in the Boat"! If we can get everyone in the boat, success will happen! Each student will feel respected, valued and special for their gifts, talents and who they are as a human. And, when they get in the boat, I want them to move to the front, where leaders reside! When students are challenged, they will rise. When they rise, they will find confidence in themselves to flourish, succeed and find purpose!

Having a sense of our own cultural humility will allow us to help overcome some of the challenges we see in a student with a "single story". This humility will allow us to help elevate others and lower ourselves in an attempt to reach all learners and students. The challenge to overcome is to get to know the students personally, so we can properly assess and work with students to help them reach their fullest potential! One of the biggest challenges is having a fixed mindset, to often, and not pushing and challenging students to a growth mindset. Having higher levels of climate in the classroom can certainly help us move towards higher levels of achievements for the student with purpose and direction.

Culturally Responsive Teaching can definitely be implemented into any school so that the diversity of students can feel a part of a program, a system, a culture that helps them thrive, where each person comes to care, share and build relationships for a more harmonious and unified school. It starts with culture, then who knows where it can lead from there?

Cutlurally Linguistically Responsive strategies are so important in my current role because we have a rapidly changing population in my articulation area.  The population is becoming much more culturally and linguistically diverse by the year.  The majority of the second language learners come from homes where Spanish is the primary language spoken.  Although I speak Spanish rather well, I certainly can’t teach my class in Spanish.  So, it’s going to be vital that I apply strategies that are effective in supporting second language learners in the context of the core lessons I teach.  The great thing is that these strategies are just good teaching.  They positively impact all learners in my class.  

A challenge in implementing these strategies is the fact that, although we have an increasing population of culturally and linguistically diverse learners in our district, my school still has relatively few of these learners.  The push in our school is for increasing the rigor of the content.  This push has been centered around strategies that incorporate “writing to learn,” which can be a daunting task for second language learners.  I’m hoping to learn alternate ways to allow students to “write” using other tools than written language, such as pictures, symbols, infographics, etc…  Again, this would be a great tool for other students as well, so it’s a journey that’ll no doubt make me a better teacher.  

Culturally and Linguistically Response strategies are important because many students are coming to my classroom with different cultures and languages.

My strategies are to create an environment that utilizes each student's cultures, languages, and life experiences in the classroom. This will provide me with an opportunity to connect and make each child feel welcomed and valued.

My strategies to create

As a teacher who spent time early in my career teaching in schools where my Anglo-American perspective was the minority (2 years in a French/English school in Denver, 2 years as a Peace Corps Volunteer in the Caribbean, and 3 years on the Navajo Nation) I found Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's TedTalk, The Danger of a Single Story, interesting.

I found in my 20+ years of teaching upper elementary students that accepting that different cultures do things differently was a challenge without judging (the American Way is the better way). First, this assumption is not always true, I have found many French, Dominican, and Navajo ways of doing things to be superior to the typical Anglo-American way. And second, just because it won't work (in the students' minds) for them, doesn't mean it wont work for others. I always enjoyed relating my experiences to the students, especially those who had spent time abroad, and finding the connections between what they had experienced and what I had experienced in a different culture.

There are a lot of CLD strategies to choose from but I feel the important ones are building a positive climate, belonging, and understanding multiple perspectives, and identity in curriculum. Students want to see themselves represented in the curriculum. They also need to see themselves in positive ways, not the old school books we used where POC are depicted negatively or sterotyped.

I strive to create a learning environment that is positive for all my students. I have photos of my worldly travels around my classroom. I want my students to notice, that although they have yet another white, female teacher, that I have a worldly perspective on what goes on in my classroom. I do my best to get to know my students personally and share who I am as well as much as I can.

As a department we have tried to change up our novel list and provide more choice for our students to be able to learn about different perspectives. Students have been really recpetive to our efforts and I believe they appreciate the changes. We still get push back from parents in our community. Some feel our book list is white-washed, while others say it's too "woke". We can win either way it seems. But I feel that we are a English teachers and as a collective department are making better choices than we have in the past in regards to our novel offerings to students. It starts in department meetings with intentional decision making to better the curriculum in our schoos for our students.

I listened to Speaking of Psychology; How the Need to Belong Drives Human Nature. This piece was especially instructive to me as I am working with a group of students who experienced the pandemic during 3rd and 4th grade, which I believe are critically important in developing the competencies necessary to become a student. "How to do school'" if you will. The value of having social and academic interactions with both adults and peers is critical and, for these students, was compromised. The podcast was really instructive in supporting my approach of taking all my students "from where they are", and developing an atmosphere in my classroom that encourages risking to succeed. I felt affirmed that my approach of having an accepting and encouraging environment for students of all backgrounds, socially, ethnically, racially, and academically will help the sense of belonging the students need.

I encourage students from diverse backgrounds to share with me personally, and through their class assignments, the unique backgrounds they have.

Polarization is a climate that my students, I believe, are immersed in on a daily basis through their frequent and constant exposure to unfiltered social media channels and their lives are quite steered by it. Teaching US History from multiple diverse perspectives also assists in opening my students' eyes and minds to contributions from a wide spectrum of people.

I had the privilege of spending 5 years of my young life growing up in Mexico and Argentina, and interacting in languages and cultures that weren't my own, but it gave me sensibilities and perspectives that I try to share with my students.

My first teaching experience involved substitute teaching in a K-12 school located on a reservation near the Idaho/Nevada border. This experience made me aware of the need for culturally and linguistically responsive teaching. I specifically remember a high school lesson dealing with checking accounts and my shock at finding out how few families of the students in class actually had a bank account.

The majority of students in my current district are Hispanic, and I ask about household traditions in an effort to involve my students as well as to broaden my understanding of my students. We sometimes rewrite word problems with names that they choose in another effort for them to feel included. One of the biggest challenges in our district is that the teaching staff does not look like our students. It feels disingenuous to use CLR strategies when our students cannot see themselves in their teachers.

There are many challenges when it comes to CLR strategies. First, even when I teach a co-taught ML class, it feels almost impossible to reach every student and ensure that they have what they need to succeed. So many students are on different levels and it’s difficult to understand where they fall in learning English because they may know or understand more than the test results convey. I also struggle with teaching a student how to speak, read, and understand English. I feel like it’s difficult when we have newcomers in our on-level classes because I don’t know if Google Translate is helpful or serves as a crutch for them. I find it difficult to plan my lessons for my classes of 30 or more students and differentiate for ML students, along with those on an IEP or 504. However, I know these strategies are critical because students need to learn how to read, write, speak, and listen in English and they won’t be able to if I am not offering the best education possible. I don’t want to sell them short or make learning English more difficult than it already is so I want to ensure that I am doing what is best for them. I have utilized things like translating Google Docs/texts and including closed captioning in videos that I play, but I am looking forward to learning more strategies and techniques for teaching my ML students.

At New Legacy CLR strategies are particularly important because NEP's and LEP's make up about 20% of our student body, and African Americans/Latinos comprise roughly 98%. We have moved to a 100% competency based grading system that invites authentic, asset-based assessment and individualized, project based learning. In order to do this successfully teachers and advisors must learn their students exceptionally well: their backgrounds, interests, identities, goals, strengths, etc. This system cannot work without awareness, and effective implementation, of CLR strategies. I'm looking forward to learning more and bringing that back to my staff!

My first years as a Teacher of the Deaf, I worked exclusively on the Navajo, Hopi and Apache native american reservations. CLR was absolutely essential. I worked with infants and was frequently invited into native homes or hogans and houses on the mesas. It was important to understand cultural norms, traditions and manners in order to make families feel comfortable and be able to establish open communication and trust.

Currently, working as a substitute in Monument, CO, I find it challenging to walk into different classrooms each day and be prepared quickly for the different students I may encounter. Being a substitute often provides little time to prepare and it is important to be able to apply CLR quickly and effectively to ensure a successful school day.

Students learn when they feel less alone. When they see a little bit of themselves in the curriculum, in the assignments they do, in the topics they discuss in class. They learn when they have some autonomy - choice - in what they learn about and how they demonstrate that learning to you. I know this in my heart. Yet, I am also a creature of my well-ingrained habits. Although my teaching has changed fundamentally during the course of my career, I don't always ceded the control to students. I could provide far more student choice than I do now. I do far more daily incorporation of cutlurally diverse and culturally rich curriculum. I know that resonates with my students. Now I have to adopt the classroom practices that help students facilitate their own learning more forcefully. These are the strategies that will make my teaching more culturally responsive and my students more engaged and interested.

As a 4th grade teacher, I can tell you why Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies are essential in my classroom! It's not just about doing what I’m told, it's about creating a learning environment where every child feels valued, seen, and heard, leading to better learning for everyone.

In my classroom, many students come to me from other cultures than my own. Almost exclusively we have students who are children of, or are themselves, immigrants from Mexico. Although it is not my own culture, I feel that to reach and teach fully, these students I need to be inclusive of all cultures and show that their experiences are not only valued but that their learning can come from their knowledge of the world.  

What I see when I use stories featuring people who look and act like these students with Mexican roots is that they become fully engaged with the lesson and what is being taught.  They feel connected with me and their class simply because they feel seen.  By allowing them to have a leading role in conversations about their culture it helps to enrich their learning and the learning of others within the classroom who are not of that culture.  To them, it makes learning relevant and meaningful.

Of course, it can be challenging. Here are some challenges I face. First, there are amazing culturally responsive resources out there, but it takes time to find ones that fit my curriculum, grade level, and students' specific backgrounds. I sometimes have to give a disclaimer that they may not identify with all parts of the story because it may come from a different perspective or a person from another part of the country than they or their family is from. 

Second, it is difficult to balance the needs of individuals within a group learning setting. Every child learns differently, and honoring their unique cultural and linguistic needs while maintaining a cohesive classroom can be difficult.

Lastly, It can be difficult sometimes to know how to appropriately address unconscious biases from myself and from the students in the class who are not from that culture. It's important to be aware of my own biases and actively work to challenge them to ensure I'm treating every child fairly and the students need to see me addressing the biases of others to make sure that they feel safe within my classroom.

By constantly learning, reflecting, and collaborating with colleagues and families, I can overcome these challenges and create a truly inclusive and enriching classroom for all my 4th graders. After all, every child deserves to see themselves reflected in their learning as explained by Novelist Chimamanda Adichie in her TED talk provided in the module.

While the importance of CLR instruction remains a constant; the needs and challenges have and are increasing exponentially within the school district that I support.  All the schools that I serve have seen a significant increase in the number of students from families outside the America and as Rudine Sims Bishop in Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors so eloquently and provocatively puts it: we are not capitalizing on creating a learning environment that allows our students to see and celebrate their differences and similarities. But rather, and I do believe unintentionally, we are creating an environment that fosters disenfranchisement, or as Geoffrey Cohen puts it in his podcast: many of our students are feeling anxious because they are experiencing a lack of belonging likely for the first time in their lives.

In the learning walks that I have been a part of this year, the quality of CLDE instruction has been high across the board from a mechanical and opportunities to learn about American culture standpoint. What has been lacking is CLD strategies and supports throughout the school day and the opportunity for any meaningful cultural exchange. To an extent, I would suggest, that this has been a contributing factor in a growing lack of a sense of belonging and acceptance from our students and their families. Which manifests most often in lack of trust and defensiveness that impedes a school/home collaborative approach.

I’m looking forward to learning more about CLR and possible implementation ideas.

I really appreciate the analogy from Part A of the module: being a CLR teacher “means that teachers jump into the pool with the learners, guide them with appropriate instruction, scaffold as necessary, and provide for independence when they are ready.” This might mean reading through Julia Alvarez’s poem “Bilingual Sestina” with a student who seems ashamed to be bilingual. This might mean making sure students connect the ending of Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart with Adichie’s “The Danger of a Single Story.” (Spoiler Alert** We cannot reduce someone’s life—anyone’s life!!—to a paragraph). This might also mean allowing a student to code-switch when writing an essay. Most of the books we teach at TPCA are in translation anyway. Being open to a student’s ability to code switch epitomizes, in my mind, this image of “jumping in the pool with learners.” 

Adichie’s “The Danger of a Single Story” underscores why CLR strategies are important. Stereotypes isolate people. They are harmful. I appreciate how she explores the ways in which stories create and reinforce a stereotype, but also how storytelling breaks apart a stereotype. 

CLR strategies help humans (students and teachers) slip the trap of the single story, and I look forward to learning more about these strategies in the modules to come.

It's imperative that my school's teachers learn culturally and linguistically responsive (CLR) teaching strategies, especially at this point in our school's history. Our BIPOC population is almost triple what it was just 10 years ago, and the number of our students who qualify for free-and-reduced lunch---a number which is unfortunately disproportionately BIPOC at our school---has risen by almost the same amount.

The challenges in helping our students of color feel a sense of belonging is immense, at least in my discipline. As an example, consider the novels our students must read. Most of them are ones I read as a student (and I'm 51!!) and so many are from white, male authors: Ken Kesey, John Steinbeck, Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, etc. It's almost embarrassing. Our school unintentionally goes against what's advocated for in Bishop's, "Windows, Mirrors, and Sliding Glass Doors." Our BIPOC students see books as windows into a white world, but don't see near enough books that mirror their own lived experiences back to them. The flip-side of this coin is that our white students get few opportunities to read books that serve as windows onto the lives of people of different races and ethnicities.

I think another challenge (related to the first) is just plain old inertia. We have teachers who have taught the same books for 30 years and don't feel like making new lesson plans for a new book. It's actually stunning to me and a little depressing.

But, not all is hopeless. Our curriculum is becoming more diverse with the addition of authors like Sherman Alexie (whom my 9th graders adore), Javier Zamora, and Tommy Orange, among others. This is a small step, but a step in the right direction.

Yet, to create that sense of belonging that Geoffrey Cohen speaks of---and that is one of the factors of a "psychology of success" that increases student achievement (from "Exploring the School Climate--Student Achievement Connection"), we could use an extra dose of diverse literature: why not more James Baldwin and Toni Morrison, for example? We have authors of color in our library, but in a ratio that is the exact opposite of the ratio between our white and BIPOC students.

So in short, we're working our way towards the diversity of stories that Chimimanda Ngozi Adichie says is so important to gaining a holistic understanding of others; we're just not there yet.

In my current role, Culturally and Linguistically Responsive strategies are important because I have a responsibility to coach teachers to best serve our diverse student population. These strategies, as shown in the readings for this module, have an enormous impact on student success and wellbeing.

The main challenge I am facing is that some teachers are resistant to these strategies. Being a private school, we do not have to hire licensed teachers, which means that many of our teachers have not been trained in Culturally and Linguistically Responsive Teaching Methods. Many of our teachers also come from cultures and models of education that are vastly different from what our students are used to. I am hoping to help begin to change the school climate to help teachers see that, although we are a high-performing private school, these culturally responsive practices are still necessary to further improve student achievement and success.

For that reason, I thoroughly enjoyed the learning materials for this module. In particular, the study by Shindler et al. is one I hope to share with the staff at my school as it provided evidence against some practices that unfortunately are prevalent at our institution including some that the study shows to contribute to a psychology of failure such as "comparison and excessive competition," "public shaming," and "assessment as a form of gotcha."

My name is Lauren Shealy, and I serve as an English teacher at D’Evelyn Junior/Senior High School in Jefferson County School District. I teach ninth-grade Literature and Composition, tenth-grade British Literature and Composition, and twelfth-grade Classical Literature and Composition.

D’Evelyn boasts a broad range of students who derive from a variety of cultural, religious, geographic backgrounds; our school serves a spectrum of Hispanic, Caucasian, Asian, Black, and European students who generally hail from upper-middle-class homes. 

In terms of facility with the English language, my English language learners (ELL) demonstrate competence with spoken English and developing proficiency with written English. My Indian and Asian pupils often speak a different language at home.

After listening to “Speaking of Psychology: How the need to belong drives human behavior”, Dr. Geoffrey L. Cohen (2022) inspires me to strive for greater cultural responsiveness to my students in order to foster their sense of belonging. I wish for learners to feel integrally connected within my classroom environment, and I understand that my generous and unbiased response to learners augments and expands their learning potential. Dr. Cohen argues that “[a] sense of belonging isn’t just a byproduct of success, but a condition for it—in school, work, homes, healthcare settings, negotiations, politics, community policing, and virtually every domain in which humans deal with other humans” (para. 6). In order for me to extend a comprehensive education that prepares pupils to succeed in all facets of their lives, I must commit to cultural awareness and positive action, especially within my diverse classrooms. Because cultural responsiveness in education facilitates my students’ safety, sense of belonging, access to course content, emotional and academic support, and the relevance that enhances their learning, I must demonstrate awareness of student diversity and practice teaching methods that acknowledge the dignity and individuality of all students. I must create a welcoming, inclusive, and respect-driven environment that encourages trust and inspires children to listen, adopt, and emulate the wisdom shared within the classroom environment.

In their article “The School Climate - Student Achievement Connection: If We Want Achievement Gains, We Need to Begin by Improving the Climate” (2016), the authors inspire me to consider the challenge I have at D’Evelyn to empower students to take responsibility and accountability for their learning efforts and results. I strive to guide students to encounter the natural consequences that come with either robust or anemic investment in coursework. Students and parents often advocate for completion grades, and although I understand their drive to pad the gradebook and receive points for reading assignments and skills practice, I perceive that over time, emphasis on completion grades encourages students to prioritize marks over knowledge and skill acquisition. When I provide multiple retrieval exercises and practice runs for a final objective or essay assessment, I notice that students view those practice exercises differently – they are no longer a means of getting points, but rather a means of solidifying concepts and perfecting skills. It can be challenging to justify a spare gradebook to students and parents, but it does augment students’ internal locus of control, or their “belief that [they are] the author of [their] own fate” (Shindler, 2016, p. 12); when they witness the direct correlation between their efforts and the grade(s) earned, they often take greater responsibility for their learning trajectory, take action to enlist help or deepen their investment in coursework, and “[learn] to attribute the cause of success or failure [to a source within themselves]” (Shindler, 2016, p. 12). 

_{Resources (Please forgive the formatting!)}

^{Cohen, G.L., Mills, K. (2022). Speaking of psychology: How the need to belong drives human behavior. American Psychology Association. _{https://www.apa.org/news/podcasts/speaking-of- psychology/human-behavior}} 

^{Shindler, J., Jones, A., & Williams, A.D. (2016). The school climate - student achievement connection: If we want achievement gains, we need to begin by improving the climate. Journal of School Administration Research and Development. _{https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1158154.pdf.}}

My name is Laura Basil, and I am a high school science teacher at Skyline High School in Longmont, CO. I teach mostly chemistry at all levels- general, honors and AP. I have also taught geology and physics depending on what is needed any given year.

Skyline is a school with a very diverse population- racially, ethnically and income levels. We have a large population of students where English is not their first language, and many of our students qualify for free and reduced lunch. A large portion of our students are immigrants or first-generation.  Our students deserve teachers that understand CLR teaching strategies. Over the years, I have found it imperative to build relationships with my students. Understanding them and "seeing them" is essential in order to build these relationships and for students to achieve their best. This was explained in the podcast Speaking of Psychology: How the Need to Belong Drives Human Behavior with Geoffrey Cohen.

As a chemistry teacher, I have students that are at all levels of math and reading.  So many of our students have experienced trauma and just having a safe space to “be” is what they desire.  I enjoyed watching The Danger of the Single Story by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.  She reminds us all to think about our assumptions about people. We teachers do not always know the student's whole story. Many students unwittingly buy into stereotypes which in turn become self-fulfilling prophecies.  For example, it took some effort to start to convince some of my Latinx students that they could do AP Chem and they did great.  

While there are challenges in teaching, my students of all backgrounds have enriched my life immensely. I love to hear about their experiences and perspectives, both the happy and the sad.

I read the article, “Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors,” by Rudine Sims Bishop and felt that it completely hit why I love Language Arts. Providing students with literature and ideas that reflect and provide validation for their experiences is so important. I love how the article references these pieces as “mirrors” and discusses the importance of being exposed to ideas and narratives that look different to increase understanding, like looking through a window. CLR strategies that include providing opportunities to read pieces in which the “story” is representative of students’ cultural or social economic experiences helps students to feel seen, heard, and valued. Additionally, using curriculum that provides insight into the lives of students helps build a classroom community that values understanding, tolerance, and a feeling of belonging. This concept fits into a goal of CLR teaching which is to “respond to students/ needs by taking into account cultural and linguistic factors in their world.”

A challenge I would anticipate would be not knowing a student’s whole story or personal life – and making sure that I’m not making assumptions about them in an effort to ensure that they feel represented and seen with the content read and discussed. Additionally, creating a classroom climate in which students respect and support each other’s differences could be a challenge but well worth the work to establish.  

While getting my education from grade school on, I wondered if I was hearing all the voices contained in the history of our country and simply thought they did not exist. How wonderful then that as an adult I discovered there were authors and historians who made sure we heard from everyone, including the scholars, researchers, and authors included in this module.

So I admit my ignorance of cultural knowledge after reading "The Danger of a Single Story," by Dhimamanda Ngoni Adichie. With humor and patience, she confronts ignorance and informs and changes our expectations of human experience. Both Adichie and Rudine Simms Bishop who wrote "Mirrors, Glass, and Sliding Glass Doors," talk about the importance for children in seeing themselves represented racially and culturally in literature taught in schools. Generally, the districts I have worked in have included these perspectives.

As humans we have all experienced the pain of not belonging as I was reminded in the interview, "How the need to belong drives human behavior," with Geoffrey L. Cohen, PhD. And I have seen it in the expressions on my students' faces. I want to rush in and fix this, but I have to ask myself if I can do so in a way that respects the dignity of my students and balances all perspectives in a healthy way. I must admit this is more difficult than it looks.

Speaking of difficult, in the research article The School Climate - Student Achievement Connection: If We Want Achievement Gains, We Need to Begin by Improving the Climate (Shindler, Taylor, Jones, Williams, & Cardenas, 2016), in my observations there is much work to be done. Helping students develop an internal locus of control when there are so many barriers to this, including mental health and trauma issues, seems overwhelming. But I am listening and will respond with enthusiasm when actions to be taken are clear and compelling.

Being raised in the Jewish faith I felt separate from all of my friends and society at large! This led to be not being very successful in school. It took me until young adulthood to finally understand what had happened to me as a child.This is part of the reason I became a special education teacher!

The CLA (Culturally Linguistic Responsive Teaching) process is critical to my students! We discussed our holiday and what it represented to us. As a result of my students struggles with reading, writing and math they have major barriers to exposing themselves to more than just , "A Single Story." My lesson consisted of the students explaining their celebration, and then each student had to either ask a question, or make a statement that showed they were listening to the speaker. I then read descriptions of each students traditions or important holidays. When I mentioned a fact about their own experiences that they were not aware of they were very happy and excited that I was aware of something important to them. As a child I wish I felt that from my teachers!

If I want my students to be successful and happy in their lives they need to be heard! This will ultimately lead to them being successful in school and life.

To conclude, during the Covid-19 outbreak I lost 2 students to suicide! I wished I had more important culturally and Linguistic conversations with them, yet I only focused on them completing their work! If they knew that a teacher cared about who they were, and not what assignment they completed could have changed their lives forever! Making children feel valued and heard is critical to them having a productive life.

Maple Grove's community is composed mostly of families who have lived in the area for a long time, or moved into the area because of the school's reputation. There are very few English Language Learners, but the school does try to promote diversity both culturally and through discussion of traditions and experiences that vary by family. To be honest, the idea that all families are different is a mind-blowing idea for many kindergarteners! Their lives are made up of family members and a few friends, so they often have not experienced lifestyles that differ from their own.

The PTA and staff have worked together to create a diversity committee that is getting started this year. They host "diversity nights" that allow students to share about their lifestyle as well as learn about other students. We discuss different traditions and experiences through student sharing and writing as well as literature. In the most recent Diversity Night, students in each grade level created a specific project to display at the event. Kindergarten students created a "quilt" with pictures from home that explained their favorite holiday, country of origin, what their family looked like, and their favorite food.

As a teacher, I have tried to help students learn about cultural diversity through routines, discussions, and interest in learning about others and their families. We have activities throughout the year that allow students to share about their families as well as a daily morning meeting with questions that focus on student lifestyles as well as cultural or personal interests or social/emotional wellness. These activities help us learn about each other and make positive connections each day.

Cherry Creek School District is committed to Culturally and Linguistically Response teaching. CCSD consists of a variety of geographic backgrounds.There are 150 languages spoken across our district. The students minority student enrollment at Sky Vista Middle School is 56%. The school enrolls approximately 28% economically disadvantaged students. Our librarian at SVMS has done a fabulous job providing a variety of cuturally diverse books for all of our students. I believe that our district has a clear understanding regarding CLR. Our schools are able to create a space where all students feel safe and connected with their teachers and other staff members. It is crucial for all students to feel validated.

The podcast I listened to by Geoffrey Cohen really hit home for me. There are so many students who feel like they don't belong. I have wittnessed this many times over the years. It's heartbreaking to listen to student crying because their skin color is different from others. All students want to fit in with their peers.

I taught at Yew Chung International School of Beijing for 2 years. This experience was an eye opener for me. As a white, female teacher in another country, I was taught to support students in bilingual learning environment where the teachers worked together with the parents to support the persoanl and social values that will support all students for life. CLR stratgies were used in this international school. I learned so much from the Chinese teachers and students. I look forward to continuing to grow in my profession.

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies benefit all learners by providing them with opportunities to engage with diverse perspectives and experiences, which fosters critical thinking, empathy, and respect for others. For English language learners (ELLs), CLR strategies can scaffold their language development by connecting new concepts to their prior knowledge and cultural experiences, making the content more accessible and meaningful. For native English speakers, CLR strategies promote cultural competence and awareness, preparing them to thrive in an increasingly interconnected world.  This would be the same for students who speak English as their first language and are learning German as their partner language.

We are currently working on redesigning our dual-language model for the school.  A major goal that we have in mind is to have all teachers trained in CLR strategies.  By embracing CLR principles, educators in bilingual schools can create an inclusive learning environment where every student feels valued, supported, and empowered to succeed academically and culturally. It's about more than just teaching languages—it's about fostering a sense of belonging and cultural pride while guiding students toward academic achievement.

One significant challenge in implementing CLR strategies as a priority goal of our revised dual language program, arises from veteran teachers who may be resistant to change or unfamiliar with culturally responsive pedagogy. These teachers often feel overwhelmed by the prospect of adapting their teaching methods or curriculum to meet the needs of diverse learners, especially if they have been accustomed to a more traditional approach. There are also cultural differences in our school that make it challenging as half of our teachers are American and half are German and there are pedagogical differences within these training systems.

In order to overcome some of these challenges, I (as part of the school development team) will aim to provide ongoing support, professional development, and resources tailored to address staff needs and concerns and build their confidence in implementing CLR strategies. I am thankful for the resources shared in this module, as I will bring these to my staff in order to share this learning. Additionally, fostering a culture of collaboration and peer support where experienced teachers can learn from their colleagues who are already proficient in CLR strategies can help alleviate resistance to change and promote a more inclusive learning environment for all students.

I am Megan Joseph, an 8th grade Language Arts Teacher at Louisville Middle School in Boulder Valley School District.

As a Language Arts teacher, it is essential to implement CLR strategies into my daily classroom routine to ensure that ALL of my students feel that their experiences, perspectives and beliefs are heard and valued as a part of our learning community. Not only do CLR strategies provide access for all students to engage with rigorous academics, they provide the supports and scaffolds to help students feel successful as learners.

For the past two years, my school has chosen to focus on CLR as a part of our school wide PD. This has provided a lot of insight into the benefits as well as challenges of trying to get a diverse staff on board to implement CLR strategies in all content areas. While some CLR strategies can be easy to embed into classroom culture, other parts of CLR involve systematic changes both for teachers, staff and admin which can be difficult to encourage people to get on board with and can be a little bumpy as the process gets started.

CLR has a dominant role in my school due to the fact that we are a dual language school, with classes at every grade level for native Spanish speakers. We are also an expeditionary learning school. I have seen the challenges that my dual teammates have faced when trying to find/match/pair books in spanish to match the english books in the curriculum. If they cannot find a translated version of the same book, they work countless hours trying to find a book that will match the standards and skills being assessed. They have even gone as far as rewriting assessments when they cannot find a book that works. In addition to this challenge, there is also the challenge of finding books for our students who have come from the middle east and from Africa. There are not a lot of books that reflect their culture, language, or traditions.

CLR is crucial to help all students to feel seen and valued. Every teacher, whether they teach a dual class or an all english class, needs to have strategies to reach all students. If students can see themselves from a young age in the books read to them, they will engage more with the academics and feel like they have a valuable place in the classroom.

I know this is just the beginning of the course and I have so much to learn. I am looking forward to the learning ahead and how I can apply this to my practice.

My name is Kate Kindall and I am a English/Social Studies Teacher at Meeker High School. I teach primarily freshman and sophomores, but I also have a senior class. I am wrapping up my second year teaching in Meeker but I taught for 11 years in D51 as a middle school ELA/SS teacher. The transition from a much larger and more diverse school to a smaller and less diverse school has been a challenge to say the least.

My current school has a large ELL population considering the overall size of the school and so CLR strategies are important for helping those students close the achievement gap. Making sure my expectations are high and that my supports are scaffolded appropriately are essential in helping these students be as successful as the can be. My experience and training during my tenure as a middle school teacher has been instrumental in balancing the rigor of high school with the needs of CLD students. The challenge is that rural communities have fewer resources and are more monocultural than urban areas. I try to include as much multicultural literature into English as I can and am thankful that our curriculum includes these perspectives which were approved of by our board of education. These texts have helped to create classes that are exposed to different perspectives and cultures. Teaching world studies has also been a great way to include perspective taking by using historical documents that provide alternate views. This course will be great in helping me to maximize my effectiveness for students who would benefit the most from having a strong culturally responsive teacher.

It was interesting to me that in the reading Culturally Responsive Teaching Matters! (Kozleski, 2010) many of the long standing practices of behavior management are not aligned with culturally responsive teaching practices. I am striving to be more aligned with culturally responsive behavior management systems by " Making sure that students are developing internal systems that guide their judgements about creating and sustaining inclusive communities is at least as important as policing student behavior" (Kozleski, 2010). Students now more than ever need help with self-awareness, other-awareness, respectful communication, managing their emotions and taking accountability for their actions.

I have quite a bit of experience with CLD learners. I grew up in Southwestern Colorado where people from the Navajo and Ute tribes would come to fish on our trout ranch. Our schools and community had a good number of Hispanic students/families. I never felt like color or language was a barrier for the members in our community. In the Cohen interview his words, "...it's that fundamental concern about belonging to a larger group, being accepted in that group and having something to contribute to that group that motivates so much of our day-to-day thought, feeling and action," resonated for me because I have had the beautiful experience of living in such communities where everyone belonged, everyone contributed for the good of the community and thus we had a beautiful climate and culture.

It is no surprise that I found myself with a minor in bilingual/multicultural education and comfortably teaching in Title I schools throughout my career. My childhood model of a strong, healthy, inclusive climate and culture served my students well. I can remember thinking, "I don't know what the big deal is...I don't see color. I have the same expectations for all of my students." I especially connected to Cohen's "good wise intervention" sounding something like this: "This criticism that I’m giving you is a sign of my high standards. And I’m giving it because I have high standards and because I believe in your potential to reach them."

High standards and expectations with empathy and respect for all cultures equates to a healthy, positive, productive society.

Nonetheless, there are some difficulties associated with employing CLR strategies; one is continuous professional growth necessary for integrating these approaches effectively into teaching practice over time taken by teachers implementing them initially. It may not yield immediate results without appropriate training sessions on how best they work. Another challenge lies in personal biases and stereotypes that might affect how one relates with children from different cultures; therefore, I need constant self-assessment on what I believe about others should not hinder any student’s success in life and instead promote inclusive education for all.

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive Teaching is important because it helps students connect in the classroom. Using CLR strategies helps children feel safe and understood. When students feel safe and understood in return they can achieve more.

At the Pre-K level we focus a lot on teaching students how to communicate. Students may be upset because there is a disconnect between home and school, using CLR strategies can help create a more inclusive, safe, welcoming learning environment. We use a lot of books, stories and songs in the classroom to help connect with children. Many of those include cultural books, songs, and stories.

A challenge for teachers right now is keeping up with all of our students needs. Our classrooms are becoming more and more diverse and we are needing more tools and strategies to help meet all of our students needs, including CLR teaching.

An approach that is student-centered and values students’ backgrounds is valuable. We seek to use materials that can serve as both a window and mirror throughout each unit of study. However, these are not always easy to find/incorporate for all areas. Often looking at perspective can help each student have a voice and find a connection to the material. In class, it is important to ensure that instruction is explicit and routines have been set up to support all students. This includes accommodations as necessary, to provide support, predictability, and increased engagement. Using tools such as visuals and technology can provide access to material for students with different learning needs and enhance student learning.

I taught Psychology for a few years when I first became a teacher but for most of my years in education (17), I have been a School Counselor. I am transitioning next year into the role of School Librarian and have a lot to learn for this new role! 

In my current role, CLR strategies have been a focus in working towards diverse involvement in the career/college programs in our district. This year, we set data goals around diverse population participation growth specifically in relation to Concurrent Enrollment programming. I wrote a grant to help with funding for this initiative as we are a very under-funded district. We approached things from a marketing perspective and I worked closely with our Migrant services coordinator to understand the barriers in place. While we made gains, they were not as significant as we had hoped they would be. We have been meeting with many cultural groups in our community to better understand perspectives and that has been eye-opening! I definitely think the biggest challenge is getting into the places and spaces where diverse community members can hear our message and trust it!

I am a retired teacher who served in public education for 26 years and current adjunct professor for early childhood literacy. One example that I have used in incorporating student stories in the classroom is through family-school-community partnership lens by creating a writing assignment where families share a story to their student and their student comes to school the next day and writes the story that their parent/family/guardian had shared with them. This creates a community where cultural wealth is seen as an asset and also an opportunity to share different stories in the classroom.

When I incorporate CLR strategies into my teaching, I'm not just acknowledging the diversity of my students—I'm actively embracing it. By including culturally relevant stories, activities, and materials, I can engage my students in a way that resonates with their experiences. This approach not only fosters greater participation but also helps to bridge the achievement gaps that can start to form at an early age. By aligning my teaching with the cultural and linguistic backgrounds of my students, I can create a more equitable and inclusive learning experience.

However, implementing CLR strategies isn't without its challenges. As a teacher, I sometimes struggle with finding the right resources that reflect my students' diverse backgrounds. Budget constraints and limited access to culturally relevant materials can make it difficult to create the classroom environment I envision. Additionally, the standardized curriculum and assessments that I must follow often do not account for the unique needs of a culturally and linguistically diverse classroom, requiring me to find creative ways to adapt while still meeting state requirements.

In my current roles as an educator, Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies are extremely important. Given the diversity within my school community, with nearly half of our students coming from various cultural, religious, and economic backgrounds, these strategies are essential for fostering an inclusive and supportive learning environment. By implementing CLR practices, my goal is to ensure that all students, regardless of their background, feel valued, understood, and able to fully engage in the learning process and in the school community as a whole.

CLR strategies are particularly important in my co-teaching responsibilities for ELD Integrated Science. With a majority of MLL students in these classes, along with non-MLL students of varying academic achievement levels, it is imperative to employ techniques that cater to the diverse linguistic and cultural needs present in my classroom. By doing so, I will hopefully be able to effectively reach every student, support their individual learning journeys, and facilitate their academic progress. Furthermore, I've worked with a different co-teacher every year for the past three years that I’ve served in this role, and they've all ended up leaving for other jobs, which emphasizes just how important it is for me to understand and use CLR strategies in my teaching role in these classes.

However, implementing CLR strategies into my classroom and into our school community also presents challenges. One significant challenge is the need for ongoing professional development and training to effectively utilize these strategies. Educators must continually develop their understanding of different cultures, languages, and learning styles to best meet the needs of their diverse student population, which not only fosters inclusivity, but guards against the oversimplification of narratives, as depicted in “The Danger of a Single Story.” Additionally, time constraints and resource limitations can hinder the implementation of CLR practices, which will require creative solutions and collaboration among staff members.

Despite these challenges, the benefits of Culturally and Linguistically Responsive strategies are clear. By embracing diversity, promoting cultural understanding, and tailoring instruction to meet the needs of all students, I believe we can create an educational environment where every individual has the opportunity to thrive academically and personally. I’m really looking forward to learning more about these strategies and how to implement them into all of my classes next year!

I am super excited to learn how to utilize CLR strategies in my teaching because I believe these strategies not only enable me to establish better connections with my students, but also help students develop a better sense of self. Understanding that learning is a unique and personal experience for each student, I hope to learn how my behavior is interpreted by my students, so I can create a more positive experience for them.

Learning about CLR strategies will contribute to my personal and professional growth and hopefully make me a more effective educator. The students I work with come from diverse backgrounds. By understanding and using these strategies, I hope to better prepare my students to be open to all future learning opportunities and establish a tight knit learning community.

One of the main challenges I face is that the students attend classes 1-2 days a week. Therefore, our time together is limited. It takes longer to get to know the students and for them to come together as a class. With less time together, I feel that every minute counts. I am really looking forward to this class and learning how to utilize these strategies.

Because my role is virtual, oftentimes there exists a bit of a disconnect when students realize I don't live in the same city or state as them, as well as when they don't use their cameras or mics to communicate. This highlights the need to use CLR strategies. It lessens the impact the additional barriers present.

As an online teacher and tutor, I constantly see why Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies are so very important! I help many students online from many different cultures. When I help students with their math homework, I include examples and word problems that include their culture so that they can relate. For example, if I'm helping a student who is from Nigeria, Africa, I don't use a word problem that involves a snow storm. It's so important for the students to relate math to the real world. It's even more important that students relate math to THEIR real world!

For 18 years, I taught at a middle school that included students from very affluent families and also included students from families that English was their second language. Being a Caucasian person from the United States, I had to daily remind myself that many of my students were not from where I was from, and that it was my job to make sure I kept that in mind when planning my math lessons.

The challenge for me being an online teacher/tutor is that I am not physically with that student. For that reason, when I start working with a student, I make sure that I spend time learning about them by asking questions about their family, their heritage, how many sisters and brothers they have, what vacations they take... if any. I learn about their interests, their hobbies, etc. It is so important to me that each and every student of mine know that I truly care about them and truly want to find out about where they're from and learn all about them so that the connection is made. That is when the true learning takes place!!! The students dial into what I am teaching and how I am helping them learn the math.

Another challenge I have is that the subject of math is a bit different than, say, English or Social Studies because it involves numbers and not as much words. Therefore, I make the effort to include examples that include their heritage so that they can relate. The beauty of tutoring one-on-one is that it's easier to do this because I'm helping students one at a time versus 30 students which allows me to reach that student more directly when it comes to searching for math examples that he or she can relate to.

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive strategies are crucial in both my classroom and our school. Smoky Hill is a majority non-white school with our students, and a white majority with our teachers. Ultimately, our challenges are directly connected to the importance of CLR. In the ten years I’ve been at our school, we have tried to shift from the traditional English cannon to a broader inclusion of authors of diverse backgrounds. The most significant challenge is how to approach these texts in a manner that is sensitive, aware, and not a “white savior” approach.  Student engagement is paramount to success, so it is crucial that as a department and school we keep challenging ourselves to teach all classes with CLR strategies at its core.

     For the past few years at my middle school, we have been working hard on helping students know they genuinely belong in our school community. So many students feel like they do not belong and do not have a trusted adult to connect with or a good friend base where they feel comfortable, accepted, and feel success.  I witnessed students jumping from friend group to friend group which always brought back memories of my high school years; trying to fit in, trying to find my niche.  As we know, sometimes we end up in the wrong group and are easily directed down the wrong road as we will do anything to be accepted and feel wanted. Some students have little trust and their outlook is that they can only rely on themselves and no one else, which makes it tough to break that barrier and show them just how important they really are.  In surveys we would give the students, it would be surprising how many students felt they did not belong, and there were always shockers of finding out that some of those students who felt that way masked their feelings quite well that we teachers would not have suspected that they struggled with the feeling of belonging.  Therefore, it was really important to me to try my best to connect with my students and let them know they are valued. It is not surprising then that in Geoffrey Cohen’s interview when he stated, “...it’s that fundamental concern about belonging to a larger group, being accepted into that group and having something to contribute to that group that motivates so much of our day to day thought, feeling, and action.” that I immediately pictured specific students and wondered what else could I have done to help them.  But again, through this class I am looking forward to gaining more knowledge and strategies to be better prepared.  There is so much truth to Cohen’s statement.  

     A few years ago I had seen the TED Talk The Danger of the Single Story by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie in another class I took.   It was refreshing to watch it again and be reminded of knowing the whole story of each person and not go off assumptions and stereotypes. Her example of the single story of Africans that her college roommate had made me wonder how many times I have bought into the stereotypes without realizing it and how sometimes the stereotypes are untrue but are often just incomplete. I then read Rudine Sims Bishop’s article Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors.  Thinking of those two pieces and looking through the lens of CLD, I have a different appreciation of the variety of book selection that goes along with our ELA curriculum.  We now have a variety of authors from diverse backgrounds which now better reflects our students’ cultural backgrounds allowing students to connect with stories representing their own culture, feelings and experiences, along with insight to other cultures.  I had witnessed a deeper level of discussions in book groups and insightful inquiries that I did not remember my students having before without my prompting.  Some students who did not care to read were actually excited about their story.  Why?  Because they could connect to the characters and to the situations.  I would like to say that these books in our ELA classes solved our struggle of students feeling as though they belong to our school community; they did not.  Yet I know that providing students with literature that reflects them as a person validating their thoughts, their feelings, and their experiences is a positive step in the right direction.

    I suppose my continued struggle will always be the question, “What more can I do for my students?”.  As teachers we want our students to feel valued and an important part of society.  We want to provide them with life long tools to be successful.  We want to be miracle workers and positive influencers.  So my quest continues with this class and the learning I can take away and implement in my classroom in order to get closer to achieve the answer to my question of what more can I do.

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive strategies will be important to my job because of our diverse group of students. We have a diverse population of students, and some of our parents are non-English proficient. We also have a variety of foreign exchange students (different each year) who are still learning English. I am excited to learn some CLR strategies to help make my teaching fully influence these students in a positive and meaningful way.

A challenge I face as a math teacher is that the word problems can be hard for the students to comprehend. The students may know English, but because it is their second language, the word problems take them more time to understand. I also find it challenging to communicate with non-English proficient parents. They do not connect as easily, and it is harder to show that you care about the success of their child when it is difficult to communicate. Another challenge is having a large classroom, yet having to work one-on-one with these students is the most productive way to help them succeed. 

As a teacher, I strive to plan using a multidimensional approach that recognizes and celebrates my students' diverse needs and backgrounds. In my new job in Durango, I will work with students from diverse cultural and multilingual backgrounds with different identities, needs, abilities, and interests. To foster a classroom environment that is interesting and relevant and cultivate a space where a student belongs and feels safe and invested, I must employ culturally and linguistically responsive strategies and relatable materials to meet the needs and demographics of my students. For example, I can incorporate bilingual texts, culturally relevant and varied readings, and activities that give students choices and allow them to share their unique experiences. These are all ways I can make the learning experience relatable and relevant. I want to get to know who my students are and celebrate them while also encouraging them to grow. In my current job, I work primarily with first-generation Spanish-speaking bilingual students. While I grew up speaking Spanish (due to growing up abroad), I am not first generation and come from a different background. Therefore, building relationships with my students, getting to know them, and incorporating culturally and linguistically responsive materials and strategies can mirror their experiences and ultimately empower and elevate the learning experience for students. 

One challenge I have seen is the need for students to feel that they belong in the classroom. In my recent work with the local nonprofit, many of my students are at large comprehensive high schools and need more connection with their teachers and with a lack of relevant material. Many of my students have told me that they don't even know why they are in some of the classes they are in, and many are even failing. However, when they start attending the alternative school, with more one-on-one help and support, they thrive and begin to have hope. It makes me wonder if we are doing a disservice to our students who struggle academically when we place them in large classes and when teachers are overworked and don't have time to get to know their students, and therefore, students end up getting lost in the shuffle.  As Kim Mills states in the introduction to her interview with Geoffrey L. Cohen, "the desire to belong is a fundamental part of human nature," and as Cohen goes on to share, we experience this belonging in many environments, but belonging at school and home are essential to one's overall wellbeing. (Cohen, Kim, 2022). This cements the fact that it is critical for us as teachers and educators to help students feel like they have a voice and are seen, and that they matter and belong. This not only can provide a profound immediate impact but can also cultivate positive long-term effects and has the power to transform the lives of young people. 

I taught High School Social Studies for 17 years, including MYP and DP History. I am currently the MYP coordinator and Instructional Coach.

CLR strategies in my role are critical because they ensure that all students have equitable access to the curriculum ensuring every student feels valued and respected. When students see their culture and language reflected in curriculum and practices they are more likely to engage and be motivated. These CLR strategies align with IB's mission of international mindedness, allowing students to appreciate and respect cultural diversity, which is essential for our globalized world. In my role as a coordinator, our PD must be embedded with these strategies and attitudes so that teachers have access to them constantly. When teachers use and leverage cultural and linguistic backgrounds students perform better and support academic success for all students. 

Challenges can be varied when implementing strategies. One big challenge from my coordinator role is that not all teachers may be comfortable (or resistant, let's be honest) implementing strategies. PD is essential but it requires time, resources, and ongoing support. Also, it can be challenging if the curriculum or resources are outdated or not responsive or supportive of CLR strategies. A final challenge can be the balance/tension educators feel between standardization for state/national tests and personalization.

I live in Colorado Springs and also work as a Ranger on Pikes Peak Highway on America's Mountain!

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive strategies are important not only in the classroom but also in other jobs as well. In the classroom students need to feel safe and accepted without judgement to take risks to learn and share thoughts freely.

Language barriers exist in the work place when giving directions or learning about a customer's need.

Challenges exist when cultural norms are not shared by people in a problem solving situation. For instance, in some culture, a father will not speak with me since I am a woman. Thus, information and concerns are relayed to me via the mother triangulating communication.

At Lake County HS, we have a student enrollment of over 70% minority status and over half of those students are monolingual in only Spanish and some are bilingual or multilingual. Some students are recent immigrants, and they have not had much or any instruction in English before. Our teaching staff, including myself, is almost 100% caucasian and many of the teachers teach for 1 or 2 years before leaving the community because of it's unaffordability. CLR strategies are essential for our school, but many of our teachers only focus on the English speaking and "4.0" students when planning and executing instruction. This is not the majority of our students. We have terrible attendance rates and I believe if we are going to change our academic achievement and post secondary preparation, we have to work on CLR strategies. If we can change our culture to believe every child can and will succeed and not give up on them throughout their educational journey, I believe we will see results. CLR strategies have many available resources and proven success stories.

While I have been teaching, there has be an increase in the diversity of our population at school. I thing that is important to use Culturally and Linguistically Responsive Strategies in our classroom because they help us support students academic, social and emotional skills. In my third grade classroom, I have almost half of my students from different parts of Mexico. I feel that to teach these students and to make them a part of my classroom, I need to teach and have the students share their culture and experiences with all of us. This will help my students understand that things are different, even in a small town.

A challenge that I have experienced from being in a small town is that smaller schools lack the ability to get resources needed to implement CLR strategies. The diversity in our school is growing and we only have one full time EL teacher in our elementary school to help us with our growing population of EL students.

From the years that I have been a teacher, I think that CLR is important to our school in helping us teachers make a connection with our students and their families to succeed.

2. As a first-grade dual language teacher, I teach my students two languages, which involves developing their proficiency in both. This includes instruction in reading, writing, speaking, and comprehension skills across both languages. Given the diverse backgrounds of my students, integrating cultural perspectives into my lessons is crucial. This enhances the learning experience and helps students appreciate and respect different cultures.

3. In our school, 94% of the students come from diverse cultural backgrounds, making culturally responsive teaching not just an approach but a necessity. This teaching philosophy allows me to connect the curriculum with my students' cultural contexts, enhancing their academic and personal growth. By integrating this approach, I aim to build a classroom environment where every student feels valued and understood, fostering a deeper engagement with the learning material. This is essential in helping them become confident, capable learners who appreciate their cultures while respecting others. One challenge we encounter is the absence of authentic material that reflects my students' cultures.

I try to make sure our classroom library is filled with books from a wide variety of authors. We spend time discussing stories, sharing connections and talking about differences in our lives. We use morning meetings to connect and share about ourselves. Our school participates in a home visit program to help build family connections. We have art, dance and culture nights to share student work. We have guest speakers from the community come and work with students on projects. Our school also provides language translation support for things sent home to families, meetings and for conferences.

I try to make the classroom comfortable for all my students. I continue to read and learn more things I can do to help improve the classroom environment.

A challenge I face is only knowing one language but I am relieved that I have such a supportive staff to help me when needed.

I am a teacher but also a learner. Every year I try to improve my teaching by trying new things.

The area in which I teach has some population diversity. In my classroom it is important that I represent diverse literature options and lessons. It is important for students in my classroom to feel represented and have a sense of belonging, but it is equally important that I present a diverse curriculum to all of my students so they can see things from multiple cultural perspectives and not just their own. I think my challenges are making sure that diversity isn't just incorporated to special events, or special months but throughout the year as a part of our daily curriculum. This will benefit not only the diverse population in feeling represented in my classroom but also help all of my students feel more connected and understanding of the world they are a part of.

I am currently teaching third grade at Black Forest Hills Elementary School in Aurora, Colorado. Black Forest has a 38% minority percent, with the two largest minority groups being hispanic and asian. We have one MLL cluster at each grade level. Although I will not have the MLL cluster in my classroom next year, culturally and linguistically responsive teaching is still essential as I, like all of you, will be teaching students with very diverse backgrounds and experiences.

The Ted Talk by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie really resonated with me because I have seen/heard the effects of the "dangers of a single story" in my classroom in previous years. Therefore, I believe it is my responsibility as a teacher to expose my students to as many stories as possible through lessons and literature. It's so important that my students have access to books that are both "mirrors" and "windows". I want them to be able to feel understood and for them to better understand each other and the world in which they live. I am looking forward to learning more strategies to facilitate this process.

Speaking of Psychology: How the need to belong drives human behavior, with Geoffrey L. Cohen reminded me of the importance of fostering a sense of belonging in my students. Cohen writes that "a sense of belonging isn't just a byproduct of success, but a condition for it", and I wholeheartedly agree. If I want all of my students to be successful, which I do, I must intentionally develop that sense of belonging in all of my students. I want all of my students to "survive and thrive" in my classroom. I've seen the level of student anxiety increase every year, and I truly believe that fostering a sense of community in my classroom will help mitigate some of that. I hope to learn more strategies on how to do this more effectively next year.

Greetings!  I’m Christine McMain and I am a substitute teacher in Colorado Springs, School District #11.  My last job was teaching English to high school students at a credit recovery school.  I loved that job but the district closed down the program for financial reasons.  This schooI had a large range of students from a variety of cultures.  Instead of reading novels, we would read short stories.  With these short stories, we could touch on different genres and authors.  I read stories from MLK, Mark Twain, Tolstoy, Chopin, and many others.  There was one story by Kate Chopin, The Lilies, which the kids had to read with a southern accent.  It was quite difficult for them.  I did try to read stories from different cultures but probably not enough.  I knew about purposefully planning to teach multi cultures, then I would have chosen which stories to read more deliberately.  I do agree with what I have read so far about planning with a purpose and making sure that all children are represented.  This is something that I thought I was doing, but apparently not as much as I could have.  I will be aware of this when I plan future lessons or even sub in some classrooms. 

2. I teach 9th grade English Literature and Composition.

3. I never know what the Good Lord is going to throw at me from year to year or even day to day, so it’s always helpful to have a variety of tools in the toolkit. Despite what one may think of Catholic Schools, I don’t just teach kids from the upper-middle riddle households but a variety of races, cultures and incomes. Language diversity is fo shizzle a thing ‘round here.

I was drawn to this course because my school is becoming more diverse. While most of my students are very affluent, our school lines include both mansions and a trailer park. Every year when we dive into our climate survey, our students of color voice their concerns. It is hard to be poor at my school. If you were to walk by the school bike racks, you would see 60+ e-bikes on any given day. Latinx students have said they feel like they don't belong in our building. Last year, the staff participated in a CRT Book Study. We read and discussed Zaretta Hammond's Culturally Responsive Teaching and the Brain. Our entire staff was on board and it was beautiful to witness the change that took place. We still have a lot of work to do, but I feel like we are headed in a positive direction to support all learners.

My biggest challenge in respect to CLR strategies is that I'll be working at a new school and within a new capacity this year. Previously, I have been a Learning Specialist in middle school and a Significant Support Needs (SSN) teacher in high school. While I have been in a center-based program for the last two years, this program will be significantly different for me since my students will be out within the school and will come back to my classroom for support as needed. I will need to learn about the backgrounds of the students I work with, since they all are coming from different types of homes, families, and cultures. This school is also somewhat more diverse than my previous school, so I will need to educate myself on the different social/cultural aspects that impact this community. I hope that I will have time with my students as a whole group to celebrate and learn about these differences. I also will need to work on outreach to others (students, teachers, and admin) on the needs of my students with Autism. These students have a diverse range of needs in both the classroom and socially, and it will be part of my job to educate and appreciate how my students' different learning styles contribute meaningfully to the classroom.

Currently, in my online, adjunct role, CLR strategies are important to reach those students whose backgrounds may not overlap mine in terms of age, ethnicity, education, and other sociolinguistic elements. Online students are unable to use facial expressions, the reactions of their peers, and intonation to decipher meaning. The written word is key; therefore, in my communication I often phrase concepts in more than one manner to help the target audience absorb the meaning.

More important, however, has been my experience in the classroom teaching grades 6-12, social studies and Mandarin Chinese. There, I taught students mostly in the Latinx and BIPOC categories. I, myself, am a heterosexual, cisgender, white male. Often our cultures wouldn't necessary overlap in the Venn Diagram of life; however, having the privilege to travel and also to teach these children has broadened me. The key was going into the job with a growth mindset and a willingness to adjust teaching styles and the curriculum as needed, and to be willing to learn FROM and WITH my students as well.

In the curriculum, I primarily focused on adjusting the curriculum to offer an inclusive experience for my students. For example, when teaching social studies, on more than one occasion, I added elements of the African American experience during WWI and WWII to allow students to feel their own histories included in the matrix of the discussion. This really did help students feel a connection to the material. One student even thanked me for this. In addition, when teaching Mandarin to mostly Latinx students, my knowledge of Spanish allowed me to bridge the gap in myriad expressions. The connection was instant, not only in the curriculum, but also in my relationships with the students (and their parents.) In this manner, CLR strategies help broaden the toolkit and mindset in the teacher's cache of materials and approaches.

On a final note, after a seminar on CLR back in Georgia, I decided to allow a student to create an original dance to reflect the feeling of the concentration camps in WWII in lieu of writing a paragraph. Though not my general approach to the curriculum, I allowed this because that day, the student, a dancer, was having a bad day and needed an outlet. He created a powerful, emotional dance that resonated the misery of the historical moment. Mission accomplished.

Thanks. GW

Senior Field Studies at Bear Creek High School in Jefferson County

for 34 years before I retired in 2013, but stull participate in

Senior Field Studies to this day. Otherwise I do some substitute

teaching at Bear Creek. When I started there in 1977 Bear Creek

pretty homogeneously white in its student body but over the 34

years I taught there the population became more and more

diverse to the point that it has the most diverse student body

of all the high schools in Jeffco.

The more diverse population requires me to think and teach

differently. Bear Creek has always hade a climate of achievement

with many course offerings. The school was rebuilt in 2000 and

unfortunately the wood shop, metal shop, and auto shop disappeared

because everyone was expected to go to collage I guess. That was

too bad because those hands on shop classes were a real boon to

students that struggled academically.

I grew up in New Mexico so I have always been comfortable with

Hispanic students and could relate well enough to work on

the climate of achievement with them. As I went through my teaching

career I had to adapt my curriculum to reflect my more diverse

student population.

Senior Field Studies is a semester long course for seniors

that inclues a two week backpacking trip to Arizona in February,

living with a farm family for a week in April, and a week long white water rafting trip

in May. See seniorfieldstudies.org . Recruiting students when the

student population was mostly white was rather easy as students

were quite receptive to the idea of camping out, but as the

student population changed it has been more difficult to recrute

students as many of them have no experience of interest in

ourdoor activities. I hope this course can give me insights as how

to encourage student of diverse backgrounds to participate in SFS.

Our organization caters to kids that for whatever reason have found themselves in "the system." We primarily help our kids work through their trauma and return to their families or other healthy living environments all the while earning credits towards graduation and building independent living skills. To say the least, we are unconventional.

That being said, it is a priority that our students feel safe and that they can trust us. Understanding our kids' backgrounds and cultures helps us do that. At the same time, it contributes to a broader more open-minded and liberating learning environment that helps our students break free from some of the trauma-based restrictions and presumptions they have about the world.

Many of our students have, for survival's sake, shrunken their worlds to the point that even seeing alternatives is impossibly scary for them. Add to that the simple fact that our kids come to us in a very "institutionalized" state of mind, and you can see how being culturally responsive helps us begin to break that down and build some "normalcy" for the kids.

I think the greatest challenges we have at our school is the transience of our kids. Our students come and go and sometimes we just don't get enough time with them.

CLR strategies are so important for the emotional and academic success of students. Students need an environment where they feel safe, where they are willing to take risks, and where they feel they have a voice. As a teacher, we need to be aware of each student's core values and beliefs. We need to understand why these values and beliefs are important to them. Understanding each student and creating a safe relationship is crucial to the success of each and every child.

The challenges that I see are making sure that each student feels as though they belong to the larger group and are accepted by that group. Making sure that each student feels that they have something to contribute even when they are feeling insecure could be a challenge. That is where journal writing could play a crucial role in the beginning. Creating an environment where students feel a sense of belonging is key.

From my perspective as someone with Indigenous heritage, I understand firsthand the profound impact that representation can have. When I read Killers of the Flower Moon and saw pictures that resembled me, it was a powerful reminder of the value of seeing oneself reflected in educational materials. This kind of representation is not just affirming; it’s essential for fostering a sense of belonging and validation among students from diverse backgrounds.

The significance of CLR teaching extends beyond mere representation. As highlighted in Kim’s article, “A Culturally Rich Curriculum Can Improve Minority Student Achievement,” integrating culturally-inclusive materials can lead to remarkable improvements in student attendance and achievement. This evidence reinforces the idea that when students see their own cultures and experiences reflected in their learning environment, they are more engaged and motivated to succeed.

However, implementing CLR practices comes with its challenges. One major obstacle is the presence of implicit biases within both staff and curricula. Often, educational resources and teaching methods reflect a narrow perspective that fails to encompass the rich diversity of student experiences. Overcoming these biases requires a concerted effort to broaden our understanding and actively seek out resources that represent a variety of cultures and viewpoints.

Addressing implicit bias in teaching involves ongoing self-reflection, professional development, and a commitment to creating a more inclusive learning environment. This means critically evaluating the materials we use, engaging in continuous learning about different cultural perspectives, and ensuring that all students see themselves represented in the curriculum.

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive teaching is not just a pedagogical strategy; it’s a fundamental approach to ensuring that every student feels valued, respected, and empowered to succeed. By embracing CLR practices, we can create a more equitable and supportive educational experience for all students.

My school is one of the district’s three choice alternative schools, giving our students an opportunity to get back on track and work towards the opportunity to return to their home schools after a set period of time if they meet the required expectations.  Their other choice would be online school if they have been faced with too many out of school suspensions.  The district is very diverse but due to the population we serve, we see a higher percentage of CLD’s than our traditional schools.  Unfortunately, stereotypes abound and our CLD’s find themselves in trouble more frequently.  Our goal is to help our students see themselves as the best people they can be, to believe that they are worthy of learning and succeeding and having teachers care about them, and to take responsibility for the actions and behaviors that sent them to us but rise above that.  I tell them that there are not bad kids, just bad choices.  We have students that come from nearby Native American reservations and several African American and Latino students.  A challenge come from the fact that the cultures they live in can include gang involvement and we want them to understand that we see them as a person, on their own, who deserves to be respected, is capable of learning, and has a culture to share with us, but we leave negative influences like the gangs at the door.  It can be quite a web to unweave when you try to separate gang culture from the other elements of culture that they identify with and helping them see the difference is sometimes a struggle while being cognizant of cultural sensitivity.

Since I am still new to the school, I have not seen many of the challenges that will come.  Behavior will be one as will the fact that it is designed to be a transient population, with the goal of returning them to their original home schools in a semester.

The students at the lower income school came from very diverse backgrounds. While working at this school, I felt far more respect from the students towards the teachers than at the higher income school. The opportunity for an education was important to both the students and their parents. For many of the families that I worked with (yes, as a special education teacher, I feel that I work with the families and not just the student), graduation become a huge event as many of the students that were graduating were the first within the family to receive their high school diplomas. Being able to assist the students to reach this goal and to work with them on developing post graduation goals through IEPs provided such a sense of reward. Don't get me wrong, I celebrated the successes of each of my students over the years, but was able to see undergraduate studies in a different light, not just an expectation, but as a true accomplishment. The students let me into their lives and taught me what it was like to face the issues that they saw in their lives daily, from teenage gang initiations, teenage pregnancy, traumatic brain injury from gun violence, fears to walk home from school neighborhood, to family separation with siblings or parents living in a different country.

I feel that it is so important in today's society where we hear so often of racial tensions leading to deeper problems to have students learn to embrace diverse students, friendships and cultures at an early age when they are developing in their mindsets and expectations for life. So much set curriculum seems to be lacking in diversity and CLD material. It is up to us as the educators to find and expand the materials available to the students through research and student involvement, as well as discussions allowing the students learn how our melting pot of cultures has led to the development of this country. We need to let them learn to allow a variety of experiences and beliefs to round them as caring, successful individuals if we desire to overcome the stereotypes and anger that have been building. It is difficult for them to get the expansion of ideas without us encouraging it in a positive, safe environment from a young age.

Our magnate school has worked hard to create diversity and ways to identify students that are diverse, which means looking past the 95%ile cognitive scores or higher that many GT programs use. We look at how quickly students pick up language and other markers that support a diverse student population. CLR strategies are very important in our school as we have diverse students, but our staff is mostly all Caucasian. It is important that we value and connect with students and understand the cultural backgrounds. This helps educators plan for better instruction and create stronger classroom communities. I think it is a challenge for buildings to do this because there are often reluctant teachers. We are currently running PD at our school around CRT and some teachers are all in and try on new strategies, while others do not. How do you hold people accountable that aren't willing or are uncomfortable doing the work? Taking on new learning and implementing it into your teaching does take time. Administration needs to consider the time it takes for implementation and clearly label expectations for what they would like to see. They also then need to build in adequate time and support for teachers to be able to learn and practice strategies, providing specific, relevant feedback.

Hello, my name is Rebecca Dunn.  I am the fourth grade teacher for Hanover School District 28.  Hanover is a small rural school district between Pueblo and Colorado Springs.  I began teaching in this district 1996, retired in 2022, and returned in January of 2024. When I began my tenure at Hanover our student population was mostly rural ranching and farming families.  We had a consortium with a neighboring school, Edison, to share staff, students, and athletics.  The two districts followed a rotation with the Hanover secondary students and staff going to Edison for a week then the Edison students and staff coming to Hanover the next week.  As the Hanover community and school population grew that agreement ended. Eventually, a new elementary school was built 20 miles from the original campus.   We now have two campuses; the secondary school campus and the elementary school campus 20 miles apart.  Our population has become more diverse in the years that I have been here.  The diversity includes the rural agricultural families, bedroom community families, extremely impoverished families, families who are stationed at Fort Carson and living off base, and non-English speaking families. Pulling all of those children with diverse experiences and backgrounds together into one classroom can prove quite challenging. 

One of the challenges for me is that I do not speak Spanish and have to have support in communicating with my Spanish speaking students and parents.  Because we are a small rural school, we have a very limited number of staff that can help me with that.  I worry that I am not giving my linguistically diverse students the support that they need.  I work very hard to make each student feel valued and included.  As stated in the Geoffrey L. Cohen audio, students need to feel that they belong, that they have a connection to their school community.  He stressed the necessity of a person being fully seen.  He gave the example of a threesome of people tossing the ball at each other, then leaving one of the players out and how isolating that would feel to the person that was left out.  This is a situation that can easily happen on a playground in elementary schools; kids leaving each other out.  The school culture must be healthy with a positive climate.  In the research article ‘The School Climate – Student Achievement Connection’ the authors state the importance of a positive climate in order for students to be academically successful.  In fact they discuss how important a positive climate is to all mechanisms of schools, and that climate is related to everything.   Learning and using these CLR Strategies will give me more tools to use as I build a safe and positive classroom climate in which I can teach my young students to be successful in their academic progress.   

Douglas County High School is the oldest and most diverse school in our district.  We have the largest populations of Special Education and SSN students, NEP and LEP students, and economically disadvantaged students. We became an IB school in the late 1990’s. This year I am teaching hybrid classes of English and reading to 9th and10th grade students, attempting to improve student reading to the extent they can exit their READ plans. These hybrid classes are small, 15-17 students, to allow for better individualization and focus on reading and writing skills. 

In  2012 the state legislature passed The Colorado Reading to Ensure Academic Development Act (READ Act). The act requires schools to provide individualized reading support for students who do not read at grade level by the end of the third grade. This plan follows the student through high school or until the student can pass a standardized reading test at grade level or graduate from high school.

The district has taken particular care to not over-identify ELL students as having reading difficulties, so the ELL students I have in my English/READ classes are actually there because they have had  difficulties with reading, not due to insufficient English language proficiency.

My students are made up of different cultures, identities, needs, abilities and interests. Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies are key to my students’ academic success. Students who struggle with reading are often the first students to feel disparate from their peers, and just as often drop out of school feeling they do not have the skills to be successful. Nothing could be further from the truth. Reading is a skill that can be mastered. It may take more time for some, but it has nothing to do with intelligence or capability; it has everything to do with persistence, risk-taking, and feeling confident that their work will have an equal outcome. Honoring the diversity amongst my students will give them a place to feel safe when they take a risk trying new ways to think about their approach to reading, answering questions and talking about their thinking. These are tasks not easy to do with others when you are unsure about your ability. 

Many of my students are reading in excess of three or more years below their grade level. My goal is for my students to exceed typical reading growth exponentially in one year’s time. For this reason alone I need to make sure the culture in my classroom is accepting, welcoming, and safe. It must be a place where my students can build confidence in their abilities to achieve.  I need my students to focus on their strategies for reading, an already uncomfortable and challenging task; I do not need them to feel more uncomfortable and unsure of themselves because the climate in my classroom makes them feel out of place. As Dr. Geoffrey Cohen, a professor of psychology, in his book,  Belonging: The Science of Creating Connection and Bridging Divides concurs: “A sense of belonging isn’t just a byproduct of success, but a condition for it.” My students’ success may very well depend upon how well I am able to build a welcoming classroom environment. 

In her article, “A Culturally Rich Curriculum Can Improve Minority Student Achievement” Aubrey Kim, states that “culturally responsive curricula can have major causal effects on outcomes for at-risk minority students.” However, it must be postulated that all at-risk students would thrive in a climate of cultural responsiveness, that acceptance of their diversity and inclusion in the normalcy of the classroom.  The classroom, then, becomes a place where striving students can build confidence and mastery 

rather than a place where fear and discouragement festers. Paying attention to the cultures of my diverse students offers them what Rudine Sims Bishop refers to as “mirrors” not only “windows”  where they can see themselves as students who can achieve not only observe others doing so. 

Our school, located in the suburbs of Littleton, has some cultural and linguistic diversity, but likely not as much as other schools in the district or in urban areas. We usually have four teachers per grade (this year three for our level), but most students who need ESL support are grouped into one classroom. It usually ends up being just 3-5 per year. So I would say my biggest challenge with approaching this would be the lack of exposure. Additionally, I do not speak any languages beside English, so I cannot provide that kind of support to our students.

These strategies are important because they allow all students to feel at home in their classroom and school. And when they feel this way, they can begin to learn in a way that was never possible before. These strategies should also extend beyond the classroom, where students can feel valued throughout the school in every aspect of their day. Ideally, this would allow for a greater opportunity to build community and grow our students. As stated in "The School Climate," "if the basic structure of a school is dysfunctional, its capacity to promote its desired goals is limited." I've seen schools where this was the case, and it's been frustrating because every child should have the opportunity to thrive.

I think CLR strategies will become ever impotant while trying to connect, level with and eventually teach inmates at the prison. I assume emotionally at first it will be hard to connect with the prisoners the way i used to with kindergarten age children. The way i approach the student in all facets will have to change. I used to think i was a sheppard of knowledge to new and upcoming earners. I took pride and joy in helping such young ones grow and learn to love school. This will now be completley different in y new positon. I will have to rely on a new way of empathizing with my learners for they will be comming from all sorts of different backgrounds that no doubt greatly differ from my own. This will be the begining of how CLR stratgies will become so so helpful. I will have to keep an open mind of various backgrounds that have lead people down various roads all leading them to my classroom.

My challenge will be removing myself from my moral judgements to see the students as they stand on their own path. Therefore giving me a better perspective on how to teac them as they are.

2. Bilingual teacher.

3. This diverse experience has shown me how much culturally and linguistically responsive (CLR) teaching can impact student learning.

The importance of CLR strategies in my school context is vital. With nearly all students coming from Spanish-speaking homes, I recognize the importance of integrating their linguistic and cultural background into daily instruction. CLR teaching allows me to validate their experiences while bridging their academic language needs, rather than expecting them to adapt to a “sink-or-swim” model. This approach fosters a sense of belonging, which is essential for engagement and achievement.

One challenge I face is ensuring that my approach remains dynamic and adaptive to each student’s unique needs. It’s an ongoing process of reflection, requiring cultural humility and a commitment to equity in instruction, so that every student feels valued and has equal access to success.

I work in a school with diverse racial, cultural, and linguistic backgrounds. Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies are important to me because I plan and teach all subjects throughout the day. I believe that representation is important. Reading these articles, listening to the podcast, and watching the TED Talk inspired me to make sure that my students feel like they belong in our community, school and classroom. 

I have watched the TED talk before about “The Single Story.” I show this to my 5th graders when we begin our narrative unit. I think that it is really important that students write about what they know. It adds more author’s craft, and students can see themselves within their stories. I have made more of a conscious effort to incorporate texts from a variety of backgrounds and racial perspectives in my classroom curriculum. Sometimes, I have had a parent question it because of discomfort with a read aloud book, social studies unit, or current event class discussion. I believe this work is critical for all students to feel like they belong and are included in our curriculum. My students of color are very self-aware and are seeking belonging when they come into the classroom. As a 5th grade teacher, we address bias and anti-racism throughout the year. It is my hope that students will become more comfortable discussing these topics before they go into middle school. 

The greatest obstacle I have faced as a teacher is from the students who came to me from other cultures. The first challenge is overcoming the language barrier. You have to be creative in the way you communicate and get feedback. Is the student coping with the language barrier, especially when the language is one that no one else in the building speaks except maybe one other students? The next issue tackling is the cultural barrier. To start, it is usually very noticeable that children in their country do not behave in the same manner as American students. It is a shock how the level of discipline is very different. The best way to make them feel comfortable I have found is to engage with them about their customs and culture. If the student is open to sharing, I let the class know what it is like in their hometown and how tradition is so important to their culture. It gives them pride about where they are from and opens the class to getting to know the student. We have also engaged in class conversations about our traditions to help the student understand our culture. I also try to work culture into the curriculum where possible. It can be a challenge in science, but I do my best.

I have always sought out differences in people because I love to learn about other cultures and traditions. Seeking cultural differences in the classroom helps students adapt to new situations and gives them the feeling of fitting in, which makes them feel like they have a voice and a place in the classroom.

When students from other cultures are left out of the conversation, they can feel isolated and alone. It makes learning more difficult if you do not feel like you belong. Bringing culture into the curriculum can be rewarding for all students. When looking at the world from another perspective, you might be able to see why there is more than one point of view on a subject.

I feel the biggest challenge is understanding what I bring to the classroom as the teacher through this lense. We do not have a lot of diversity as we are a mountain school. However, there is a need to ensure that all students feel welcomed , valued and respected. That requires self reflection (being aware of any biases that arise) and dedication to creating an environment where all students feel successful.

CLR strategies are so important at my school because the majority of our student population is white and a part of the dominant culture. It is important that our students who are multi-lingual and racially and culturaly diverse to know they belong at our school and that they are valued. This has been huge goal of mine since I started, and I helped create the Diversity Club at our school to promote cultural/racial diversity and celebration of different cultures across our school. This relates to the Sims Bishop article which emphasizes why diverse students need to feel represented and why white students need to see other people different than them in their learning.

Culturally Responsive Teaching practices are tools that enhance instruction by giving the student the idea of belonging.  Even though my students have a sense of belonging because of their affiliation with a single religious doctrine, they also need to feel that they belong in the school community and with their classmates. This quote from Spanish author Carlos Ruiz Zafon, succinctly reflected how stories can help everyone feel included. 

"Books are mirrors: You only see in them what you already have inside you." 

Regardless of whether the characters are different from you, books can give us a reflection of our own lives and experiences as members of the whole human world.(Bishop, 1990) However, as Adicie pointed out in their TED talk, stories have the power to stereotype depending on how it is used and who it is used by.(Adichie, 2009) Using Wise Interventions to address the commonality of elements of the story aid in making the individual feel they belong to the class, group, and world.(Cohn, 2022) Words, such as “I know you are able to meet my expectations,”  convey expectations in a growth mindset manner that allows the individual to be seen. As teachers we need to utilize this information to achieve instructional equity for a positive school climate.

Sources

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, “The Danger of a Single Story,” TED Global 2009, Jul. Accessed 17 November 2024. https://www.ted.com/talks/chimamanda_ngozi_adichie_the_danger_of_a_single_story?subtitle=en

Geoffrey Cohen, “How the Need to Belong Drives Human Behavior,” Speaking of Psychology, Podcast, September 2022. Accessed 17 November, 2024. https://www.apa.org/news/podcasts/speaking-of-psychology/human-behavior

Rudine Sims Bishop, “Mirror, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors”, Perspectives: choosing Books for the Classroom, Vo.6, no.3, Summer 1990. Accessed 17 November 2024. https://scenicregional.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/Mirrors-Windows-and-Sliding-Glass-Doors.pdf

I believe that CLR strategies are important for many reasons. CLR strategies help build a positive classroom environment, a sense of student belonging and increase student achievement. CLR strategies also help educators build strong relationships with students and families. All students should feel valued, respected and celebrated. At the beginning of every school year, my teammates and I really spend a good chunk the first few weeks building our classroom community and learning about others which makes a tremendous difference for how the rest of the school year goes in terms of student success and family relationships. We have to invest in our students.

The challenges I face are the ability to communicate with families that do not speak English. We have a district translator but this is difficult when I need to communicate with a family on how their child is doing. Another challenge is our reading curriculum. I do not feel that the readings and small group leveled texts are culturally responsive. This feels tricky as I am then having to pull additional resources when trying to include more culturally rich readings.

I hope by taking this course, I can strengthen my knowledge on CLR strategies and self reflect on creating a more inclusive learning environment in my classroom.

CLR is important for a few reasons. First, as a teacher and principal in a very small church community, I have experienced very little interaction with anyone from different backgrounds, cultures, or ethnicities. In the last few years there has been a growth in Colorado and in the areas surrounding Loveland that may lend itself to more diversity in my school. I want to be prepared when we see our enrollment demographic begin to change. Secondly, I'm interested in educating my students about the importance of different cultures and the variety of viewpoints that diversity brings to the school setting. We can learn from each other and I want the students to understand that.

There are many challenges I face with implementing CLR (at least as I view CLR at this point). The school community that I am a part of also lacks contact and experience with diverse cultures. A current lack of culturally diverse students is a hinderance to developing effective CLR strategies. Additionally we lack the resources for students that speak English as a second language or not at all.

One important aspect of culturally responsive teaching is addressing stereotype threat. By validating students’ cultural backgrounds, we can help mitigate the doubts and anxieties minority students may feel about their abilities, which can negatively impact academic performance. Creating a supportive and engaging learning environment that acknowledges and values diversity is essential for empowering all students to succeed. (Kosleski, Brown, CC in the Classroom)

However, a significant challenge is developing a curriculum that is both inclusive and comprehensive. It requires intentional effort to integrate diverse perspectives and ensure that every student feels represented. Balancing this with existing standards and resources can be difficult, but it is a necessary step toward fostering equity and belonging in the classroom. (Kosleski, CC in the Classroom, Brown)

I am Angela Cross, and I currently teach 8th grade at a school district in El Paso County.  This is my 16^th year of teaching.  For the last 10+ years, I have taught at-risk students of varying degrees: from expelled students [7th-12th) to students at risk of not graduating high school.  Currently I work at a Title 1 school where 67% of students are from low-income families and come from diverse racial, cultural, and linguistic backgrounds. 

A challenge right now is reaching, communicating, and understanding my ELL students who are Level 1, meaning they know very little English and may have limited Spanish skills also with reading and writing.  In addition, where I do have an ELL para in one of my classes, he does not provide me strategies on how to scaffold for them.  So I am learning as I am going.  A strategy I found helpful is Google Translate; I ask them to put it on right away when they get into class, so they can see what I am saying [or any peer] in Spanish w/ the audio on via their laptop. In addition I am hoping they are picking up some English when I am speaking.  In addition, I came to the school during Quarter 2, so I am also getting to know all my students and build those relationships that are so vital at the beginning of the year. 

I loved the TED Talk, “The Danger of a Single Story.”  In her TED Talk, Adichie used an example of a family she had as neighbors growing up.  Adichie said that she saw that family as poor and really as nothing else. But when she actually went to her neighbor’s house for the first time, she realized that this family had abilities and skills she never knew about.  This reminds me of why I ask for parents at the beginning of the year [or semester] to complete a HW assignment and tell me all about their child “in a million words or less.”  I think it so important for parents to tell me their “perspective”, their story, on how they see their child: strengths, weakness, or anything they feel will be beneficial for them to succeed in our class.  I want parents to know that their feedback is just as important as mine, their child’s, etc. 

Hey there! I am Megan England, and I reside in the Springfield (CO) school district where I used to be a classroom teacher teaching 6-12 business, life skills, and the occasional English and Reading class. I now work in an education role for regional for a nonprofit as the Workforce and Leadership Development Coordinator. In this role, I help students across the High Plains explore career paths in their communities and think outside the box as youth entrepreneurs. I also am an adjunct professor of Leadership at Lamar Community College.

As an educator in a rural area at a Title 1 school district, I initially had an extremely small number of students who were ELL or even racially diverse, but I saw a wide range of socioeconomic differences. As I moved into the nonprofit world, I now interact with students regularly who come from wildly different cultural, linguistic, and racial backgrounds, and many of them are ELL. Part of what our organization is committed to is to helping all students feel like they belong somewhere, and as many of the articles, podcasts, and videos in Module 1 discussed, this can be especially challenging for students from these diverse backgrounds. I think the most recent experience I had was when a teammate and I entered a school to put on a workshop for a small group of high school students. We got halfway in and I noticed two students who seemed very interested and were listening very closely, but did not participate in any of the activities. Soon, a classmate came up to me and quietly mentioned that neither of them spoke any English and that he tried to translate in their shared classes but they often did not get much out of school. Thankfully, my teammate was relatively fluent in their native language, and we began translating the activities for them. The whole experience broke my heart and reminded me bluntly about the daily lived experiences of so many students in the region where I work.

My name is Michael Fontenot and I am currently not teaching this year, but plan to be back in the classroom next year. I have been teaching junior high and high school math in Fort Collins in Poudre School District for 16 years and have taught for 18 years total.

In my current role this year, I'm driving a bus for the school district. I was teaching in Berlin the year before and returned home too late to get a teaching job. CLR is definitely important in teaching, but really, it's useful for any job. It gives students a chance to feel accepted, heard, and a part of the community. The vast majority of my bus students are Hispanic and I am Caucasian. I enjoy the chance to practice some of my Spanish with the students as it gives us a connecting piece and helps us build trusting relationships. I am not fluent in Spanish and still have difficulty communicating with students/parents who don't speak any English.

In my experience in the classroom, I've taught our Newcomer's math class which houses students from all cultures that are new to America and know very little English. It was difficult for me at times because I found myself wanting to use Spanish as the 2nd language to help, but only 2/3rds of the class would be Spanish speakers. Others would maybe speak Arabic or Chinese. Finding a way to communicate with students without much verbal communication is quite difficult.

The advantage of teaching Math is that it's mostly numbers and those are fairly universal regardless of culture. My favorite thing to do is when teaching a skill "the American" way is to have students show the work the way they would in their culture. Sometimes I've liked their way better! This was huge for me last school year as I was teaching at an American/German public school in Berlin. There were plenty of things I had the students show me how they would do it, or how they would show their work "German Style".

The trouble, as a few other posters have stated, is word problems. I enjoyed having students learn a concept and then create their own word problems from their experiences (this was for those who understood more English). Other times I would change names of people in the word problems to help kids feel more comfortable and the math a slight bit more relatable.

I think Culturally and Linguistically Responsive Teaching (CLRT) is important because it acknowledges and values the diverse backgrounds of students, enhancing their engagement and learning by connecting the curriculum to their cultural experiences.

However, I feel implementing CLRT can be challenging as it requires educators to be aware of their own biases, adapt their teaching strategies to meet varied linguistic needs, and create an inclusive environment that respects and integrates all students' cultural perspectives. This necessitates ongoing professional development, collaboration, and reflection among educators to effectively address these complexities and foster an equitable learning atmosphere.

Math is the "universal language" but reading word problems is not. Students from diverse backgrounds may understand the math but struggle with context in the word problem. I always giggle when textbooks try to address this issue by using names like Juan, Filipe, or LaTanya in the word problems.

My name is Aspen and I am a 9th/11th grade English teacher at Mesa Ridge HS in Widefield School District 3. I have been teaching for 14 years but this is my first year at Mesa Ridge HS.

I spent my first 13 years teaching in a Title 1 school where our number of CLDE students was so high that our HS determined that four of our 10 English teachers would be CLDE English teachers to best support our learners. These teachers collaborated with the English department and taught the same (district required) curriculum, but were able to provide the language supports in class for students. As a result, the CLDE students were not in other English classes unless they had tested out of the program.

In my new school, the CLDE student population is a far lower percentage and therefore, we only have a single CLDE staff member that has a 50-minutes class with them each day. The importance of CLRT strategies is imperative in both situations (schools), but it feels even more so for me this year as I have two students that have minimal English proficiency. A challenge I am facing right now (and I know I'm not alone) is grappling with the idea that a student with zero English must walk into an English class that is primarily native English speakers (and where native English speakers often struggle), and is expected to perform at and above their peers. As someone who has let my Spanish speaking fall out of memory, I feel that simply translating materials isn't enough, especially in a discussion heavy course. I talk daily with the CLDE teacher and we work together to support the students. The school culture is warm, hard-working, and eager for knowledge, so other students help out with translating as well. Only having a few non-English students in the past, I am feeling inadequate in supporting them to the level I could and am looking forward to gaining more strategies in this course. I have used Google translate for documents and conversations and I have a lot of one-on-one talking and presentations so that they can show me their standards mastery in different ways. Since I am new to the curriculum, now is the perfect opportunity to ensure that I am embedding cultural diversity at it's core as opposed to trying to go back and make sure it is present later.

I want to add that Chimanada Adiche's "Danger of A Single Story" is a wonderful speech and one that I have taught many times over the years, including this year. It is so easy sometimes to forget that people are not the sum total of what we see in front of us, especially when we are so busy tackling our own mountains.

Hello, my name is David, and I am transitioning to the field of secondary education after a few decades in federal and state service. Most of my educational experience is at the post-secondary level and with curriculum development.

From my experience and perspective, Culturally and Linguistically Responsive Teaching (CLRT) is tough business and not an easy task by any means. An increasing influx of immigrants across the United States further amplifies the importance of CLRT in addressing the disparities in learning that are largely due to cultural and linguistic differences. Failing to address such differences will only widen the socio and economic disparities between cultures while failing to maximize the human potential of each and every student.  I believe a significant challenge facing CLRT is in educating the general public and policy makers of this crisis so that adequate resources can be appropriated and allocated to this effort.  I would also add that CLRT strategies and techniques should be adopted and applied in post-secondary environments, which in some cases could be the first touch point for students pursuing continuing education.

Response:

I found all the reflections to be very insightful regarding CLR strategies and challenges. Of special note was Stefanie Homant’s comments regarding the importance of creating a supportive and engaging learning environment that acknowledges and values diversity as it pertains to empowering all students.  Her comments reinforce the importance of CLRT being of lifelong importance and application.

My school is predominantly white and come from privileged back grounds, and that makes CLRT very important as my school has made a big push to reach out to diversify our student population. As I've started to see my classes become more diverse, the CLR strategies help in that they acknowledge that students come from diverse cultural backgrounds, languages and experiences. In my economics classroom, this means creating learning environments that validate and incorporate students' unique perspective and cultural contexts. Even though I personally don't have non-english speaking students, I have in the past and it was very important using CLRT strategies to help them access the content, while still maintain their linguistic and cultural identity.

Some of the challenges my school faces that also impact me is that we lack comprehensive training in culturally responsive teaching methods. I feel like this is an on-going professional development, not just a presentation, then move on to something different, which seems to happen a lot. Also, I've found that traditional economics curricula may not inherently reflect diverse cultural experiences. To truly do it correctly, it will require some curriculum redesigning to be more inclusive. This requires time and support, which is not something my school or many schools prioritize.

My name is Jeremy Cramer and I am the elementary principal at Dunecrest American School in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. This is my 33rd year as an educator, and I've spent 15 of those years working overseas in Malaysia, Hungary, Argentina, and now the UAE. For 9 years, as an elementary administrator in Colorado Springs, and all 15 years overseas I have been blessed to work in schools with a diversity of home countries and a multitude of ELL students. The importance of CLR strategies is huge, and the benefits are not just for those students who are in minorities, in ELL, and perhaps may come from somewhere else as compared to a majority of their peers. CLR strategies provide opportunities for all students to get beyond a 1-story mindset and expand their views of the world; much as Chimamanda Adichie spoke about in her TED talk.

Some challenges to building a robust CLR ethos in a school include: helping all educators (inclusive of administrators, specialists, etc.) recognize that we all have a role in implementing CLR strategies; building up our toolboxes of CLR strategies; finding resources that reflect our array of student backgrounds; and recognizing the importance of a positive, inclusive, and representative school climate. I also believe that each school environment, and population, is so unique that we need to recognize how we need to tailor our understanding and implementation to fit our school community.

In my current role, CLR strategies are so important due to the political strife within our region of the world. Great care must be taken to acknowledge the feelings and fears of the children whose family members abroad may be in war torn countries, while maintaining a neutral stance as an educator in the classroom. The local government issues statements on the various situations, and our school administration supplies resources and words to our families and faculty. We have school counselors to whom we can refer students who may be struggling, allowing for individual needs whilst maintaining a neutral classroom.

The challenge I have faced, as many colleagues have mentioned in their posts, has been a lack of resources. While there are many, many stories about African American children, there are far fewer resources narrating the lives of Arabic and Islamic children. Being an American school with an American curriculum, we use the familiar stories of Ruby Bridges and Martin Luther King Jr. to teach parallels, but it can sometimes feel forced. The school does its best to highlight diversity and inclusion, but without resources, it becomes difficult to directly instruct our students. I'm hoping this course will provide some of these resources.

When I was a classroom teacher, I always planned lessons with my Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CLD) students in mind. This approach not only supported their learning but also helped all my students achieve greater success. In my current role as a coach, I emphasize the importance of incorporating CLR strategies in lesson planning to the teachers I work with.

The biggest challenge we face at my school is a lack of personnel, which makes it difficult to keep group sizes small and effective. Recently, we’ve experienced an influx of newcomers to our school, which has doubled our CLD teacher’s caseload without additional support. Additionally, we’ve implemented a new strategy where CLD students are clustered in specific classrooms, and the CLD teacher uses a push-in model rather than students moving between classes. While this approach has its benefits, it has created a new challenge: our newcomer group tends to socialize only with other newcomers, limiting their integration with the broader school community.

My school is predominantly white and most come from middle to upper class households. A majority of my district is much more diverse in race, ethnic groups, language, etc. I feel it is important for the few elementary schools like mine to emphasize the importance of CRL so when the students begin to mingle in middle and high school they have a greater understanding of each others' backgrounds and culture. It tends to be a rather divided culture in the upper grades due to the division.

Over the past few years my school has begun to become a little more diverse, however it is still predominantly white. The challenge is to share with the students the importance of learning about other cultures and teaching them how to include and seek to understand students that are different than them.

The concept of "belonging uncertainty" is particularly poignant in a choir setting. Students, especially new ones or those with less confidence, may question whether they truly belong. As a teacher, it is crucial to be intentional about addressing this. Simple strategies, such as celebrating small achievements, assigning roles that highlight individual strengths, or sharing stories about the power of teamwork in music, can build students’ confidence and sense of belonging. Strategies I have used in my classroom are utilizing roles such as section leaders and allowing students to lead and decide what they want to work on and how they want to learn.

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies are vitally important, even though I work with predominantly upper middle class, white, English speaking students. While that demographic makes up the majority of my students, it does not include them all. We have students who are from non English-speaking countries and in an American school for the first time, and we have foreign exchange students visiting for one more semesters. We need to be prepared for and ready to help any and all of the students who walk in our building, and we work hard to do so. It is certainly a challenge to meet the needs of students we have and have not yet met. We don't always know what we will need to best support each student, but the fact that CLR is not a "one size fits all" system means that we can be flexible in what we do and how we approach students who enroll here.

As the librarian, I am in a unique position to work with all classes and with all students. Being able to have materials and resources ready for any student that joins us means considering how the library is an extension of the classroom and how Culturally and Linguistically Responsive books and materials can help students as well. I feel all students in the building have the potential to benefit from what is made available to CLD students. Having books that represent multiple cultures and countries not only allow CLD students to see themselves in a book, but other students can learn about other cultures that are different from theirs.

Penrose is a Title One school with over 60% low income as well as about a half and half split between white and minority demographic students. Over 30% of our students are Hispanic with many families who do not speak English and cannot help their children at home. We are currently an "improvement" school based on state scores.

As a music teacher, it's lovely being able to incorporate various cultures and connect with students in this universal language. CLDE students light up when we sing in their language or play music games that require more physical activity rather than rote learning like math or reading. Playing instruments is something they feel more equal with their peers in as they perform rhythms and read notation.

As a core curriculum teacher, it is often a struggle to modify lessons for CLD students along with the 20 something other students in the room who range from gifted and talented to low reading levels. CLDE students are very patient and capable as we truck along, however they are often left in the dark with the daily demands of covering all the curriculum along with behaviors that arise. We have an excellent ESL teacher, but I often felt there could have been more streamlined strategies in place to help their education.

Like Alicia D'Antonio stated, the demographic of both districts that I work in tend to be the same, a majority of white-middle class students, which can make a multicultural perspective difficult, when it is out of the norm of the student population. Additionally, when there is already a time crunch to get through designated curriculum, students need to feel that teaching through a multicultural perspective is meaningful, and not just checking boxes before moving on to the next lesson.

Developing empathy for people different from the dominant demographic at an early age is so imperative for openness, understanding, and combating stereotypes early on. Using school librarians is a great resource when looking for material (art, short stories, videos, books) that can enhance the curriculum, and make sure different perspectives and voices are represented within different lessons and units. Teachers don't have to work by themselves to make this happen, having discussions with others within, and out of, the department may provide resources and perspectives that cant necessarily be easily found alone.

Many of the students who come to us have disengaged from school for various reasons. I’ve observed that some of our students of color, particularly those who attended predominantly white schools, often struggled with a lack of belonging and identity. I’ve also seen how empowering English can be for students. I’ll always remember a student’s excitement when "Infinity War" came out—he was thrilled to see black characters saving the day, and it sparked a meaningful conversation about representation.

One of the ongoing challenges I face is finding curriculum that authentically resonates with students without resorting to stereotypes or misrepresentations, as these can further isolate them.

2. My current role is: Director of Educator Enablement + Instructional Coaching Services.

3. CLR strategies are incredibly important in my current role because I support several teams of instructional coaches who serve, support, and train educators, through ongoing PD and instructional strategy accountability in these focus areas. My teams are challenged with creating personalized PD, based on district goals and the CLR must not only be understood for each district and population but also presented appropriately so that it connects with the educators receiving the training and creates buy-in and understanding.

A current challenge we have is the time limitation to create CLR PD that resonates with so many different educators in a short time frame. Ie: We may be presenting to a district that has a majority of Native American Elders within the BIE at 9 a.m. and by 1 p.m. we are presenting to a group of rural Alaskan teachers who are still embracing the westernization of educational policies and expectations. This forces our team to be highly collaborative as they support internal and external teams but also ensure they make their own training and professional learning a high priority.

In response to the importance and challenges regarding implementation of CLD within the classroom there is much to be said.

I am an African-American. I grew up in the city of Minneapolis, MN. Minneapolis at the time of my upbringing and school years was in my eyes very diverse. I didn't have to go far to encounter someone who looked different from me, spoke a different language, or was from a different country. This was not only true outside of school, but also within the buildings of every school I attended.

However, one strikingly vivid thing that I remember in all of my educational years was the lack of teachers, staff, coaches, posters, and books in the libraries of people who looked like me.

When I watched The Danger of a Single Story, by novelist Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie I could very much relate to what she was sharing.

As much as I hate to admit it, the lack of having a culturally diverse environment had a significant negative impact on my engagement in the learning process. There was always the perception, right or wrong that somehow for some reason I didn't belong. I felt that my teachers couldn't relate to me, couldn't understand me and perhaps maybe they didn't even care.

Now, having been an elementary/middle school teacher for 12 years I can see that all of my perceptions weren't entirely true, but they were true for me at that time.

It's a challenge not just for students, but for teachers and administrators as well to be culturally sensitive to the needs of all students. All of us come from different backgrounds and have different experiences growing up that greatly impact how we relate to one another.

Nevertheless, once we begin to understand how vitally important this is connected with student learning achievement, it should become one of our chief aims for the school environment.

As teachers we should keep these things in mind when setting up our classrooms. Even if the demographics of our student population is only that of a primary ethnic group. Whether it be curriculum, assessments, extracurricular activities our goal should be to provide a learning experience that is not only broad, but also deep. This is where the challenge comes for us as educators! This requires educators to move outside our boxes. We must become intentional in our personal learning about new cultures, religious backgrounds etc. to be genuinely able to relate to students and help them learn.

In doing the above things, this will also help overcome the challenges that are faced with effectively communicating with parents. It is so important to establish a healthy relationship between the home and school. When parents are included in the decision and learning process the beneficiaries are always the children!

In conclusion, there are a myriad of challenges facing an ever growing diverse student body with ever changing needs. It is of utmost importance to create a learning environment that meets these diverse needs. An environment that challenges administrators, teachers, and students to appreciate these differences.

As a result, student learning and achievement will increase according to studies shown.

CLR strategies are very important to my school. We have a large population of ML students and need to keep developing strategies to help them succeed. Each year that our school has been open, this is year 9, our planning and implementation of such strategies continues to improve. We have focused on academic conversations to include ML students more frequently and give them multiple opportunities a day to speak as well as read, write, and listen. The challenges we face is that as a charter school our staffing is different than it would be at the district and coordinating schedules can be difficult. There has also been challenges with providing meaningful PD to staff. In my role as a 7th grade teacher, I teach all subjects which poses some challenges to remember to do all of the strategies, all the time. There is a lot of pressure to get the curriculum finished and there are days that I just cannot remember to do everything.

When I was in the classroom, I primarily taught kindergarten. I taught 4 years in kinder while living in Missouri and moved to Colorado and taught 2 additional years of kindergarten. In between kindergarten, I taught 1 year of fifth grade and half a year of second grade.

When teaching in Colorado, I taught in predominately white affluent areas. I didn’t have the opportunity to teach students from diverse cultural backgrounds. However, in thinking about Culturally and Linguistically Responsive strategies and how we as teachers should meet students where they are and guide them through learning; not just sink or swim… this should be the case for all students. I want all of my students to feel like they belong and are comfortable in their learning environment.  When I taught in Missouri, all of my students were also white but from very different economic backgrounds compared to here in Colorado. Being at a Title 1 school, we had many students who faced challenging and at times, scary home lives. Being that safe person and providing a safe learning space was our priority. I worked to meet students where they were academically and scaffolded many lessons because of the lower academic ability of those students. A challenge I often faced was parent involvement and trying to create a bridge between home and school. We tried to provide resources to parents and families to support our students even away from school. We wanted parents to be invested in their students at school to help our students feel valued but that can be difficult when there are larger worries for them with work and home life.

I have been greatly inspired by the work of novelist Chimamanda Adichie, particularly her talk, "The Danger of a Single Story." She emphasizes the significance of embracing multiple perspectives. This message resonates deeply with me as I curate the books, toys, and materials in my classroom. I work hard to give my students a mix of books and materials that act like windows, mirrors, and sliding glass doors, helping them see and understand different cultures and experiences. This way, they can grow into empathetic, curious, and knowledgeable individuals. This is why I think CLD strategies are so vital in education.

However, I face challenges in integrating these important perspectives in my affluent, predominantly white English-speaking school. The majority of my students come from similar backgrounds, which can make it difficult to present diverse narratives in a way that is impactful and meaningful rather than merely a checkbox activity. Ultimately, I want to make sure every student feels included and appreciated, so they can learn and grow from a variety of experiences.

CLR strategies in my current role are very important. Being a sub comes with many challenges, but one I run into frequently is language barriers that are challenging. I believe that it is important for me to learn some common Spanish phrases so that I can communicate a little easier, while giving a chance to speak and hear in English as well as that is my native language. I feel that it is important to also recognize all the different cultures that are represented in just one classroom. When using English, even with English speakers I try to avoid using terms or phrases that may seem common to me, but may confuse someone who isn't of my culture. I think just trying to foster the best environment for all learners is the best for all situations. I also think that by feeding off the human need of needing to belong to something in a learning environment is very important so the strategies that I use need to be inclusive to all.

CLR strategies are very important in my role right now. We have 8 students that we service and 4 are CLD students. This is fascinating to me! The languages

represented are Spanish, Arabic and Mandarin. The students have significant special needs which makes their learning unique since they are CLD student as well. The CLR strategies come into play as we need to tap into the backgrounds of the students and get the family's perspective of how they approach having a student with significant needs. Many of the families embrace the school and the teaching that goes on in the SSN room and appreciate the gestures of learning about the various cultures. This includes holidays, foods, celebrations, and dress. Many of the families share their cultural norms and invite us to participate with them. This is important as this foundation needs to be put into place for CLR strategies to be effective.

We also try and validate the students' cultures and backgrounds through curriculum. For example, around Christmas time we did a 3 week unit on various holidays that were celebrated around the world, including the students' represented in our class. The unit contained key vocabulary that would help the students understand and respect the cultures being represented. The CLR strategies are evident in all of our teaching since we are scaffolding and sheltering all of our instruction.

The challenges are that the students are dealing with CLD obstacles alongside significant developmental delays. They are hearing their primary language at home then coming to school and being instructed in the English language and faced with their disabilities, all at the same time. The problems are compounded beginning with the cultural and linguistic differences they encounter. It's an interesting dynamic!

In my role,CLR strategies are important to create an inclusive and equitable learning environment. These strategies help build positive relationships and foster trust and respect which helps to reduce behavioral issues and helps create an inclusive school culture.

The challenges of the CRL strategies is the language barriers I face when working with my multilingual students. Often times when working with these students and their parents I use a language interpreter to be able to communicate. I feel this hinders building a relationship with these families because the conversation does not feel personal working through an interpreter.

Currently, I am in a ministry position in which I am teaching Biblical content to preschool or elementary students, and I am crafting lesson plans, units and supplemental events as such. Prior to this I was a middle school ELA teacher. I am currently working on renewing my professional teaching license, as I hope to return to the classroom full-time in the future.

Currently, CLR strategies are most important when we are communicating with parents and families from other countries, and with teachers who are from other countries. We have few families who are culturally and linguistically diverse, as well as a few international seminary students who are volunteer teachers for our kids.

I think one of the challenges (that we must overcome) in working with individuals and families that are from far away countries are that we get stuck in the pattern of making assumptions about their lives prior to living in the United States. Like Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie said in her TEDTalk, when we only know ones story about a group of people, that perception becomes our reality, and it is a narrow and skewed version of that group of people. In doing so, we are providing a disservice to these families. For example, one of our families is from Mongolia. While there is a language barrier, there is not a humanity barrier. The information that we are teaching is for everyone, regardless of language barriers, and any narrow stories that we may know about Mongolia. It would behoove us to put some effort in to understanding this family's culture, even if we don't speak the same language as they do.

CLR strategies are important because our country and world are rich with a diversity of culture, language and experiences that make us all the individuals we are. These diversities inform and shape our perspectives, our learning styles and our needs. These strategies not only work with students who are language learners but also with anyone who might benefit from more varied approaches to teaching curriculum.

The challenges that I have had in the past are making sure that my instruction is inclusive and varied enough. This process is easier if you are teaching a subject that you have a great deal of experience with and a large array of previous lessons and activities that you can draw from to modify and adjust. It can be more difficult when you are crafting an entirely new set of year long lessons and activities while also ensuring that you are scaffolding and modifying to meet the needs of all of students.

I teach secondary math, science, and art. All classes besides language classes (French/Spanish/German) are taught in English.

The students in my classes come from all over the globe. The largest group of students have German roots, other students come from India, the UK, Korea, Ukraine, South Africa, Eritrea, Brazil, Japan, Mexico, France, etc. Students from the US are in the minority, for sure. When trying to get students to engage with the science curriculum (in particular), I can't just provide my own American based examples - most students don't relate. As a result I have had to learn a lot about different cultures since I've taught abroad. I can really see the difference in students when I am able to make a connection to their culture and the content that we are learning. Making content relatable makes it more memorable and students feel valued. That's why it's important. Challenges - there are many countries out there that I don't know much about. I hate to leave students out because I don't know enough about where they are from. (Of course, this is also a chance to make a connection with the student and ask more about their culture). Not only is where they are from important but so is their experience as teens in the 2020's. Sometimes I struggle to relate to my students because the world is such a different place than when I grew up. Trying to relate to some of the things that are popular now (or even just keeping up with is "in") is difficult. Also, I find trigonometry (math) to be a less reliant on personal/cultural connections than say environmental law (science), so I have to put a lot more effort into making my science classes culturally relevant.

There are lots of challenges, but it's totally worth the effort to overcome them.

My name is Richard Fooshee and I am located in Greeley, Colorado. I teach high school social studies at a charter school here. Classes that I teach include world history, civics and AP government. In addition, I am the academic decathlon coach for our high school. I feel that implementing different CLR strategies is critical in the sense of helping to create more meaningful and impactful relationships with the students that we teach.

The danger in knowing or recognizing only a single narrative hampers our ability to really connect with and get to know students and meet them on the level where they exist. When we close ourselves off to the language and culture of the students whom we teach, we also close ourselves off to knowing who they really are and we reduce to ability to have a true impact on their lives and the world in which they operate. Learning effective CLR strategies will help us to learn and practice a more flexible and full form of being able to reach each the whole student. In the community in which I teach, we are becoming increasingly diverse as a community, hence the importance of learning more techniques to reach more students in a more effective and genuine way.

I struggle with remaining consistent with implementing these strategies, but in the end I also love learning about them and I realize that it is in the best interests of my students to do so, and so it is definitely worth the effort. In doing so, I have realized that I am becoming a more effective educator.

CLR strategies in the high school where I teach are important because we have students who come from different backgrounds and cultures. It is important to understand how everyone is different and how to make all of them feel included. These strategies can help teach all students in the classroom.

A big challenge that I face is that I don't know about many of the cultures of the students in my building so it is difficult for me to always relate to them. I want to connect with them and get to know them but I also run into a language barrier that makes it difficult to get to know them better. I also want to try to find them internship opportunities but sometimes the language makes it difficult for them to find employment at certain locations.

I believe CLR strategies are important in my role as an educator because learning to use them effectively would help narrow the racial achievement gap and avoid creating "stereotype threats," as Audrey Kim describes in her article, "A culturally rich curriculum can improve minority student achievement."

Kim explains that research indicates "teacher expectations can reinforce the notion that white and Asian students will outperform their black and Hispanic classmates," and worse, this stereotype threat often encourages minority students to view themselves as inferior, and thus creates a negative self-fulfilling prophecy when it comes to their own achievement. Kim states that this is in large part due to the lack of representation of important minority figures and their history in the classroom. She references a study conducted by the NBER that had 1,405 students, who were at risk of dropping out, participate in a class designed to teach "themes of social justice, discrimination, stereotypes, and social movements from U.S. history.” The class saw a 1.4 GPA improvement average from participating students and a 21% increase in attendance.

My biggest takeaway from reading this article is the importance of representation in the history and media we teach our students. If minority students only see educational content centered around important white historical figures or media written by or featuring primarily white individuals, they may begin to feel a disconnect or experience feelings of unimportance. Diversifying our curriculum to include content from various racial and ethnic backgrounds can only serve to enrich our content and make all of our students feel more important and included.

I believe the challenges of CLR strategies include implementing them in a way that feels natural rather than disingenuous. While introducing Black History Month was a step in the right direction, I believe that curriculum should migrate to the point where such a thing is no longer necessary, as the curriculum we teach should already be featuring people from all kinds of racial backgrounds regardless of what month it is.

Our school has a high population of second language learners. In order to create a more inclusive environment these genuine-cultural connections are important. We know that students learn best when they have a rapport that is based on trust and understanding with their teachers and adults in their lives. Beyond making connections, CLR strategies are key to student success and confidence in becoming life long learners.

Students experience increased engagement, academic achievement, and an overall sense of success.

Lastly, as mentioned in the texts it's important that we include things like Black History Month into our everyday cultural instead of focusing on it one month of the year. Making all cultures a part of history.

 Some challenges I had in the past few years included having students who knew little or no English.  These students were from France, Korea, and China.  I needed to scaffold lessons and make modifications in order for them to develop their English language skills.  Equally important was finding a buddy who would support them socially when they were new and wanting to make friends.

The schools I've subbed for have been very culturally and linguistically diverse, and we spend units of instruction focusing on the amazing diversity we represent. Over the winter holidays we learn about different traditions and foods of each other's cultures. The students are also given opportunities to present lessons about their countries. I have been to dual language schools, where the children spend half the day being instructed in English and the other half in Spanish. I feel lucky to be surrounded by schools who are focused on merging cultural and linguistic differences into exciting opportunities for all to learn.

The main challenge I've experienced is trying to teach traditional American stories to non-native English speakers. For example Dr. Seuss - the rhyming is already complicated and nonsensical to English-speaking children, and it is exceptionally challenging for children who struggle with English, let alone English rhyming. In general, students have been very helpful to each other in cases like this which actually deepens the lesson!

I know that I will interact with parents and families and that it will be important not to come from a place where I assume "one story." The TED talk by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie really shed light on this and how easy it is to pigeonhole people. I look forward to being able to broaden relationships with students and families with more understanding of their cultures and languages.

My name is Blanca Martínez. I work at school in Commerce City (Adams14 county district).

I teach 2nd grade dual language classroom.

Even I am from Spain, the students in my class come, mostly, from Mexico.

CLR strategies are essential in a dual language classroom because they help create an inclusive, engaging, and effective learning environment for all students.

Some challenges I found in my class are:

Standardized Testing Pressures. Testing and support out of my classroom often prioritizes a monolingual..

Language balance: Ensuring equal exposure and development in both languages while incorporating culturally responsive practices.

My name is Danielle Gregory. I am a kindergarten teacher at South Ridge Elementary (Douglas County School District) in Castle Rock.

Our school has a student body that is diverse, with 62% identifying as White, 31% as Hispanic, 4.9% as multiracial. The school is high population of second language learners. Our school works really hard to create a more inclusive environment. One of the many things we do is say the pledge of allegiance in English and in Spanish.

CLR strategies are so important where I teach. It is important to build a positive relationship with all students and their families to create and environment where the students can be successful. It is also important to remember that so many of these students have different backgrounds and cultures. When CLR happens at the beginning stages of their education it can help build confidence in becoming life long learners.

A big challenge that I face is having students who know no English. I have had to take lessons and scaffold them to a way that can help support and build their vocabulary while learning English. I also struggle with making sure all cultures are a part of our units, so all kids can make a connection to their learning. This would help to build off their background knowledge, and get their buy-in.

In the time I’ve been at SHHS, it has become a minority majority school.  62% of students are minorities and 42% are economically disadvantaged. The diversity of the school has become the greatest strength in my history classes. By giving students places to dive deep on topics of interest, students bring a variety of historical sources and stories to the content.  In the US History Civil Rights unit, for instance, students can choose from a long list of civil rights activists and events and present what they've learned in a variety of ways. One student, for instance, created a comic about Shelley “The Playboy” Stewart, the DJ who helped organize students for the Birmingham Children’s March. Another made a video about the Daughters of Bilitis, a lesbian rights group from San Francisco. Neither of these are included in our textbook and required primary source research in databases like the Library of Congress.

It's easy to have this type of choice in a Civil Rights unit, but I think it's key to have it embedded throughout the year. So in a unit on reconstruction, we discuss the ways in which the South created free labor by exploiting the exclusion in the 13th amendment that allows enslaved labor in prisons. A documentary called "Slavery by Another Name" shows students the roots of the mass incarceration of African American Men in the 1860s.

I start each year trying to learn as much about each student as I can in a short period of time. One of my favorite questions to ask is how many languages people speak and have students group based on how many they speak. It helps students see that speaking multiple languages is a strength and helps MLs start the year viewing their assets.

With student interests in mind, I think about how best to engage each cohort of students in the key understandings of each unit, so my lessons change a lot from year to year and include a lot of student choice. Giving students a chance to become experts on a topic and share their expertise with others gives them a great sense of ownership of the content. I constantly mix up methods of instruction and activities to keep students engaged, working, and interested. 

Having frank conversations about the role race, ethnicity, gender and class have had in social studies classes has helped students learn to deconstruct their own identity, reflect on biases within themselves and the curriculum, and has led to great conversations and assignments in class. Culturally and Linguistically Responsive Teaching (CLRT) has transformed my teaching in exciting ways, and I am committed to continuing to center different perspectives in my classroom.

My name is Jessica Henderson. I am a Learning Specialist at West Jeff Elementary in Conifer, CO. We are a small mountain school in Jeffco School District with a population of 200 students. Even though we are a small school, our student's need are vast. We are a magnet school for an Affective Needs program, which serves students' with emotional disabilities. We have a high percentage of students who are supported by an IEP or 504 and 25% of our population is considered "low income". We are neurodiverse, but not very racially diverse. Our population is 84% White, 9% Hispanic, 5% multiracial, 1% Asian or Pacific Islander and 1% Black.

When you are the minority in a population, it can feel isolating and confusing. You can lose part of yourself you never indented. I know this as a biracial women and a mother of a biracial child. My son doesn't attend my school, but his demographic is very similar. He is only 1 or 2 children who identify as Black. We spend a lot of time making sure he is seen and represented in our home and community.

As a Learning Specialist who supports students with both learning and behavior disabilities, it's critical to also include CLR strategies within my instruction. My caseload includes members of our diverse population. I need to be sensitive that they experience inclusion practices related not only to their disability but also their race or culture. These students need to feel a sense of belong in a multifaceted approach. Not recognizing or demonstrating value surround the "whole" child can contribute to those academic gaps widening and not shrinking. This is way CLRs are critical in an educational setting.

This is my 24^th year of teaching, and in my current role, I cannot speak at length about CLR due to the demographic makeup of our school and my classroom. Rock Canyon is comprised predominantly by Caucasian students, 71%, Asian, 13.5%, and Latino 10% with the remainder other races. Overall, with very few exceptions, English is the primary language, and I do not have much interaction with students with a different primary language, and have only limited experiences with diversity in culture.

This is not to say that I do not have experience on this matter; there have been a few instances when LEP students have been in my class, and engaging with them is something I very much enjoy, for there is a solid feeling of warmth whenever a teacher engages with a student to create a space of academic, cultural, and linguistic safety. Prior to moving to Colorado, my previous years of teaching were both at a Chicago Public School and at a Title One school in the Chicago suburbs where diversity in varying degrees, i.e., linguistic, economic, cultural, racial, educational, religious, etc. was abundant. I deeply enjoyed my experiences from those years and those students taught me, at times, more than I taught them. Since I am fascinated by culture, the conversations were ongoing, and I motivated them by caring about who they were, what they come from, and the awesome incredible differences between us. Attempting to make anyone feel like they’re part of this community of the classroom is vital in any potential academic growth of the student. There are few things worse than the feeling of not belonging, and being inclusive to the degree with which the student hopes to be predicates success. In order to accomplish this, any teacher needs to make a personal connection with the students to determine their level of comfort and their potential needs, because regardless of race or culture, the student is an individual, not a copy and paste version of someone else. Therefore, working with the individual at their pace and providing structure to acquire consistent progress must be a primary focus. In the eloquent words of my principal, people don’t remember the words you said; they remember how you made them feel.

Hello! I'm Saskia Orlowski-Barnes, and I'm the special education coordinator at Ricardo Flores Magón Academy. This is my first year at this school, but I'm actually finishing up my ninth year of teaching. One of the things that really stands out to me about Ricardo Flores Magón Academy is the incredibly diverse population of Multilingual Learners (MLLs) – it's the largest I've had the privilege of working with. I'm particularly interested in learning more about how to be even more responsive to the unique needs of students who are both MLLs and have identified needs in the area of special education. Because of this, I truly believe in the power and importance of Culturally and Linguistically Sustaining (CLS) strategies to support all of our students.

CDL strategies are critical for success no matter where you teach in the United States. Past experiences teaching in West Virginia to a largely white, very poor area with different dialects, customs, and traditions have shown me to NEVER judge a young scholar at face value, nor make assumptions of talent based on the school bus they ride. My first years as a teacher were, to say the least, very eye-opening and shocking. Why?

I was teaching to classes filled with young scholars that were predominantly white – very few Mexicans, Blacks, Asians… WELCOME TO APPALACHIA!!!

Even after 15+ years, I remained one of few Lewis County Mexicans in education – a couple of students, no other teachers.

I could share many stories of fellow colleagues griping about Mexicans taking jobs in our/their community. (Quite laughable, the most popular place to eat in our town was at the Mexican food restaurant where they served great food with large portions, cheap tap beer, and the strongest margarita).

I believe it is up to the educator/individual to overcome things like a fixed mindset and implicit bias. I hope and expect to gain new and novel CLD, NEP, LEP strategies.

Quite sadly, I am already witnessing here in Colorado, these same inequities that were rampant in West Virginia schools.

Later, I earned my Master's in Education and completed my student teaching in Aurora Public Schools (APS) before becoming a social studies teacher, department chair, and curriculum developer at Crescent View Academy (CVA) in Aurora, CO. While I stepped out of the classroom to explore sales, my background in education continues to shape my perspective on culturally and linguistically responsive (CLR) teaching.

Why Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) Strategies Matter

At CVA, I worked with students from a wide range of cultural and linguistic backgrounds, including Arabic, Urdu, Somali, and Spanish speakers. Many of my students spoke multiple languages at home, and it was crucial to integrate their identities into the learning environment. We used inclusive historical perspectives, multilingual resources, and culturally relevant examples to ensure every student felt represented.

Growing up in CCSD, I also experienced diverse classrooms and saw both the successes and challenges of CLR strategies. My teachers often incorporated multiple perspectives into the curriculum, but I also witnessed times when students from culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) backgrounds felt overlooked. These experiences reinforced the importance of making all students feel seen, heard, and valued in the classroom.

Challenges of Implementing CLR Strategies

One of the biggest challenges in implementing CLR strategies is balancing curriculum standards with cultural inclusivity. Many educators want to incorporate diverse perspectives, but they face time constraints, limited resources, and administrative expectations that make it difficult.

Additionally, language barriers can impact student engagement, particularly when classroom materials are not available in a student’s home language. During my time at CVA and APS, we worked to scaffold lessons and use multilingual support, but I recognize that many schools struggle to implement these strategies effectively.

Despite these challenges, CLR strategies are essential for fostering an inclusive and empowering learning environment. When students see themselves reflected in the curriculum, they are more engaged, confident, and motivated to succeed.

I look forward to hearing your thoughts and learning from your experiences!

In my current role, CLR strategies are important for student engagement, learning, classroom community, relationships, and building school readiness. Almost half of my class of preschoolers are Multilingual learners (MLLs). I enjoy the diversity in my classroom. It is refreshing to have students who come from all parts of the world. In a rural community like Gunnison, it is important for students to experience diversity. We are lucky to have cultures coming together because many mountain towns with isolation like ours do not have the privilege of multicultural influence.

The challenges I see with culturally and linguistically responsive strategies include a heightened awareness of teachers who do not have experience with CLR! These teachers inadvertently project their biases onto students and families of other languages or cultures. Some teachers I work with might make assumptions about students that could be untrue or

damaging. Another challenge is teaching routines to young students who have not heard English. I use a lot of visuals and gestures, but it is hard for MLLs to communicate their interests and ideas, and that can be frustrating for students. It is difficult to ask open ended questions if you cannot understand the student's answer. I also find it difficult to accurately assess the students through GOLD. Many of the categories would need to be assessed in the student's first language to get a clearer picture of their development and that is not an option at our school currently. Overall, I wouldn't trade it for the world, I love having a diverse population of students and I can tell the preschoolers are influencing one another in a positive way every day.

High School Science Teacher

Boulder Valley School District, CO

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive strategies are important at my school, as we have a wide ranging demographic of students at our high school. There are many languages spoken among our students, and many cultural ideas and practices within our community at large. As an educator, it is my responsibility to be as informed as possible so that my instructional practices can serve as a bridge between cultures and identities, as apposed to a barrier to feeling included or represented. Challenges I face include the inevitable blind spots in my own understanding of other peoples' cultures or perspectives. No matter how much I inform my teaching, I will never be able to fully place myself in anyone else's shoes, and I will always bump into difficulties in bridging the gap between so many cultures of which I must admit to having a small window of understanding.

Special Education teacher in Adam 12 school district north of Denver in the suburbs. I am currently in a high school but have also worked in middle school and elementary schools. My current school has a large population of students who are Not English Proficient (NEP) or have Limited English Proficiency. CLD strategies help me provide my students with material that is culturally relevant to them. Additionally, I use many different strategies to encourage students to engage in supported academic discourse, access more complex language and demonstrate their knowledge in nontraditional ways. This has the advantage of also demonstrating to parents that I want to engage them in their student's learning. I make mistakes sometimes, but I keep learning and improving my practice in the area of CLD.

Because of the diversity in my classroom, Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies are essential. One important strategy is incorporating a culturally rich curriculum to increase student engagement. This responsibility falls on me, as the curriculum we use tends to focus on the same limited topics—like baseball. While it attempts to be culturally inclusive by using a variety of names, that alone isn’t enough. I’d like to learn how to more meaningfully incorporate culture into my teaching in a way that feels authentic rather than forced or “cheesy.”

One challenge I face is that I grew up in a small Colorado town with limited cultural diversity. As a result, I have a lot to learn. Since college, I’ve had opportunities to travel and broaden my understanding of other cultures, but I know there’s still plenty of catching up to do. Another challenge is finding the time to implement these strategies. As I mentioned earlier, the curriculum isn’t very culturally rich, and it takes considerable effort to adapt it meaningfully.

Despite these challenges, I’m committed to growing as an educator and hope to gain effective, practical strategies through this course.

I struggle with working in schools that are less diverse. I find it harder to get the majority of the population to engage in other cultures. This creates separation, which I do not tolerate. We stop frequently to discuss how the math in other cultures is used. My goal is for everyone to gain perspective and be more open minded.

CLR strategies are especially important in my role as an educator to these young learners, as this is a key age in which language development can become rich and students are continuously learning to communicate with one another in effective ways, whether English is their first language or not. If a student is learning English as a second language, it is important for me to connect with them culturally and through our communication with one another so that a trusting relationship can be built. It is also important for me to be able to effectively communicate with parents, whether I have questions, feedback or concerns.

One year I had a student whose primary language at home was Japanese and her mother spoke limited English. When she had questions, I was careful to respond in a way that made sense to her, and was cautious not to use common English phrasing that may not make sense to her. I was also aware of my student's limited knowledge of the English language and worked individually with her to build her vocabulary and pronunciation. This language barrier could prove to be challenging at times. At times I wasn't sure if my explanations or responses to the mother's questions were clear or helpful, but we always kept the communication open. I shared this student's progress regularly and was sure to be available when questions would arise.

I also like to include within my curriculum introductions to other languages and cultures. I teach a small amount of Spanish, Japanese and Sign Language, giving a brief overview of these cultures and the differences in their communication styles. We often count as a class in Spanish and Japanese and I teach many different songs in Spanish and Sign Language. If there are students in the classroom that celebrate certain holidays or speak a second language at home, I make sure to incorporate this into our conversations, songs and literature. We talk throughout the year about how different families sometimes celebrate different holidays and how special it is that each of our families have our own traditions, and how fun it is to share those experiences with others.

In my current role CLR strategies are important for the classroom and school wide culture, engagement, relationships and so much more.  We are a small school district in a little mountain town that has little diversity.  It is important to expose students to different cultures and to give students the opportunity to experience diversity.  

The challenges with implementing culturally and linguistically responsive strategies in the classroom is learning what you don’t know about other cultures.  Often, we don’t know what we don’t know.  This is not an excuse, but a lack of sensitivity born of ignorance. I was raised in a small community in Kansas. My small country school was not a hub of diversity.  In fact, it was not until I went away to college that I began to come into contact with people from other countries and cultures.  I was a camp counselor one summer and was in charge of a group of students on a field trip away from camp. When helping the campers put on sunscreen, it never occurred to me that some of the darker skinned campers would also need sunscreen.  We need to be open to communicate similarities and differences in our human experiences.  I don’t believe people intend to be mean or exclusionary, I think it’s a lack of knowledge and sometimes curiosity in others. I have even seen worry of offending others by asking basic questions. My experience has been with others a willingness to share their culture and having a desire to be understood.  

I teach at a boarding school where over 60% of my students are international and most speak English as a second language. The two most challenging course that I teach for ESL students are AP Calculus and College Statistics. Especially in Statistics, CLR is essential and a requirement for my students to not only understand the context of questions but also participate in conversations that revolve around social justice issues, everyday issues that they could face around their home. Students must be able to participate and feeling included to engage in conversation with their peers. There are a lot of times students being surprised that their own contributions and experiences extends the learning and understanding of the whole class. In order to create this inclusive classroom experience I need to continue my updating my curriculum and education on CLR and make sure that I am being inclusive to all cultures so that my students know their own voices and interests are being heard and valued.

One of the challenges for my students must be able have time to process, translate and form a response then have time to retranslate that response to participate in class discussions. This is very difficult to do in a 45 minute setting going over 5-8 questions. Also the ability to form written responses in a timely manner is a challenge my students face almost everyday. Another challenge is that I want my students to feel welcome and be able to do problems that they can relate to and have the ability to understand the context of the problems. I often spend time with students especially on test days to ask questions about any words they don't understand or have no idea what the word means in context of the question. Another challenge I face as the testing coordinator, is getting my ESL learners invested in doing well on the ACT/SAT if they are staying in the US for colleges and knowing that they can expand their scholarship opportunities.

My name is Laurie Shook and I am located in Denver, Colorado. I am a retired teacher with 28 years of experience in Denver Public Schools. Currently I work part-time as a substitute teacher. During my past 32 years in education, I have worked in four different schools, all of which had very diverse student populations.

CLR strategies are more important than ever because of increasing globalization. The school were I taught for two decades was extremely diverse. On any given year we usually had students from at least sixty different countries. I believe most adults would agree that if they are in an environment where they feel welcome and supported, they are more likely to connect and succeed. The same holds true for students. Our lessons must include stories and examples that represent our diverse students' backgrounds. If students feel seen, heard and respected they are much more likely to engage and excel.

One of my biggest challenges was helping numerous beginning ELL students in large classes where we did not share a common language. Implementing various CLD strategies became even more important as a building block to their learning. Fortunately my school values and prioritizes diversity, so I felt well supported with resources that could help my students connect and progress.

As a teacher, I find CLR strategies to be critical to my role as a teacher. In particular, the articles, "Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors," and "Speaking of Psychology: How the need to belong drives human behavior" spoke to the connection between culture, belonging, community, and literacy. As a teacher in a school with a diverse population, myriad languages, and wide ranges of English proficiency, these articles helped me to reflect on the importance of helping all students feel accepted, helping them connect with adults in meaningful and supportive ways, and facilitating connections with each other. In particular in a social studies setting, I want to choose texts, topics, and perspectives to present to students that serve as "mirrors, windows, and sliding-glass doors." I want to show perspectives that reflect their experiences, that help them to see and step into others experiences both in contemporary society and in the past.

In my current role, CLR strategies are crucial because our school, like many others, has a diverse student population, with families of very diverse backgrounds and ancestry. As people continue to move around the world, it will just keep getting more diverse, even in places that may have been fairly uniformed for generations. As educators, we need to be there, ready to help make learning a memorable and enjoyable experience for all our students.

As a Social Studies teacher, I ensure my lessons are collections of different perspectives, for each topic the students learn about. I provide perspectives that show the diversity of the people involved, and ones that the students can directly relate.

Honestly, the school I work for has an excellent structure and series of supports in place for both students and staff, that highly prioritizing diversity and inclusion, so I don't really have any challenges. My concerns on a state/national level are that too many schools lack the necessary staff and resources to accomplish the CLR mission, while others perhaps lack adequate awareness of the changes they need to make.

My own experience with CLR is perhaps a bit of a different path from other teachers. Before TACT I was a Science teacher deep in the Bush of Alaska. I was on Central Yupik` Tribal land, working under the leadership of the Tribal Council (TC).

In the school of 400 K-12 students, I was the minority Anglo teacher that was flown in to teach science. There the students and TC had the teachers implement many CLR strategies for the teachers to learn to work with the tribal members. In many ways the teacher had to experience CLR from the Yupik to be able to teach in the region.

The biggest challenge there was teacher retention. The students were used to teachers not lasting more that 2-3 years, and were weary of any Anglo teachers in general due to generational trauma from the BIA (Bureau of Indian Affairs) schools.

Incoming teachers had to learn about the sorted history of Alaskan Education under the BIA / mission schools, and realize that we were teaching the grandchildren of people who grew up under the harsh conditions of the BIA schools.

Using that trauma informed approach, teachers were expected to watch out for bias and to tailor their classes for relevance to the region. I tried one unit on nuclear power, and the class almost fell asleep because the only power source they knew was the windmills and diesel generator in the village. Nuclear power was some obscure rich white guy thing on the mainland.

A challenge with CLR is that as teachers we have to try to meet cultures we are not familiar with half way. I didn't know about the Yupik really until I was there for over a year. In addition to surviving the winters there (-70° F was the coldest it got, -10°F was the winter average) the teachers had to teach students that were bi-lingual in Yupik and English, try to learn Yupik along with the students who were taking full classes in it. Teachers participated in cultural activities, but some of it felt performative as the Yupik were slow to trust outsiders.

In my capacity working within academic departments at the higher education level, I have had the opportunity to advise faculty working with students of color, especially those who were struggling in a majority-White educational setting, on culturally and linguistically responsive strategies. In the years that I was teaching, I brought as much CLR learning into my classroom as I could, having in my own life experience known what it was like to be educated in settings devoid of it. I taught a unit called "Universal Struggle" as a cross-curricular Language Arts and Geography unit designed for 8th grade students. This unit focused on the work of people around the globe against systems of oppression. Topics included the American Civil Rights Movement, Native American land rights, the internment of the Japanese in America, the Japanese occupation of Korea, The Tiananmen Square student uprising, water and land defenders in South America and Africa and many other historic and contemporary movements for human rights. I designed this unit after realizing that several middle-grades students in the nearly all-White town where I was teaching, believed that Martin Luther King "freed the slaves". Their level of understanding of (Black) American History was so lacking in depth, that they could not correctly place the end of chattel slavery and the work of Dr. King as being 100 years apart on the historical timeline. As citizens of a 21st century muticultural society, this seemed to me an enormous deficit that would hold them back if they ever engaged with the larger world. The narrowness of the curriculum, also served, in my opinion to create a crisis of self worth for the very few Black, Hispanic, and Asian students within that school system. As the only Black teacher in that district at the time, I felt that I had an opportunity to expand the worldview of both White students and Students of Color -- I was fortunate to have a young, White colleague who had already created materials for the U.S. Civil Rights Movement section of the curriculum, and was willing to collaborate on expanding the scope of that unit.

My personal experience of public schooling in the U.S. -- both positive and negative -- greatly inspired me as an educator and informed my focus on building self-esteem through multicultural learning. As a Black woman and an immigrant, I have experienced first-hand the importance of building bridges (or scaffolds) across the cultural divide and then crossing those bridges, as an educator, to work with students where they are currently. When I first came to the United States, I was placed in a second grade classroom (despite being only 6 years old and a complete stranger to the American public school system). I spoke English, but with a Jamaican accent that many of my classmates either could not or would not understand. Though I was academically talented and managed my school work well, I felt like I was drowning socially and emotionally. My teacher, Mrs. Marshall, became my life raft. She did everything possible to maintain my self-esteem in the face of constant racist bullying. She asked me intelligent questions about my experiences living in Jamaica and then in Costa Rica. This was important because all the messages I was getting from peers about being "foreign" were mocking and negative. For Christmas, Mrs. Marshall gave me a pencil she had had specially made with my name engraved in gold. The note said "for my most precocious student". I had to look up "precocious" in the dictionary, but it became a word I would treasure and hold on to in difficult times. In my 2nd grade classroom, Mrs. Marshall was my protector, but on the playground, she was not able to prevent the taunts that frequently came my way. She was also not present in music class that year when one of my classmates (himself a dark-skinned boy of South Asian heritage) called me a N***er in front of the whole class and our teacher -- likely at the insistence of the white boys who he was desperate to be accepted by. At that time, I was the only Black girl in the school and my brother was the only Black boy. Our curriculum lacked any mention of Black Americans until 3rd grade when I saw a drawing in my history textbook of the inside of a slave ship with Black bodies chained together like cord wood. It is of vital importance that the next generation of Black students not be educated in such a way that the first depiction of people who look like them in their textbooks be a diagram of a slave ship. It is necessary to teach the difficult parts of history, but the devastating effects of teaching them in the absence of the positive aspects of our shared multi-ethnic, multi-cultural history cannot be overstated. It took years, and moving to a more progressive Black-majority school district, for me to experience the benefits of a Psychology of Success approach to teaching children, especially children of color.

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive strategies are critically important. The schools I support serve a culturally and linguistically diverse population and these strategies support a more equitable and effective learning environment. All students learn best when instruction is designed to meet their needs and build upon their strengths.

Student belonging is a key foundational factor for learning and connection. In the resources provided, Geoffrey Cohen states that, "A sense of belonging isn’t just a byproduct of success, but a condition for it" CLR builds belonging by affirming students' cultural identities and language backgrounds. Further, students can connect to learning material because it builds upon their cultural and linguistic strengths.

All students deserve equitable access to a high quality learning environment and experience that leads to growth and achievement. The strategies by which we provide this access, including Culturally and Linguistically Responsive strategies, are our core work as educators.

CLR strategies are vital in creating a positive classroom environment. Through my years in education I have learned that a teacher that takes the time to get to know their students and who they are creates a classroom where students feel more able to approach the teacher. When a teacher feels more approachable the student will feel more comfortable in asking for help and guidance which will lead to better learning. I enjoy learning about my students and their backgrounds. I feel this allows me to also learn more about how to direct my students and my classr

oom

Some challenges are, not every student wants to open up and may not be responsive to you. Finding other ways to connect may help, but sometimes there are just students that don't want to open up. Also there is the issue of misinterpretation or saying something out of context that my come across culturally insensitive.

At Hawai‘i Technology Academy (HTA), where I have served as an administrator and educator, the importance of Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CLD) strategies cannot be overstated. HTA supports over 1,800 students across all islands, in a state where there is no ethnic majority and where cultures are deeply interwoven—Filipino, Japanese, Chinese, Hawaiian, and American Mainland identities all contribute to what we call “local” culture. 

The complexity of Hawai‘i’s cultural landscape, shaped by colonization, missionary influence, and sovereignty movements, demands a heightened level of cultural humility from ALL educators. Too often, well-intentioned outsiders enter Hawai‘i’s schools and unknowingly perpetuate harm by speaking down to or oversimplifying the nuanced lived experiences of local communities. CLD strategies at HTA are essential—not as add-ons, but as foundational tools to ensure all students feel seen, valued, and empowered. With Pidgin spoken by almost everyone here, educators must know how to understand and relate to the community, authentically, meaning that, after some time, Pidgin is the bond between all cultures here.

HTA has taken a strong and intentional stance in advancing equity through authentic student engagement, working in partnership with the Center for Love and Justice and cultivating student-led cohorts focused on systems change. CLD strategies are not a challenge to overcome—they are a responsibility we embrace, because we know that equity begins with truly knowing and honoring ALL of our students.

Students are individuals, not just a number or a stat line. Implementing CLR strategies permit teachers to build connections with individual students, which is paramount to student growth, both social and academic. I also incorporate student-choice into many assignments, permitting students to explore areas that may interest them, thus allowing them ownership of their own learning. My objective is to create well-rounded citizens who love to learn and seek knowledge, and this can only be done by relating the content to all students and building relationships with each individual. This atmosphere in the classroom has the bonus effect of increasing academic achievement and test scores, but that is not the sole focus.

One challenge in particular to the community in northern Colorado Springs is it is a more homogeneous student body, which could allow one story to be told as Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie indicates in her Ted Talk. However, I try to make it a point not to fall into that trap, especially since I want students to go out into the world and experience the diverse cultures and backgrounds, delving into the more globalized community and out of the "bubble" they are familiar with. I inundate them with my traveling experiences and my interactions with cultures around the country and around the world.

My experience in the classroom predates the COVID pandemic, so I am eager to learn and to teach the students in the post-pandemic world and curious as to what the differences are now and what barriers they face in the present world of education and learning.

 My name is Yu-Ru Chen . I am from Taiwan; I was a middle school science teacher in Taipei for 12 years. I decided quit my career in Taiwan at 2011 , I started work in Denver language school for one year 2012-2013 and also started subbing for Cherry Creek School District since 2013 till now . My goal was to help both my girls get through the different system in American education in the beginning. It turns out that they do not need my help. I am not only sharing my experience in Asia but also learned from different school culture and different teaching style from teachers. I took an in-house sub job in one of cherry school middle school this year , it allow me to get to know students better, and felt I belong to the community at the same time.

In the beginning of the subbing job, I felt the classroom in USA was not in order in my Asian mind. But over the years I learned that students can move around with certain rules and still doing their task. As a second language learner of English, it is essential to let students get used to my accent. I would start with some story or puzzle, but students need to earn them before class over or when they finished their assignment.

one of my challenge is when facing very rowdy and noisy  students and  they would not settle down and listen. Other wise  I usually share with them( especially african -american) that Opera and President Obama stories inspired my students in Taiwan, whenever I cannot differentiate who is who, I would joke that “all african -american girls look like Opera to me, all african-american boys look like Obama to me. “ I really want to learn some strategy from this course to be able to help more students in the future.

The culture and linguistic strategy is

important cause students need to feel safe and belong to the classroom , so they can learn no matter what is their authenticity.

For the past decade, I’ve been home raising my children, but as they grow older, I am now renewing my teaching license with the goal of returning to the classroom. My time in the school was both wonderful and demanding, especially given the language barriers. Despite not speaking English, the parents of my students were incredibly supportive, and I prioritized creating a classroom climate that fostered comfort and connection, even when communication was difficult.

Implementing Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies was essential to my students' success. One of the greatest challenges of CLR is balancing the needs of English Language Learners (ELL) while also ensuring that students from English-speaking homes receive the support they need. Teaching first grade is a foundational role that sets the stage for years of learning ahead, and meeting the diverse educational needs of my students was both rewarding and complex.

The importance of culturally and linguistically diverse (CLR) strategies in the post-COVID classroom cannot be overstated. As we navigate the aftermath of the pandemic, it’s crucial to recognize that students have varied experiences and backgrounds that shape their learning. One students may be experiencing the challenge of a family that is unhoused, another may be experiencing the challenge of a family rebuilding after the deportation of a parent. Implementing CLD strategies fosters inclusivity and helps create a supportive environment where all students feel valued.

However, there are challenges to consider. Educators may face barriers such as limited resources, varying levels of cultural competence, and the need for professional development to effectively implement these strategies. Additionally, the pandemic has exacerbated existing inequities, making it essential to address students' emotional and academic needs.

Identifying these challenges, and facilitating collaboration among educators, families, and communities is vital to meeting needs. I have found that connecting families to school and community resources can enhance understanding and implementation. By prioritizing culturally responsive practices and fostering open communication, we can better support our diverse learners and create a more equitable and engaging classroom environment.

Implementing engaging and relevant texts in my classroom as well as visiting the homes of my students' families, has proven the points of Chimamanda Adichie and Geoffrey L Cohen. CLR strategies like these enable me to be an effective teacher in a post-COVID society and meet the needs that have been impacted by it in the classroom. These strategies and others can create a more inclusive and supportive learning environment that honors the diverse identities of all students.

Like Mr. Mason, who posted about his experience in Cherry Creek and Denver, I've found that incorporating engaging, relevant texts to be the key to success with students. This ties to the article about windows, mirrors, and sliding glass doors, and it also just makes sense. Students need to see themselves, their cultures, their families' traditions, their language, interests, etc. reflected back to them in what they read. The study of literature is the study of what it is to be human. For any of us to fully engage, to do the stepping through that's discussed in "Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors," we, as readers and scholars, must have someone and/or something to follow. When I taught in South Florida, in the early 2000s, such diversity was built in. Broward County, at that time, had a population that represented over one hundred countries and more than 60 languages spoken. Referred to as multicultural learning at the time, our curriculum was hyper aware of the need for inclusive, diverse, and relevant texts. When I taught at Skyline, especially in the American Literature and AP Literature courses, a more relevant and engaging curriculum had to be fought for. Fought for and won!

I agree with what Bob MacArthur said in his post "that a teacher that takes the time to get to know their students and who they are creates a classroom where students feel more able to approach the teacher." In addition to approachability, students will find such teachers more trustworthy and that leads to students who are more willing to learn. The knowing of students that Bob talks about leads to more informed and inclusive curriculum development, too. When we know our students, we begin to understand what and who are important to them, and we can include those things in the work we do and in the materials we make available to students.

The challenges discussed on this board are many: lack of funding, lack of resources, lack of buy-in, lack of access, lack of professional development. We face a great lacking. These challenges are exacerbated by recent anti-DEI rhetoric and legislation and escalating xenophobia. Such reality makes it all the more important that we are aware of and participating in CLR teaching practices.

Even though my current school is ethnically non-diverse, I have tried to incorporate the previous lessons I have learned about CLR. We do have quite a few foreign exchange students that this works well with. I have also found a way to apply some of my past experiences with students of different socioeconomic backgrounds as we do have some diversity in that area. I know it is not the same as trying to work with non-native English speakers, but there are definitely differences in the 'culture' of students with and without money at home.

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) teaching is both essential and complex. As both a high school educator and the parent of a young child, I’ve seen firsthand how early exposure to diverse stories can shape a child’s understanding of the world. While it’s encouraging that today’s picture books reflect broader representation than those I grew up with—featuring multiple languages, LGBTQ+ families, and diverse cultural experiences—this progress is only a small step forward. Representation in literature is just one piece of the larger challenge of CLR teaching.

The real work of CLR teaching lies in creating classroom environments where all students, especially students of color and multilingual learners, feel seen, valued, and capable of academic success. This requires actively pushing back on stereotypes and systemic inequities. It's not enough to include occasional "multicultural" content; we must integrate diverse perspectives throughout our instruction in meaningful, sustained ways.

What makes CLR teaching so challenging is its depth—it demands ongoing reflection, awareness of our own biases, and a commitment to equity that goes beyond good intentions. Still, I believe in its power. I hope my teaching helps students challenge single stories and expand their understanding of themselves and others.

The challenges that I've faced mostly have to do with overcoming innate stereotypes that a lot of my white students share. While a lot of my students are kind and well-meaning, they can let these stereotypes get in the way of true connection with one another, and trying to demonstrate to them that these simplistic narratives flatten out others in ways that they would not flatten out their own self-identification can be a struggle.

Furthermore, for those of my students who are minorities, it can be difficult to get them to feel like they belong, when in actuality they may be one of four of five students of that minority on the entire campus. I really appreciated the article discussing the psychology of success, particularly the notion of fixed ability versus growth mentality. For many students I have, not just my minority students, I see that particular framing in their minds of what the purpose of school is: as a demonstration of whether they are 'smart or dumb' rather than a constant effort of training themselves to get better over time.

I look forward to reading further literature on this subject as we go through the next modules to see how I can incorporate these ideas into my classroom.

Implementing CLR strategies will also support my goal of creating a more inclusive learning environment—one that aligns with Catholic social teaching, particularly the dignity of every person. I anticipate some challenges, such as finding appropriate resources that reflect diverse voices and adjusting my lesson plans to make space for more inclusive content. However, I believe this shift will lead to more engaged students, deeper discussions, and a stronger sense of connection between what they learn in class and their own lives. Ultimately, my hope is that students will not only learn history, but also learn to value each other’s stories.

I have studied the importance of CLD education within my profession throughout the years, and have encorprated various techniques at encouraging cultural differences in my students. One of those is through the integration of my morning meeting called CREW. CREW is a resource of the Expeditionary Learning Curriculum that offers a framework and focus to help encourage culturally responsive classrooms.

Some challenges that I have with encorporating CLD learning in my classroom is the lack of cultural diversity within our school and community. As a predominately white, english speaking population, we do not have close connections with people of difference races and cultures. We have combatted this uniformity by inviting guest speakers from varying cultures to come present to our students, as well as opening discussions and celebrating cultural differences whenever applicable to our curriculum.

I'm interested in learning more about how I can encorporate CLD learning in math and science instruction.

In our school, I would say that a majority of our students are empathetic, and welcoming of those that come from a different cultural background. However, a challenge I see with CLD is some of our students often bring the political views of their parents with them to school. In some households "diversity" is not considered important, or even "woke." A challenge I see, is how do I break down these barriers, and get these few students to understand that diversity is a good thing?

As a social studies teacher, Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) teaching is important in many ways. The stories we share in our classrooms should be inclusive and reflect the diverse backgrounds and experiences of our students. Additionally, our instruction needs to be linguistically responsive especially since we often focus on reading and writing skills that closely align with those in Language Arts.

One challenge I’ve encountered is the social pressure that can come with addressing these issues. However, when I design project-based learning (PBL) opportunities that allow students to choose their own topics to research and explore, I’ve found it to be very effective. On the linguistic side, our district lacks strong support systems, and I often feel underprepared with strategies to assist students who need additional language support.

Hello, my name is Gi Yeon Huh, I teach vocal music in high school in Aurora Public School District in CO. CLR strategies are important because hey enable students to connect with the material, increase engagement, and foster equity and inclusion in the classroom. Challenges include addressing diverse languages backgrounds and finding appropriate resources. As a music teacher, using CLD strategies helps to create a classroom environment where all students feel recognized and valued. Music is a universal language that reflects cultural identity, and by incorporating diverse musical traditions, teachers can make lessons more relevant to students' lives. This relevance enhances students' engagement, motivation, and participation.

However, applying these strategies presents challenges. One of the challenge is accommodating the wide range of language skills present in a diverse classroom. Teacher must ensure that language barriers do not impede a student's leaning or participation. Finding appropriate and diverse musical resources that represent various cultural heritages can also be difficult. Moreover, it requires teachers to continually reflect on their own teaching methods and ongoing education, and adaptation to meet the needs of a diverse student body.

My name is Craig Weinhold. I am a high school science teacher in Boulder Valley School District, Boulder, CO.

CLR strategies are important because they provide an opportunity for students to feel valued in the classroom. By including classroom material which touches on the diverse students backgrounds, they can connect with the class content, classmates, and the teacher in a more meaningful way. I hope to engage the students at a higher level and increase student achievement through these practices.

I think the biggest challenge I've faced is lack of teacher training/time to develop different CLR strategies. I would love to have more training on this and how specifically to implement strategies in the science classroom.

My name is Dayna Carpenter. I am currently a 2nd grade teacher in Delta County School District at Garnet Mesa Elementary.

CLR are vital to allowing students, ALL students, feel safe and unique! The safer a student feels the more willing they are to connect to their classroom "family" and learn and grow-not just academically, but also emotionally :). Some challenges I/educators face is unintentionally I think we allow our own stereotypes and our own ignorance come out and say/do things that other students/families might have strict "rules/beliefs" against etc. Also, time restraints given the demands of the public schools to "make the grade." Priority should be "growing your family" but, often the "getting to know your students, etc." are put on the back burner because in order to meet the demands of testing, academic growth, this and that schedule it is hard to fit in the most important part of growing a life long learner/grower individual. We have it backwards, always the emotional needs, need to be met first and consistently before we grow academics, but we try and are often "forced" to put the cart before the horse and can be very damaging to the student and classroom environment.

My name is Kathy Garcia. I am the PreK-12 principal at Moffat Schools in Moffat, CO.

As the school principal, it is essential for me to know and understand CLR strategies to ensure that all students and parents feel welcome and supported at our school. With this knowledge, I am also better equipped to help new teachers as they embark on their teaching careers.

One of the biggest challenges we face as a remote, rural school district is access to resources. Although most schools in the San Luis Valley experience high ELL populations, we do not. This has made acquiring the funds and resources for our small group (2-4 students) even harder.

CLR strategies are important to giving context. They are the cultural version of Trauma Informed Instruction. We need to know where the learner(s) are coming from and how to engage them. You need to bond/relate to them in a contextual way- let them know that you get them. Hispanic students are brutally honest, be clear and direct with them- don't soft sell. Connect with Hispanic boys by playing their music in class and complimenting their clothes. NEVER disrespect their clothing choices- enemy for life.

The challenge is when and how do you apply CLR strategies? A thousand nuances go into the application of the strategies. If you get it wrong- ouch. As a non-hispanic person, do not group them together, or call them by the wrong name. They see you as an outsider and think non-hispanics group them all together. Easy way to a bad start. How do you connect, manage, and engage with someone when you know nothing about their culture? Which strategies do you apply and when?

The music classroom provides so many opportunities to apply CLR strategies! Though my school is not terribly diverse in the manner of countries represented, or languages spoken, we do have a wide cultural representation in social economic standing, in extra curricular values, personal/familial preferences to music, and levels of ability (we have a healthy Learning Support Services department and vision program).  When I first began thinking about Cultural and Linguistic Responsive strategies several years ago I, from a breathtakingly limited understanding of CRE, only considered the obvious and superficial differences in culture (the basic definition of multiculturalism in education 30 years ago), resulting in efforts to use language and pre established celebrations of culture. Whereas being able to draw music inspiration and activities from all over the world, an occasional treat of familiarity following a holiday honoring a countries’ culture is hardly a method for making every child feel welcome everyday.  Playing a song or two from another country while inadvertently ignoring cultural norms of how respect is shown between teacher and pupil doesn’t create a sense of community.  Writing off young student behavior as unacceptable and responding accordingly to students who are brand new to the learning environment isn’t acknowledging the home culture where they have been learning how to interact with the world.  To use CLR strategies is to ensure to the best of our abilities that teaching methods are wide enough to encompass the vast learning scope of all our students, that our patience and compassion with students is deep enough to understand that every student comes to us with a different cultural experience (whether from a different school, or from their own home), and to ensure that cultural differences are never boiled down to trivialized celebrations.

My biggest challenge always is managing such an approach with 400+ from ages 5 - 11.  Within my own class the culture changes drastically between kindergartners and fifth graders.  In several of the reading articles, getting to know students and families is identified as a strong step towards offering effective CRE. With the number of students and my limited contact time, making strong connections to enhance my understanding of student culture with each and every student is a challenge.

I also think a major challenge for me is that this is being asked of us, when there is not support within our district. Taking classes like this is great, however, learning about these strategies feels like it should be something happening in schools all year long, to help teachers as questions and issues arise. I am expected to know so much about cultural differences, but that is very nuanced and is not something that one person can possibly just learn and implement from one class.

Fortunately, at my school we have a solid team of teachers who work with our LEP students, parents and the classroom teachers to support them in the classroom.  Most of the support these teachers give is strategies for helping students with vital learning skills such as vocabulary acquisition.  Last school year, one of our teachers shared a document with our middle school team with strategies such as using gestures to ensure that our LEP students are understanding and correctly applying the vocabulary that we learn in class to their work.   

As for challenges, the biggest one that I experience in my classroom is finding time in class to help students with the activities that we are doing in class.  My classroom typically has twenty five to twenty nine seventh grade students which makes finding time to help any student tough.  However, I’ve found over the years that coupling a LEP student with a peer that is proficient in English helps both students learn class material better.  I’m curious if others in this class have ideas they’ve used in the classroom to help LEP students that are different from mine?

Teaching at a school that currently has a 70% Hispanic population makes it extremely important to incorporate CLR strategies within the established curriculum. Sadly I have found myself using blanket strategies to cover all students not necessarily focusing on the students that need individual attention. After watching "The danger of a single story" I felt terrible and found myself questioning, am I falling into that trap of all Hispanic students need the support because they are Hispanic. When you have 150 students, it can be overwhelming and thus easier to have a blanket strategy to save your sanity and getting the students from point A to point B to keep them on track to graduate. However I then start to have students that stop showing up to class, because they are completely lost. I go and find them and get the same answer "they don't understand because they don't understand English"

I know what you are thinking, "you should have checked in the students information to see where that are listed", which I do, however we have many students join classes weeks after school has started or when they are transferred from another class halfway through the semester, those students sadly have a tendency to slip through the cracks, and students that speak a language that no one at the school can help with for example Arabic.

We have a foundational PBL (problem based learning) throughout the school where the students present to panelists on their solutions where I have had many students present in their native language, which can be incredibly powerful, however I still find students that are struggling in day to day learning. So my big challenge is searching for that end-all strategy that works for all students, which as far as i know does not exist.

CLR strategies are essential to fostering a well-rounded education for all students. They encourage learners to step beyond their own experiences, developing empathy and understanding for the diverse perspectives of others.

In kindergarten, this work presents both unique challenges and opportunities. At this age, students approach the world with remarkable openness—unburdened by preconceived notions of race, ethnicity, religion, or abilities. They see peers simply as friends and collaborators, reminding us of the power of inclusivity when nurtured early.

Several years ago, our school undertook a thorough review of our curriculum and scope and sequence, recognizing the need for greater diversity in our instructional materials. As a staff, we collaborated in grade-level teams to redesign lessons that better reflect the richness of our students' backgrounds. Additionally, our school librarian has been an invaluable partner, continuously expanding our resources to ensure culturally responsive and representative content.

One of our most significant challenges has been navigating pushback from a small number of families who have expressed opposition to these efforts. While these situations can be difficult, we are fortunate to have a governing board that consistently supports CLR as a cornerstone of equitable education.

Denver South has embraced the concept of embedded honors, especially at the freshman level. This fits with CLR in so many ways, specifically the idea that its my job to connect with kids individuality/point of view in order for them to express their intelligence. Which means I am constantly having to think whose culture I am adressing and how much. As an embedded honors teacher its been liberating to attempt to teach to the multiple ethinic and socio-economic groups but also challenging to find resources. I am excited about this class so I can find more resources/ideas to make sure it's not just one story, but also I am excited to find rich stories from multiple voices that add to everyones story. But the idea of class climate entralls me as well. Honest to god, as I look at young teacher me I think, "if he only knew how important it is to listen to students more than directing them." But I still have my moments so this class will hoepfully open my mind further.

I did my student teaching at Horizon in 1990. So, it goes without saying-- that I have seen many, many cultural changes and shifts since I began my teaching career!

At this particular period of cultural change, it is imperative for educators to implement sound CLR strategies and practices in the classroom. We are dealing with a very different dynamic than we have ever dealt with during challenging educational times. Yes, we have always been taxed with how to promote inclusivity well in the classroom. But then, we dealt with a pandemic that left us wondering how we could possibly get students to actually engage in meaningful conversations again. Now, we have students who are beginning to put down their cellphones and are willing to be seen-- but we really aren't "seeing" them. This especially is true of students who are from different cultural experiences from what most teachers are used to educating in their classrooms.

One of the most significant challenges that I experience as an educator is the rapid nature in which cultural shifts are changing. I do my best to implement inclusive strategies for all and provide literature and meaningful writing prompts that both recognize and celebrate all backgrounds. I want to steer away from anything that can be perceived as being dismissive or remiss.

My goal for the 2025-26 school year is for students to feel safe, seen, and heard in my classroom.

Last year, 89% of my students had at least 1 parent who was born in a different country and were ELL. There is so much diversity in my school so of course CLR strategies are crucial. If I only teach from a white perspective using white representations only, many of my students my not see themselves as part of the learning and feel this school world isn't made for them. So CLR strategies help create a diverse environment and allow responsiveness to the students in front of me. Another reason CLR is crucial is it pushes the teaching and learning environment to be diverse, fluid and dynamic. It pushes the teacher to go so much deeper than just the curriculum. CLR allows for others to learn how to be curious about others and understand that there is a whole big world out there.

Challenges to CLR? Where do I begin? As I read the prompt and thought about it, I realized that I couldn't name one actual "strategy" for CLR. I am very well versed in CRE with Dr. Stembridge as he worked extensively with my school some years back, but I couldn't tell you what a "CLR strategy" is. We have ELS teachers who co teach with us, but I don't get a lot of strategies through that process. Another challenge, is balancing the curriculum and pushes from the district and being responsive to the students in front of me. It feels like my grade level team should be teaching the same thing at the same time, not allowing for responsiveness. A third factor is time. Dr. Robert Marzano was part of think tank where they discovered that it would take 27 years to teach the standards to mastery if the learning where to only happen at school. There is a time crunch and pressure to teach the standards and the curriculum and be culturally responsive.

I wore many hats in education, and both as a teacher and now as a leader, see the importance of Culturally Responsive strategies. These practices help ensure that all students feel respected. Included, seen, heard and understood, regardless of their background. When educators take the time to learn about their student’s culture and roots, it helps build connections, increases buy-in from students and their families and supports meaningful learning.

At Cottonwood, we place a strong emphasis on relationships, belonging, and student voice. Our motto is: “Be Kind, Believe You Can, and Give It Your All”. These values are brought to life when teachers create classrooms where every child’s identity is honored. As principal, it's my responsibility to lead by example, support ongoing reflection and professional learning, and ensure that equity isn’t just an idea, but something we practice every day. CLR strategies are one of the most important ways we live out that commitment.

As a leader it is my job to help teachers develop the mindset and necessary skills to be able to deliver culturally responsive instruction. The challenge is that it often starts with looking at and recognizing our own biases. It can be quite challenging to reflect and change long standing habits in order to start approaching our practices through a culturally responsive lens.

At my school we have a large population of ELL students as well as many students from differing backgrounds and cultures. This means I am tailoring my classroom to try to meet the needs of all the diverse learners and backgrounds in my classroom. It is important to me that every student in my classroom feels seen, valued, and heard. It is also important that the curriculum we are putting in front of students daily is responsive to the needs in the classroom. This can be very hard to do and tailor to so many different students. Being a critical consumer of curriculum while also trying to use curriculum with fidelity can be a very challenging task. The ultimate goal is student achievement and creating an inclusive classroom that has been built upon CLR strategies will always help achieve that goal.

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive strategies are important for several reasons. First, students and families need to feel welcome and supported at school. Students need to feel seen, heard and honored in their classrooms. Educators also need to utilize and effectively implement these strategies to meet the needs of all of their students. ML students need such strategies to feel successful in our schools.

Some challenges schools face ensuring teachers have the proper tool box of Culturally and Linguistically Responsive strategies. More and more of our students rely on these strategies, so teachers need to be properly trained in how to integrate them into their classrooms. Another challenge is something we all face as educators and that is meeting the needs of all of our students. Every student coming from a different background will have different needs that need to be met. It is crucial that CLR strategies are utilized to help students feel successful in the classroom.

My name is Kirt Woodman and and I teach social studies at Heritage High School in Littleton, Colorado. As a high school social studies teacher and coach in Littleton, Colorado, I have the privilege of working with a diverse group of students who bring a wide range of cultural and linguistic experiences into the classroom. In my current role, I teach AP U.S. History, Psychology, and Colorado History—including concurrent enrollment classes that challenge students to think critically about identity, context, and perspective.

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies are essential because they help build meaningful connections between students’ lived experiences and the academic content. When students see themselves reflected in the curriculum and classroom practices, they are more engaged, motivated, and confident. CLR strategies support not just inclusion, but authentic belonging.

One of the biggest challenges is ensuring that these strategies are consistently embedded—not just during heritage months or specific lessons. It requires intentional planning, continuous reflection, and a willingness to step outside of our own cultural lens. Balancing rigor with relevance can also be a challenge, especially in standardized or AP courses, but it's a necessary part of helping all students succeed.

Ensuring that we are meeting our learners where they are is the root of inclusive practices. The connections we bring to the classroom must be ones where there can see themselves in the curriculum and that there are deep meaningful relationships. To foster a sense of belonging for our community members, the instructional practices we use must not inhibit a child's ability to learn and grow. Using CLR practices is a way to foster the belonging that students need to develop psychological safety in their learning spaces. It allows them to be seen, see other perspectives and build empathy for other people and their stories.

Our ELL students need accessible materials that are relevant to their developmental age and offer them the access to the content and materials. They must be offered a rigorous program that brings their language capabilities in line with their academic capabilities. We need to deepen their academic language.

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies are essential in my classroom for my English Language Learners (ELL), as these students comprise almost half of my class. Firstly, I build relationships with students by actively learning about their cultural backgrounds, languages, family traditions, and interests to gain a deeper understanding of their unique perspectives. Additionally, I want my students to feel a sense of belonging and have opportunities to engage in a culturally rich curriculum. This is important because they will be more receptive to the school environment and better able to learn.

However, even with an understanding of the importance of CLR strategies, there are barriers in the way. In my district, the most significant challenges are the mandates imposed by the administration. Rather than examining each school individually, with its unique students and their specific needs, the district makes blanket decisions that are not always beneficial to the student population at my school. This is frustrating because, as a teacher, I am trying to make the district-required curriculum relevant to my English Language Learner (ELL) students. Still, I receive pushback from the district for attempting to enhance it to make it more culturally rich. Another dilemma I face at my school is the parents who do not have English Language Learner (ELL) students. These parents do not see the positive impact it has on their children when we are all able to learn about diverse cultures.

My experience in teaching in multiple countries and school communities has highlighted the importance of Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies and teaching at every turn. My teacher education program focused strongly on CLR strategies as it was focused on returning Peace Corps volunteers and those specifically looking to teach in international schools abroad. My class community last year included students who spoke Spanish, Zulu, German, Mandarin, Hebrew and French at home as well as students whose parents grew up speaking languages other than English at home. As a charter school we do not offer ELL services, but are able to consult with a district ELL specialist. Beyond this cultural and linguistic diversity in the classroom there are multiple additional layers of diversity in the classroom including neurodiversity and gender diversity (while not a focus of this course-are equally relevant in our work as educators to ensure that all students feel connected and valued in the classroom). Above all else I believe it is important for all my students to feel that they belong in the class, that they are an important part of the class community and that the community supports each other. When all students are valued, for all parts of themselves, the acceptance, understanding and compassion of the community as a whole grows. With a strong and positive community as the foundation of the classroom, we can dig into hard work and meaningful discussion and support each other through struggle to grow.

We have talked at our school about doing a diversity audit to look deeply at not only our class libraries but also our curriculum to ensure that it is culturally relevant and representative of diverse cultures. We have not yet undertaken this task. I think this would be an interesting and important step to see where gaps exist that I am unaware of. It is easy to miss things when you are enmeshed in it. Perhaps this course will provide some ideas that will help us move forward in this task.

My name is Deborah Lang. I am a retired teacher from Littleton Public Schools, Littleton, Colorado. During my career, I taught both kindergarten and literacy K-5. I currently tutor students in grades K-2.

My experience in teaching both in the classroom and small group settings support the why CLR strategies are so important. I believe it begins with the building of relationships with students from day one. The work in building relationships continues to build community within the classroom. These connections establishes an environment of learning to take place. It also develops a growth mindset in the classroom where we can all learn from each other while feeling safe to take risks. Children who feel like they belong and valued are usually motivated to learn while being a member of the classroom or small group.

The challenge I feel we face as educators is staffing. We need more ELL teachers to support students and teachers to help with building and maintaining relationships.

With growing up on a small farm in Arkansas, I can relate to "The Danger of a Single Story". My "Single Story" in NW Arkansas had few minorities in the 1950s. Over the years 'My Story' has become filled with growth and understanding of the many cultures.

The Army helped with that when I was sent to the Department of Defense' first School of Race Relations and Equal Opportunity in 1974 at Patrick Air Force Base in Florida. There, the culturally diverse participants were challenged as to our beliefs, attitudes, values and our bias toward others. The school also had each of us spend time in the homes of people who were culturally different than us. My family was Cuban. This was a valuable experience for me as I ran head-on into the language difference. CLR became real in that instance.

What I have learned as a teacher, Headmaster, and Principal - and as a person - is that children all have the same needs. Geoffrey Cohen spoke of humans having a need to feel that they belong. This is very true for children. That is one reason I believe that building relationships with our students is foundational for the success of the student and the school.

I find that the challenges Cheryl Wells has had with pushback from her district when she strives to deliver a "culturally rich" environment troubling. It speaks to "Exploring the School Climate -- Student Achievement Connection...", in that, the 'pushback' is an element of the school culture.

As NW Arkansas has grown with the success of WalMart, I was teaching in a rural school, 45 miles away from Bentonville, Arkansas - the home of WalMart. One of my high school students asked, "Why are there so many brown people in Bentonville?" This led to a class discussion of WalMart's need for qualified people to help the company grow... that color of a persons' skin or country of origin was not a factor when searching for qualified individuals. The need for a Culturally and Linguistically Response was made clear that day!

One approach to US History is that history is about peoples' stories. I ask the students to work with their parents to create a family tree. For many, it is the first time they have heard the story of their family. What's your story?

I believe that it is important to add Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies that will enable my students to see themselves as learners and to recognize that they can become whoever they want to be in life.  In order to do this I strive to validate each student and learn about their stories. I agree with Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and reject the single story about a person or a cultural stereotype. This enables me to learn about my students. Who they are as a person, what their cultural and family backgrounds are and incorporate this into the classroom. This promotes belonging in our classroom. Helping students to be seen and allowing them to write what they value, care about, and how this relates to their learning in a positive way. I allow my students to share this information with their peers. I believe that this promotes thoughtful conversations as we learn about how to value each other as a person.  

The challenges I face implementing CLR strategies are the resources and also finding the time to do this on a consistent basis. I believe that this needs to be done on a daily basis, but with all the other things I need to do as a teacher-it's really hard to do it every day. I think this will be my goal for this next school year. To try and connect with my students using CLR strategies on a daily basis. 

In my current role, CLR strategies are important for a variety of reasons. First, in a generally diverse school, it's important to acknowledge and celebrate the many different backgrounds of students at the school. Not only does this honor and acknowledge individual students and cultures, but it helps the entire school community learn more about the world around us. Second, as a history teacher, CLR helps students understand why the world today is the way it is. One of the classes I teach is world history, a key focus of which is learning about people and cultures of the world, and there is no more perfect subject to include CLR strategies.

One of the challenges is finding enough time in the curriculum to include histories and stories that do justice to each cultural background - in other words, we as educators want to honor each culture and their perspective on history, and do it right, but we often feel a time crunch to do this. As such, sometimes I can't spend as much time with a specific cultural group as I might like. Another challenge is incorporating content I might not have the strongest foundation in. A third challenge is making teaching truly responsive, as it might be challenging to create rigorous lessons tailored to many students with varying levels of backgrounds, understandings and needs.

Despite these, it is important for educators to CLR strategies no matter the setting. We will continue to grow in this area the more we practice it, for the betterment of all.

As teachers, we play a vital role in helping students reach their full potential. While we are just one part of their educational journey, we shape the environment in which they learn and guide them through the curriculum that supports their growth. I believe that culturally responsive instruction is essential. It allows students to engage more deeply with the content, see how it connects to their lives, and feel that their identities and experiences are valued in the classroom.

This approach benefits all students. When we bring a variety of perspectives and cultures into our teaching, it helps students better understand the world around them and fosters empathy and respect for their peers. In a society that often struggles to have open and respectful conversations across lines of difference, the classroom can serve as a powerful model of what thoughtful dialogue looks like. It can also be a space where students who might not always feel seen or heard know that they matter.

One challenge I have been reflecting on is how to create that kind of safe space for students to share their perspectives, especially in such a polarized time. This past year, I noticed that many of my students were hesitant to speak up. Rather than comparing ideas or engaging in conversation, they often chose silence out of fear—fear of being judged, misunderstood, or excluded for having a different viewpoint.

In response, I am focusing this year on building a stronger classroom community from the beginning. I am incorporating activities that help students feel more connected and comfortable with one another so they can practice the kind of respectful, meaningful discourse that lies at the heart of culturally responsive teaching.

CLR strategies aren't just important in my role as a Teacher Librarian—they're absolutely crucial. At our recent graduation, I witnessed something incredible—44 flags representing the countries our senior class called home. That moment really drove home why this work matters so much. Our library isn't just a quiet place with books; it's the beating heart of our school community. Kids need to walk into the library space and feel like they belong. Every single one of them. The library has to be that place where everyone finds their spot, feels welcomed, and sees themselves in what we offer. Whether it's through our books, our programs, or just the "vibe" we create, we're working to be those mirrors, windows, and sliding doors that Ms. Bishop talks about. Students get to see their own stories, peek into other people's worlds, and maybe even step through into something completely new. Hopefully, dispelling any "single story".

What I love about her message is how she reminds us that we're celebrating both our differences AND our similarities. And Schindler's research backs this up with: when we get the school climate right, students actually achieve more. Since the library sits right at the center of that climate, what we do here ripples out everywhere. This does not come without

challenges.

Challenge #1: Time is everything and we never have enough. The kids sitting in front of us need changes yesterday, but shifting school climate? That's not a quick fix. It's like trying to turn the Titanic; it takes time, patience, and a whole lot of persistence. Sometimes it feels frustrating when you know students need support right now.

Challenge #2: Change is complicated. Our school is really putting in the work to make things better—pushing high expectations for every single student, keeping things rigorous but building it all on solid relationships. A few years back we started with changing grading practices and we found this to be complex work with many unintended consequences. It's a work in progress and we know nothing lasting will happen overnight.

Challenge #3: Keeping up with what students need. Making sure our library book collection, digital resources, and programs actually represent our incredibly diverse community takes constant effort. We're talking about authentically reflecting 44 different countries and cultures that change yearly, plus all the intersections and nuances that come with that.

I'm finding I need to consistently build up my own skills and knowledge to do this work well, all while keeping up with the daily running of a library and teaching classes.

But you know what? Even with all these challenges, seeing a kiddo light up when they find a book where the main character looks like them or shares their experience--makes every struggle worth it. Our library is that space where everyone belongs.

In my building, CLR strategies are vitally important for the strength of the community. We have many students who come from abroad, whether they be the countries that comprise Central and South America, or the many students we have that come from the countries that made up the Soviet Union, we have a wide variety of students and cultural backgrounds that inform their view of the world and how they interact with the American Educational System. By taking into account their backgrounds, we can better serve and honor their needs in the classroom.

One important challenge to consider is the language and cultural barrier this presents when speaking with parents and keeping them informed about their students' progress. In some cultures, such as with my Russian students, school isn't viewed as being as important as it is with students of other cultural backgrounds. This can create some tension between the teacher and parents when the teacher views their education with a significantly greater level of importance.

Language barriers are also a challenge. If I have to make a phone call to a parent who doesn't have English as their first language, this can create a real challenge when communicating about their progress and needs. This is especially true if one is using anecdotal turns of phrase which can have ambiguous meaning. My aim is to continue to improve my communication strategies throughout the year, and to have greater empathy for views different than my own for the importance of their students' education.

Our school is really focusing on CLR instruction because it is so important for our students and their success. It creates a place where children feel supported and valued. We want all students to feel engaged in their learning, even our very youngest students! When our students feel that engagement, then they are more likely to be motivated to achieve higher academically. I personally relish in the idea that using these strategies will help these children have a higher self-esteem and give them the confidence to achieve more. I want my students to have that sense of belonging in my classroom and at our school. I think it is often "easier" to achieve that sense of belonging in the younger grades. We do things on a daily basis to ensure that each child feels respected and loved. I know that higher grades do too, it just seems easier to achieve that trust with a 5 year old.

Currently our school struggles with low academic scores. We are hoping that using a biliterate platform will help strengthen each students language skills. If each student can strengthen their native language skills, then we are hoping the scores will go up as well. One area that I struggle with is the literature that we currently have for our young readers. Over my many years of teaching, I have seen more culturally rich read aloud books come to print, but it is far from what we need. Our school does use a program that gets bilingual books in the hands of kindergartens. It has been very successful and helpful to families that struggle finding books in both Spanish and English.

Changing a school culture is not quick and it's not easy, but I feel like our school is heading in the right direction. It feels good for our students and our families!

Some of the areas we need to continue to focus on are:

-Acknowledgment of bias and stereotypes.

-Achievement gap; how do we support our students and increase the tier one instruction for all students.

Some of our highlights include:

-A dual language program which has supported native Spanish speakers as well as second language learners.

-Diversifying the books in our libraries and classrooms so students see themselves in the curriculum.

It is important to continue the work and grow the strategies of our teachers as our hispanic population increases.

My name is Jessica Robbins and I have accepted a new job as a seventh grade ELA teacher in Cortez, Colorado. I have 18 years of contract teaching and 10 years of long term subbing experience. All of my experience has been working alongside Native Hawaiian, Native American, and Asian students and cultures. I began teaching ESL in the inner city of Seattle with students from different Asian backgrounds.

I worked my way to Hawaii and learned the structure of pidgin language and Hawaiian/Japanese cultural values and loved learning about the natural world from a Hawaiian perspective.

Then, I returned to Farmington where I worked in every grade from 3-12 as a gifted LEA-teacher. My students were 30% Navajo and their culture is celebrated and revered in Farmington. The schools that I worked at included bilingual education for Dine language and Spanish. Luckily, I was included in their classrooms and I have some experience understanding how to incorporate the students primary language when teaching background knowledge.

I have always known intuitively that I must be inclusive of all cultures, religions, and values when I teach. I believe that my background, the books that I have read, and my experiences traveling have informed my practices but now I would like more research-based practical methods that I can apply in my classroom. I have already learned that a sense of belonging (Glasser) is equally important to classroom management and should be considered when a student has trouble adhering to classroom rules.

I have been a K-12 licensed gifted teacher and have been planning advanced interdisciplinary lessons for my students but I am also well versed in Orton Gillingham methods so I have a basic understanding of how students learn to read and understand texts. My challenges this school year will come from teaching a curriculum that is designed for me; Additionally, I will be learning about the school culture and how to improve achievement gaps for our Ute Southern Ute population. Our school is 29% Ute Southern Ute and Navajo but there are significant gaps according to the CMAS data. The math scores are nearing proficiency but the language arts performance scores are way under the national and regional averages. Hopefully, I can apply what I am learning to help close the achievement gaps and provide the students with a place where they feel valued.

I have become very active at my children's STEM school in Westminster Public Schools and volunteer in the classroom as often as I can. I have a masters in reading instruction and I love to work with the diverse population at their school. I enjoy the challenges of working with a wide variety of students that attend the school and love being able to put on my teacher hat and help them learn and grow. Both at the school I taught at and the school I currently volunteer at, we have a very diverse population with lots of LEP and NEP students. We also have about 70% of students who qualify for Free and Reduced lunch.

I believe that the more we know about each other, the better we can understand one another and through that understanding and opportunities to make connections, the stronger we will become. That is why CLR is important not only in the classroom but beyond; in society and throughout the world as well.

CLR teaching undoubtedly has it's challenges. We struggled with finding the time to search a variety of texts and stories to allow all students to see the window and hopefully the mirror of themselves in their classroom literature. My teammate and I would spend hours sifting through the school library or online resources trying to find the a variety of material for our students. Then we also would struggle with the unintended consequences of a creating "Single Story" stereotype if we only offered one story.

I am excited to be taking this class and becoming more mindful about Culturally and Linguistically Responsive approaches. Diversity makes us stronger and I am hopeful to learn along side you on how we can create a more knowledgeable and accepting future.

I think at our school it is very important to incorporate CLR strategies in our classrooms to build that sense of belonging and create a positive environment that students feel comfortable in and know they can learn.

They are attending our school from their home where they do have that sense of belonging and safety and they have their loved ones right there, but at the same time, they are an individual in a larger group and sometimes it can be very difficult for them to feel like they belong.

I feel like these strategies such as learning their story can be so helpful to our classroom because it will ensure that student voices are heard and validated and will then help the students talk to each other and build relationships with one another, even though they are online. This will make our classroom a positive environment where students feel confident that they can learn and be independent learners. This is so important in our school because it is challenging for learning coaches, which students are required to have, to allow productive struggle, but if the student has the confidence and believes in themselves, they will know that they can do anything.

CLR strategies are vital to our school's students due to their diverse ethnic and cultural makeup. They come from homes and environments that have been traumatic for them and hinders their ability to learn in a regular school environment. Many of them have IEPs but that doesn't ensure that their academic needs were met in a public school.

Therefore, it is important for our school personnel to develop an individualized plan within the IEP structure and for them to develop solid relationships with staff and peers. Additionally, helping them develop pro-social skills and to be exposed to students from different environments benefits their academic and social future.

Hello, my name is Magali Quirk and I teach high school Social Studies at Mesa Ridge High School, just outside of Ft. Carson gates. I have been teaching for 18 years, and am in this course for recertification and license renewal. I teach primarily World History, and most recently AP African American Studies. Our school has a minority enrollment of 56%. That is divided between students who grew up in the area plus many military families that are here for only a few years. 

As a former military “brat” myself, I feel an affinity to many of the students in our school that don’t normally see a culturally diverse curriculum. In many of the history classes I have taken, and even taught, we trudge through history without making any connections to CLD. I myself have been guilty of this. 

I think that teaching African American history has opened my eyes to the need for more culturally relevant teaching. I have many students that are taking the class even though they have never taken an AP class before. They have a desire to learn about their culture and as a side effect, are challenging themselves in an AP class.

This just further highlights the need for CLD within every school. We all need to feel as if we belong, and what better way than to allow students the opportunity to look at their own culture.

The Module 1 resources reaffirmed for me that CLR teaching is about meeting students where they are linguistically, culturally, and emotionally. As Sharroky Hollie explains, it’s about jumping into the pool with our students and guiding them, rather than expecting them to swim on their own in unfamiliar waters. CLR helps students feel seen and valued, which directly impacts their confidence and ability to learn.

One challenge I’ve experienced is ensuring that curriculum materials reflect the diverse experiences of our students. It takes intentional planning and ongoing professional learning. The payoff is worth it, students light up when they see themselves represented and respected in the classroom.

CLR strategies are the core to what is the fundamental of equitable and accessible teaching/curriculum for all students.

Audrey Kim said in the article, "Introducing culturally responsive curricula could be a critical step toward breaking down the ivory tower’s walls and reminding all our students that academic excellence was meant for them too." I believe in this statement, as Aurora Public Schools demographics are: Our students come from more than 130 countries and speak more than 160 languages.

• 42.0% of our students are second language learners, with 77.8% of them Spanish-speakers. 

• 74.6% of our students receive free or reduced lunch.

• 14.5% of our students attend special education programs.

• 4.9% of our students are identified as gifted and talented.

It is crucial for all that are employed in APS to have an understanding of CLR.

Culturally Responsive strategies are important in the classroom because our students are not "one size fits all". Acknowledging student backgrounds and cultures not only creates a welcoming classroom environment but also encourages better student engagement in their learning. Students need to see the investment in their education. This also applies to creating a culturally responsive community in the classroom/school. Involving parents/families and building trust and communication with students is just as vital to student success.

Working with ELLs, one challenge I notice in the classroom is student participation. It can be difficult for students from different cultures to feel comfortable participating in not only learning but also the classroom environment. I think this is an area that some teachers might lack strategies in because sometimes the focus tends to be on CLR strategies in academic instruction.

Another challenge I notice is the quality of culturally responsive texts in general curriculums. Sometimes curriculums claim to have diverse texts and materials, but the content will be outdated and not relevant to students lives anymore.

CLR Strategies are absolutely fundamental if one is to be a successful teacher in 21st-century American public schools. As minority students have, collectively, surpassed 50% of the primary-school-aged population, and given that most minority cohorts struggle relative to their white-majority peers -- that is, the achievement gap persists -- it is absolutely essential that teachers are equipped with appropriate strategies and culturally responsive curricula to engage all students and set them up for success. I am excited that this course will help me "brush up" on strategies that will engage BIPOC students by expanding my knowledge of best CLR practices in the classroom.

CLR indeed presents many challenges, of which I will address what in my experience have been the three most significant.

First of all: Engagement. BIPOC students have higher rates of absenteeism and are generally more disengaged from classroom learning relative to their majority-White peers: this indeed IS the achievement gap. I mean, it makes sense: many of these students have experienced curricula and teaching that does not speak to their experiences, curricula that they do not see themselves as being a part of. I have also had much more difficulty engagement families of these students. As a quick example, attendance for parent-teacher conferences at more affluent schools has been much, much higher compared to conference attendance at lower socioeconomic schools at which I have taught. Communication with parents of BIPOC students also tends to be more difficult, especially if there is a language barrier; again though this follows naturally, as many of these parents were either underserved in their American public school experiences or they are simply unfamiliar with the system if they never attended public school themselves.

The second major challenge has been staying up on the latest research in best practices. Curricula is constantly evolving, and district-bought "canned" curricula often lag behind the latest research in best practices. This course will hopefully provide me an update on best practices that I might be able to implement as I tailor my curricula for the upcoming school year.

Finally, and perhaps most significantly, TIME is a challenge. As teachers, time is our most valuable commodity. We need time to read and stay up on the latest research, we need time to apply these new understandings as we create differentiated lessons (new lessons that also take time to create), we need time to assess student learning and data (some call this grading), and we need time to communicate with students and parents as develop and deepen relationships and trust.

The challenges facing a teacher are many. However, CLR teaching practices are invaluable for any teacher who wants to ensure all students succeed. And student learning is and always has been the goal for good teachers. As Audrey Kim writes in "A culturally rich curriculum can improve minority student achievement," CLR curricula "would work to intervene and directly address issues tied to race, such as stereotype threat, by providing an opportunity for students to dig deep into the multiplicity the American experience." I hope I can live up to this ideal, and I look forward to this course's learning as I prepare for the upcoming school year.

I'm old enough to remember a time when this was truly not the case. Not only for me as a student, but also at the beginning of my educational career as a teacher. There was a huge discrepancy in how and why curriculum was presented 30 years ago. This approach was not only a disservice to students, but a also a hindrance for teachers that often times did not allow for the educator to teach the truth or be able to nurture and facilitate the strategies necessary for the betterment and success of learners from multiple cultural and economic backgrounds.

In my current position, I find myself practicing the strategy of making sure that I am preparing each student for a global society. My current school is not as diverse as other schools and I want each of my students to recognize that there is more than just "one story," but rather many stories that promote cross-cultural communication and understanding. I make sure that my students are aware of the rich traditions of a multitude of cultures that are a part of our community as well as making sure that there is an appreciation for diversity by ensuring students are engaged and surrounded by a culturally rich curriculum and classroom environment.

Module 1 resources and articles reminded me that CLR teaching includes meeting students needs culturally, linguistically, and emotionally. It also reminded me that educators still display stereotyping, assuming students who are white or Asian will achieve higher than others, such as students who are black or Hispanic. This mindset leads some students to not be held to high expectations, purely because an educator doesn't believe in their ability to succeed based on their background.

I look forward to completing other Modules and continuing my learning!

I love watching children grow academically, and have found this Module very interesting and informative! Throughout my years of teaching, I have learned so much about our NEP and LEP students.  I have had several students come into my classroom from places like Romania to  Mexico with no knowledge of the English language. This plants them in a classroom with very little relatability, comfort, and confidence.  This being said, I do all that I can to help these kiddos feel comfortable, included, and learn. Needless to say Google Translate has been my friend!  With very limited (but amazing support), it always remains a challenge to fully meet their needs. 

After watching The Danger of the Single Story, reading Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors, and listening to Speaking of Psychology: How the need to belong drives human behavior, with Geoffrey L. Cohen, PhD, one thing is very clear.  Correct information, stereotypes, and understanding is where our NEP and LEP students need to be seen.  I love seeing that early literature is growing with more accurate information and including a diverse platform for all learners! I am interested to see what we can continue to learn, and adapt into helping all our students grow.    

I found module one very interesting, especially reading Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors, by Rudine Sims Bishop. Seeing my stepdaughter bloom and speak from the mindset of her friend, speak similarly to Rudine Sims, to the importance of authenticity both in experience, exposure, and immersion into something so different from yourself.

However it does not come without it's own set of challenges. Although a teacher can provide the diverse texts, pictures, lessons, and experiences - we do not have any control over external influences that sometimes play just as large or a role and may even feed the unconscious bias of our students, countering the teacher's efforts.

My name is Leslie McFarling and I have been teaching for 22 years, 11 of those years as a special education teacher at a charter school in Loveland.  Now I am stepping into my second year of teaching 4^th grade in Eaton, Colorado.  As an educator I have worked with many diverse groups of children and it has been a wonderful pleasure watching my students grow both as people and academically.  I love helping my students grow, and taking this course is interesting, informative, and helpful as a teacher. 

In my years as a teacher I have worked with students from many different cultural backgrounds, including from Germany, Japan, Korea, Laos and Mexico. I have seen first hand the struggles that my students that have no English, or very little English, have.  It often puts them in a situation of a constant uphill climb with learning and socialization, even though we as teachers strive as best we can to make them feel welcome, comfortable and loved.  In our present political climate, it can be especially difficult and frightening for students and their families.

My choices of resources to look into for Module I were watching “The Danger of a Single Story,” and reading the three articles, “Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors”, “Culturally Responsive Teaching Matters”, and “Educating All Students: Creating Culturally Responsive Teachers, Classrooms and Schools”.   These resources opened my eyes to the assumptions about learners and groups of people that I, and many people in a “dominant” culture, may make without even realizing it.   I felt that the video, “The Danger of a Single Story” was especially successful in opening my thinking about this. We often see people as only a “single story”, not realizing the complex, multifaceted parts of each person, their families, backgrounds, cultures and languages.   Being aware of each student’s stories and abilities, beyond our assumptions, and “single story” view makes us better educators. I am excited to learn more and see what I can find to help me better reach and teach my students of all backgrounds.

Reflecting on my teaching experience, I can identify moments where Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) practices were essential but not fully realized. In preschool, a Spanish-speaking mother expressed in a letter that she didn’t feel heard. Our team had only one Spanish-speaking teacher, who was not in her child’s classroom, and the opportunity to build stronger communication and inclusion was missed.

In 3rd grade, a student arrived wearing a hijab. Her classmates were curious but hesitant to ask questions, and I felt unprepared to facilitate a culturally responsive discussion. Although her father offered to share about their culture, by the time we were ready, the student chose not to wear her hijab to class because it made her feel different.

Both situations were complicated by obstacles including insufficient knowledge, language differences, and hesitation to challenge standard school practices. They also highlight the importance of CLR; when implemented thoughtfully, it can foster inclusion, understanding, and empowerment for students and their families. Missed opportunities, however, can unintentionally reinforce feelings of difference as negative rather than celebratory. These reflections remind me of the importance of intentional, informed practices that validate and honor every student’s identity.

Looking back at my career in teaching I have had the opportunity to teach in a multicultural environment in District 49. I teach World History and Sociology.

Module 1 was crucial to establishing a ground floor to establish the importance of introducing various forms of literature that is culturally relevant to the students in your class. A challenge in my history classes is finding stories that fit into the cultural fabric of all/most students. I will now make a much more concerted effort to seek more sources of information and artifacts from different voices.

As a guest teacher, I know how important it is to quickly establish a respectful environment with all students in the class. The same holds true for summer school, which is a quick 15 days of instruction.

I want to be that teacher that Dr. Geoffrey Cohen speaks about. It would be amazing to tap into each student's capability, motivating them to attain that next academic goal. I want to be their cheerleader!!

I want my students to encounter characters in books who look like themselves thus fostering a sense of identity. I'm hoping to promote empathy as they see diverse perspectives. I'm hoping that children will see themselves in stories which will inspire confidence and broaden their sense of possibility.

I appreciate that this class reminds me to be thoughtful about creating an inclusive, equitable and effective learning environment. I want to increase student engagement and support academic success using CLR practices. I hope to foster a classroom culture where all students can thrive.

But...........the reality for me is that I have limited time, inadequate materials and not enough training.

Although my role as a guest teacher is much more limited than a full-time faculty member, I believe the impact I may potentially have on students can still be significant. Nothing can be more important than the way we relate to our students. Their feelings of belonging and connection to school help determine their motivation to continue to learn despite all the challenges they face. I think it's my role to contribute to those best practices that we know work.

Dr. Geoffrey Cohen (Stanford University) describes the impact of wise interventions that aim to increase the feeling of student belonging in school. I am deeply impressed by the data he cited that show using these interventions can set in motion a "virtuous cycle" of effects that may be evident days, weeks or even years later. Students have shown an increased receptivity in teacher criticism of work, grades may increase, and even graduation rates and college admissions can be improved. These results are astounding!

I am especially struck by Dr. Cohen's remarks: "just how much untapped potential there often is in individuals that we just don't see, that's just waiting there to be tapped into."

It's this "untapped potential" that every single educator can begin to tap by acknowledging our responsibility to those students who routinely don't feel seen.

Yet the challenges are immense. Traditional schools are married to their cultural belief systems that persist despite the research. These systems are not easy to alter. Courses like Culturally & Linguistically Responsive Teaching are a good beginning to bridge the gap for those students who don't feel seen.

Novelist Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

highlights the problem of telling a single story about a culture. She states, "How impressionable and vulnerable we are in the face of a story, especially as children."

Given that critical awareness of how children can be impacted, we can now help acknowledge their numerous stories.

In my current role, CLR strategies are so important due to the political strife within our region of the world. Great care must be taken to acknowledge the feelings and fears of the children whose family members abroad may be in war torn countries, while maintaining a neutral stance as an educator in the classroom. The local government issues statement son the various situations, and our school administration supplies resources and words to our families and faculty. We have school counselors to whom we can refer students who may be struggling, allowing for individual needs whilst maintaining a neutral classroom.

The challenge I have faced, as many colleagues have mentioned in their posts, has been a lack of resources. While there are many, many stories about African American children, there are far fewer resources narrating the lives of Arabic and Islamic children. Being an American school with an American curriculum, we use the familiar stories of Ruby Bridges and Martin Luther King Jr. to teach parallels, but it can sometimes feel forced. the school does its best to highlight diversity and inclusion, but without resources, it becomes difficult to directly instruct our students. I'm hoping this course will provide some of these resources.

Culturally and linguistically responsive strategies are so important in a learning environment where we are laying the groundwork for future success in each child's educational experience. I have several children in my current classroom that do not speak English. I want to ensure that the books that we read in the classroom are reflecting children that look like they do, that they can connect with and know that they belong. I want to foster a positive sense of personal identity.

It is challenging to communicate with children who do not speak English. I am trying to find ways to foster learning using CLR practices. Imagine the potential for positive connections to happen at the preschool level, carrying into Kindergarten and beyond.

I would like to respond to Lora M. I appreciate the candid response in regard to teaching in a school that has little basis for CLR teaching practices. Missed opportunities to celebrate differences happens so often. Intentional practices that value every students identity are exactly what we need to foster CLR teaching. I will try to be mindful of opportunities and intentionally seek ways to connect and celebrate the diversity in my classroom.

I'm Mark Palmer and I'm a Math teacher at Durango Big Picture High School in the Durango School District. CLR strategies are important so that students who are not highly proficient in English don't have to just "sink or swim" in an otherwise english-centric environment. As a math teacher students face a mixed bag of highly specific english words, such as "function," combined with the fairly universal written language of math.

CLR strategies not only help ELL students not feel so pushed away from the local culture but also remind the life-long-local students that the world is a big place with a lot of opportunities and possibilities and variety. Trying to learn what it's like to walk in the shoes of others is always valuable.

I really appreciate what Michelle Cramer said three days ago about remembering the additional stress that an ELL student may be facing given both the current focus the US government has on immigration issues and all the reasons for which the student's family may have left their home country (war, poverty, etc.).

Throughout my career I have found that every year there are more students who fit into the NEP or LEP framework. One thing I love about this is how we all learn something new from each and every student. The most important thing I have learned from teaching students from around the world is to SLOW DOWN! I like to say go slow to go fast. Taking time to check for comprehension is very important. Another thing to do more often is give great descriptions and check for understanding--if in doubt show pictures.

When picking read-a-loud books include many different authors, cultures, and illustrations that reflect all the kids in our class! I love when one of the students from another country can explain something to the rest of the class! Include everyone, everyone belongs and is seen.

I have 30-40 students each year in my classes who struggle with the English language.  I have some students who are now very bilingual and many who don’t speak any English. Students who are LEP and NEP have many challenges adjusting to education in a different language.  Ngozi Adichie did a great job of explaining how each student can have a very unique experience and history. They all have individual social, cultural and economic backgrounds. CLR is so important to meet these students where they are and take into account the cultural and linguistic factors that will be important for their learning.

In my school we have a great team of ELL teachers and paras who work with the students in and out of class.  They aid in translating verbally and making Spanish versions of assignments and tests.  They do a great job of helping the teacher and student celebrate their differences, communicate and individualize the teaching and learning.  CLD Strategies are new for many teachers but extremely necessary.  I look forward to learning strategies for improving my application in the classroom.

I found Karen Green's post very interesting talking about not seeing the or recognizing the capabilities of our students. She referred to Dr. Cohen's statement about "untapped potential". With a language barrier present I realize I need to work to release that potential. CLD strategies are designed to help release this potential as we still try to create enthusiasm, praise, fun and belonging into classroom design and instruction.

Wearing my ESL teacher hat, using Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies is crucial, but it can be a bit of a juggling act. My students come from various Spanish-speaking countries, and each one brings their own set of skills and experiences when it comes to speaking, writing, and reading in English. I strive to respect each of their cultural backgrounds and skill sets, while obviously supporting their goals and growth in English. When students see themselves and their cultures respected in the classroom, they’re more engaged and motivated to learn. For example, this week we hosted a “potluck fiesta,” where students brought one of their favorite food items to share. The cuisine represented food from Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala, as well as the United States. Eating around the table together and having a scaffolded discussion about their chosen food in English helped the students try new words and analyze their grammar, all while sharing their culture.The potluck helped break down language barriers and gave them the confidence to speak more freely. To my surprise, they began asking deeper questions about modal verbs and verb tenses, which demonstrated their excitement for continuing to learn. That experience echoed what Monica Brown mentions in “Educating All Students: Creating Culturally Responsive Teachers, Classrooms, and Schools. She states, “One of the most important aspects of a culturally responsive classroom is the teacher’s belief that students from CLD backgrounds want to learn.” When I witnessed the students’ enthusiasm for modal verbs, I knew we will see growth this semester!

That said, reaching adult learners who all have different language levels and experiences can be very challenging, and I can definitely use a bigger “tool box” of strategies. Some students may have a solid grasp of reading and writing, while others are still working on the basics. They also come from different educational systems and have differing years of experience in the United States, so their language skills vary widely. Balancing the need to support their abilities while ensuring they’re comprehending the material can be an obstacle for me, especially because I don’t have a prescribed curriculum. In addition, and something that disturbs me greatly, is that I often find myself making assumptions about their learning, which can be a roadblock to ensuring everyone feels comfortable and challenged.

During my time in AN classrooms, I worked with a wide variety of students from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds. By using culturally and linguistically responsive teaching strategies, I was able to build stronger connections with students, understand their unique perspectives, and support their academic and social-emotional growth. These experiences taught me the importance of seeing each student as an individual and adapting instruction to meet their needs, rather than relying on a one-size-fits-all approach.

Reflecting on these experiences now, I realize that much of what I do in my current role—whether it’s supporting educators, developing systems, or ensuring compliance—is rooted in my classroom work. I strive to create processes and support structures that not only meet legal and procedural requirements but also ultimately serve the students and families behind those documents. My time in the classroom showed me that the relationships we build, the respect we show, and the flexibility we offer are just as critical to student success as the instruction itself.

In every decision I make and every system I help implement, I carry with me the lessons learned from my years in the classroom: that meaningful education happens when we honor students’ diverse experiences, listen to their voices, and provide thoughtful, responsive support.

The concept of “The Single Story” really hit home for me. When you are starting out in your teaching career, it can feel as if you know everything. Over time, you realize that you don’t, and that you are not the perfect teacher you thought you were. Early in my career, I sometimes decided what I thought a student needed without fully understanding their cultural background. It is difficult to remember that we are not perfect and that students have much to teach us as educators. Cultural understanding reminds us to approach each student as an individual, to listen, and to tailor strategies that best support their learning and growth.

Today, culturally responsive teaching integrates the art of communicating among different individuals and cultures to create learning and academic experiences for students. Culturally responsive teaching has been proven helpful for creating a supportive environment for students. This teaching style can be used to highlight the value of each individual student, create an environment of belonging for all, foster relationships and community and help students make academic gains.  

Using a curriculum and presenting literature that showcases a variety of different cultures is a realistic representation of our diverse world, that students should be experiencing and exposed to. This creates balance in the classroom community and presents the truth that not one culture is better than another and keeps one culture from becoming dominant. This can help students to recognize the similarities and differences among each other and appreciate both. Students having their culture represented in the classroom sends the message that they are seen, heard, respected and valued. This helps to create an environment where students can feel supported emotionally.  

I have had the incredible experience of learning and living in another culture. Since I was 16 years I started traveling to Mexico. I became very familiar with the Mexican culture which I consider a part me today. I have also had other experiences spending time with others from various cultures. Although I have had these experiences, I find it challenging to learn about my student's cultures in a short amount of time. As I work with students from a diversity of backgrounds Korean, Indian and Chinese, not just Mexican, I see it as a wonderful learning opportunity but a challenge to learn so much in a short time span. 

When reading through the articles, I was challenged to seek out literature that tells the stories of people from a variety of ethnic groups. As an ESL teacher, it saddens me to say that when I look back at the curriculum and literature that was presented in my classroom, it was mainly the stories of white people. Even after 12 years of teaching, I don’t have any experience with literature for children that was written by other ethnic groups. As an educator, I realize that the variety of voices I show case in my teaching needs to be balanced and not dominated by one culture. The challenge is that I have an empty well when it comes to stories from diverse backgrounds. I plan to be proactive in filling that well, but I know that it will take time.   

I am currently in my 21st year of teaching 6th, 7th, and 8th-grade Science and Math at Eads Middle School. Our rural middle school is small, with an enrollment of only 40 students. Over the years, I’ve had the opportunity to teach a diverse range of learners in a close-knit environment, which is one of the aspects I enjoy most about our school.

In my 21 years of teaching, I’ve only had one student who would be considered NEP (Non-English Proficient) or LEP (Limited English Proficient). This was during my fourth year of teaching, and at the time, I relied heavily on trial and error, peer support, and limited resources to help that student succeed. Since then, our student population has remained fairly consistent, with very few English learners.

Because of this, I am confident that this class will help me tremendously.

I recognize that my experience with NEP and LEP students is limited, and I want to be better prepared if and when those students enter my classroom. I’m looking forward to learning strategies that can make instruction more accessible and engaging for all students, regardless of their language background.

The article by Monica R. Brown highlights the importance of creating inclusive and culturally responsive classrooms that value every student’s background and experiences. I appreciated how it emphasized the role teachers play in building meaningful relationships and adapting instruction to meet diverse needs. It reminded me that even in a small rural school, cultural responsiveness is essential for fostering a supportive learning environment. These strategies will help me better connect with and support all learners in my classroom.

All of the resources, strategies, and tools provided through this class will be to my benefit. I’m eager to build my confidence and expand my toolkit so that I can provide effective instruction to English learners and ensure that every student in my classroom has the support they need to thrive.

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies are important to engage students and to ensure that all students are able to achieve a level of success in the classroom. Every student entering a classroom has a background informed by culture. Teachers are now being educated more about how pedagogy can create a positive or a negative environment for culturally-diverse students. There is a degree of time and willingness that is required of the teacher to make the kind of changes that the current landscape of education requires. In order to provide an environment of success, teachers need to investigate if some expectations are unusual for some cultures or if their own implicit biases are affecting how they interact with students. Even in a classroom where negative stereotyping is not an issue, students may become disengaged if they do not see any representation of themselves in the materials. Developing a curriculum that is engaging for many cultural perspectives requires continued education and curiosity about the multicultural perspectives of curriculum content. 

Heather Anderton

Loveland, CO

Hello! My name is Heather Anderton, and I am currently a high school math teacher at Mountain View High School (MVHS) in the Thompson School District. This academic year marks the start of my tenth year at MVHS and the start of my twelfth year as a teacher.

As a high school math teacher, I am passionate about helping my students build confidence in their problem solving and critical thinking skills. Too often, I find that many students lack that confidence, especially in the case of my culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) students. These students not only face the challenges of the mathematical content presented in a given course, but also have the additional challenges of battling unfamiliar cultural contexts in word problems, and linguistic barriers that delay their comprehension of necessary vocabulary.

I am hopeful that as I work through this course, I will be able to find strategies that can help me work with all of my students, especially my CLD students, to enrich their learning experience in my classroom and deepen their understanding of mathematics. I firmly believe that culturally and linguistically responsive (CLR) strategies are essential because they create opportunities for all students to access and engage with mathematical content. Although I have heard that math is a "universal language," students do not all enter the classroom with the same background knowledge or experiences. I am well aware that in order to reach every student, I will need to help them make relevant connections to their backgrounds, their cultures, and as much as possible, their languages.

I appreciated that the article, "Educating All Students: Creating Culturally Responsive Teachers, Classrooms, and Schools" stated that simply being aware and respectful of students' different values is not enough, that teachers need to acquire details and facts about their students' cultural backgrounds while building caring communities within their classrooms. This is very much aligned to my belief that knowing "my kids," and building positive relationships are essential first steps in helping students to begin building their mathematical confidence. There must be trust in my relationships with my students, and that can only be established if students know that I see them and actually care about them.

Considering challenges of implementing CLR strategies, what I am most concerned about is finding the time and resources (especially math-specific ones) to design lessons that intentionally incorporate CLR strategies while still meeting the demands of a rigorous curriculum. Considering the content that I teach, it seems challenging to me to incorporate CLR strategies into concepts like solving algebraic equations, or geometric transformations. I am also worried that my efforts to incorporate CLR may fall flat, or feel shallow and meaningless to my students, because I may not have had enough time to understand their cultural backgrounds, despite best efforts. High school students are not always the most forthcoming when I attempt to have conversations with them about their personal experiences, and reaching out to families to gain insight is very time-consuming.

Keeping my philosophies and these challenges in mind, I am looking forward to making mathematics feel more inclusive and engaging to all of my students. When students see themselves reflected in the lessons, and when they are offered opportunities to share their perspectives, I believe that they will be more motivated to persist and succeed in learning math.

I find one of the biggest challenges as a substitute is coming into a classroom and not knowing any history of the students. Each student responds differently to various styles of teaching and has a variety of needs. Making a connection with students is the most impactful way for me to be able to help the student/s learn socially, emotionally, and academically.

As indicated in the articles and podcast, students have a yearning to belong to a community. Our classrooms are their community and if they don't feel like they belong, learning can slide quickly. I kept "hearing" in the articles the necessity to evaluate our own biases and gain knowledge of the various ethnic backgrounds. As I come into many classes for a short period of time, this is even a higher necessity to understand a wide variety of cultures so I can approach the students with respect and understanding. The more I can learn about different cultures, the more I can show the students I care about them and can help to make them feel included in order to fully learn that day.

Even though my school has minimal diversity, I believe it is important to intentionally include culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) strategies. These strategies help prepare all students to appreciate different perspectives and build empathy. One of the challenges in my role is finding authentic ways to incorporate CLD practices when most of my students do not have daily exposure to diverse cultures or languages. However, the benefit is that these practices broaden students’ worldviews and help them develop respect and curiosity for people who are different from them.

My goal is to weave CLD strategies into daily lessons so that students leave my classroom not only stronger academically, but also more open-minded and inclusive.

In the two articles, "Intervention in School and Clinic" by Monica Brown, and "Culturally rich curriculum can improve minority student achievement" by Aubrey Kim, I reflected a lot on the opportunity I have as an English teacher to meet CLD needs, as well as the importance for CLD curriculum in the classroom. I also really loved the podcast, "How the Need to Belong Drives Human Behavior" with psychologist Geoffrey L. Cohen. In the ELA classroom, I have the privledge of introducing literature and discussing with students all day! It's empowering to hear that there are studies that have given us real data that represent how powerful it is to incorporate different cultural backgrounds in literature, and even more specifically--culturally relevant material that the specific students in the classroom can relate to. This was especially emphasized when Cohen talked about how a sense of belonging is directly linked to our identity and even our long-term achievement. This makes sense to me. When I choose a book to read, or when I feel compelled to learn new material, it is usually because I'm seeking some insight on mysef as a person, the world I interact with, the people around me--my identity. It's not surprising that students need to see themselves and feel understood in the instruction they're receiving. I'm encouraged to hear that encouraging students to embrace and interact with their culture has shown real, educational outcomes, and more importantly, are linked to positive outcomes in social and emotional growth.

I think for me, my challenges are that I'm in a district with very little diversity, and that personally, even my personal cultural background is quite different than the students around me. This is why I think it's important for educators to stay educated--we need to be aware of how different cultures approach education, and how these differences might affect student outcomes, communication styles, values, etc. We also need to encourage incorporating culturally diverse material to our students--especially when they're like my student population, who don't have diversity available to them in their community.

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive strategies are important to ensure that all students are seen, valued and successful. All students come to school with various experiences, identities and sense of belonging that affect the way they see themselves. How they see themselves affects how they see others and navigate experiences. In order to support student’s success through strategies we need to nurture each student’s sense of self. Through a nurtured sense of self students will build a sense of belonging. A sense of belonging builds resilience when things in school or life get tough. Also a sense of belonging builds a community for everyone.

The relation of everything to one’s self can bring up challenges when it comes to having the resources to support building each student’s sense of self. There are limited books to read in our libraries about various experiences, cultures and identities. School curriculums are limited in their exposure or inclusion of differing experiences. Additionally, students who are culturally and linguistically diverse as well as in special education have even fewer resources to support those in need. 

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies are important for many reasons, but most importantly because they honor and affirm differences—viewing them as assets to the classroom and school community, rather than deficits that need to be changed or fixed.

CLR strategies help students feel seen, valued, and understood. When teachers take time to connect instruction to students’ cultural backgrounds—including their primary languages and lived experiences—learning becomes more meaningful and accessible. Geneva Gay reminds us that even the way we communicate in the classroom is shaped by culture. Things like eye contact, tone, and how we take turns in conversation all matter. Teachers who understand and honor these cultural differences build stronger relationships and a sense of trust with students. This kind of connection can make all the difference in helping students engage and succeed.

CLR practices also help create a positive school climate, which research shows is directly tied to higher student achievement. The study highlighted in The School Climate–Student Achievement Connection: Making Sense of Why the First Precedes the Second reminds us that climate isn’t just about safety or rules. School climate is about belonging, respect, shared purpose, and what the authors call “personal empowerment.” When students feel that their identities and voices are valued—and also believe they have a sense of agency and responsibility—they tend to have higher self-esteem, greater motivation, and more confidence to take academic risks.

CLR strategies also help prepare students for life in a multicultural society. CLR classrooms model inclusivity and empathy, helping all students—not just those from historically marginalized backgrounds—learn to navigate and appreciate diversity. In this way, culturally responsive teaching prepares young people for an increasingly global and interconnected world.

I believe the biggest challenges to implementing CLR strategies are the state, local, and district systems and structures that can limit teachers’ flexibility. In many U.S. states, laws have been enacted that effectively ban or restrict culturally responsive teaching. Additionally, teachers often face standardized curricula, testing mandates, rigid pacing guides, and limited time for reflection and collaboration. Deficit mindsets and implicit biases can also get in the way, requiring educators to unlearn years of doing things a certain way.

That said, even small shifts in self-awareness and a move toward an asset-based mindset can make a big difference.

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies are vital because they help all students feel seen, valued, and capable of success. In both my English and reading intervention classes, I see how students' cultural and linguistic backgrounds shape how they interpret texts, communicate ideas, and connect to learning. CLR strategies honor those differences by building on students' existing strengths and making instruction more meaningful and inclusive.

One of the biggest challenges is that this work takes continual reflection and intentionality. It's easy to fall back on a "one-size-fits-all" approach or rely on familiar materials that may not represent all students' experiences. It also takes time and collaboration to find authentic texts, design responsive lessons, and shift classroom norms to be more inclusive of diverse voices.

Still, the effort continues to be worth it. When students see their cultures and languages reflected in the classroom, engagement and confidence grow, creating a stronger, more connected learning community.

I believe Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) practices are essential because they ensure that every student feels recognized, valued, and capable of learning at high levels. In my classroom, I see daily how students’ language backgrounds and cultural perspectives influence how they read, discuss, and connect with texts. CLR strategies allow me to build on those unique strengths and make learning more relevant and inclusive for everyone.

One of the biggest challenges with implementing CLR is that it requires constant reflection and intentional planning. It’s easy to slip into routines that don’t fully represent or engage all learners. Finding diverse, authentic materials and designing lessons that reflect the experiences of all students takes time, creativity, and collaboration.

Even so, the results are powerful. When students see themselves and their cultures represented in what we read and discuss, they become more engaged, confident, and connected—both to the learning and to each other. That’s what makes this work so meaningful.

My name is Jessica Taylor Cho, and I am the Middle School Student Achievement Manager at Aspen Academy, an independent school in Greenwood Village, CO. I am the case manager for all students on accommodation plans in our middle school; I also teach a course called IMPACT that explicitly teaches our 5th graders executive functioning skills and about their brain, and I coach our Cross Country Team. This is my 17th year in education!

While I work at a school that may seem like it is lacking diversity, my 10 years here have taught me that students are diverse in a plethora of ways. While we have students that come from families that include CEOs of huge, well-established companies, we also have students from military families, families who have immigrated here from places like Iceland, Australia, and Russia, and students that have complicated situations at home. Cultural diversity is everywhere, and unfortunately many people still don't have a full grasp of all the things that can be a part of one's culture.

I found the article, "Creating Culturally Responsive Teaches, Classrooms, and Schools" especially helpful in that it listed specific actions that culturally responsive teachers implement in their classrooms; many of these we accept today as simply best practice for all students. I appreciated the list provided in Figure 1 of culturally responsive classroom activities, as it makes the idea less nebulous and helps teachers realize that a lot of what they do every day in their classrooms is Culturally Responsive Teaching if you are doing it to meet the needs of your students. My biggest takeaway from the article, however, was that one of the "most important aspects of a culturally responsive classroom is the teacher’s belief that students from CLD backgrounds want to learn." (Brown, pg.60, par. 4) This emphasizes how easy it can be for people to assume that others lack the motivation or desire to learn simply because the way they express that is different from what someone might be used to. This is a key piece of my work with students with learning differences when it comes to coaching our teachers through how to best support them; no student ever wants to fail, they just do the best they can with what they have where they are.

I spent my whole career working at the Denver Public Schools' Balarat Outdoor Education program. Within that frame, I frequently reflected on how taking students "outdoors" and using the outdoors as a means for exploring natural sciences and natural history can have the feel of being dominated by a single culture. Obviously, given human history, that's not true as all of our ancestors spent much of their time outdoors considering the world around them. That said, our current state in outdoor/environmental education is dominated by a single culture and it needs to do much to present a more culturally diverse milieu.

As others have suggested, I too, would love to regularly and knowingly be able to draw on the "superpower" that Dr. Cohen suggests we have "in our day-to-day encounters to warp situations, shape situations in ways that tap into untapped potential." Further, I am appreciative of the notice to reflect on my attitudes and practices, to emphasize holistic/integrated learning, and to work at deciphering "students' cultural codes" in an effort to be more effective in my opportunities to work with students.

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies are essential in the social studies classroom because they make learning meaningful, relevant, and inclusive for every student. Social studies is the study of people, cultures, and systems — which makes it the perfect space to honor diverse perspectives and lived experiences. By incorporating CLR practices, teachers connect curriculum to students’ cultural backgrounds and linguistic strengths, allowing students to see themselves reflected in history and civic life. This approach not only deepens engagement but also strengthens critical thinking as students analyze whose voices are represented — and whose are missing — in the stories we tell about our nation and the world. Novelist Chimamanda Adichie painted such an important picture of why it is so critical that we teach more than one perspective and side of the story. Our world is extremely diverse, and our views are limited by our experiences.

Implementing CLR strategies helps build community, promote empathy, and prepare students to participate in a diverse democracy. When students feel that their identity and culture are valued, they are more motivated to engage in discussions, question sources, and connect past events to current issues that impact their lives.

Challenges:
While the benefits are clear, teachers often face challenges in fully implementing CLR strategies. Some of these include:

• Curriculum constraints: Standards and textbooks may not always reflect diverse perspectives or current social realities.

• Limited resources or training: Teachers may lack access to culturally relevant materials or professional development on how to adapt lessons effectively.

• Fear of controversy: Discussing race, culture, and identity can sometimes lead to discomfort or community pushback.

• Time and workload: Designing lessons that authentically integrate students’ cultural experiences requires additional time and planning.

My name is Kayla Schwarz, and I teach sixth grade math at Wellington Middle High school in Wellington, CO. This CLR work is important in my role because I am a general educator in a public school. I see almost 100 students a day, and of course some of those students are from CLD backgrounds. I would like to first comment on the reflection from the Part A of the module. I love how the author talks about approaching CLR as the, "opposite of the sink-or-swim approach." A lot of teaching has to be done this way. You learn a lot in your preservice, and then it can be a matter or sink or swim. When engaging in CLR practices, a much more delicate approach needs to happen. Teachers need to be "in the water" guiding students as they listen, grow and learn. This can be difficult in a class of 30+ students, such as my own, because we need to meet a lot of needs at the same time. It can be hard to put time aside to truly walk hand in hand with a student who needs us to learn about them as people and learners, and guide them in their learning process.

The text, Engaging all Students, gives some amazing examples of how teachers can implement CLR practices. I want to focus is on Table 1, the third point: Demonstrate cultural caring and build a learning community. I think this is an important idea to instill in all students in the classroom and people in the world. This is something I currently try to do as a math teacher. I already try to make a caring learning environment where students can make mistakes and take risks. I like the idea of adding the cultural term to this. By using cultural scaffolding, teachers can build on student's culture and use that to add value to the classroom. For me, that could be using student culture and incorporating it into word problems. If students feel connected to their learning, they are more invested. For other students, they can learn about other cultures, normalizing differences. I think this can be difficult because we do have intense pacing and standards to keep up with, and modifying the curriculum takes time. However, it is important because if students don't feel valued and safe, they will not take risks in meeting academic standards.

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies are vital because they help educators connect instruction to students’ lived experiences. As Geneva Gay notes, culture influences how students learn and communicate; when teachers build on that, students feel valued and achieve more. Similarly, Rudine Sims Bishop’s concept of “Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors” reminds me to ensure my students see themselves reflected in what we read and study, while also learning about others.

CLR practices also nurture a sense of belonging, as discussed by Geoffrey Cohen in Speaking of Psychology. When students’ languages and cultures are affirmed, their engagement and confidence grow. This aligns with Audrey Kim’s findings that culturally rich curricula improve minority student achievement.

However, challenges persist. Teachers often lack training or resources to integrate culturally responsive methods effectively, as Monica Brown explains. Curriculum materials may present limited cultural perspectives—a concern raised by Chimamanda Adichie in The Danger of a Single Story. Additionally, institutional barriers, such as rigid testing systems and limited time, make sustained implementation difficult.

Despite these challenges, I believe CLR practices are essential. By embracing cultural and linguistic diversity, we create classrooms that are inclusive, equitable, and empowering for all learners.

My name is Madelyn Lybeck. I am an Early Childhood Special Education (ECSE) teacher in Poudre School District. This is my tenth-year teaching, and I have taught grades Pre-K through 2^nd grade in the mountain west region. Throughout this time, I have had the honor of working with many culturally and linguistically diverse students. I'm excited to jump into this learning with you all! 

In the ECSE classroom, utilizing Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies is essential to ensure that all students, regardless of their cultural or linguistic differences, have equitable access to learning. Implementing CLR strategies also ensures that every child feels valued and seen in the classroom. Strategies such as using a child's home language and cultural experiences as part of instruction help promote inclusion and equity, builds stronger family partnerships, and enhances engagement and motivation. 

There are challenges to implementing CLR strategies. One of the biggest challenges I experience and see is teachers not being properly trained and equipped to embed and provide CLR teaching strategies in their classroom. In the article "Educating All Students: Creating Culturally Responsive Teachers, Classrooms, and Schools" by Monica R. Brown, the author acknowledges that placing Culturally and Linguistically Diverse students in classrooms with teachers who do not have proper training is unfair to both teachers and students. Another big challenge is the lack of time. This is a common one, but it takes time to properly learn, collaborate, plan, and prep and teachers have a lot on their plate. I think schools and districts must continue to make CLR teaching a priority and create time for teachers to grow in this area. 

Despite challenges, CLR strategies are so important for educators to develop. I appreciate classes like this that are designed to help us evolve and grow. I am excited to implement new learning into my classroom. It won't happen overnight, but I think collectively we are moving the needle to create a more inclusive and responsive system. 

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive strategies are pertinent as each and every child should have the opportunity to learn, build meaningful relationships and be an active member of their school community. When CLR strategies are not included students may have difficulties learning, following classroom routines or feel as though there is only one way to be a member of the community. This is especially true when a classroom community only represents and responds to one culture.

I find that using CLR strategies within an early childhood environment, specifically an intensive needs environment can be challenging due to the level of understanding of how other's learn, live, and communicate. Many ECE students tend to focus on only the immediate people in their lives and or are still developing an understanding of themselves. However, we try to expose children to a variety of strategies to help address CLR teaching. This is especially true when we engage in back and forth conversations with children who may have questions about students who are not yet verbal or have mobility needs. We work with the students to understand that all children have different needs as well as how we can interact with a students who presents with different needs then they have.

CLR strategies are important because they help educators recognize that students have strengths beyond what is in the curriculum. Students should be able to show off and display their learning through multiple pathways, and that their culture and lived experiences are essential to being a member of a classroom.

One of the challenges that I've faced in English is that the books in my curriculum have traditionally been "canon", though our school has made a push to bring in texts from other cultures and non-white/male authors as well.

My name is Sara Finnegan-Doyon from Denver, Colorado. I am taking a break from the classroom right now, but my last two teaching positions were at international schools. The second to last was Denver Center for International Studies, a public 6-12^th grade magnet school, where I taught mostly 10^th grade English. My final teaching position was at the International School of Denver, a private pre-K-8^th grade school, where I taught 2^nd grade English, pushing into classrooms where students received 80% of their instruction in their target language of either French, Spanish or Chinese.

I share that context, because I was lucky to work at schools and in communities where the importance of CLD was celebrated. As discussed in the Part A reading, the administration and teaching staff all believed deeply in providing scaffolding to students (no sink or swim approaches), helping to guide them to more and more independent interactions with literature. I would show “The Danger of a Single Story” to my 10^th grade English students, and we would discuss what stories had been taught to them in singular ways throughout their education.

As I came to understand the backgrounds of my students through get to know you activities (such as the “Where I Am From” by George Ella Lyon poem adaptation or rewriting “My Name” by Sandra Cisneros), I would weave in a variety of choice novels that were thematically cohesive with the unit’s overarching question while approaching it from different cultural backgrounds, genders and perspectives in my classroom. For example in my people and places unit, students could elect to read Native American writer Linda Hogan’s memoir The Woman Who Watches Over the World, or the creative nonfiction text Pilgrim at Tinker Creek by white writer Anne Lamont, or the novel How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents by Dominican American writer Julia Alvarez, the collection of short stories The Women of Brewster Place by African American author Gloria Nayor, or the white investigative journalist Jon Krakauer’s creative nonfiction Into the Wild. Some students were drawn to books that acted more as mirrors and others to books that more resembled the sliding doors referenced in Rudine Sims Bishop’s essay.

The challenges of providing so many texts and giving student choice in navigate their reading selection, so they could find an engaging book that fit their interests and reading level, were many. The students were all having different conversations about texts, so finding ways to weave together the many conversations into something unified was challenging at times. And despite my best efforts, while there were a wide array of diverse authors included in the offerings, there were many students in my classroom who did not see their identities or interests reflected in these books

Elizabeth Kozelski’s essay has one of the most clear and powerful definitions of culturally responsive teaching when she quotes Professor Geneva Gay’s definition of “culturally responsive teaching connects students’ cultural knowledge, prior experiences, and performance styles to academic knowledge and intellectual tools in ways that legitimize what students already know”. This concept was a guiding light and aspiration in sculpting my curriculum. I saw these ideals more through the understanding that when students feel seen, accepted and celebrated, they can feel safe to take more risks. I loved learning from Audrey Kim’s article that culturally responsive curricula can have huge impacts on the achievement of students of color, with the results of the NBER study showing striking gains in achievement for students at risk of dropping out. And the “School Climate- Student Achievement” study explored how having collaborative curriculum can give students a sense of belonging and acceptance.

One of my shortcomings in teaching high school was that I didn’t have the reading strategies to help emergent readers and truly providing the scaffolding some of my ELA students needed to meaningfully engage with the texts. Without that knowledge base or a deep understanding of how to teach those building block skills, I used other strategies (books on tape, reading guides to help focus their attention and vocabulary building), but there were some students I didn’t have the skills and knowledge to reach. I wish I would have had more of any ability to provide direct reading interventions that would have served my struggling readers better. When I shifted to teaching elementary school and beginning readers, I learned so much about phonics, language instruction and how to build that base that would have served me well with high schoolers, too.

In building my own curriculum, there was considerable room to create units and select readings I thought would resonate with my students, which was wonderful. Also my selections were limited by my knowledge, experience and background. As the only 10^th grade English teacher, there was not an opportunity to collaborate with other colleagues to build out a more robust curriculum with my colleagues insights/experiences helping to guide it.

My name is Jaime Delaney. I live in Silverthorne, Colorado. I am the science department chair at MiaPrep Learning, which is an online curriculum platform. I also teach high school science at our in-house online school. Prior to this, I was a classroom teacher for 12 years in a variety of public, private and charter schools.

I watched The Danger of a Single Story by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, and found it very moving and thought-provoking. Like the speaker, I have both been guilty of promoting the single story, and also been the victim of it at different times in my life.

As teachers, it's easy and somewhat satisfying to be able to put our students into neat little boxes, assuming that we know "know them", based on some demographic or small bit of information, and we convince ourselves that this is helpful, because now we know better how to help them. And this may not always be completely wrong... but it runs the risk of, as Chimamanda would say, missing their other stories.

I thought it was interesting that she didn't totally reject the idea of stereotypes, saying that they weren't necessarily incorrect, just incomplete. And I think this is where our challenge comes in as teachers. We think we know just enough about a student to know which "box" to put them in, and that may not be wrong, but if we don't dig deeper we'll miss out on things that are unique to them and crucially important to them and being able to connect with them.

In my own work, I don't see students face-to-face, so my ability to get "their stories" is even harder. I tend to rely on a small bit of demographic information and a handful of entries from other teachers in their file. And I know I've made assumptions about students based on this information that would have fallen into the "single story" mindset.

I look forward to learning more CLR strategies in this course that I can use to better connect with my students, and also apply to our curriculum as a whole to allow it to speak meaningfully to a wider audience.

I watched "The Danger of a Story" by Chimamanda Adichie and was very impressed. What she was very thought provoking and had my wheels turning. When we meet someone of a different background than our own, we tend to hear a single story and not hearing anything else. We in essence pigeonhole our students into one view.

CLR strategies are very important to us as educators because they help us to recognize every student that walks through our classroom. When using these strategies, they help our students feel seen, understood and valued with the little time we spend with them.

I also read "Mirriors, Windows and Sliding Glass Doors" authored by Rudine Sims Bishop. Bishop has said, with such eloquence, that our students benefit more by reading more stories about themselves.

Challenges I have faced are not having the resources for my content area that fully benefits my ELL students. I feel that I am failing them as a teacher. I also feel challenged connecting and making relationships with said students. I have always found it easy and rewarding to create a healthy relationship with my students, but I do tend to struggle.

I watched "The Danger of a Single Story" and was very impressed. The key takeaways I got from the video include: Stories wield power to humanize or marginalize; balancing narratives restores dignity and celebrates our shared humanity; Exposure to a single narrative about a culture risks profound misunderstandings; diverse stories foster deeper connections; Stereotypes are incomplete truths; recognizing multiple stories about cultures and individuals fosters a deeper connection.

As a teacher in an international school, I have students from all over the world, although the majority are from the US. I only spend about 2 hours a week with my students and international students usually get less live interaction. CLR strategies usually don't come into play but the video reminded me that I shouldn't make assumptions about my international students or even about my US students.

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive practices are central to creating an environment in which my students can thrive. I was particularly moved by the article “Speaking of Psychology: How the Need to Belong Drives Human Behavior.” Its discussion of belonging as a fundamental human need resonated deeply with me and with the day-to-day realities of the students I teach. Many of them encounter persistent barriers to feeling accepted and connected within the school community. While I have long observed that some students feel awkward or out of place, this article helped me understand that the consequences of not belonging can reach far beyond momentary discomfort — they can produce significant emotional pain and undermine academic engagement and social development.

Reading this piece reinforced my commitment to intentionally fostering belonging in every aspect of the learning environment: through classroom routines, relationship-building, inclusive instructional design, and partnerships with families and support staff. For students with high-to-profound needs, small changes — consistent affirmations, accessible communication strategies, culturally relevant materials, and predictable supports — can make a profound difference in whether they feel seen, safe, and valued. I am grateful for resources that deepen my understanding of these issues and inform practical steps I can take to remove barriers and promote long-term well‑being and success for every learner in my care.

I watched "The Danger of a Single Story" and was moved by the idea that diversity makes us more understanding and stronger as a group. I find that this idea is waning currently, just when we need it to be growing. Our students need to see themselves in their academics for sure, but also, they need to see others. They need this in order to develop empathy, and become knowledgeable and deep thinkers.

Add to this the need to feel a sense of belonging referred to in "Speaking of Psychology: How the need to belong drives human behavior," and it adds another level of importance. Students need to feel like they belong and teachers need to develop ways to create connection in our classrooms.

Becoming knowledgeable in Culturally and Responsive ideas and processes helps us to do our jobs as educators and guides for our students. If we understand what we want to do to help our students, then the next step is to learn how to intentionally construct classroom experiences that engender a sense of belonging and at the same time encourage students to open their minds to the experiences of others.

Both Bishop and Gay reinforce that CLD strategies are not an “add-on” to good teaching—they are foundational to equitable learning. Bishop’s concept of texts as mirrors, windows, and sliding glass doors reminds me that students need learning experiences that reflect who they are, expand their view of others, and invite them into new possibilities. When classrooms don’t provide those mirrors and windows, students can feel invisible or misrepresented. In a school community like ours, where students bring many languages, nationalities, and cultural identities into the same learning space, representation isn’t just about identity affirmation; it’s also about engagement, belonging, and academic confidence.

Gay’s work on culture and communication in the classroom deepens this thinking by showing how culture shapes the way students interact, express understanding, and interpret teacher expectations. Communication norms—such as how students participate in discussion, respond to authority, or collaborate in groups—are culturally influenced. Without CLD awareness, teachers can misread students’ behaviors or unintentionally privilege one cultural style of learning over another. CLD strategies help teachers shift from “What’s wrong with this student?” to “What strengths and cultural knowledge is this student bringing, and how can instruction connect to that?”

That said, implementing CLD strategies also comes with real challenges. One major challenge in my context is helping educators move beyond surface-level culture—holidays, food, and traditions—toward deeper instructional shifts such as asset-based thinking, culturally responsive discourse routines, and flexible pathways for language learners. Another challenge is time: teachers often feel pressure to “cover content,” which can make culturally responsive planning feel like something extra rather than something integrated. There is also the complexity of our student body itself. Because CLD students are not a single group, it takes intentional reflection and collaboration to avoid stereotypes and ensure responsiveness is personalized, not generalized.

In my role, I see the opportunity to support this work through coaching and professional development that builds shared language and practical tools. My hope is to help teachers design learning that consistently honors students’ identities, expands their horizons, and supports communication across difference.

The importance of culturally responsive teaching is to promote coexistence and inclusion in our diverse society.  In “The Danger of a Single Story”, Adichie says that having limited exposure to the backgrounds of others creates stereotypes that are incomplete.  When we only have one perception about other groups it is easy to exclude them based on our incomplete understanding.  She argues by recounting her own experiences that this leads to a certain intolerance through ignorance.  In “Speaking of Psychology”, Cohen states the importance of belonging in any group.  Students in our schools, marginalized groups in particular, will only succeed if they feel they belong and are included.  By promoting engagement and understanding, a culturally diverse curriculum helps create a culture of belonging.  It teaches students to find commonalities between people and value differences. 

How do we navigate the need for common communication and honor our differences at the same time?  In “Culture and Communication in the Classroom” Gay looks at diversity through the lens of language.  Language is a vehicle for cultural expression and influences our thoughts and ideas.  She argues that we need to find ways to navigate diversity and move past the idea that students can only learn one language or dialect for communication.  Control of language is an expression of power, and valuing diversity in language sends a signal that we want to create an inclusive and equitable environment where everyone can coexist. We have a responsibility to provide an educational system that is responsive to all cultures.

My name is Tony (Anthony) Ferraro, I teach at Broomfield High School with Boulder Valley School District. I teach math, mostly geometry and statistics.

I really enjoyed the video "the Danger of a Single Story." It made a lot of sense to me that if someone is only ever exposed to one story of a culture, or country, then that is the only view point they would have. It really hit me when she said she started writing stories about blonde hair, blue eye people even though she is from Nigeria. Even in her own culture, the only exposer to literature was British and Amirian novels, and so she wrote using the same type of characters.

As a math teacher, I get the question "when will I ever use this" at least once a week. If I can incorporate more examples and problems that relate to each students culture more, they might be able to see themselves as users of mathematics in "real world" settings. I have many students from many different backgrounds, and they will all need to know and be able to use the math we are learning in the classroom, but they may use it in different ways. Finding ways to connect the math to their cultures may help them identify as mathematicians and not just students who have to do math.

The hardest part for me to do this is finding ways to connect the math to culture. Math is universal, it is used everywhere, but so often in math instruction we focus on the numbers, and process and not as much on connecting it to students lives. We use story and application problems, but the tend to be generic and not really like any culture.

For my statistics class, at the end of the semester students complete a large project to show everything they have learned throughout the semester. Students get to choose the topic for their project and I try to encourage them to choose something they are passionate about, something they connect to. The students that do this tend to do a very good job on the assessment, they find more enjoyment from doing the statistics on something they care about verse the students that try to find something they think will be easy.

Culturally Responsive teaching and literacy is very important as every student should have the opportunity to learn and grow at high levels. I really related with the article, “Culture and Communication in the Classroom.” I thought of many incidents where students of color or other ethnicity were dismissed or placed in a classroom with special needs students because of their lack of ability to communicate at the same level of other students. Oftentimes, teachers automatically assume they struggle with learning, because of a limited vocabulary or lack of experiences related to general education.

I also enjoyed the video, “The Danger of a Single Story.” When students have limited exposure to other cultures, but are expected to relate and understand other cultures, learning barriers occur. It was interesting that she wrote about British Culture, due to her exposure, even though she grew up in Nigeria. She wrote about what she read about.

Reading these articles and listening to the videos reinforced the need to provide a plethora of learning opportunities to meet the needs of all students, regardless of ethnicity, learning experiences and communication styles and abilities. I will keep educating myself and researching to provide math education for all students.

"The Danger of a Single Story" stood out to me- as not only did I live in and work with students in another country (Japan), but my school in particular has a reputation. "This is where the bad kids go", and things of that nature. CLR/Culturally and linguistically responsive strategies are important because, as the video demonstrates, our impressions and stories about people different from us are not only misinformed but often outright harmful. As an ELA teacher,I want to keep encouraging students to embrace who they are instead of who they are perceived to be, and to help them learn this not only through their expression but also through their learning of the language itself.

Not allowing them to define themselves and each other through a single story- a single influence,a single perception. Especially a negative one, as the speaker reminds us.

The challenge of course is that just like in social media and the news- the negative is typically what sticks and stands out. People gravitate to these stories and perceptions, and it's no different when students think of themselves and each other. Again, as the video teaches us, to find "a balance of stories".

Our students deserve to have different stories, different perceptions and to be able to learn and decide for themselves.

I feel as though I have a grounded perspective of the importance of CLR strategies and practices. As a teacher, the feeling of being accepted within the group and fitting in can be as or more important to individuals as the rest of the components to a well-rounded educational experience. I also have a viewpoint to look more broadly at the whole student body and how some of those dynamics can have impacts across environments for all students.

It can be easy to get off the path and think that CLR strategies are just to serve a couple of students, but it really can fundamentally evolve and improve your entire teaching lens. Most CLR strategies are best practices for instruction and can tie very well to our high-leverage strategies for achievement of all students. Growing engagement with students can make all the difference. In the podcast; Speaking of Psychology: How the need to belong drives human behavior, Dr. Cohen outlines this connection. Dr. Cohen outlined; "Those two perceptions that, “I belong at school and I belong in my home”, turn out to be among the strongest predictors in large representative samples of teen reckless behavior, risk behavior, and mental health issues."

There can be many barriers to making this environment real and viable, outside of the specific academic scaffolds, and looking more at the macro culture and system within the school/classroom. Communication and connection are the two most vital components for this process. Many teachers are well-meaning and try to set up the most fluid classroom possible but blind spots can still exist in understanding cultural, social, and linguistic intricacies could be quite different from the majority of students. Once a track is started for these students and they feel "othered" for whatever the reason, they can begin to disconnect and then the most dangerous outcome academically can ensue; miscategorizaion or misdiagnosis, specifically for perceived SPED needs. We owe it to our future society to develop an inclusive environment for all students so that they all have the equality of opportunity in future societal settings.

I bring this up because my lens is not the norm. I, a middle aged white woman teacher, in many ways can see myself as a minority in the teaching field. My students, though mostly Caucasian also feel they are a minority in many situations. Both the podcast and the Ted talk brought up resonating points. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie mentioned trying to find herself in the stories she read and Geoffrey L. Cohen talked about traveling to new places as being “uncomfortable”. I see this in my students. They have a hard time believing that the education they receive is as good as what kids get in the city. When we go to places with them they are “uncomfortable”.

I appreciate the research that has been presented in this module and some of it has made me want to do a deep dive. I feel that I have a lot to learn that will benefit both me and my students. I hope that furthering CLR strategies and practices will increase my students ability to feel a part of the groups / communities they will join. I know that having limited diversity in our community means that we, as educators, have to increase our use of CLR practices to encourage being “uncomfortable” and learning from it.

The need for culturally and linguistically responsive teaching was clear from my very first job as a preschool teacher in Denver. When I started, nearly all the books in the classroom told a single story, as explained by Adichie in "The Danger of a Single Story". There has been a significant improvement in the curriculum over time. However, I still believe it is important for individual teachers to be aware of culturally and linguistically responsive teaching and how critical it is for student success.

My current position provides some opportunities, but also some significant challenges for using culturally responsive teaching strategies. One of the challenges is that I am required to use a specific intervention curriculum. It is scripted and I am expected to use it with fidelity. Another challenge is the short amount of time I have with my students. My groups are 30 minutes long and I see students 3 times a week. Due to these challenges, I chose to focus on the article, "Educating All Students: Creating Culturally Responsive Teachers, Classrooms, and Schools" by Monica R. Brown. This article offers a list of culturally responsive classroom activities that help increase student success. I reviewed these to see how I could apply them to my role.

Some of the activities are part of my curriculum itself:

explicit strategic instruction

high expectations for all students

instructional scaffolding

My own practices and our school's SEL culture and expectations include some of the suggested activities:

care for students

daily observation of students' social and learning behaviors

engaging with individual students

teacher self-evaluation

wait time for students

acknowledgment of students'

differences and commonalities

Activities that I will try to incorporate more into my instruction are:

cooperative learning groups

student self-assessment

explicit instruction in the "hidden

curriculum"

primary sources of data and

manipulative materials

I really enjoyed the Ted talk that I watched by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. I loved how her single story proved to be absolutely poppycock and all ways. For mine might be perceived as a single story: I'm a white male from upper Middle class. But that's not who I am, I have layers upon layers. I'm thankful for my history for somehow, perhaps it was my love of the alternative musical lifestyle and Bohemian life that I lived for many many years that connected me to battling stereotypes.   I became extremely interested in cultural responsivity and my entire teaching career has been flavored by culturally responsive teaching.. without even knowing that definition. 

Also, with a 50 plus year career in the culinary arts, many of the people I've worked with were Spanish speaking, so I've learned a different single story, a positive story! (Which is still a single story)... And for me that is everyone I work with who speaks Spanish is a positive hard working person! I know that people are everything. Hard working, not working, left, right. People are everything.  And I'm just so thankful for my experience working with mostly Latinos. I also gained  a decent understanding of Spanish which really helps now in my high school education asis wo “single story white.”  I don’t buy the stereotype!   I have multiple groups who are Spanish speaking. I speak Spanish with them without making a thing of it. It just is. 

In my cooking lab, with certain kids and groups, when I ask for something I'll ask for in Spanish.  OMG the kids love it!  Apparently the nature of my class makes this very, very possible.  I am thankful for that.  I will switch to Spanish immediately when needed.  I believe this provides more equity. But I realize I've got a distance to go. I must also comment that a teacher really can't know a student until they've had a relationship for some period of time. 

I'm excited for this course!

I really likes Tony from Broomfield's response: His struggle to be culturally responsive in a subject like mathematics is completely understandable. I loved and agreed with his response to Adichie's tale of "Blond haired" people defining how she (initially) wrote. I also really appreciated how he realized that in his culminating unit -- students liked the use of statistics when it could relate to their own lives. Impressive.

I think that a challenge that comes with incorporating CLR strategies in my virtual classroom is the inherent nature of my students having a distance and screen between them. What are ways we can feel connected and a community of our own? That’s where making the learning experience feel like something that belongs to the student is so beneficial. By being culturally conscious and attentive, students feel familiar and can take ownership of the space. 

Additionally, in Elizabeth B. Kozleski’s “Culturally Responsive Teaching Matters!” she notes that “By bringing alternative ways of knowing and communicating into schools, the curriculum as well as the students benefit. Culturally responsive teaching creates these bridges and in doing so, offers the possibility for transformational knowledge that leads to socially responsive action” (Page 5). I like thinking about the idea that prioritizing student experiences shapes the curriculum and ultimately creates an even better learning experience from the subsequent years of students to come. This attentiveness makes everything stronger.   

The challenges lie in having the time to get to know students individually, and having the resources that reflect their experiences. I found Chimamanda Adichie's talk and the article by Rudine Sims Bishop to be especially relevant because, although we have built up an amazing library of children's books in Spanish, there is still a dearth of children's literature from Nepal, or Afghanistan, or other Asian and African countries or in the first language of our students from other countries. And this year, I have a student from Nairobi, and I am having that problem of finding children's literature that could reflect his experiences.

Often I find myself sitting and reflecting, as I did at the end of this semester on my semester, thinking of my varying students who speak multiple languages. As I sat and read their final essays, I saw their growth but also realized where their skills couldn't shine based on the extra elements they face, and the gaps in my teaching, that lead to their final product not fully capturing their true abilities.

And it isn't only that, but I have a student in my AP Research course whose entire study is looking at how ESL students are taught in Jeffco, and how one of the best approaches proven through research that benefits the students is collaborative learning. Every day when I stare at her research board full of questions, resources and connections, I sit and realize how much I have to learn.

This element is amplified as I watched "The Danger of the Single Story" for probably the 15th time, and read "A culturally rich curriculum can improve minority student achievement" by Audrey Kim. Each of these sources reinforce what I see every day - the to fully grasp an individuals potential, I must understand their story, their view of not just the world and their experience, but their perception in my classroom. I must continue to find ways to best culturally represent the vast range of students in my room from Mexican to Ukranian to Syrian to Russian. I must take it upon myself to understand their true experience in my room to help them reach the goals I have set for them. I must present the different "stories" of these diverse learners as I enter into the curriculum - and that is something I always push as I work to incorporate a vast amount of stories and variety of texts in my space. It is my responsibility to not just provide the texts, but allow the students to process the cultural elements that contextualize the texts.

But the struggle always comes for me in English when I think of how do I not do this in a victimized mindset. How do I authentically learn with them, collaborate with these students but not set them apart more as I work with them. There is the fine line of exposing and then creating a target, and then deciding how to best incorporate all those elements without spotlighting students that would create a target on their back.

My name is Christie Broadus. I teach K-2 Special Education Roxborough Primary in Douglas County School District. This is my 3rd year in Special Education after teaching 2nd grade and working as a Reading Specialist for several years.

I had seen "The Danger of a Single Story" in another class I was taking and felt it was just as powerful this time. It reminds us how easy it is to not see other perspectives or seek out more information and how that can have such an impact on our students and community. I think it also ties to the idea that we all want to belong and the correlation between belonging and success in school. After teaching in multiple roles in my building, I have found over the years that if I was not intentional and careful about building community, it was easy to jump into curriculum and try to keep plugging along, and could easily lose many students by not fostering community and building that sense of belonging and high expectations for all. Culturally responsive teaching creates a community of learners where everyone can feel valued and heard and therefore feel more successful sharing and learning. It can be challenging to have resources that all students can identify with and that reflect their cultures and traditions. I think there is less time spent having families come into school to get to know them than there was when I first started teaching, so it can also be challenging for teachers to find a way to have this communication with families in their class and building. Not only do teachers need to get to know their students, but they need to get to know the families as well to truly understand and engage with them. After reading and listening to the material in this module, I found myself thinking about our building culture and what things we can do to promote an even more inclusive culture and community to ensure that all of our young students feel that sense of belonging. It needs to start with us in the K-2 years so that students already feel included, before they reach high school.

Viewing “The Danger of A Single Story” by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie for the first time was extremely powerful for me. It’s very easy to allow stereotypes to control the narrative of what we think of students, or even fellow coworkers, and their backgrounds. When she said the problem with stereotypes is that they are incomplete, rather than being untrue, I can certainly identify with that. I have been guilty of promoting the single story on occasion, but I’ve also been placed in the box of a single story as well, particularly during my time working in Germany. I spoken no German on my arrival in country, and both the German community and the military community were very frustrated with me, and my lack of prior knowledge. I truly knew then what it was like to be a foreigner in a foreign country.

Upon our return to the United States, during Covid, it was much easier for me to relate to my students who spoke little to no English. I was happy to help translate tradings and assignments into various languages, especially in the beginning of their time in my class, and less likely to stereotype students and families based on where they came from. This is a shift in the mindset from how we were taught to teach, and it can also go against learning through “full immersion,” but I believe that it truly helps students to keep their language, in addition to learning another language, if we can learn their stories. I also help students understand the roots of where different languages come from, while also comparing the similarities and differences of them. This is where CLR strategies come in to play, because students are seen and heard in our classrooms, and the student teacher relationship is built.

I watched The Danger of a Single Story by novelist Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. She offers a powerful explanation of the harm that occurs when we reduce individuals, cultures, or places to a single, incomplete narrative. Adichie argues that stereotypes are not necessarily untrue, but they are incomplete—and this incompleteness strips people of dignity and complexity. According to her, single stories reinforce stereotypes, create false or limited impressions, reduces people to one identity, and influences how societies treat entire groups.

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies are important because they make learning more relevant and meaningful. When learning feels connected to who students are, engagement and understanding naturally increase. CLR practices also help students feel seen, valued, and respected.

However, implementing CLR strategies comes with challenges. As Adichie highlights, the danger of a single story can lead to bias—both conscious and unconscious—which educators (and students) must actively work to unlearn. Additional challenges include limited access to training and professional development, as well as language barriers that can make it difficult for teachers to fully support multilingual learners.

Adichie’s message about the danger of a single story reinforces the importance of Culturally and Linguistically Responsive teaching. Single stories create stereotypes and limit our understanding of others, while CLR strategies work to expand those narratives by honoring students’ diverse identities and experiences. Adopting CLR practices is a crucial step toward creating classrooms where all students feel recognized, supported, and empowered to learn.

I watched the video "The danger of the single story" from Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and read the article "Mirrors, Windows, and Glass Sliding Doors" from Rudine Sims Bishop.

When I listened to Adichie discuss how reading about one story can lead to bias and create a dangerous perception of others, in many ways. I endorse this idea. I believe that stereotyping begins with exposure through many mediums. I also see that Adichie views that one story does not make one person's story. As educators, it is our job to expose our students to many examples(stories)to branch out to ask questions to seek more information on others and their cultures and ways of life, so they can comprehend that there is a difference and the recourse of stereotyping will fall away. I also agree with the one story. Using CLR Culturally and Linguistically Responsive teaching is pivotal in getting students buy in by creating a learning community where all are participants and other students may learn out their partners in learning.

I liked how in the article from Bishop "Mirrors, Windows, and Glass Sliding Doors" she discussed about books that students have access to their own culture should be readily available. Also being a Social Studies teacher that students should be able to read about their history and cultural background, both from their ancestral background and here in the United States. When in college, I had a Histography (the study of historical writing)class, I learned in that class that every historical book is biased; something or someone will be left out, but that does not spare the fact that they should be mentioned, discussed, or studied. Students need to see all angles and feel they are participants.

Regarding the assigned readings and videos, the importance and challenges of CLD strategies in my school and my role are significant. Regarding challenges, I often have students from different cultures. I find that English Language Learners (ELL) are either over-identified for special education, because their language struggles look like a disability, or they get under identified because teachers think they need more time to learn English.  Additionally, standardized testing is designed for native speakers. For ELL students, a math problem becomes a reading test first, and a math test second. Lastly, I find that many classrooms have teachers who have no formal training with culturally responsive teaching.

Regarding the importance of CLD strategies, they are vital to help students from different cultures feel comfortable in the classroom by acknowledging their culture. Displaying flags, posters, and books of different cultures will help reflect the diversity in the classroom.

I found the strategies given in the readings very helpful. I will use and share with my co-teachers some of the strategies mentioned such as:

1.keeping records of unfamiliar words, phrases, and nonverbal signs exhibited by students from different cultures, and monitoring their progress and understanding of these items.

2. include visuals to go along with verbal and written directions.

3. use various modes of communication in teaching and performance assessment to ensure we are allowing students to use their strengths.

4. use visual, auditory, tactile, and kinesthetic channels when teaching.

5. have more diverse books in the classroom that explain different cultures.

6. have students tutor the teacher and each other in both verbal and non-verbal communication.

As a substitute teacher, I enter classrooms with an awareness that students bring far more than academic skills with them. They bring their languages, cultures, family histories, and lived experiences. Culturally and linguistically responsive teaching is important because it acknowledges these realities and affirms that all students deserve to feel seen, respected, and capable of success in school.

The definition of culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) students provided by the U.S. Department of Education helped me reflect more deeply on the students I encounter as a substitute. Many students come from homes where English is not the primary language, and others come from cultural backgrounds that are not always reflected in traditional curriculum or classroom practices. When instruction does not acknowledge these differences, students may feel disconnected or misunderstood, which can impact both engagement and achievement.

The readings reinforced how powerful culturally responsive practices can be. Education shapes students sense of identity and belonging, and when students do not see themselves represented in what they learn, they may internalize the idea that academic success is not meant for them. The discussion of stereotype threat was particularly meaningful to me. I had not previously considered how deeply teacher expectations—often unintentional—can influence student performance. Knowing that students may carry anxiety or self-doubt tied to negative stereotypes makes it even more important for me, as a substitute, to approach every student with high expectations and genuine respect.

As a substitute teacher, I recognize that my role presents unique challenges when it comes to implementing culturally and linguistically responsive teaching. One of the biggest challenges is time. I often have limited opportunities to build relationships or learn about students cultural and linguistic backgrounds.Another challenge is navigating my own assumptions. Because substitutes often enter classrooms without background knowledge of students, it can be easy to rely on surface-level observations. The readings reminded me of the importance of reflecting on my own biases and ensuring that I do not make assumptions about students abilities, behavior, or motivation based on language, race, or cultural differences.

Language barriers can also be challenging. Students who are non English proficient or limited English proficient may struggle to access instruction, and as a substitute, I may not always know what language supports or accommodations are in place. This has made me more aware of the need to use clear instructions, visual supports when possible, and patience when communicating with students.

Despite these challenges, I believe substitutes can still practice culturally and linguistically responsive teaching in meaningful ways. Drawing from Sharrokay Hollie’s description of CLR teaching as “going to where the students are,” I try to meet students with openness and respect, even in short-term assignments. Simple actions—such as learning how to pronounce students names correctly, encouraging participation, validating different perspectives, and maintaining high expectations—help create a classroom environment where students feel safe and valued.

Reflecting on these readings has strengthened my understanding that culturally and linguistically responsive teaching is not about having all the answers. Rather, it is about being intentional, reflective, and willing to “jump into the pool” with students. Even as a substitute teacher, I play a role in supporting equity, inclusion, and academic success by creating a classroom climate that communicates to every student that they belong and that excellence is meant for them too.

My name is Ronald Lee, and I am a social studies teacher. I teach for Pueblo District

70. I formerly taught at the middle school level but have been teaching at the school

level for 4 years.

I firmly agree with the author Chimamanda Nogzi Adichie about the dangers in a single

story. If you listen and look closely at what she is bringing to the forefront, there are

stereotypes that are ingrained in us from an early age from our families, our community and society as a whole and should try to break the stereotypes with school classroom studies. I believe whether we want to admit it or not we come into the classroom with some of our own beliefs of how students are going to achieve or not achieve excellence in their performance in class and learning ability Whether those ideas of students range

from former files and reports on the students, language barriers, demographics of living communities, ethnicity, etc. So, before we can engage and work with the students, we need to correct our own mindset If we look at one fact and do not gather more information through verbal interactions, group activities, class surveys, etc. We can start to understand the person not the stereotype that’s been applied to this person.

Monica R. Brown, Educating All Students: Creating Culturally Responsive Teachers,

Classrooms, and Schools, indicates that the whole classroom setting must meet the

needs of all the students in the classroom. For a sense of belonging not only does the

teacher have to understand the cultural differences but make the students engage in why there are differences between all students and all the similarities to bringing the class together as whole unit. Diversity is a good thing if when used properly it creates avenues for engaging and working together so all students are comfortable enough in their culture to express what is needed for their learning process to succeed.

There are some challenges in moving towards a Culturally Responsive approach to teaching and learning. It comes to restructuring how the curriculum is taught not just filling in gaps. We need to look at the dynamics of the classroom and mindset of the students to be able to change accordingly to help them succeed.

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive strategies are important for bridging the gap between instruction and student identity as well as their confidence. I was thinking a lot about how other parts of the world view woodworking while watching the video and reading over the articles. From different ways of making furniture, art, and practical and useful items, a woodshop could very possibly provide a window into different cultural traditions of creating and building with wood. Students with different backgrounds and experiences could potentially find a sense of belonging in a woodshop. Including resources that show other ways that cultures in different parts of the world craft woodworking could help with language barriers as well.

Implementing strategies to overcome language barriers in a woodshop could prove both simple at times and challenging at others. Woodworking relies on highly specific terminology (e.g., "miter saw,", "grain direction", ”glue up”). It is important to establish visual as well as movement and body cues when learning these terms. Woodworking is such a visual and kinesthetic activity that one could learn a lot of the basics without a word being spoken. Successfully operating a tool could immediately provide a sense of self and belonging to an ELL student. 

On the flip side of this, the high decibel level of machinery and the fast-paced nature of shop demonstrations can make verbal instruction difficult to process for ELL students. This would again require individualized attention, necessitating a heavy reliance on modeling and perhaps providing bilingual safety resources as they are learning how to operate tools and machinery. This could pose a challenge to find different versions of resources in other languages, but with AI and translation tools it is easier than ever to make this possible.

 In Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s video about “The Danger of a Single Story” it spoke about the issue of seeing students and families as having only one story. This can create stereotypes and rob them of their dignity. I have worked in schools where these stereotypes have created extra barriers for certain demographics of students and it took a shift in curriculum to include CLR strategies for that to begin to change. We also have amazing CLDE teachers who work hard to support classroom teachers so that we can provide a safe and inclusive environment for all learners. We still have a long way to go! Unfortunately, it can be easy to “write off” certain students because of these biases which can lead to an unequal learning environment. I see this often in MTSS meetings and it often takes the team to refocus and remind one another of our biases. CLR strategies are important because it provides a learning environment where all students can engage with topics on a deeper, more personal level. 

The “Culturally Responsive Teaching Matters” article talks about how teachers have to “transcend their own cultural biases to establish and develop patterns of learning and communicating.” This is a great challenge for many educators because it’s easy to be blind to our own biases. An inclusive and safe classroom environment should have Culturally diverse perspectives included in curriculum on a daily basis. Students should have access to books and articles that are culturally relevant to them. I am primarily a phonics and reading teacher so I need to make sure that the decodable readers and fluency passages I use also regularly include the diverse perspectives of the students I teach. 

The article also stated the challenges with many traditional behavior and motivational systems that are used in schools. Kozleski reminds us that it is important to model and explain the purpose for rules and expectations. In my personal experience, this has always been the best approach to getting “buy in” from all learners. We have a social contract that is created by the whole class so that they can all help set behavioral expectations and be a part of making their classroom environment feel like a safe space.

Reading Mirrors, Windows and Sliding Glass Doors, deeply resonated with me as an educator who regularly used picture books during guided reading instruction. When planning reading units, one of the most challenging decisions I faced was selecting texts that truly supported my students. Over time, it became increasingly clear that many of my students were experiencing school primarily through the window perspective. They were observing stories that reflected lives, cultures, and experiences different from their own.

This was especially true for my CLD students, many of whom rarely saw their languages, family structures, traditions, or identities represented in classroom texts. While books can and should serve as windows into other worlds, an overreliance on this perspective often left students positioned as outsiders. As a teacher, I wanted books to function as mirrors, affirming students’ identities and lived experiences, and as sliding glass doors, allowing them to fully step into stories with a sense of belonging and connection.

However, the barriers to providing these experiences extended beyond my individual classroom. In order for teachers to offer rich, representative texts that support CLD learners, schools must intentionally support and elevate authors who authentically represent diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds. I frequently found that traditional publishing pathways and even Scholastic book fairs centered on a limited group of widely recognized authors (many of whom did not reflect the students in my classroom.) As a result, CLD students were often excluded from meaningful representation in literacy spaces that should have been affirming and empowering.

This challenge was further amplified by district-adopted curricula that rely heavily on pre-selected guided reading texts and picture books. While these materials are often labeled as “research-based” or “high quality,” they leave little room for teachers to respond to the unique cultural, linguistic, and experiential diversity of their students. For CLD students in particular, this lack of flexibility can limit access to instruction that honors home language, builds background knowledge, and supports identity development alongside literacy skills.

Equipping teachers with the knowledge, resources, and professional autonomy to select culturally and linguistically responsive texts is not only critical for CLD students. It benefits all learners. When students regularly engage with books that function as mirrors, windows, and sliding glass doors, they develop empathy, cultural awareness, and a deeper understanding of the world around them. Over time, this kind of intentional literacy instruction has the potential to create lasting impact far beyond the classroom, contributing to a more inclusive, empathetic, and socially conscious society.

To over simplify things, I think CLR strategies are important because they work.  The eight resources, and my own teaching experience, provide lots of research studies and anecdotes that show CLR is effective in helping students to learn.  I enjoyed the research study examples in the podcast interview of Geoffrey L Cohen of Stanford University.   From the perspective of a psychology teacher, I really liked the description of the study by Kip Williams of the “playing catch” game on the computer where the subject of the experiment was intentionally excluded from the game of catch.  This is a very creative way to scientifically study “belonging,” which is so absolutely important to all of our students.  Williams, according to Cohen, found that the exclusion in the online game actually produced physical and social pain in his subjects! Cohen also described how his own research shows how “Wise” teachers can be effective at giving students a sense of belonging AND the expectation of achievement - teachers should give thoughtful feedback along with the sense of being understood culturally and the sense that “I believe you can make it.”   This idea is corroborated by the Colorado Department of Education definition of “culturally responsive teaching” as “teaching moves that use cultural knowledge as a scaffold to connect what students know to new concepts and content…”   Cohen’s big idea that we are molders, with lots of power, over other’s psychology seems like the perfect example of the scaffold idea in the definition.  The 2016 article “Improving School Climate” confused me a lot but, like Cohen’s podcast, it also directly mentioned “belonging” as one of the three essentials of schools with a “psychology of success.”  I also really enjoyed the Ted Talk by Chimanda Ngozi Adichie and the idea of avoiding simple single stories and aiming for the more complex thinking of multiple stories and perspectives.  

To address the second part of the prompt, I think one big challenge to using CLR is the fact that sometimes it is not easy in more rigid and specific curriculums like IB and AP classes at the high school level.  The resource from Audrey Kim gives a great anecdote about how the author did not like her World History class because she did not relate to memorizing the date of the Magna Carta or the sequence of Russian tsars.  The author did however connect to the personal narratives from the Japanese internment camps.  Some classes have lots of flexibility for teachers to choose content to teach, but the challenge is that some classes do not have as much flexibility.  For me, my required-for-students World History class (maybe Audrey Kim would like it) gives me much flexibility and we have tried hard to design a class that is full of  multiple perspective stories and other relatable content.  However, the IB and AP classes I have taught present the challenge of being much less flexible - Audrey Kim would not like the fact that I did have units on the Russian tsars of Nicholas I, Alexander II, Alexander III, and Nicholas II in order!   I am sure “Wise” teaching strategies and many other CLR strategies will still work in social studies classes with more rigid content (or math?), but it is just more challenging.

As a preschool teacher I think that it is especially important to make sure that all of the children in the classroom feel that they are not only welcome, but represented in who they/their families are. With children so young, it is important to give them a view into who they are or can be as well as windows into others worlds. In my role as a preschool teacher, I have always felt that my role is to create a love of learning that children can take with them on their educational journey. My classroom is the first stop on a long road where they will be asked to look deeper and find understanding in a variety of ways. It is therefore incredibly important that children are able to see themselves as active learners who have a role in the process. To do this children must feel a connection to the learning. It is my job to help foster this connection.

I resonated with two resources: The ted talk: The Danger of a Single Story and the reading Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors. Both spoke to giving children a path to connecting their own story to what they are learning as well as seeing others in that same learning.

I teach in a title one school and have a classroom that hosts a diverse background in my learners. I find it important to explore literature, songs and ideas that come from a variety of demographics to help children find ways to relate to the learning that is happening in our classroom. It is a mutually beneficial learning goal as all humans (including teachers) should find ways to see the world through many different lenses. This offers validation in your own way of thinking, and if offers varied perspectives which help grow our world view. It is important for all of us to learn that our way is not the only way. Our experience in life is not the only type of life experience. This helps support a growth mindset in children.

In preschool the challenge becomes finding books that offer varied perspectives. Statistically speaking, most picture books feature male main characters, and more specifically, those boys are white children. It is important to make sure that the resources that I am making available in my classroom have a varied view point and that the main characters are from all sorts of backgrounds. It is important for the children to see not only themselves, but that there are many many ways of being.

While reading the article “Culturally Responsive Teaching Matters!”, I was particularly struck by Kozleski’s discussion of the achievement gap. Culturally Responsive Teaching is clearly an effective strategy for closing the achievement gap in this country, but the author goes on to say that “Culturally responsive teaching creates these bridges and in doing so, offers the possibility for transformational knowledge that leads to socially responsible action.” When we as teachers create culturally responsive classrooms and engage in culturally responsive teaching, we are creating a better today for our students and a better tomorrow for everyone. 

 I loved the TED Talk entitled “The Danger of a Single Story,” by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. I was struck by her story of meeting her American college roommate and realizing the only story her roommate had heard about Africans was that they were to be pitied. “Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors” offers insight about the mental health consequences our students can face when they do not see themselves in literature. They learn how they are devalued in society. But make no mistake, this hurts white students as well because they are lacking opportunities to learn positive messaging about non-dominant cultures. We want our students to see themselves in reading but also to see characters that may seem unlike them so we can both celebrate our differences and see how alike we really are. In a time of deep division in our county, this is important work indeed.  

I feel that we, as teachers, know about having diverse representation in the literature we have available to our students as well as the literature we use in our teaching. However, I cannot help but remember preparing for my first year of teaching and building my classroom library by accepting almost any book that was offered to me. I wonder what we can do to help teachers have more diverse literature in their classrooms when they are already spending so much of their own money building classroom libraries. Ebook libraries certainly help with this, but I think most teachers would agree on the importance of having physical books on hand. Additionally, many schools across the state are using decodable readers they have had for years because they do not have the funding for more. Teachers are trying to be culturally responsive when given less than ideal materials and being told to use them with fidelity.

Being in a private a school setting can pose unique challenges to any CLD strategies. I believe the perception of private schools and in particular, private Catholic schools, is that they are lily white, elitist communities. This can be extremely challenging as an administrator who is responsible for overseeing the entire infrastructure of a Catholic School. From admissions to advancement and everywhere in between, telling the true story of the Catholic school I work in can be challenging from the standpoint of CLD strategies. Not because they don't exist, rather that the perception of the outside world exists.

By belief, a Catholic school welcomes students of all ethnicities and backgrounds, works to promote positive and "Christ" like relationships among it students and strives to maintain a balance in the ethnicity of its students to reflect the world around the school.

However, this belief is guilty of exactly what was referred to by novelist, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, in her speech The Danger of a Single Story. The foundation of the Catholic school and beliefs does not necessarily reflect the world at the time of the stories. Young students growing up in Catholic schools do not hear stories of a Jesus who was anything other than a young white male.

Although I don't believe this was necessarily an intention of the Bible or the church itself, it is the reality of the world we live in.

Overcoming this challenge can prove difficult for our students who have only known this story, but being understanding of what students have been exposed to, a teacher can work to educate students to understand the world that was at the time the stories of the Bible were written.

As a school the responsibility of teachers, staff and administrators is to help our students learn and grow an be able to function in a world that does not have or tell a "Single Story".

We have added diversity clubs and presentations to our programming. Celebrated different ethnic backgrounds and traditions to give our students exposure to events they may not have access to and worked to promote love and understanding within our school. Added additional literature to our English and Social Science curriculums to further expose students to the realities of our world. Although there have been many setbacks and challenges, students want to belong, want to welcome others and want a community centered around acceptance.

The area we are in most need of strategy is for those students who are not or there families are not English speaking. We have worked to employ staff to help support the families, but with regard to students in the classrooms we have a long road ahead.

This class about CLRT is an approach that recognizes and celebrates the diverse backgrounds of every student. Instead of asking students to "fit" into a one-size-fits-all curriculum, CLRT adapts instruction to fit the student.

This is also how I deal with students on an IEP. I look at the whole child and than I see what their needs are I design their IEP goals and their plan based on their needs. I feel that my IEP students have their own story and it is my job to ensure they are not treated like a one size fits all student. After watching the video The Danger of a Single Story, by novelist Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, this video really made me really thinking about the message she is sending. Last year we had a 6th grade student move to our school from Peru. He was placed in regular 6th grade classes with support from the CLD department. I did notice that the student seemed a little different, he had a different gait, he seemed to have autism tendencies. I did a data dig on this child, I talked to his teachers and no one seemed concerned. I would not let this drop. I did try to communicate with him, however his primary language is Spanish. I set up a meeting with his mom and at the meeting she cried because finally somebody was listening to her and she said that she always felt that something was "unique" about her child. Now to present time he is a 7th grader and he has been to see specialists at Children's hospital in Denver. He does have an Autism disability and we have many different services in place for him this year. We have connected mom with community resources and we have our student with an IEP/ CLD services and many different tools and resources to make him able to access the general education curriculum. To connect to the video about " The Danger of a Single Story" , as educators we need to look at every child as an individual not as a 'generalization".

I believe that the research provided in module 1 concerning CLR can help educators implement opportunities that will help improve student achievement. In particular, there were two articles that I believe will be helpful to me as an educator. The School Climate - Student Achievement Connection, and How the Need to Belong Drives Human Behavior. The results from the School Climate study suggested that the use of practices that promote a "psychology of success" led to higher achievement and higher quality climate. In the article by Geoffrey L. Cohen, he provided an example that correlates well with creating an opportunity to create a quality climate and a sense of belonging. He shares that one of the things they found is that when a student is given wise intervention as a sign that the teacher believes in them, Black students received the feedback as positively as White students. Furthermore, the Black students were slightly more motivated to revise their work. I believe that genuinely letting students know you have high expectations for them is one step to building a positive relationship and climate. Over my years of teaching, I have let students know that I believe that they are capable of accomplishing just as much as anyone else. However, reading these articles, along with the other articles provided in this module, has clarified my understanding and has motivated me to find ways to demonstrate my belief in their abilities. I will be re-examining how I provide feedback to my current students.

When I listened to the Speaking of Psychology: How the need to belong drives human behavior, with Geoffrey L. Cohen, PhD podcast, Dr. Geoffrey Cohen was stating how his years of research have highlighted the importance of social connection and acceptance to humans of all ages and stages. This desire for connection with the larger group drives thoughts, feelings and actions. When studying the brain, Dr. Cohen reported that the same regions associated with physical pain are activated when people experience social ostricism. Social ostricism and deep loneliness build to pain. The depth of pain "feeling like an outsider" can cause concerned me. I'm sure over the past few years, the first graders I have taught who recently moved from Venezuela, Mexico, Russia, China or Turkey felt like outsiders. CLR strategies are so important. We have to respond with an extra dose of love and care to these little ones who feel lonely. They are dealing with gigantic change and maybe still big uncertainty. They can't learn as easily when they are feeling the pain of perceived exclusion and/or isolation, right? It does make sense when you think about it. Haven't we all heard the phrase, "to be fully known is to be fully loved"? As a strategy to combat isolation, each morning in my classroom, my first graders greet each other in a fun way and then share about their home life, their personal interests, or answer simple "would you rather" questions that build connections and facilitate many "me, too" moments. I purposefully do this to build a classroom culture of love that can combat loneliness. I have seen first hand how CLR strategies boost connection.

Typically, my MLL students thrive in their connection with me. I get so many smiles and hugs. I get to see them light up when I encourage them and highlight their greatness to the whole class. However, one of the biggest challenges I find is that a teacher boosting connection and security for the MLLs is not enough. Six year olds are used to adults being more kind and accepting. They need acceptance and friendship from their peers. That makes a greater impact on their state of loneliness. In this lies the challenge. It takes a long time and a lot of explicit guidance to get six year olds to deeply connect to a peer who doesn't speak their language. They don't try to be rude but the efforts of a six year old might not be as direct as the MLL needs. It's a challenge to facilitate the complexities of this in my classroom.

Prior to this role, I taught Secondary English for 18 years, spending 3 years in middle school and 15 in high school. The Danger of a Single Story and Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors were resources from Module 1 that immediately resonated with me as I reflected on my classroom experience and considered my current role and its challenges. As I partner with teachers in their planning practices, it’s essential to emphasize that high-quality instructional materials must be inclusive and reflective of diverse lived experiences. Bishop gives this reminder: “When children cannot find themselves reflected in the books they read, or when the images they see are distorted, negative, or laughable, they learn a powerful lesson about how they are devalued in the society of which they are a part.” 

One challenge in a large, comprehensive high school, is that I don’t get to collaborate with every teacher or team. This makes it even more important that I ground my work in CLR practices to maximize each opportunity that arises.

I think that CLD strategies are especially relevant in my content area as we see fewer heritage and native speakers of Spanish taking Pre-IB (advanced) Spanish classes and IB Spanish than their non-Spanish speaking peers. While we have a two year program for Spanish speakers, our heritage speakers often get lost in the shuffle where they “know too much” for an entry level Spanish 1, but their oracy skills are not strong enough for the entry level Native Spanish Speakers class. Many of these students want to take Spanish classes, but are not seen as a candidate for these advanced level classes. Oftentimes their existing knowledge is not seen as the “right” type of knowledge in order to gain entry into these advanced courses. This brought to mind the a quote from Culturally Responsive Teaching in this module’s reading, Gay states: “Students of color who are most traditional in their communication styles and other aspects of culture and ethnicity are likely to encounter more obstacles to school achievement than those who think, behave, and express themselves in ways that approximate school and mainstream cultural norms” (p. 90). These students are trying to stretch between worlds and find it difficult to find their place. I am hoping that as an educator I can learn more about instructional equity in this course to support more students in my school community.

I believe Culturally and Linguistically Responsive strategies are very important in our schools/districts. As a Visual Arts teacher my subject matter is somewhat easier for most ELL due to the visual components, especially in elementary school. However, there are still many boundaries for these students and the strategies help greatly to bridge the gap in learning as well as the inclusion into the classroom environment. They also help us to understand and appreciate different cultures and our uniqueness as well as similarities. Some challenges are implementing some of the strategies when only seeing the students once every week and a half due to our rotating specials schedule. However, our school does share information and strategies relating to students individual needs and learning styles.

However, implementing CLR strategies presents challenges. One major challenge is the misconception that culturally responsive teaching means replacing grade‑level content with “relatable” but less rigorous materials. As the article notes, a watered‑down curriculum can actually widen achievement gaps rather than close them. Another challenge is supporting teachers who may lack confidence, resources, or training to integrate CLR practices effectively while preserving instructional coherence. We are very lucky in CCSD as we have a strong PD platform for CLR practices. As a coach, my role includes helping teachers navigate these challenges by aligning CLR strategies with high‑quality curriculum, intentional planning, and ongoing reflection to ensure both cultural relevance and academic excellence. All that being said, it is a continuing conversation we have as a staff to be mindful of CRE practices in our instruction.

At my school, I am a teacher that has students who speak different languages. I work daily with a ML coach who comes to help co-teach lessons. CLR strategies are important because without them we are not honoring students identity. CLR recognizes that students who are ML have assets such as culture, language, and lived experiences. Students learn best to what they already know and it is important to understand their backgrounds and home languages to boost motivation and involvement.

Challenges could be only seeing ML students once a week or not enough to work on these important strategies. Its important to see these students more than once a week.

It is important to have meaningful conversations around CLR with staff throughout the school year.

Where I can broaden my understanding of Culturally Responsive Teaching is in my approach classroom management. I found the potation of the article, "Culturally Responsive Teaching Matters!" on Colorblind Motivational Models to be very interesting. I definitely have employed them in my teaching practice. The idea of students "acting on their own assumptions" and "appearing oppositional or defiant" to teacher instructions makes logical sense to me. Throughout my teacher education and practice, I have learned to include students in building classroom norms. But what happens when those processes do not work? If being culturally responsive respects a student's home culture (which is different from school culture and school expectations), and parents are unwilling or unable to support or meet in the middle, how does a teacher reach that student when defiance and opposition becomes the norm regardless of culturally responsive efforts? This is something I ponder every year as a teacher. I believe in the value of Culturally Responsive Teaching as a multifaceted necessity for reaching and teaching children. This specific element, as outlined in the Equity Alliance article is trickier than other curriculum and instructional choices.

In our school, Portuguese is the language mostly commonly spoken in the home by many of our students but certainly not all of our students. This predominance of Portuguese finds its way into the hallways and classrooms of the school, and while some classes such as Brazilian Social Studies and Portuguese, are intentionally taught in the language of this school’s home country, other classes are not. This means that, for many of our Brazilian students, the majority of their learning takes place in their second language. Math, Science, Humanities, Art, Music, P.E. and our community-focused Advisory time, are all learning experiences taught or facilitated in English. 

To be sure, many of our students are bilingual, with English as their second (or third) language of fluency. They are easily able to communicate in English, but this is not true of all of our Brazilian students and it is certainly not true of many of the students at this international school that come from around the globe. Yet, our program dedicated to English Language Learners  is small, only able to offer direct support to a limited number of students, far less than those who could benefit from strategies honoring the diverse linguistic and cultural background represented in our classes. 

In my position as an instructional coach, there is theoretically an opportunity to support teachers with building up their toolbox of strategies in support of English Language Learners and to promote culturally responsive teaching, but there are also a number of other priorities our school has identified which I, and other instructional coaches, are tasked with. This all amounts to a need for greater awareness and support for culturally and linguistically diverse students. With a relatively new focus on promoting a sense of belonging in all parts of the school, an even greater spotlight seems to shine on the school’s lack of support for students for whom English, as an academic language, is challenging. We see some classrooms including strategies like translanguaging, which is beneficial but not sufficient to understand our students as muti-dimensional human beings, not flattened by single stories.

My name is Bethany Brent, and I am in my 4th year teaching Middle School/High School English in rural Northeast Colorado. In our school district, we see very few MLL's in the classroom, with only just a handful of students K-12 who speak English as a second language. I believe that as a district, we are just now seeing a slight increase in LEP students.

I watched the Ted Talk, The Danger of a Single Story, by novelist Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. Her speech was thoughtful and informative. She very respectfully presented the idea of why buying into a single story about a group of people or specific culture can be so limiting and damaging to reality. When we are not well educated on a place or group of people, we tend to reduce them to one, simple, ultimately unfair, story. I see similarities between Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's story and my own school district. We do have a limited perspective on some of our MLL students because we do not have their full story, or the full story of where they come from, and because we encounter so few of these students.

CLR strategies are important because to really be an effective teacher, we need to know our student's background. Inclusiveness and equity go far beyond the classroom, they make a child feel seen and respected. A child who is seen and respected will feel more comfortable in the classroom and hopefully learn!

One difficulty I see within our small district is that with so few MLL students, it is easy to teach to the majority and to assume the minority students are "getting it." It's no mystery that teachers are limited on time to plan, so it often happens that plans are made with the majority in mind. In our case, that would be English-speaking, Middle-Class students. Also, we have a small K-12 school library with limited resources for our students.

Thankfully, to combat these difficulties, we are able, as a district, to staff excellent para and Title 1 support that has the ability to extend to all students. We offer a great 1-1 ratio for students when needed.

The challenge to reach MLL students is great, but the reward for these students in even greater.

But I truly think the most impactful use of CLR strategies for me has been it's use in goal setting for my students. I believe families hold the deepest understanding of their child’s strengths, challenges, cultural values, and long‑term hopes. By inviting families to share their priorities—whether that’s communication, independence, daily living skills, or future community participation—I ensure that IEP goals reflect not just academic expectations, but the life skills that matter most to them. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's The Danger of a Single Story reminds us that every child is an individual and should not be looked at as a generalization. That could not be more true in my classroom. Every family’s vision for their child is shaped by their background, beliefs, and experiences. By listening to those perspectives and incorporating them into goal‑setting, I can build plans that honor the whole child and support a future that aligns with the family’s dreams.

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies are important because they help ensure all students feel seen, valued, and capable of success. In my role, I work with students from diverse cultural and language backgrounds. When instruction connects to students’ identities and lived experiences, engagement increases and learning becomes more meaningful.

The concept of Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors highlights why CLR strategies matter. Mirrors allow students to see themselves reflected in classroom materials, building confidence and belonging. Windows expose students to cultures and perspectives different from their own, while sliding glass doors invite them to step into those experiences and develop empathy and understanding.

Challenges to implementing CLR strategies include limited access to diverse resources, time constraints, and ensuring representation is authentic rather than surface-level. However, intentional planning, reflection, and a willingness to learn can help educators overcome these challenges and create more inclusive classrooms where all students can thrive.

The first video 'The Danger of a Single Story' made me laugh when she told her roommate about how she was surprised after reading American Psycho that everyone in America wasn't a serial killer. I guess I never understood the extent to which children in some countries only have materials from more affluent and influential countries, and so the materials they use have no relevance to them. When the speaker discussed being in Nigeria and Reading about kids playing in the snow, it made sense that these countries need a better system and more relevant materials.

I wasn't sure what I thought about the suggestion in the reading 'Culture and Communication in the Classroom' that we try to mimic speech patterns of different cultures. I am totally on board with the theme of this unit, and I strive to improve the amount of diverse materials I use in class as well as to better understand how students may struggle to learn from me, but this seemed like a very antiquated way of trying to connect with students. Colloquialisms aside, trying to speak to students using their cultural style seems disingenuous to me. It is helpful to understand cultural norms around how students approach their learning, and I need to be better at communicating with these differences in mind, but I probably won't try that.

My name is Rachael Christiansen and I am a middle and high school math teacher in Telluride. This is my 9th year teaching and my first year in Telluride. 

People often assume Telluride is solely an affluent, white district. But, in reality, we actually have quite a diverse population of students with multiple ELD students. I have 8 students, out of 80, who come from households where English is not the primary language spoken. The district itself has a lot of supports in place, and even offers Dual Immersion courses in ES and MS. However, in HS there are fewer options for our ELD students. That means setting these students up for success, we as teachers need to implement specific strategies to help them feel connected to the class and give them the tools they need to succeed.

Alamosa School District RE-11J

3rd Grade teacher

Alamosa Elementary 3-5

Hello, I am Megan, and I currently teach a diverse, large Hispanic and Latino population. Currently, about 70 of our students are low-income, high-poverty, and a large majority of those students are also Hispanic or Latino. This coursework, articles, and conversations here are highly relevant to the work that I do every day. We have three ELL (ML) teachers who serve our school (one per grade) that work closely alongside us in the general education classroom to support their/our studnets needs. It is very important that we meet these students where they are at, whether they are NEP or LEP. We are very fortunate to have grade-level, elective, and ML teachers, as well as administration, who communicate with students and parents in their native language. The majority of our students/parents speak Spanish. Not only do I personally create differentiated instructional lessons, but I am also mindful of how I present them to enrich students' vocabulary and consider their background knowledge. Because this population is so vast, those two concepts are most important to me. One struggle, and I wish it wasn't, was being able to speak Spanish myself. I know many teachers feel this way, however, we are very grateful for the many staff members that are able to translate for students and their families.

Not only is academic differentiation important, but it is also essential to consider the classroom environment, school culture, and climate. As a classroom teacher and a future administrator, I should also consider school climate and culture alongside the importance of academics. Kids need to know they have a space where they come to school, where they are loved and valued, yet where there are high expectations and accountability. That is why the article "The School Climate - Student Achievement Connection: If We Want Achievement Gains, We Need to Begin by Improving the Climate" caught my attention. We currently have administration and teacher/staff leaders who contribute to building our school culture and climate daily. Our students know they come to school to learn and have high expectations, yet it is a safe place with many trusted adults. This sets the tone for our students, building, and staff, and it spreads into our community that we have a safe, positive, inclusive environment that is mindful of our ELL population and CLD strategies that will help them succeed in our classrooms, schools, and community. Again, CLR is extremely relevant because of the student population we serve.

Culturally and linguistically responsive teaching is important because teachers can help to foster a safe place for students to grow. The article “Windows, Mirrors and Sliding Glass Doors” outlines why it is important to choose a variety of multicultural literature, and creating a safe space for discourse. “Windows” offer students a chance to see another world, while “mirrors” offer students an opportunity to see and reflect on themselves. The TED talk-“ a Single Story” echoes this importance.

In my school, we have programs and supports for students from diverse backgrounds.  There are many conversations about text selections that provide opportunities for students to see themselves and the world around them.

It is important that we as teachers stop and reflect on our assumptions and best practices. Am I allowing my students to see themselves and see who they can be? I am setting high expectations and not making assumptions based on stereotypes.  Through CLR practices, teachers can meet students right where they are.

My name is Katie Hocheder, and I've been teaching for 13 years. I'm a teacher at Akron High School, teaching US History, Government, and a couple of history electives. I also teach PE and coach golf. We see very few MLL kids in our district, most of whom are in the elementary side. We have had a few NEP and LEP kids in the past who, thankfully, had some other students latch on to them and help them learn and navigate colloquial English. Of those students, one came knowing only how to ask for the restroom and to say "hi". Through Google Translate, I was able to more or less understand what he was trying to ask or say. Other kids really tried to help him learn English in the best way middle school kids could; holding up an object and saying what it was very slowly. This didn't help the kid much initially, but a couple of years later, he told me it was super weird, but helped him learn how to enunciate words better. After listening to "The Danger of One Story" TED Talk, I come to realize something kind of magical happened with this particular student. I'm not going to say I didn't make assumptions about him, and this was eight or so years ago so I don't remember what they may have been, but students in his class asked about his culture, asked how to say things in Spanish, and were genuinely interested in learning more about him and teaching him about their lives. They may have reduced one another to a "single story" but never verbalized it and truly worked through it to help one another learn about the other.

I think this is an important aspect in teaching NEP and LEP students; we need to meet them where they are and provide a safe space for them to learn or they won't feel comfortable growing. If we, as educators and people, don't use CLR strategies, we are not doing our students justice. Trying to learn about other cultures provides strength and opens doors to new experiences for all gorups. By learning about MLL students' cultures and lived experiences, we can better relate and help them learn.

Challenges exist in this, however. Students whose parents work often, requiring the student to do a lot of house work or take care of younger children, often result in the student not ready to learn at school or not get enough practice in with homework. Students who may be sick often or have to take care of younger siblings who are sick often create a similar situation. If we don't understand the different cultural considerations around the home life of all students, we may struggle helping in the classroom. Having limited resources, as my district does, present multiple challenges. For example, we have resources for Spanish speaking students, and are able to have excellent paras on staff, but as the areas around us grow, it attracts many diverse people which we may struggle getting resources for students if they come to our district.

CLR strategies are important because they ensure that instruction reflects and affirms the identities of all students. In the TED Talk, “The Danger of a Single Story,” Chimamanda Adichie explains how stereotypes form when a single story is repeated over time and how power influences which stories are told and which are ignored. This reminds me how crucial it is to examine curriculum choices, classroom language, and instructional practices to ensure we are not unintentionally privileging one cultural perspective.

Instead, we must create space for multiple narratives through literature, discussion, family engagement, and student voice so that students experience learning as inclusive rather than limiting. One challenge is that teachers must move beyond “easy labels” and invest time in learning about students’ backgrounds, locating inclusive resources, and reflecting on personal biases. In communities where diversity may appear less visible, it can be easy to assume one dominant story represents everyone, making intentional responsiveness even more necessary.

By incorporating students’ backgrounds, experiences, and languages into lessons, educators can build stronger relationships, increase engagement, and make learning more meaningful and relevant for all students.

Hello! My name is Matt Dupont and I am currently teaching in Las Vegas for the Clark County School District. I am a 37-year veteran teacher. I have worked for Denver Public Schools as well. Most of my career has been spent working with mild / moderate special education students at the elementary level. For the majority of my career, I have focused on areas where second language learners are in the community.

I have seen CLR strategies at work in both the resource and in the general education settings.  In Exploring the School Climate -- Student Achievement Connection: Making Sense of Why the First Precedes the Second, by Albert Jones and John Shindler, it was stated that “the quality of the climate appears to be the single most predictive factor in any school’s capacity to promote student achievement.” I have seen firsthand how the climate of the school impacts learning in both positive and negative ways. An environment where CLR strategies are not in place can have negative impacts on student achievement.

Listening to Speaking of Psychology: How the need to belong drives human behavior, Geoffrey L. Cohen stated that it is “possible to bring more change than we often think” as educators.  He also stated that “we have a powerful impact, but we don’t see it.” As educators, we have the power and the responsibility to cultivate CLR strategies in both large and small groups not only to ensure the social growth of our students, but promote student achievement as well.

The challenges of creating a school wide community of CLR learners is at the forefront of a statement by Elizabeth B. Kozleski in Culturally responsive teaching matters. She stated that “Equally important is the way that instruction is facilitated.  When classrooms are organized into communities that are designed to encourage academic and cultural excellence, students learn to facilitate their own learning as well as that of their fellow students.”  Educators are empowered to support the academic and cognitive growth of their students. Classrooms that do not have strong CLR strategies fail to develop the metacognition of students needed to support students to facilitate their own learning.

Even though our school district is not as diverse as some in the surrounding districts, I have realized, as I have branched out through the school district, that there is a legitimate group of students who are relying on a Google app in order to understand what we are perhaps teaching in a single manner. I was startled to see that for some of these culturally diverse learners our answer might be to hand them a phone, and set them on their way with an app. After reading the article, "Culturally Responsive Teaching Matters!" I realized the impact on these students is not just on their lack of inclusiveness by how we are set up, but also the isolating impact on them because we are not yet set up to embrace their culturally diverse and linguistically diverse heritage.

As a substitute teacher, I realize I still have the power to engage with students each day, learn their story, and do my best to implement the strategies I learned from reading this article including setting up supportive small group learning, teaching a subject matter from different perspectives, making sure I teach expectations through clear communications, and continuing to grow myself and my understanding of other cultures by reading books or watching movies about other groups other than the majority of who our students are.

In the TED talk, "The Danger of a Single Story", Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie talks about if we are only exposed to one story, then that one story tells the whole story and is incredibly dangerous. She was eloquent in getting her message across as she spoke about people believing stereotypes if they are never exposed to multiple stories about a group of people. I can embrace this as a substitute teacher by asking for student participation and engagement about what stories our students have to share on whatever subject I might be teaching that day. What other ways can I involve students and give them ownership in the stories they share? I'm not sure yet, but it is something I will investigate.

Until then I will try to connect students' knowledge and skills to the content I am presenting. I will encourage inquiry, and will continue to educate myself on ways that I can further help culturally and linguistically diverse students feel valued and included.

Hello, my name is Lisa Newman, and I teach second grade at a private Catholic school in the Archdiocese of Denver. This year marks my 27th year of teaching. My experience includes both public and private schools, as well as teaching positions ranging from kindergarten through eighth grade.

Within my student population, learners who are culturally and linguistically diverse are smaller in number; however, other forms of diversity also shape our classroom community. I view a culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) classroom as a way to meet the needs of all students while also deepening the foundational love of Christ, who calls us to love one another.

Over the years, I have witnessed that for students to achieve academically, they must first be seen, know that they belong, and feel safe and affirmed in their own stories. A culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) classroom seeks to accomplish these goals. Novelist Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie provides powerful examples of the damaging effects of a single story and reminds us why “stories matter.” This idea connects to the truth that every student has a story—one that is as unique as they are. Their stories are shaped by their culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, as well as by their families and personal experiences. Honoring and uncovering these stories goes hand in hand with helping students feel seen and experience a sense of belonging—critical components that Geoffrey Cohen highlights in his interview.

One challenge I experience is learning my students’ stories. This process takes time and requires the development of trusting relationships. Another challenge is finding meaningful ways to help students learn about the stories of culturally and linguistically diverse populations beyond our immediate community. In Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors, the author notes that children’s literature has historically been predominantly white, which presents a challenge when seeking books that reflect diverse cultures and experiences.

I am grateful that the lessons of Scripture are an invaluable resource in my classroom. Jesus interacted with a wide range of people with love and mercy. He ate with tax collectors, defended the woman caught in adultery, and showed compassion to the woman at the well, to name just a few examples. His three years of public ministry provide a living example of meeting people where they are, listening to their stories, affirming their dignity, and calling them to live extraordinary lives.

Striving to create a CLD classroom where students are seen, feel that they belong, and understand that their stories matter is both my goal and my ongoing commitment.

When it comes to Cultural and Linguistically Responsive strategies, I must admit that my background is relatively limited. I've taught at four districts, all of which have been predominantly Caucasian. However, each contained a decent amount of students of Hispanic heritage as well. Even at the beginning of my career, I was aware that I should welcome all students to my classroom, ensuring each was appreciated and felt safe in the learning environment. An advantage to working at a small district (roughly 8-12 students per class) is that I can easily make connections with each student who enters the building; I've actively practiced this since day one.

However, until recently I haven't realized that although I've acknowledged all student cultural backgrounds, I haven't done quite enough to incorporate the various cultural identities into my curriculum. Last year I completed my Master's degree in History via Fort Hays University, which was eye-opening. I took multiple classes on African American History, Women's History, and Hispanic American History; each leading to realizations that I must continue to adjust my world to better fit those in my community who haven't come from the same ethnic communities I did. One class explored American History from South to North, as opposed to the traditional study from East to West. I've incorporated both strategies into my curriculum.

In the TED talk, "The Danger of a Single Story," by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, the listener is made witness to something I'd never considered, which is availability of children's books to minority cultures. Adichie explains that the books she had available all contained white characters who often interacted with one another in settings containing mountains and snow. This was her 'single story' when it came to children's literature; that the only books about adolescents involved people who didn't look like her, in unfamiliar settings. Of course, that is far from the truth. Everyone in education should refrain from the 'single story' definitions of peoples and locations.

The challenge I face is having a more well-rounded understanding of the diverse backgrounds my Hispanic students bring to the table. As a district, we must do a better job of understanding the difference between 'different' and 'bad'. Cultural differences do not need to be frowned upon, but rather should be explored and implemented into the curriculum in an honest, positive manner. Different doesn't mean bad... it is merely different. Differences in cultural attitudes and beliefs must be explored and included whenever possible, to expand learning for all students.

Hi! My name is Shannon Miller and I have been teaching for twenty-five years at Ponderosa Elementary in the Cherry Creek School District. We are a feeder elementary for Prairie Middle School and Overland High School in Aurora. We are a Title 1 designated school and serve an extremely diverse student population. I have taught both second and third grade here, but have been teaching third grade the past several years.

 I currently have nine Multi Language Learners in my classroom and work very closely with my English Language Specialist (ELS) to ensure we are developing their English language skills and helping them grow as learners. After reading the article Culturally Responsive Teaching Matters my one big take away was when E.B. Kozleski says, “When classrooms are organized into communities that are designed to encourage academic and cultural excellence, students learn to facilitate their own learning as well as that of their fellow students”. I have always found it to be extremely important to have a classroom that feels like a community of learners, and with six new comers who do not speak the same language as their peers it was even more important this year to really build our classroom community. Furthermore, after reading the school climate article I found it not surprising that when you feel like you belong your academic achievement is higher. Additionally, it has been very important to have content that is culturally relevant and books that are both in English and Spanish that reflect their culture. One challenge I have encountered this year is not being able to fully communicate with my six students who do not speak English yet. They are so smart and with all the work we are doing with them I know they will pick it up quickly.

I look forward to taking this class and learning more about Culturally and Linguistically Responsive Teaching.

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive strategies help create classrooms where students grow by respecting and embracing the sociocultural reality and history of each student’s life. In the TED Talk, “The Danger of a Single Story”  Chimamanda Adichie gives great examples of why one story might negatively impact how people interact with each other, if they aren’t able to set their stereotypes aside. Bringing stories and curriculum with different points of view and perspectives can add richness and depth, and life lessons that enhance student engagement, bridge the achievement gap, and create community. 

Challenges of CRL might be limited access to diverse resources and meaningful representation, and then the big one, is having enough time. From my experience most teachers desire to reach and inspire each one of their students, but having the resources available and having the time within each lesson while meeting the standards is a challenge on its own.

As a white male, I am certainly aware of the pitfalls of not being aware of the conscious and subconscious biases I may carry with me. Further, I am aware of that "I don't know what I don't know" and must forever seek to deepen my understand of the world, including the variety of traditions, norms and experiences that my students bring to my classroom. Cherry Creek High School has a reputation of being an upper-class, predominately white school, but this oversimplifies the school significantly. Diversity in all forms is present in my classroom, and the challenges faced by some of my students is compounded by the primarily white, primarily upper class environment that they occupy. Students might feel alone, isolated and misunderstood. Certainly, they might feel the weight of the "Single Story" as presented by Chimamanda Adichie. Our students with Latin or Hispanic backgrounds might be thought of in terms of their immigration status, and our black students may be thought of in terms of athletics. Of course, each student is entitled to their own story, their own humanity, with their own backgrounds and experiences that are unique to them. It's difficult to imagine any human being pursuing excellence in an atmosphere in which they can not be their true, authentic selves and are viewed through a lens that tears them down to stereotypes and denies them the benefit of their own individuality.

Yet, awareness doesn't directly translate to a culturally responsive classroom or school. My school generates some of the very best standardized test scores in Colorado, but subgroups (such as black and Hispanic students) lag somewhat behind. Feedback received by the school suggests a strong belief that attending my school (as a person of color) requires setting aside your own culture to meet the expectations of the community at large. Although discussions and trainings take place regarding culturally responsive education, it hasn't permeated the culture of the school system at large. My wife, a black woman, was carded once on the first day of district training when picking up her school issued computer - apparently, the tech support person had doubts about her being an educator. Somehow, there is a disconnect between the awareness of diversity in the school system and the need for culturally responsive education on an academic level and the reality we face daily as complex human beings with our own thoughts and feelings about other human beings. The stubbornness of this issue and our slowness to overcome it is sobering.

The 2016 study by Schindler and others highlights the importance of creating a culturally responsive classroom and school. In the study, they successfully connected academic achievement to the climate of the school, in particular as it pertains to the expectations of success and failure. If any educator expects a student to succeed or fail based on their perceived history or experience, it becomes a kind of self-fulfilling prophecy. The environment of the classroom can become poisoned with the weight of expectation. Imagining myself in such an environment makes me almost physically ill - why would I want to work hard and achieve in a place where my teacher held unfair assumptions about me? Why do some students need to prove themselves in a way that other students don't?

It should be noted here that my school draws many students of diverse backgrounds based on a strong reputation for college preparation and academic success. Many students enter our classrooms aware of the challenges faced by many students who don't fit the "suburban, white" norm. They come anyway because our academics are so strong. We can be proud of that as well as recognizing that we have more work to do. This trade-off doesn't need to exist at all, and frankly, a more culturally aware and responsive school benefits everyone. We live in a world where virtually any country is accessible and open to us, ready to provide opportunities galore, and more awareness and comfort will help everyone.

My first school was in the Elizabeth School District, a rural district where I taught first and second grade for five years. I started my career in 1996, at a time when roughly 90% of the student population was White, with the remainder made up of Hispanic and other racial/ethnic groups. At that time, Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CLD) strategies were not a focus for the school or for me as an educator.

In 2001, I moved to an elementary school in Highlands Ranch, joining the Douglas County School District. The racial makeup of this school was similar to my previous experience, so the use of CLD strategies again was not a focus.

In 2017, I began teaching at High Plains Elementary in Cherry Creek School District, and this experience opened my eyes to my previous lack of understanding about diversity and CLD strategies. I taught in the ELS cluster, which began my journey of learning how to work with Multilingual Learners. I am grateful for the partnership and guidance I received from the English Language Specialist, which helped me grow as an educator.

After watching The Danger of a Single Story by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, I began to reflect on my own awakening when I moved to High Plains. Adichie explains how a “single story” creates incomplete and often harmful narratives about people and communities. In my own experience, relocating exposed gaps in my understanding that I hadn’t previously recognized. I realized that much of what I “knew” was shaped by limited perspectives.

That awakening was uncomfortable, but necessary. It helped me see how easily assumptions can shape expectations in a classroom. As I learned more about my students’ cultures, families, and lived experiences, I began to understand the importance of expanding my perspective. My growth has reminded me that culturally responsive teaching requires ongoing humility, listening, and learning.

Adichie’s message reinforces that our role as educators is not just to teach content, but to ensure students are not confined to a single narrative. By broadening our understanding, we create space for students to be seen in their full complexity and strength.

Ten years later, I moved to my current school. After Reading Culturally Responsive Teaching Matters! by Elizabeth Kozleski, it allowed me time to pause and really think about my own setting. I teach in a magnet GT school where many of our families are bilingual and we have a strong presence of students from India and across Asia, with fewer students of color overall. On the surface, it feels diverse and it is, but Kozleski reminds me that diversity by itself doesn’t automatically mean we’re being culturally responsive.

What stood out to me is the idea that culturally responsive teaching isn’t about adding a holiday or celebrating food and festivals. It’s about whose knowledge is centered and what we define as “normal” or “academic.” In a GT setting, that hits home. Gifted programs can unintentionally privilege certain communication styles, confidence levels, or cultural norms. I have to ask myself: Who participates the most? Who feels comfortable challenging ideas? Who might be brilliant but quiet?

The bilingual piece also resonates. Instead of seeing multiple languages as something separate from academic work, I can lean into it as intellectual strength. Encouraging students to make connections in their home language

I also think about the “model minority” stereotype. Even positive assumptions can flatten students into a single story. Culturally responsive teaching means seeing each child as an individual not as a representative of a group.

For me, the biggest takeaway is that this work is ongoing. It’s reflective. It’s noticing small patterns in my classroom and being willing to adjust. In a magnet GT school, responsiveness might look different than in other settings, but it’s just as necessary. It means making sure every student feels seen, intellectually valued, and culturally affirmed and not just academically successful.

These are ongoing challenges I notice in my magnet GT classroom. Even with many bilingual students and a strong presence of Indian and Asian cultures, some students struggle quietly with academic language, while others feel pressure to always excel. Participation styles and cultural norms can make some students seem disengaged or overly cautious, and students from smaller racial groups may feel hyper-visible or overlooked. These challenges remind me that culturally responsive teaching is about more than celebrating diversity, it’s about intentionally creating a classroom where every student’s language, culture, and perspective are recognized and valued.

As someone who has worked in multiple districts and at different schools, I have personally seen and experienced why culturally responsive teaching is necessary and effective in helping students. Additionally, I have witnessed what happens when this does not take place. From my experience, the most effective classrooms were those that made an active effort to help students see themselves represented by the class material. As was expressed in the video "The Danger of a Single Story" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, far too often, students are exposed only to the traditional white/European view of history, culture and methods of interpreting the world. This can and does create tension between the culture of CLD students and the traditional methods of European/American education. As was pointed out by Geneva Gay, people of different cultures and races have a variety of dialects, ways of speaking, and ways of expressing themselves. Traditional education settings have historically attempted to force the students to suppress these differences and conform to the standard European methods of learning, behaving and speaking. This causes the students to feel that their culture is being threatened and is not conducive to learning. When one adds negative stereotypes about specific races and cultures to this mix, it results in a form of self-fulfilling prophesy where the teacher/education system does not allow the student to see themselves as represented in the classroom nor does it hold the student to high standards. The student thus experiences a form of learned helplessness where they don't even try to learn and take a posture of resistance to the education system, a system that they feel is attacking their culture and identity. In fact, this response makes sense. If the education system constantly tells a student that their culture is irrelevant and that they are not expected to master the material, why should that student care about school? Though I am white, I can somewhat relate to this as I am on the autism spectrum and had to go through the standard education system. When the education system failed me, which it often did, I was told that it was my fault and that I just needed to try harder. I did try harder at first, but it was not enough and in seventh grade, I was multiple grade levels behind in reading and writing. I managed to improve because my parents pulled me out of school and placed me in a private school that was designed to help people with special needs (Denver Academy). However, most people are not so fortunate and cannot do that, and before I went to Denver Academy, I passionately hated school and wanted nothing to do with any of it.

Therefore, I agree that teachers must learn how to incorporate culturally responsive teaching into their lesson plans and into the curriculum. This will allow students of many diverse racial and ethnic background to feel represented, heard, and respected within the classroom.

Though this is the goal, this goal is not without its challenges. Firstly, it is not enough for every teacher to know what they must do, for they also need to be able to change their instruction from what it traditionally was to what is now required. This will require teachers to undergo professional development to learn the skills they need, but more importantly, it will require that the curriculum of the schools and districts be changed so as to incorporate culturally responsive teaching. Within the Cherry Creek School District, I have worked both in schools which do adopt a curriculum that is designed to be culturally sensitive and in those that do not. Some schools in other districts are still steeped in more traditional lecture formats of teaching in which the student is expected to passively listen, memorize and regurgitate information. Moreover, the high emphasis placed on mandated standardized tests and how these test outcomes are tied to teacher performance and job security incentivizes teachers to "teach for the test" instead of utilizing effective culturally responsive teaching. There are many changes that need to take place within the education system, and many districts are slow to adopt the needed changes. This is largely the reason why I want to get into curriculum design and work as a instructional designer, so that I can have a positive influence of the way curriculum is being designed at the district level. The public education system is changing, and needs to have well made curriculum that reflects the times we live in and that is culturally sensitive and responsive to the diverse learners that make up the modern student body of the public school system.

CLR is crucial in my role teaching ela: literature, writing, communication.  Literature alone needs careful, specific intention to be as responsive as possible to the many cultures and mindsets within the class.  Literature can be richer and more accessible when it’s culturally relevant, and  It can be off-putting and incomprehensible if it’s a writing piece that is culturally irrelevant. .  Writing, which can be deeply personal, can feel “wrong” without cultural relevance or connections.  What students write about, how they write, word choice, syntax are all deeply embedded culturally. Writing instruction is tricky with the best of rubrics.  As in reading, cultural differences can lead to a difference in what appears to be understood or not understood. The language alone can be inaccessible, or the context of a specific culture is not understood.  Reading and writing instruction is steeped in implicit bias. 

In addition to my role as the ela teacher on my team, I have a crucial role of being their ela teacher for three years. The purpose of this structure is to support relationships, and that makes culturally sensitive and responsive teaching even more crucial.  I ask myself often, “what is the benefit of having me as a teacher for three years?” That’s a big question, and the answer lies in my willingness and motivation to be sensitive and responsive to all learners, especially understanding myself and my own implicit biases.

In “The Danger of A Single Story”, I appreciated the running metaphor thread of narrative as our lens. As a writer, the concepts within the construct of story resonates with me. It makes sense to me, how we are manipulated in stories by what the author/narrator crafts for us to know.  Thinking of all that is underlying all social interactions, understanding that we see only part of the story, that helps remind me, as an educator, to think about the whole story of each student, not just what I observe in their work, actions, interactions. Adichie builds her story of how not to reduce people to the stereotypes of their culture.  This resonated with me and my current role in my school.  

A big challenge with my role is that 70% of our demographic is white, with only 1% of the remaining demographic being other than hispanic.  I have heard the “fish out of water” expression in a few of the readings, and it helped me to think about myself especially when I first started teaching in Colorado (I grew up in Maine in the 60’s and 70’s). . On the surface, there are a lot of similar cultural expectations, but the deep cultural impact is almost more stark because of there being essentially two different demographics, one greatly outnumbering the other, and then a very small demographic that must feel completely like fish out of water. I have favorite texts that build bridges with our lesser experienced cultures, but that’s scratching the surface.  

I also listened to “How the Need to Belong Drives Human Behavior”. I appreciated Cohen’s takeaways of “The lesson isn’t so much about the power of any wise intervention, per se, as much as it is about the power that we all hold as engineers of one another’s situations to bring out one another’s best.” This is something that I think about a lot, grabbing that “teachable moment” (to oversimplify). 

Cohen boiled it down often to the power of “the smallest thing at the right time.”  I think that’s a good mantra to focus on the challenges of including CSL teaching, if we focus on the smallest thing, hopefully we stay in the moment, which helps us recognize a deeper narrative.

Reading the transcript of "How the need to belong drives human behavior" helped me make a lot of connections to the filmmaking program that I have designed (along with a couple of different amazing teaching partners). Filmmaking, at its core, is a collaborative venture, and it requires the development of excellent communication skills amongst all members of a filmmaking team. With this in mind, it has been very important for us to design a program that centers community, collaboration and belonging. Filmmaking and the study of film are amazing platforms for showcasing the things that connect us as humans, as well as celebrating our unique cultural, linguistic and personal differences. We try to be very intentional about both exposing our students to a wide-range of cultural and personal perspectives when we choose content to share with them, as well as encouraging them to look to their own experiences, families, stories, myths and cultures as sources for the stories they want to tell in their work. This creates space for the filmmakers in my program to feel that they belong.

The school where I worked in Denver had families that spoke 30 different languages. We celebrated diversity as a strength and I noticed how students openly talked about both their similarities and their differences. We filled our libraries with books to mirror and reflect students’ cultures and experiences. It created a sense of belonging for everyone in our school community, and often that belonging led to trust and a safe environment for learning. 

I contrast that experience with my own child’s first grade experience here in Boulder. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s TED talk about the danger of a single story really struck me. This is exactly why I sent him to our local public school, in which he’ll experience at least a little bit of diversity in an otherwise very white, privileged town, and learn and play alongside kids who look and speak differently. As was stated in the Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors article, “If they see only reflections of themselves, they will grow up with an exaggerated sense of their own importance and value in the world - a dangerous ethnocentrism.” I didn’t want this for my child.

Yet in this school environment in which there are essentially only two languages/cultures (English and Spanish), it creates a divide - each ‘side’ perhaps seeing the other as a single story. In Kindergarten, my son would come home talking about ‘the Spanish kids’ and I worked hard to validate the differences he was seeing, and also encourage him to notice their commonalities and learn about their cultures. It made me marinate on the idea that perhaps it is easier to teach in a culturally responsive manner in an environment in which there is a lot of diversity than in an environment in which there is little. I wonder others’ thoughts on this. 

CLR , in my opinion is instruction which is responsive to the dynamics of the classroom. I am currently substitute teaching. Walking into a new environment can be a shock to the system for everyone, students and teacher. Picking up on the invisible expectations, cultural mindsets, and mediating student struggles of all varieties begin immediately and last all day.

Everyone has a story; a story of happiness, a story of challenges, and a story of hope. often times a story may seem completely unfathomable, yet deliverence of oneself to a new outcome is the essence of resilliency.

I am not Latino, I am white. I am the minority in my community and in the schools where I teach. Understanding each other doesn't happen on Fiesta Day, or every Taco Tuesday. Understanding occurs everyday, all day. Talking about feelings, Allowing students to facillitate their learning and share their findings. Reflecting continuously on what works, what doesn't work and collaborating with each other.

High teacher standards coupled with the expectations for students to learn and maintain high educational standards for treating themselves, each other, and the quality of their learning environment will maximize our potential every day.

Kozleski, Culturally Responsive Teaching Matters, identified my favorite teaching tool. "catch students being good". Especially, as a substitute teacher, positive praise feels good and energizes the whole. Most students enjoy positive praise and I believe even those who don't will brush off the compliment, but I have planted the seed that they are great. Wise interventions, said Geoffrey Cohen phd., help students feel less invisible and a part of the community.

I am not sure yet what the future will hold for me as an educator, However I know that in every classroom and school there exists both non-dominant and dominat cultures, where the people all need the diversity of a curriculum that offers individuality and collaboration.

After three years, I moved to Japan and worked as an English teacher from 2010–2012. Arriving in Japan with very limited knowledge of the language and culture made daily communication challenging, especially reading kanji and understanding cultural expectations. However, I was determined to learn. I asked colleagues for guidance, practiced phrases, and gradually developed enough language skills to communicate more effectively with my students. My experience in Japan was deeply meaningful and allowed me to form lasting friendships with colleagues, parents, and former students who still keep in touch today.

In 2011, I met my husband, who serves in the military. Since then, I have followed him from one country to another, teaching children from a wide variety of backgrounds. Each child I have worked with has been different, and each experience has shaped me as an educator. Working with American children from multicultural and multilingual families has been both fulfilling and full of learning. Teaching young learners allows me to build strong foundations for communication, cultural awareness, and early academic development.

Implementing Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies in early childhood is essential—and often challenging. As someone who has personally navigated new cultures and languages, I understand how overwhelming these experiences can be. That firsthand experience motivates me to ensure every child in my classroom feels accepted, loved, and included.

Many of my students come from multilingual households or enter school with varying levels of English exposure. Because of this, intentional CLR practices—such as visual supports, structured routines, home‑language affirmations, and strong family partnerships—are critical in helping students feel safe, seen, and capable. One challenge is balancing developmentally appropriate instruction with each child’s diverse language needs, especially considering their short attention spans and early developmental stages. Another challenge is maintaining meaningful communication with families whose primary language may not be English, while still honoring their cultural values and expectations. I am also seeing more and more children entering my classroom with a wide range of cultural and linguistic backgrounds, which pushes me to continually grow and improve as an educator.

Despite these challenges, CLR strategies enrich our classroom community. They help students build confidence, develop respect for differences, and experience an inclusive environment where all children can thrive. As educators, our commitment to responsive practices supports students’ academic, social, and emotional development and fosters a strong sense of identity and belonging.

As a 9th grade Honors Biology and IB Biology teacher, I teach in spaces that are labeled as "advanced." Because of that belonging matters even more. As multiple resources referenced, if students do not see themselves as someone who belongs in Honors or IB science, it impacts how they participate, how they show up for class, how willing they are to struggle, and how they view their own potential.

Module 1 emphasized that learning is social. If students feel excluded or unsure of whether they belong, their brain shifts into survival mode rather than learning mode. In biology, where all students are learning new vocabulary, analyzing data, and explaining complex processes, they have to feel safe enough to make mistakes. I make sure to make it clear to everyone that we are all learning and have many assignments during a unit that aren't for a grade, just immediate feedback in order to eliminate the pressure and emphasize the idea of making mistakes to learn. In advanced classes, I want students to see struggle as part of learning, not evidence that they do not belong.

One thing I have always been aware of teaching science and something that was emphasized in Module 1, is that there is often one dominant story of who is a "scientist." If students only see the one narrative, it narrows their assumptions. In my classroom, I try to be intentional about providing mirrors and windows. That might look like highlight diverse scientists when we study genetics and evolution, choosing examples that connect to students' lived experiences, or structuring discussions so multiple voices are heard.

Although I try to bring in mirrors and diverse stories, the representation gap is also a challenge in science curriculum. Many textbooks still center a narrow group of scientists and perspectives. Even when I add diverse images, stories, and examples to my slides, it can feel surface level.

Another challenge is participation norms. It is easy to equate quick answers, assertiveness, or strong verbal processing with understanding. I have to be careful not to unintentionally privilege one communication style over another.

Other than teaching, I’m in charge of our Gender Sexuality and Allies (GSA) club, and I work closely with our teachers and admin on helping to improve some of the ways that students see their identities in the classroom, and how to grow those identities for their future.

Whether teaching future educators, or an English class, I’m reminded from Module 1 that it is important to show students how to grow their own identities while learning about how those identities show up and are exhibited in the classroom and academic environments.  Whether the authors we choose to teach, the lenses with which we show them, or how students bond/connect with those stories and ideas, I feel it’s important for students to see themselves or interact with their own identities.  As shown through Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Doors, students and communities grow when our diversity can be reflected in the literature and information we consume in the academic environment.  I think it’s important that all students have the opportunity to see themselves in the material and curriculum through which they are learning.  In these ways, I believe that students can learn who their true selves are, and how important those true selves are to our communities and world.

I’m excited to keep learning more and updating my practices around these ideas to better assist the students I’m working with in becoming outstanding community members.

AS I listened to the TED Talk, "The Danger of a Single Story," I was reminded of the importance of having students interact with literature and textbooks that represent vast and diverse characters. It is important for students to see characters that resemble themeselves, to see characters representing the diversity of the human experience. Further, it is important for students of the dominant culture to see diverse characters accurately represented in order to broaden their views outside of their immediate spheres of influence, their "bubbles." There is a level of ethnocentrism that stems from a lack of such experience and perspective.

I believe strongly that our roles as educator's are two fold. One, we must strive to deepen our understandings of the cultural perspectives of our students to meet them where they are. At the same time, we must broaden the cultural perspectives of our students so that we are raising global citizens who are curious and do not make assumptions about others which can lead to prejudice and stereotyping.

Years ago I travelled to a smaller town in Mexico with the family of a former student. This was the town where the parents were raised before emigrating to the US. My husband remarked that his eyes were opened. Growing up he had heard negative comments about immigrant families that lived in perceived substandard ways, with many people seemingly "crammed" into small homes, sharing bedrooms. When we were in Mexico, as we shared a bedroom with my student's parents, my husband had a revelation. People in other countries did not have the expectation of "personal space" and privacy that Americans value. It was not less than or substandard, just different. He came to love the closeness of families in Mexico and came home with brand new perspectives and realizing he had adopted an ethnocentric belief system. We have a responsibility as educators to broaden perspectives of our students.

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies are important because they help ensure all students feel seen, valued, and capable of success. In my role, I work with students from diverse cultural and language backgrounds. When instruction connects to students’ identities and lived experiences, engagement increases and learning becomes more meaningful.

The concept of Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors highlights why CLR strategies matter. Mirrors allow students to see themselves reflected in classroom materials, building confidence and belonging. Windows expose students to cultures and perspectives different from their own, while sliding glass doors invite them to step into those experiences and develop empathy and understanding.

Challenges to implementing CLR strategies include limited access to diverse resources, time constraints, and ensuring representation is authentic rather than surface-level. However, intentional planning, reflection, and a willingness to learn can help educators overcome these challenges and create more inclusive classrooms where all students can thrive.

When reading, “Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors” by Rudine Sims Bishop, I was centered in the purpose of CLR through this quote, “In this country, where racism is still one of the major unresolved social problems, books may be one of the few places where children who are socially isolated and insulated from the larger world may meet people unlike themselves.” When reflecting on this, I thought of how I have previously taught in Denver Public Schools, where I felt there was a more diverse population, where students actually encountered quite a few cultures in my classrooms, though obviously still not a complete picture of the world. Previously, I worked with a group of educators in DPS to take our curriculum and modify it to be more culturally responsive, granted I worked at an “international” school, but now that I’m in a different setting, and the school is not driving this purpose, I have to be the one to bring it to the forefront with a team of educators who are just getting to know me. Now, I work in my home district, a place where I hope to send my toddler one day, and there is a change in the population when teaching in Littleton. It’s too important in this new setting, almost more important in this setting, that students are not given a “single story” of another race, mental or physical ability, culture, or socioeconomic status. I know that within my own classroom whiteness is the majority and as a white educator, in a position of power, I need to step up to make sure CLR is a priority.

As Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie said in her video, “The Danger of a Single Story”, “So that is how to create a single story, show a people as one thing, as only one thing, over and over again, and that is what they become.” This helped me reflect about how our current provided literature in our curriculum tries to bring in other cultures and I have noticed that we have read stories of other cultures, but we have mostly been centering American folktales and culture when it comes to supplementing our curriculum. This can drive students to that superiority that Bishop was referring to and doesn’t bridge their culture to other cultures within the world.

We began our school year with a project where students interviewed their families and created a family-culture poster. These are posted in our hallway and have been up all year. This was such a strong way to connect and bring their identities into the classroom at the beginning of the year. I think that working at school that emphasizes standards-based units that move on a very specific pacing guide, creates the problem of isolating these types of activities that create a true sense of belonging, to only a few moments within the year, when they should truly be weekly, if not, daily, in some way. I appreciate how Geoffrey L. Chone, PhD, put it in his podcast “Speaking of Psychology”, “Create a safe space for students to assert their core values and reflect on why those matter to them and share them.” While identity can be seen as beautiful aspects of outward culture, which are also valuable to learn about, the connections between students also depend heavily on just understanding how what you care about is also important to people who may not look like you or speak like you. I believe the major challenges to implementing CLR are the curriculum given, the district priorities and oversight, and the time allocations in our school year. Despite this, I know we can center it if we choose to make time. The research on student belonging improving their learning can serve as a jumping off point for convincing administrations and district that this is too important to let slip.

As I listened to, and read the different resources on Culturally and Linguistically Responsive teaching, I really kept coming back to the thought that especially as a white-male, implementing these strategies can help ensure that all of my students can access, connect with, and succeed with the curriculum becuase as a social studies teacher, so much of what we cover deals with identity, culture, history, and power. CLR strategies are important in every classroom because they improve learning for students of diverse backgrounds, they help students feel seen and valued, reduce unconscious bias in teaching, strengthen historical thinking beausse students are seeing the many perspectives, and help build stronger relationships with all students.

I think one of the biggest challenges with consistently implementing CLR strategies into the classroom, is that the curriculum that we have access to, generally does a very poor job of most things, and definitely does a sub-par job of bringing in authentic perspectives from diverse backgrounds. Something interesting that I am doing currently is serving on our district committee in charge of selecting new curriculum for the district. I was very excited to participate in this group and thought that we would be able to select something that would really benefit all of our students. I was thinking that in 2026, students would have a wide array of engaging curriculum that we could choose from. Last week, I sat through many different vendor presentations of the lastest and greatest social studies curriculum available. I walked out after listening to all of them, never more depressed to be a teacher knowing that all of the choices that we are choosing from are not engaging, do a poor job of catering to diverse learners, and we will be stuck with it for at least five years, probably longer. So I would say one of the big challenges to implementing CLR is that it can be extremely time consuming to acquire and procure all of the resources necessary, that should be part of a curriculum, but are often times not.

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies are essential because it allows equity among learners and all students to feel connected to the classroom, valued and have a meaningful learning environment. Through the resources I have watched and read, a few made me think of the community I teach in. I work in a culturally diverse title 1 school. I thought about how my some of my students create blue eyed blonde haired self portraits, when they have lovely deep brown skin and braids, when I was reading author Rudine Sims Bishops' article "Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors."In the article, Bishop explains

"When kids cannot find themselves in books they read, they learn how they are devalued in a society of which they are a part of." Noting that many of the early books used in school had never addressed

non white/ minority groups. Having resources and lessons about cultures, diversity, authenticating self expression with sharing family traditions, and visual connections identity. All of these can help build a classroom that is equitable, inclusive and empathetic. In art we do get to study and celebrate cultures. Art can be an amazing visual language.

The Challenges to implementing CLR strategies in the classroom, resources (or funding for resources) and time constraints. Truly meaningful participation from staff can help students feel like they belong in the classroom, facilitate learning, and create a community for all students to grow.

In my current role I have the opportunity to service learns across all grade levels at my school and see several classrooms. I feel that the work being done around CLD over the past few years is very important.

I read the article "Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors" and it really resonated with me as a former librarian. The need for all students to be able to see themselves in the books that are available to them is so important. I have seen it make a huge difference when students see someone like them in what they read. I feel that at the classroom level it is important that not only is there access to these books, but they are also books that are shared aloud.

I also listened to "How the need to belong drives human behavior" and I really found a lot of value in Dr. Cohen's advice around the wise interventions that can be done and how these small acts can make a large difference. In my role working with a variety of students I strive to make sure that there is a community feel and that everyone feels accepted, heard, and seen.

It is important to develop and implement CLD strategies considering best practices to meet the unique needs of CLD learners. As an educator in a predominantly white, middle class population, it is imperative to develop culturally responsive teaching strategies that consider the cultural and linguistic backgrounds of students with varying backgrounds. In my role as a math teacher, I realize and often reflect on my practices and how I deliver curriculum to CLD students. I try, through relationships and community building, to be sensitive to the backgrounds of different students. I think it is important to step out of my role as facilitator and allow students to have more control and autonomy in my classroom so that I can learn more about their perspectives for how they learn. I feel that it is important to acknowledge what students already know so they can make those connections when new material is introduced. This can be challenging at times due to the fact that it is difficult to achieve balance between the need to dedicate time for direct curriculum instruction geared towards academic achievement and the need to understand and foster the diverse learning styles of different students’ cultural perspectives. Other challenges include but are not limited to the scope and sequence demands of curriculum, the ability to dedicate time to organize activities that reveal different learning perspectives, and my own established organizational framework for classroom behavior structures.

To teach a 4th-grade class at a Title 1 charter school through the lens of the Equity Alliance’s "Culturally Responsive Teaching Matters" and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s "The Danger of a Single Story" is to commit to a pedagogy of humanization and a whole child approach to learning. In Title 1 settings, students are frequently the targets of a "single story"—a narrative of deficiency, poverty, or academic struggle that reduces their complex identities to a set of socio-economic statistics and disregards the student's individuality. Adichie warns that such limited perspectives rob people of their dignity and make the recognition of our equal humanity difficult. For a 4th grader, who is at a developmental crossroads of forming a self-concept and an academic identity, being seen only through a lens of their apparent "lack of" can be devastating. A culturally responsive teacher must actively disrupt this narrative by providing "mirrors and windows": curriculum that reflects the students’ own vibrant lives and cultures as sources of strength, while offering windows into the diverse, multifaceted lives of others.

Implementing these concepts requires moving beyond superficial "celebrations" of diversity and toward the rigorous pillars of Culturally Responsive Teaching (CRT). In a 4th-grade classroom, this starts with maintaining high expectations that reject the "pity paradigm" often found in high-poverty schools. All students in my classroom are held to the same standards. I do not regard their socioeconomic status as a reason to lower standards. I assume every student is capable of high-level critical thinking. Little did I know that I was already honoring the Equity Alliance's call for academic excellence as a form of equity. This involves leveraging the "wealth of knowledge" students bring from their homes—using their cultural metaphors, family traditions, and linguistic styles as the very scaffolding used to master 4th-grade standards. This is often referred to as background knowledge. As a teacher, I strive to validate a student’s home culture as a tool for learning rather than an obstacle to be overcome, in hopes to dismantle the power structures that Adichie argues sustain the "single story." I want students to feel that they are writing their own stories.

Ultimately, this approach transforms my classroom into a space of critical consciousness where 9 and 10-year-olds are empowered to question whose stories are told and whose are silenced. By diversifying the classroom library to include stories of joy and mundane daily life—not just stories of historical struggle—I how to be a teacher who ensures that students see themselves as protagonists of many possible futures in their own stories. Building genuine partnerships with families in Title 1 communities further reinforces this, treating parents as co-educators with essential expertise. By combining these frameworks, a teacher creates a collectivist environment where the "achievement gap" is addressed not through assimilation, but through an authentic belonging that allows every child to be seen as a whole child.

My name is Nanci Pike and I currently teach 4th grade at Olathe Elementary School in Olathe for the Montrose County school district. Teaching 4th grade is one of my favorite positions among the many teaching positions I have had over my 25 plus years of teaching. Those positions include horseback riding instructor, substitute, tutor, homeschool educator, homeschool cooperative teacher, public school educator in grades 3-7, and high school biology teacher. I feel it is important to share my diverse teaching background so you can better understand my position when I say Culturally and Linguistically Responsive Teaching is important in ALL areas of teaching and equally as challenging.  My current school is close to 50% Anglo and 50% Latinx.  I have 30 students and more are Latinx than Anglo.  I have one totally Spanish speaking student (he is new to the US this year), five other CLD students (all limited-English proficient in reading and comprehension, but do speak English to me for the most part), eighteen Anglo and Latinx English only speakers, and the rest are Latinx who are bilingual in Spanish and English.  I can not tell you how grateful I am for Google Translate and my bilingual students! Truly though, I can say that what really works are relationships.  We are a family.  We work together, help each other, learn from each other, get mad at each other, and GROW together. Things are not always easy, but learning to be culturally and linguistically responsive and applying CLD strategies are tremendous help.  

I think I learned how important being culturally and linguistically diverse is first through being a horseback riding instructor.  It wasn’t that my students were necessarily diverse, but the horses certainly were and it was vital that I helped my students learn about the diversity of whatever horse they got on.  This ties in so well to what Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie said in the “Danger of a Single Story” because if my students treated all horses exactly the same or as having a “single story” it could be potentially dangerous for the students and/or the horses.  Likewise, how damaging it is when humans, whether young or adult, see people of a particular race, gender, country, socioeconomic status, or you name it as all the same. I want to see people and teach my students to see people as individuals. I believe helping students learn to see and value each other's differences is extremely important to human growth and humanity as a whole. 

I mentioned relationships as being what works for me and I can not stress this enough.  Geoffrey Cohen in “How the Need to Belong Drives Human Behavior” explains that belonging can, in essence, drive achievement.  Students achieve more when they truly believe they are “seen”. I build our relationships from day one and I include the parents.  In class we do “get to know each other” activities. Then, I send home  “Through Your Eyes” surveys for students and parents to fill out separately so I can learn the perspective of both.  I use the information I obtained through the surveys all year to help me relate better to my students and their parents.  Knowing how a parent views their child and education teaches me a lot about the cultural and linguistic challenges that child may face.

I think it is easy for all teachers to see the importance of CLR teaching, but there are challenges when trying to implement the strategies effectively. Finding curriculum and books that allow students to see themselves can be a challenge. However,  my school's ELA curriculum has many different cultural stories and I appreciate the content.  In addition, 4th grade teaches Colorado History and the plethora of various cultures that shaped Colorado can really draw my students in.  Unfortunately, finding diverse curriculums in all subjects and different grades is a true challenge.   In “A Culturally Rich Curriculum Can Improve Minority Student Achievement" Audrey Kim points out an instance where reading personal narratives about US Japanese American WW II internment camps was an important point in his education because it was something he could relate to. Further proof that culturally diverse content has an impact.  Also,  I love and agree with this quote from  "Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors”: “They (children from dominant social groups) need books that will help them understand the multicultural nature of the world they live in, and their place as a member of just one group as well as their connections to all other humans.” This helps students avoid the “danger of a single story” because all are exposed to other cultures. 

So why then is this a challenge?  From my personal teaching experience, especially in public schools, a major challenge for promoting CLD strategies is not necessarily having availability of relatable books but the time constraints and the amount of standards we have to cram through before the end of the 3rd quarter.  It is hard to focus on being a CLR teacher and implementing CLD strategies under so much pressure.  Another challenge I see in implementing CLD strategies comes from the various paradigms families and society as a whole have.  It is difficult to break through, if you will, when some families are developing a fixed mindset to their children about other people or even about their own child’s ability to learn. Furthermore, these paradigms are being further ingrained by the algorithms driving what we see about people different from us on social media platforms.  

So why do I teach if I see difficult challenges in promoting culturally and linguistically diverse strategies? It is simple, I love my students and I believe I can help them grow academically and socially.  Maybe the glimpse of being valued, seen, encouraged, and affirmed by me will help youth do the same to others throughout their lives. No one has a “single story”, all need to belong, and I desire to reach all of my students even though there will always be challenges.  

After listening to Dr. Cohen, I knew what he was talking about because I see it in class. I have a foster kid in my class, and I see her trying to belong in class. When another student rejects her, she shuts down and is disappointed. I have had past student with the same trouble.  I usually have to talk to the class to try to help them understand why the student is acting the way he or she does. I try get the class to help support each other, instead of tearing each apart.

The TED by Chimamda Ngozi Adichie made me think about the stories we read in class.  I noticed that our math book put names in the word problem to mix it up and not just have the usual “white names”.  This can make it harder to read, but I also hear students say, “Hey, I know someone named …”.  There is also a story called Star In the Woods by that I read to the students and is part of Writing Alive program.  In this story the students see the point of view of a girl from Mexico, who’s family sneaked across the border. The girl is dealing with her dad getting back to the family after getting deported and finding a friend whose dad is in prison. I think it opens the student’s mind to what families go through when you are “illegal”.

I try to relate things the students know to what we are learning about.  I also try to get them to see how White Americans mistreated others.  We have learned about the Native Americans, the Chinese labors on the railroad, Japanese Internment Camps, Cubans in Little Havana, and how Mexico use to own this area.  I try to get them to see their point of view of history.  We even talk about why the Native American do not like Chirstopher Columbus.

Culturally and linguistically responsive teaching (CLRT) is an approach that recognizes students’ cultural backgrounds and language experiences as essential components of their learning. Rather than expecting students to adapt to a single way of teaching, CLRT requires educators to meet students where they are culturally and linguistically and provide the support needed for them to succeed academically.

This aligns with Hollie’s idea that teaching should not be a “sink or swim” experience, but instead a guided and scaffolded process.

One of the most important takeaways for me from the readings is that students bring valuable knowledge, experiences, and perspectives into the classroom, and these should be viewed as assets rather than barriers. The concept of “mirrors, windows, and sliding glass doors” also stood out, as it emphasizes the importance of students seeing themselves reflected in learning while also gaining exposure to new perspectives. When students feel seen and valued, they are more likely to engage and succeed.

At the same time, implementing CLRT can present challenges. Teachers must be intentional in designing lessons that are both culturally relevant and academically rigorous. There can also be challenges related to language barriers, especially when students understand content but struggle to express their knowledge in English. In my role as an interpreter, I see how easily students can be misunderstood if their language needs are not properly supported.

In my practice, CLRT means using strategies such as visuals, modeling, and scaffolding, while also building strong relationships with students and families. It also means being reflective about my own assumptions and ensuring that I am not viewing students through a deficit lens. Ultimately, culturally and linguistically responsive teaching is about creating an inclusive environment where all students feel valued, supported, and capable of success.

In my current roles, I see a contrast at times between the two districts I serve in. One has primarily students from lower socioeconomic/diverse backgrounds in which learning outcomes seem behind peers at the other school district I work in. That school district tends to have a more monolithic student body from more affluent backgrounds. In my time I can also observe students have more investment in their educational outcomes and overall sense of ownership at the one where there are less diverse student bodies.

Through these readings, I am reminded that perhaps the district outcomes where there is a higher diverse student body would yield more invested learners if the learning opportunities offered a connection to their learning journeys. Some measures that could offer more ownership and buy-in from the students in this setting could stem from communicating high expectations, actively engaging students in the learning (E.g., allow students to choose the type of extended activity component as a part of the current unit), offering instances where lessons have some alignment to their everyday lives, and showing a genuine interest in their scholastic outcome and community as a whole.

In reflecting on "Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors" I realized that actually the emphasis on providing children with a diverse range of literature that they can see themselves represented in and learn about others was highly prioritized when I was in an elementary setting, however, it made me pause to reflect on my current setting. I serve youth who have been through the court system and have been adjudicated for a crime and committed to DYS. I do believe as educators we have prioritized trying to find text that they can relate with and see themselves in, but it more so seems to be focused on relating to struggles with the law, gang involvement, etc. It made me realize that it is still so important to consider these whole students outside of their circumstance and perhaps just consider the importance of their Culturally and Linguistically Diverse backgrounds.

This further aligns with Kozleski's argument that we must move beyond a one size fits all approach and address the systemic inequities in education. Though I feel we do an incredible job at creating inclusive classrooms where all feel valued and capable of success, I do feel that we must focus more on the student's identities in regards to their culture and not just their identities in regards to what brought them to us.

Hello! My name is Christine Wright. I currently teach at a small Christian school in Burlington and have students in various elementary grades. I have taught for 5 years in a one-room classroom a little over a year ago and had students K-12 which made a very busy teaching experience not only coming up with lesson plans ranging for various grades but also in different learning styles. Some of the culturally and linguistically diverse students that I have encountered these past years have been students usually of the Latino race. One thing I have observed that though these students were very capable of learning and achieving above grade level, because of a culture that did not value higher education nor see the need for excelling many times these students would not reach their full potential and would “settle” for a basic education in order to be “accepted” and/or “included” within the norm. As one or both parents would also be Latino that seemed fine as long as their child received a passing grade. Many times homework would not be completed as these student’s were not encouraged to finish before the next school day.

In reading Kozleski’s article  “Culturally Responsive Teaching Matters” a Culturally and Responsive Teacher must try and organize classrooms into various “communities” that can help encourage all students to be responsible for not only their own learning but also for the accomplishments of the other students within their “community”. Though this would be difficult to do within a one-room-school as each grade is their own “community”  I can see how this could be implemented within larger classrooms that only have one grade present. Doing more group projects could help students interact, take various leadership roles, feel more comfortable with other students as they are on “equal footing” with one another, and explore various similarities and differences.

Audrey Kim also felt that helping students reach beyond stereotypes is an important contribution for a successful CLR classroom. Though this is often challenging as these “former beliefs” about a certain race may be sadly reinforced at home, providing an environment where all races have the same availability to succeed academically and equal teacher expectations for all students must be present daily. Kim states regarding the threats of negative stereotypes for some students can cause “students who believe that they are inferior in academics can raise inhibiting doubts and high-pressure anxieties” that can ultimately hinder success.

However, I knew I wanted to help kids like me because I knew education was important and can guide people to an enriched life. I worked as a special education teacher- behavior needs- for about 15 years at the middle school level. I transitioned to middle school math and left the world of special education. I figured I could help more kids being a general education student. I taught math for five years and then I transferred to a fifth grade class in the elementary school I work at now. I have a Masters degree in education with a focus on autism. I feel like I have a wide variety of experience in my career and I have learned something from each experience and try to use my tools in my current position.

Most of my teaching experience has been in a well diverse population. In the article, “A Culturally Rich Curriculum Can Improve Minority Student Achievement”, by Audrey Kim, it states, “A recent NBER study argues that culturally responsive curricula (also known as ethnic studies) can have major causal effects on outcomes for at-risk minority students.” I believe that culturally responsive curriculum can have a big effect on students and I have personally seen curriculum adapted to a more diverse classroom. I enjoy hearing stories from other cultures and I can see that students of different backgrounds in my classroom can relate to these multicultural stories. It opens the classes perspective to people of different backgrounds then them and they gain a better perspective and not just a single story. In the video, The Danger of a Single Story, by novelist Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Chimamanda discusses the importance of hearing not just a single story, but the need to hear multiple perspectives. I think this is true in the classroom and it helps to create relationships with students. If students feel they are seen I think they respond better in the classroom and that is what I always to try build in my classroom. A classroom that is understanding and appreciate of all cultures and all people.

I’m excited about this course as much of what applies in the classroom also applies to our libraries. Each library branch has unique patrons with diverse needs and backgrounds. Much of our programming is designed with the intention of inclusivity, but we still have some growing to do as most of our events are only offered in English and have little scaffolding to support those whose first languages differ. I love that we often get to host diverse voices for presentations and expose many of our patrons to new perspectives and ways of thinking, but I think many folks still have the sensation of being “other” when entering library spaces.  The reading,  Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors, really hit home for me as I still see a large lack of representation in our collection. The librarians do a great job of showcasing different works whenever they can through displays; These books are just incredibly outnumbered in our current system. We also sometimes struggle with how to be culturally responsive when our policies are not always in alignment with other means of participation. For example, we have strict age guidelines that prevents older or younger patrons from participating in programming designed for a specific developmental group, such as teens. This can be a problem as some cultural groups prefer to do things as a family unit where younger siblings and older siblings are working together, often alongside their caregivers. We want these families to feel welcome to participate as it is most enjoyable and familiar for them, but the age guidelines can really inhibit their ability to do so. I am hoping I can bring my learning from this course back to our libraries to better support everyone who enters our spaces and in my future classrooms yet to come.

I bring over 20 years of experience in education, having served as both a classroom teacher and a school leader, including roles as a principal and executive director . One of the most meaningful experiences in my career was leading a language immersion charter school, where I worked closely with culturally and linguistically diverse students and families.

After many years in administration, I chose to return to the classroom because that is where my passion truly is. I am currently teaching a highly diverse group of 5th graders, and this has reinforced how important culturally and linguistically responsive practices are in supporting student success .

In my role, CLD strategies are essential for ensuring that all students can access grade-level content and feel valued in the classroom. At the same time, they can be challenging, as they require intentional planning, differentiation, and a deep understanding of students’ backgrounds and language needs. Balancing rigorous instruction with appropriate supports is something I am continually working to refine.

The video “The Danger of a Single Story” by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie spoke to me for many reasons. The way in which Adichie describes her direct experiences with Fide’s family being poor was simple, yet so effective. If, in those moments, Adichie’s mom had added a few simple words such as Fide’s family is poor and hardworking or poor and creative it would have shifted Adichie’s entire perspective. Also, her college roommate's stereotypes of Africa were so inaccurate and limiting. Adichie stated that the problem with stereotypes is that they are incomplete. 

Adichie’s statement regarding the power of words also resonated with me. She stated that “when we show people what they are over and over again, that is what they become.”  She highlighted that words can rob people of their dignity; but, that words can also empower and humanize. Perhaps most importantly, and as it relates to my work as an educator, Adichie also discussed how impressionable and vulnerable children are. As educators we have the ability to be proactive on behalf of, and for, our students. 

Working in preschool, much of the focus is on developing social-emotional, cognitive, and fine/gross motor skills through play-based activities. Therefore the social aspects of learning to work with others is a tremendous factor.  Using CLR strategies in preschool is important to foster trust and acknowledge families as partners, which leads to better communication and shared goals. When a teacher incorporates a student’s home language, it helps a child feel safe, valued and motivated to participate. 

The articles I read demonstrated the importance of connecting and exposing yourself to your students lives and families to enhance your understanding of the perspectives they bring to the educational setting. By connecting your students experiences to the learning materials you can then scaffold their knowledge in a meaningful way to reach learning objectives and increase understanding of course materials. It is also important to place yourself in their perspectives and be mindful of their life experiences that they bring to the classroom and leverage them in a way that allows them to own their learning and engage in a greater way.

Current Role(s):
High School English Language Arts Teacher (Grades 9–11) and Marine Biology Teacher

CLR Reflection:
Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies are especially important in a unique and diverse setting like Kwajalein, where students come from a variety of cultural backgrounds, including Marshallese, military families, and international communities. As an educator, I see how students engage more deeply when their identities, languages, and lived experiences are reflected in the curriculum. CLR practices help create inclusive classrooms, build trust, and improve comprehension by connecting content to students’ cultural contexts.

However, there are challenges. One major challenge is finding or adapting curriculum materials that are both rigorous and culturally relevant. Additionally, balancing diverse cultural perspectives in one classroom can be complex, and there may be gaps in resources or training. Time constraints and standardized expectations can also make it difficult to fully implement CLR practices. Despite these challenges, CLR strategies are essential for equity and meaningful learning.

Having the opportunity to learn more about Culturally and Linguistically Responsive teaching is important to me. While historically the population of our school has been narrow, we are starting to see our culture become more diverse and it's important that we respond accordingly. The article which really stood out to me was, "Mirrors, Windows and Sliding Glass Doors" by Rudline Sims Bishop. In this article, I was shocked and disheartened to look at the low numbers of books written about minority classes throughout the 70s and 80s, and I'm curious to know what the data around those books being published is currently. The concept of providing students the opportunity to see themselves in books and characters available to them, AND being able to use literature as a way of getting to know other cultures of the world, rings very true to my ears.

Unfortunately, the 'sink or swim' mentality is still common in schools I've had experience in. If we, as educators, can understand the importance of getting in the pool alongside our Culturally and Linguistically Diverse students, not only will we help students learn and grow, but we ourselves can learn and grow by sharing their experiences. In our current climate, I find it's more important than ever to keep our minds and our hearts open to the diverse interests, beliefs, experiences and lives of our fellow Earthlings.

Culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) strategies are essential in my middle school classroom because these strategies directly impact students’ sense of belonging, identity, and academic success. Across the readings and resources, I reflected on a consistent theme: when students feel seen, valued, and represented, they are more engaged and more likely to succeed. For example, the video, The Danger of a Single Story highlights how limiting students to one narrative about their culture can reinforce stereotypes and prevent educators from recognizing the strengths each student brings. Similarly, the article Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors emphasizes that students need opportunities to see themselves reflected in the curriculum while also learning about others.

In my role as an educator, fostering a sense of belonging is especially critical. In the article, Speaking of Psychology: How the need to belong drives human behavior, research shows that connection and belonging are among the strongest predictors of adolescent mental health and good decision-making. It is important for me to intentionally create classroom environments where students feel affirmation. Consistent practices, such as giving students a voice, incorporating their experiences into learning, and affirming their identities, can have a significant impact on my students’ achievement. As mentioned in the resources, a positive, inclusive climate—where students feel safe, responsible, and connected—may be one of the most powerful predictors of academic success.

However, implementing CLD strategies also presents challenges. One major challenge in my school is the use of traditional practices that are rooted in dominant, middle-class cultural norms. As mentioned in Culturally Responsive Teaching Matters!, behavior management systems that rely on token rewards may not account for cultural differences in communication and expression. This has made me reflect on the bias that I may unintentionally reinforce or misunderstanding that may be created by using these systems. Another challenge is the lack of culturally representative curriculum. I can do more to create a science classroom that reflects the diversity of the student experience, allowing more students to feel represented and seen.

Ultimately, CLD strategies matter because they affirm students’ identities while also improving academic outcomes. As an educator, I have a responsibility and an opportunity to shape classroom environments where every student feels they belong.

Utilizing Culturally and Linguistically Responsive teaching strategies in my kindergarten classroom for a variety of reasons. Over the years, our county has seen more diversity in the ethnic backgrounds of the families moving in. As the diverse student population in our school increases I need to continually be aware of the cultural and linguistic differences that students are coming to school with. The more effort I put into getting to know the cultures and family histories of my students, the more I can use this information to tailor their classroom experiences to be more engaging and meaningful. Taking the time to do this maximizes my students' sense of belonging and community within my classroom and the school. Getting to know the families of my students is fairly easy because we are a smaller school and county in general and I have found that doing this gains me insight into the various behaviors and communication styles of my students. I then know how to communicate in a more effective way with my students. It is my goal to create a learning space that feels safe and welcoming to all students regardless of their ethnicity or cultural background. Modeling a willingness to learn about, appreciate, and celebrate our differences is a vital part of teaching my students to do the same and see one another as equally positive contributors to our classroom community.

I appreciated the video The Danger of a Single Story with the speaker Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie because it was a good reminder to constantly take time to reflect on my own views on different cultures so that I can become aware of any biases I may be unaware of.

One challenge I have encountered is the time it takes to create diverse learning resources and materials. Since we are a private school, our funding is limited, which means I create many of the diverse learning materials, visual aids, and other resources myself. While this can be time consuming, I am happy to do it because I know that it is helping to create a more effective and meaningful learning experience for my students.

The challenge is doing this well without losing academic focus. CLR has to stay tied to strong instruction and high expectations, not become separate or superficial. It also requires consistency across teachers and avoiding assumptions about students’ backgrounds.

Growing up in early elementary I was fortunate to be in a Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CLD) town of Chugiak, Alaska. In third grade I moved to the extremely small town of Encampment, Wyoming. Being such a small community, there was very little diversity in the population. This small K-12 school displayed a strong “psychology of success” climate as Jones and Shindler describe in “Exploring the School Climate – Student Achievement Connection: Making Sense of Why the First Precedes the Second”, which helped me succeed academically and socially. After graduating from that very same K-12 school, I earned my teaching degree and was fortunate to return to my small town where I taught for 20 years as a librarian and computer teacher. Knowing my students did not have a large range of CLD, I sought out books and materials to include in our collection that promoted student diversity. As Bishop describes in “Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors”, this was sometimes challenging as several titles included stereotypes and didn’t represent a culture but rather represented an idea of what someone else thought the culture was like. I wanted students to explore different cultures through books and also sponsored student trips to explore the culture of other countries. These opportunities allowed me to really get to know each individual and what their strengths and challenges were.

In 1999 my entire life changed as I moved from Wyoming to a suburb of Denver. I now teach around 625 students with an extreme variety of CLD. I had to quickly adjust from teaching students of little CLD to students with a large range of diversity. This is extremely important because each of my students have prior knowledge from which to build new knowledge but don’t all have that same prior experiences. Now, I give several examples for each class to assist students with tying their new knowledge with something they are familiar with, which can take a lot of extra class time, but is essential for students to grow and succeed. I am glad this school also allows students to explore other cultures through trips to Costa Rica and Catalina Island. This real world experience helps students notice cultural differences and embrace them as not right or wrong but as a different perspective of the human experience.

Regarding the importance of CLR teaching strategies, I really liked what the Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors article had to say. If students can't see themselves in the content, the stories, or the images, they won't be able to connect with it. Worse yet, if what they do see is a stereotype or negative depiction, they learn pretty quickly that they aren't accepted not only in the learning environment but also in the broader society.

Some of the obvious challenges come from implementation and resources. In my own experience, with the ongoing cuts to education, it's been really difficult to get the district to purchase us the resources we need. It also takes training. You can't just give teachers whatever resources they need and expect them to be able to facilitate a culturally and linguistically diverse curriculum. So it becomes an investment of both time and money.

I had never heard of the book Mirrors, Windows and Sliding Glass Doors until a few years ago when we read it as a staff. It really opens up your thinking about not only about how those students feel, but also how we can change our teaching to include those students to make them feel more welcomed and comfortable. I would say the biggest challenge for me is that I see over 500 students in a week and I only see them for 45 minutes so it's hard to remember every kid and what their background is and also finding the time to implement all the strategies.

As the resources in module 1 emphasize, Culturally and Linguistic Responsive strategies are important because students need to be seen and known in order to learn well. Inclusive classrooms make learning safe and students are then able to build confidence in themselves and the knowledge that they are building.

A couple of challenges to building a CLR classroom is willingness and time. I am thinking about in The Danger of a Single Story, how Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie says, "I've always felt that it is impossible to engage properly with a place or a person without engaging with all of the stories of that place and that person" and that can feel daunting when there is so much to get done in a day. I think she is spot on though and it can be easy to lose sight of that. The focus of this class makes me feel optimistic about taking time to build solid lasting relationships with our students and our greater school community because in doing so, we can achieve better outcomes- both socially and academically.

My school is a fairly small, middle class public school which has become more diverse in the past few years. We struggle with having enough resources and time to provide adequate assistance to our culturally and linguistically diverse students. This year I have 3 students in my classes who are first year English learners. I do my best to modify all our work and help these kids to do hands-on activities and interact with the other students as much as they can. But I know other districts have a lot more support for students such as these. It would be really helpful to have an EL teacher in the room to help these students to better access the curriculum. I also think these students would benefit from more targeted language and reading instruction in a small group. Even with using Google Translate and Google Lens and modifying all the classwork to make it more accessible, I think these students are feeling overwhelmed and could really use more support than we are currently giving them.

I really enjoyed the TED talk "Dangers of a Single Story" and the article "Culturally Responsive Teaching Matters". I believe that we as educators see many different "stories" over our career. I also agree that it is important to develop cultural teaching strategies that do include the diversity of the students we come across. I believe that we need to get their perspectives of how they want to learn, so they can make connections to feel and be successful in the classroom. I feel that is important that we take time to learn and understand our students cultures in order to create a successful classroom environment. When we recognize and value the backgrounds, traditions, and experiences that students bring, we can build stronger relationships with them.

Another benefit of integrating these strategies is that it enhances collaborative and creative problem-solving. In both business and engineering industries, teamwork is vital and occurs with a diverse workforce. By replicating this in the classroom it helps students participate in and see the benefits of this collaboration.

While implementing the strategies has great benefits, one of my greatest struggles is having to confront my personal biases. In order to be truly responsive we have to be able to reflect on our own cultural biases, recognize our personal privilegas and be open to learning about the histories and experiences of our diverse groups. Identifying that within ourselves and sitting in that discomfort is not an easy thing to do.

Culturally responsive strategies are essential for middle school teachers because it’s such an awkward time for kids to begin with, while also being a critical period for them in forming their identities. When teachers show a sincere interest in students' backgrounds, languages, and experiences, they feel valued, which I think increases their buy-in and general engagement.  

And then, there’s a multitude of challenges. I think it takes a lot of us outside of our comfort zone to be culturally responsive, perhaps because it’s different than what we’re used to, or what we grew up with in our schooling. It takes time and it takes effort. There’s also never enough time for teaching everything we want, so this can tend to receive lower priority. 

So thank you for the opportunity to help with our comfort levels in engaging in these strategies.

My background is in educational psychology, special education, and gifted education. As an adjunct professor, I have had the privilege of teaching a course designed to examine the needs of cognitively advanced students from various cultural and linguistic backgrounds. The course was collaboratively created by professors who specialize in CLD and gifted learners. The information in this course has helped guide how I provide professional development to teachers and preservice teachers in the other DU courses I teach.

One of my favorite resources for teachers at all levels and positions is “Culturally Responsive Teaching & The Brain” by Zaretta Hammond. I have all new teachers use this book in their professional learning communities (PLCs), and it always sparks engaging conversations. I find that I learn something new during each discussion.

Hammond presents a framework with four practice areas for culturally responsive teaching: awareness, learning partnerships, information processing, and community building. I appreciate how Hammond shares practical strategies that teachers can immediately implement in their daily work (Hammond, 2015, pp. 17–20).

The challenges in middle school are real. I often face my own implicit bias, limited training, pressure to “cover the curriculum,” and limited time, which makes it difficult to adapt lessons in culturally meaningful ways. Jones and Shindler highlighted that school climate must shift before achievement does, but changing climate requires time, collaboration, and administrative support. Many of us also struggle with understanding cultural communication differences; for example, some students may avoid eye contact out of respect, while others may speak more assertively because that’s valued in their home culture. These behaviors can be misinterpreted as disrespect or even disengagement (possibly reinforcing those implicit biases). Another challenge is that middle schoolers come from increasingly diverse linguistic backgrounds, and a lot of us, especially me, feel unprepared to support languages we don’t speak. Systemic barriers like standardized testing and lack of representation in textbooks or available class novel sets add another layer of difficulty.

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies are extremely important because they help students feel seen, valued, and connected within the classroom environment. The resources from Module 1 reinforced how critical it is to recognize students’ backgrounds, experiences, language, and culture as strengths that can support learning rather than barriers that need to be “fixed.” In my own instruction, I try to scaffold learning by using pictures, visuals, synonyms, and vocabulary development to help students build background knowledge and make meaningful connections to new concepts. For students learning English, I also provide opportunities to practice sounds and words using a variety of modalities, including speaking, listening, visuals, and hands-on activities.

One concept from Module 1 that stood out to me was Chimamanda Adichie’s “The Danger of a Single Story.” Her message reminds us that when we focus only on one narrative about a person, culture, or group, we risk flattening their identity and overlooking the richness of their experiences. She explained that the consequence of a single story is that it robs people of dignity and emphasizes differences instead of shared humanity. This deeply connects to education because our students come to school with many overlapping stories, strengths, challenges, and experiences. As educators, we must avoid assumptions and instead create opportunities for students to share their voices and perspectives.

I also connected strongly with the idea of “Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors.” Literature can act as a mirror where students see themselves reflected, a window into the experiences of others, and a sliding glass door that allows them to step into another world and perspective. Students need books and learning experiences that reflect the multicultural world around them and help them celebrate both differences and similarities. Stories can build empathy, resilience, and understanding while also helping students feel represented and valued.

Additionally, the readings about school climate emphasized the importance of belonging and acceptance. Students learn best when they feel safe, wanted, and part of the group. A positive school climate helps students develop trust, take academic risks, and build a growth mindset. This is especially important for students who may already feel isolated or uncertain because of language barriers or cultural differences. Creating an inclusive environment where students feel respected and connected supports both their mental health and their academic growth.

Overall, CLR strategies are important because they help educators create equitable, supportive, and meaningful learning experiences where all students can succeed and feel a sense of belonging.

My first years in education taught me much about being culturally and linguistically responsive in my teaching approaches. My first school was 50/50 Hispanic and African-American. For a young, white teacher, this is a culture shock and I spent quite a bit of time learning as much from my students as they learned from me. Beyond learning cultural vocabulary from them, I learned the importance of “respect” to them. Asking questions, being genuine in my approaches, and offering sincere help when needed (“Psychology of Success”) got me much further than many of my colleagues at the same schools who were more focused on the “Psychology of Failure” and the idea of punishment over positive reinforcement.

Without having the benefit of the article, “The School Climate - Student Achievement  Connection:  If We Want Achievement Gains, We Need to Begin by Improving the Climate”, I learned early on that creating a positive classroom climate made all things run much more smoothly and truly seemed to make a difference for my students. From basics to keeping my room clean, including washing off “tagging” and “doodles” on my walls and student desks each day, to respecting my students and their needs, my classroom was often one of positive reinforcement and encouragement, which lead to high scores and final grades. I expected high achievement from my students and I got the results that met my expectations. 

Adichie’s “The Danger of a Single Story” also stands out because I recognized that my students were not just one thing or one past. They were amalgamations of their races, cultures, religions, financial backgrounds, neighborhoods, and daily lives. By allowing my students the chance to share who they were on a daily basis, I tried to create a culture of respect and acceptance. 

The simple act of asking a person to be themselves and respecting who they are can make all the difference in the classroom and in an individual person’s response to you and your expectations.

My first years in education were in Pacoima, CA, and I learned firsthand the importance of CLR.

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) teaching strategies are important because they help create inclusive learning environments where all students feel valued, respected, and supported. They create access for students by meeting them where they are culturally and linguistically and providing support academically.

Even though we do not currently have culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) students in our student population, we previously had two students whose experiences reinforced the importance of being intentional about understanding and supporting students from different cultural and linguistic backgrounds. CLR strategies not only support academic success but also foster empathy, belonging, and stronger relationships within the school community.

There are a variety of challenges, but one challenge in implementing CLR practices is ensuring that educators have the time, training, and opportunities for reflection needed to thoughtfully adapt instruction and practices. Prioritizing this PD is important regardless of the population size.

Another challenge is maintaining a proactive mindset, even in schools where the student population may not currently appear highly diverse. I believe it is important for educators to remain prepared and committed to creating welcoming and responsive environments for all students and families, both now and in the future.

One of my current favorite resources is Zaretta Hammond's Culturally Responsive Teaching & The Brain. It's such a rich resource of practical strategies.

– Dana Kohls

Looking at the readings for this module, the piece "Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors," by Rudine Sims Bishop, Ohio State University, really hit home for me. In fourth grade, kids are starting to figure out who they are and where they fit in the world. If we only show them one type of story, we do them a huge disservice. Additionally, Geoffrey Cohen talked about how much we all need to belong, and that is so true in a classroom. When we take Geneva Gay's advice and respect how our kids naturally talk and communicate, we make school a safe place for them.

But honestly, doing this every day is tough. The biggest challenge for me is balancing our strict district curriculum and tight schedules with the time required to build these deep cultural connections. In "Culturally Rich Curriculum Can Improve Minority Student Achievement", Audrey Kim and Monica Brown talked about moving past just celebrating holidays to making real, deeper changes, but that takes time; teachers do not always have it. It also requires us to look closely at our own biases.

I read Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors by Rudine Sims Bishop. I'm curious about how incorporating more diversely written word can support my curriculum. I have a fair amount of cultural diversity in my classrooms but have not really looked deeply into written content from culturally divers adventurist/outdoorspeople. I do aim to provide examples of divers folks into my videos and images, but will now look more into textual diversity.

Culturally responsive educational access has always been a part of my job in education, whether it was teaching or counseling, and while the format has changed, it has always been about providing access and knowledge to students who may otherwise struggle due to culture or language barriers. The biggest thing that I tackle as a counselor is educational and instructional equity, which plain and simple is just ensuring that all students have access to instruction, resources, academic and SEL counseling, and future opportunities.

Considering that CCHS is the largest high school in the state, we have a wide array of CLD students that come from a plethora of cultural and linguistic backgrounds, and while there is a little bit of everything for everyone here, it is important that students not only feel like they have access and are being treated fairly, but that they also belong. The APA article

Speaking of Psychology: How the Need to Belong Drives Human Behavior touches on this, specifically with the quote from Geoffrey Cohen, PhD wherein he states: “A sense of belonging isn’t just a byproduct of success, but a condition for it..."

This speaks volumes to the work that I do because without culturally responsive practices and a mission towards and equity and access, we are not providing spaces for our CLD students to be successful. The goal is to serve all of our students, not just some, which is why ensuring that our practices are culturally responsive is so crucial to the work that we do.

Overland High School (OHS) is a culturally diverse school with over 90 countries represented and over 60 languages spoken. Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies are very important for the students at OHS. One thing we focused on this school year was "Blazer Belonging". As a school, we wanted to make sure that every student belonged and felt belonged somewhere whether that was in a club, in a sport, in a performing arts, or in the classroom. In my 13 years at Overland, I have taught many students who come from a different background and some who don't speak English. I have enjoyed getting to know all my students and learning about their cultures. We have many students who are considered an non-English proficient and limited-English proficient.

As an educator, it is important to take into account the cultural and linguistic factors of all our students. It can be challenging in the classroom when every student needs something different when it comes to differentiating. I do my very best to say all my students' names correctly, and I am not afraid to ask students to say their name again for me if I do not feel like I am saying it correctly. When it comes to word problems in math class, I do my best to include problems with different context that my students can connect with. I make sure we are not always talking about sports problems, but also problems about the medical field, transportation, the economy, and other diverse topics. I want to make sure that my students can connect to at least a couple of the problems we do during the year, so they can see how math applies to each of them in the real world. I enjoyed reading Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors by Rudine Sims Bishop since I think this is what she was saying. Our students need to be able to see themselves and their cultures represented even in a math class. I also really enjoyed Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's TED talk The Danger of a Single Story. It can be challenging to not allow our biases to affect how we see our students, which is why it is so important to take the time to get to know all our students and set our biases aside. Like Adichie said, stories matter, and it is important to have a balance of stories. Getting to know a person's story takes times, but it can be done.

As the readings for this module suggest, CLR strategies are critical for making connections. Both experientially and academically, I've seen that a CLR-centered approach not only helps students of various backgrounds and cultures connect to the curriculum but also to each other. When a CLR approach is incorporated in a history lesson, for example, it can be instrumental in helping students see an issue, figure, or topic from different perspectives and different groundings. Sometimes this can create acknowledgment of differences and prompt constructive conversation. Sometimes this can move a student to adopt, even temporarily, an entirely new point of view on something seemingly established. I've found these moments are essential to helping students become well rounded and open-minded, culminating ideally in a willingness and ability to see things critically.

At the same time, this can be a challenge in the sense that different view points can be difficult to adapt to, particularly when students are coming from a strong cultural or ideological background. It can also result in difficult conversations. However, these moments are just as important, and perhaps even more so, to moving toward a CLR and critical mindset. Even if a viewpoint remains committed to at the end of the day, having the conversation, having the momentary reflection, and being willing to see things from a new perspective is key to growth.

I enjoyed the definitions, articles and videos on Culturally Responsive Practices. The quote I most closely resonated with was Skarrokay Hollie's words: "Teachers jump into the pool with learners, scaffold as needed and provide for independence when they are ready." This fits my educational philosophy and connects intrinsically with Culturally Responsive Practices.

I very much enjoyed video "The Danger of a Single Story." There were many memorable moments in this short video for me, but one stands out. When the storyteller described reading at age 4 books of snow, eating apples and drinking ginger beer (while she lived in Nigeria and had never seen snow), it was logical in a way that her first writings at age 7 were of these things. Hearing her tell the story, though, showed me how absurd it is to expect children to value their own culture and experiences if the books they read do not do so.

Which lead me to the article, "Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Doors." It is so true that students learn that they are de-valued from the books they do NOT see in the classroom. And students and teachers in the mainstream culture have much to learn about other cultures from good literature that depicts cultures with respect, authenticity and breadth / depth. Our classrooms truly need to be places where all children can find mirrors for themselves ... and for each other. A local church in our community graciously gifted each of our school's classrooms with a beautiful set of current hardcover books about children from a variety of cultures represented in our communities. I have loved reading these books aloud to my class and seeing students read them over and over.

I also enjoyed the article "A Culturally Rich Curriculum Can Improve Minority Student Achievement." Two years ago, our school district adopted the Into Reading curriculum for all language arts. While it is challenging to teach this curriculum from a timing standpoint - there simply aren't enough hours in the day - it is very rich in culture, which I enjoy. Students are able to make connections with the characters in the stories in a very real way. The writing prompts and lessons are engaging from a culturally responsive standpoint. And there is a present-day relevance to the stories and lessons that I really value.

Lastly, I enjoyed the practical steps included in the article "Culturally Responsive Teaching Matters." My favorite three were: communicate high expectations, anchor your curriculum in the everyday lives of your students and develop an appreciation of diversity.

Working with cohorts of students over the years has given me multiple opportunites to work with students from diverse backgrounds and needs. These articles and videos speak to challenges students and teachers face in relation to educational restrictions, climate barriers, and confidence factors that can influence decisions. In my own school, many of our limitations for helping students involves acclimation and financial resources. To start with acclimation, we have very few students that are not from military backgrounds. Almost all of our students speak fluent English and English is their first language. When we do have a new student to our school that speaks a foreign language before English, or has a strong cultural background with another country, the majority are so excited to welcome them with open arms. This can be wonderful for a students confidence, and sense of belonging, but also confusing as they are just getting started. I have noticed that although we have resources to assist students who are spanish speaking, very few resources are available for any other language. I also have noticed that many of our students from other countries are so excited to be here that they immediately start transitioning into habits, interests, and educational examples from their fellow peers. This can be both good and bad but also an important responsibility by the teacher to find ways to highlight how their home country culture is important to them, but also to us. Kozleski (2010) states, "Becoming culturally responsive means that teachers as well as students have to negotiate new standards and norms that acknowledge the differences and the similarities among and between individuals and groups." Helping students feel part of the new setting while also adjusting our own norms to fit the cultural background and needs of our students is equally important. I am proud of the district I work for due to the fact that other cultures are not only valued but embraced. I am not saying we always get it right but the effort to be inclusive for all cultures and needs is attempted and promoted. This includes the choice for reading curriculums and resources that promote other cultures. The importance of this is suggested by Bishop (1990) when she states, "When children cannot find themselves reflected in the books they read, or when the images they see are distorted, negative, or laughable, they learn a powerful lesson about how they are devalued in the society in which they are a part." I have enjoyed these articles and videos and found them very beneficial.

I am familiar with the terms presented for CLD students namely, NEP and LEP. At my school, I am familiar with culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) students. I feel the CLR strategies are important for our non-English speakers. We have students from India who are non-English proficient, as well as students from homes where English is not the primary spoken language. Through the programs being implemented at American Academy, I have been able to see growth in both their English language development and their confidence in my music classroom. Music provides opportunities for students to participate, communicate, and connect with others even while they are still developing language skills. Over time, I have noticed students becoming more willing to engage, sing, answer questions, and interact with peers as their comfort level and English mastery increase.

One challenge of the program is that students need to be willing to work toward greater English proficiency. However, I have seen that the non-English-speaking students at my school are highly motivated to improve. Their effort, perseverance, and willingness to learn have contributed greatly to their growth in both language development and classroom confidence. In my music classroom, I have been able to observe students becoming more comfortable participating and communicating as their English skills continue to strengthen.

I watched the TED Talk “The Danger of a Single Story” by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. I was drawn in by her story of growing up privileged in Nigeria with her father being a professor. She shared that her family even had a houseboy named Fide, and her parents emphasized that he was poor. Later, she discovered that Fide’s family was skilled at making beautiful crafts, which surprised her because she had only been exposed to one narrative about him.

Adichie also explained that because the books she read as a child were heavily influenced by British culture, she wrote stories where the characters were blue-eyed, ate foods unlike her own culture, and drank ginger beer. Her point was that she had been exposed to only a single story of what literature and life were “supposed” to look like.

When she later came to the United States, she became the recipient of another single story. Her roommate assumed that because she came from Africa, she must have experienced poverty, starvation, or disease. Her roommate did not consider that Adichie had grown up in an educated and privileged household and did not need to be “saved” by others. Adichie explained that these negative assumptions flattened her experience and robbed her of dignity because they ignored the complexity of who she really was.

This TED Talk reminded me that, as educators, we must be careful not to create a single story about our non-English-speaking students. We should avoid making assumptions about students based on where they are from, the language they speak, or their cultural background. Instead, we need to listen to their stories, recognize their strengths, and give them opportunities to show who they are as individuals.

After reading the definitions, which I am familiar with, I love the quote "CLR means that teachers jump into the pool with the learners, guide them with appropriate instruction, scaffold as necessary, and provide for independence when they are ready". This simile makes it relatable and understandable because as an educator and leader it is important to work alongside the student and not above them. As an educator we are learners also and students have something to teach us as well. We can not just keep teaching and leave them behind.

I also watched the "The Danger of a Single Story". I really enjoyed this video because it memorable and relatable. She reminds us that students are moldable and when we give them one idea, it can cause them to not see past that one thought or idea. It is also important to allow opportunities for students to see and relate to the curriculum so they are able to connect with it and see themselves in the story.

I am excited to get into this class and learn more because our school has a couple CLD students but we are looking for ways to incorporate more strategies and opportunities for students to share their culture and ideas.

In my current classroom creating a sense of belonging is often my key role as an educator. Through years of experience we all know that until a student, from any background, trusts you as their teacher, the rest of the process will be a struggle. I often find the first step to creating that sense of belonging is just making my students realize I really want to get to know them. Often, it's that simple, learn their names, say hello at the door, ask them if they have big plans for the weekend and then follow up to ask questions about those experiences.

Teaching business, like many other subjects, offers a very diverse set of cultural expectations that can be "slippery" if not handled correctly. I always have to be on-guard to avoid letting my cultural bias' cloud my students experience in my classroom. My school has such a wide variety of socio-economic families I have to navigate that landscape so every students feels their experience is represented in our discussions. When I'm talking about creating wealth by utilizing savings wisely, each student is interpreting that subject through their own cultural lens.

Therein lies the opportunity for me: Once my students realize I'm open to all cultural experiences, I start to chip away at those defensive walls of acceptance. On the other hand, if I miss that opportunity, and I have, the relationship could also be set back and hard to repair.

Culterally and Linguistically Responsive strategies are important because the student can see themselves in literature whereas before CLR strategies were implemented, students growing up didn't see their culture reflected in literature.

In the Special Education Classroom, we are always trying to build a rapport with the students which can be difficult especially with limited social skills with some of my students. With CLR strategies, we can make the student feel valued and capable of success. The classroom can be diverse taking into consideration the different cultural backgrounds, family structures and languages.

In my current role working with students in special education and diverse learning settings, CLR practices are especially important because many students already face academic, behavioral, or social-emotional challenges. When instruction reflects students’ identities and experiences, they are more likely to participate, feel confident, and develop trust with teachers.

I believe that most teachers work to be inclusive and want their students to feel like they belong in that classroom. However, the reality at times is that we are not responding to the cultural and linguistic needs of our students, nor recognizing the strengths they bring to the classroom. It is not malicious, but in some cases it is due to lack of resources,lack of time, lack support and even sadly the demand of having multiple students with a variety of skills and needs that it feels they cannot all be met by one teacher. I have the benefit of teaching World Religions which often has a number of both NEP and LEP students and many come in with a rich and diverse understanding and experience with different religions, so the class lends itself to help students feel more connected to the group. However, I also teach US History and so many students don’t have the same background, experience and general knowledge so I have worked on trying to find ways to help students feel more connected to the content but also to the classroom as a whole. This is where the Dangers of a Single Story really struck me… Not only of how do I honor the different stories they bring whether they come from El Salvador, Vietnam, Ukraine, Afghanistan, Mexico etc. how can I learn more about their countries to let them know that I see the diversity and richness of their experience, but also try and understand if they have a single story of the United States. Are we heroes? Are we warmongers? Are we greedy and power hungry? Are we welcoming? How do they view our history?  Or even today… I know I don’t want a current narrative of Americans to represent my story. I appreciate the podcast and the necessity that one belongs and the TED Talk that we are more than a single story. 

In the article “Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Doors” by Rudine Sims Bishop, the author emphasizes the importance of representation in literature and learning. She explains that children need “mirrors” to see their own lives reflected, “windows” to view others’ experiences, and “sliding doors” to step into new worlds. When students do not see themselves represented, they internalize messages about their value in society. At the same time, students who do see themselves represented must also learn to understand and connect with people from different cultural backgrounds.

This idea resonates deeply with me. As a student, I often did not see myself reflected in the books I read. Now, both my students and my own children have more opportunities to see themselves represented, which is incredibly important. However, I agree with the author that many books still lack real-world characters and view points. Literature has the power to open doors, and as educators, we can intentionally select texts that broaden our students’ understanding of the world. By applying CLR principles, we can choose books that reflect diverse identities and different cultures.

One of the current challenges is the broader political climate. There has been an increase in book bans, particularly targeting stories that reflect diverse and real-world identities. Additionally, there is pressure to reduce supports for English Language Learners and to limit Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) efforts. As a result, culturally and linguistically responsive practices are sometimes labeled negatively, which can make this work more difficult. Another challenge is curriculum decision-making. Many teachers are required to follow district-adopted curriculum programs without having meaningful input in the selection process. These decisions are often influenced by factors such as funding or policy, which may not always align with the needs of students in classrooms. This often means teachers spend additional time modifying and supplementing curriculum to make it more responsive and effective. In my elementary setting we have limited planning time often reduced by meeting. This makes it even more challenging to adapt materials in meaningful ways.

Despite these challenges, CLR strategies remain critical. They allow educators to create inclusive, meaningful learning experiences that honor students’ identities while helping them develop a broader understanding of the world around them.

For the past four years I have been teaching at a small alternative high school that serves a high percentage of at risk youth from diverse local communities. Within the context of that role and the readings, the article "The School Climate - Student Achievement Connection: If We Want Achievement Gains, We Need to Begin by Improving the Climate" (attributed to Jones and Shindler in the links) is, to me, particularly applicable to the question about CLR strategies. The article attributes several qualities of a high functioning school to the phenomena of a "psychology of success," which include a school climate that promotes self-esteem within a framework that gives students "sense of belonging and acceptance." Being attuned and culturally responsive to students on an individual level is a critical first step to integrating students into the greater school community, and "honoring diversity" is embedded in our school's design principles. 

Regardless of age or academic status, each new student at our school has to take an orientation course that includes the design principles within their first year. During that course they also learn to practice conflict resolution strategies that involve getting the other person's story, and they begin to collect material for a portfolio of work and accomplishments that presents their story. Stories permeate our school culture, they are the cornerstone of student belonging, and several points in Chimamanda Adichie's "The danger of a single story" TED Talk rang true. We often remind students that everyone is "part of more" or "larger than" any one particular story. We are often reminded that is true of ourselves as well when we bring a growth mindset to human relations. Who hasn't experienced the embarrassment of discovering they were pigeonholed or had committed prejudice based on a single story, small sample, or convenient stereotyping of a person or people? 

Returning to the question of CLR strategies and some of the challenges, a challenge that comes with honoring diverse cultural identities in the classroom is managing and differentiating for participation and, on a much greater level, community building at the school level. When does individuality trump community, when should the norms of the collective take precedence? School culture is fundamental to a "psychology of success" yet different cultures are more or less receptive to different classroom practices; some believe it is better to be more or less dynamic or vociferous than others, and, as was mentioned in "Culture and Communication in the Classroom" some groups "manifest group cultural behaviors more thoroughly" than others (p. 119). Taking the disparate and overlapping cultural / identity groups of individuals within a student body and creating a more synergistic school culture out of them, adding stories to a story, is an ongoing challenge that must, out of necessity, change. I am curious what changes, if any, 10+ year educators have noticed when it comes to school culture or what it "means" to be a teacher or student at your school?

I thoroughly enjoyed several of the resources listed in this module! The Danger of a Single Story; Culturally Responsive Teaching Matters; Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors; and Speaking of Psychology: How the need to belong drives human behavior. The underlying theme throughout all of these pieces was connection. How every child desires to feel a sense of belonging - connectedness to other people, their school, their heritage, the greater community. It is our imperative role as educators to help these precious little humans realize their worth, their potential, and see that they can truly make a positive impact in this world! It is a great responsibility and challenge, to create lessons and find literature that values all the cultures we come into contact with. One of my duties as Assistant Director is Curriculum Implementation for our school. Elizabeth Kozleski iterates, "Considering how to approach curriculum and incorporating multiple paradigms in the ways that curriculum are presented and experienced is an important part of Culturally Responsive teaching." I have personally tried to build each classroom library with books rich in multiple languages with characters from varying backgrounds, so our students see reflections of themselves in these works or gain a new perspective. As Rudine Bishop writes in her article, "When there are enough books available that can act as mirrors or windows for all our children, they will see we can celebrate both our differences and our similarities, because together they are what make us all human." I desperately want each child at our school to feel valued! By implementing units such as Countries Around the World, where families come in to talk about their culture, bring artifacts, share food, and discuss life experiences, it helps bring awareness to all our kids. This has been one of the most memorable units of study at Holy Love because our families feel seen and appreciated! The goal for each child that walks through our doors is to say, "I belong at school and I belong at home!" (Geoffrey Cohen)

One of the most poignant and impressionable works I came across was the Ted talk by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie called, The Danger of a Single Story. I loved how she candidly described her childhood reading path, beginning with exposure to American and British books at age 4. Then when she began writing her own stories at age 8, she would describe snow or eating apples and drinking ginger beer. Even though none of those were things she had experienced herself as "a girl with skin the color of chocolate who ate mangoes." She was imagining and drawing pictures of what she was exposed to from the widespread accepted literature, rather than telling stories of her own life from her perspective. What a powerful realization, that things she was familiar with didn't exist in children's books at the time. She has worked tirelessly to bring awareness, evoke change, and is a true inspiration to us all! I will definitely keep Ms. Adichie in mind as I continue to grow and learn on this Culturally Linguistically Responsive journey! Having a receptive heart, an open mind, and a willing spirit is the key!

For the past two years most of my work has been in charter schools. Several families that I have had the opportunity to work with communicated about the importance of whether or not their child feels connected in the school environment. They mentioned their child’s relationship with their teachers, having friends in the school, and possibly the feeling of loneliness. Many of these families have chosen a particular school hoping to find an environment where their child can experience a sense of connection and belonging. Some families have tried several school environments even in their child’s elementary school years.

After reading and listening to resources in the module, my thoughts went back to what was important to these families. Geoffrey L. Cohen states in Speaking of Psychology: How the need to belong drives human behavior, the importance of connection, belonging, and contributing to a group. He also shared that we have the power to bring out the best in one another. I believe this is a challenge in any school but can be even more difficult when students and families frequently move between school. School staff have the challenge of creating a supportive environment for culturally and linguistically diverse students that may join their class unexpectedly. One obvious practice would be to make this a priority in every school so all students are connected and belong.

2.     CLR strategies are important because they incorporate the fact  that students come to us from all different cultures which shapes the way they understand the world as well as the content that we are teaching to them. Being an educator that is responsive to the cultures our students   helps the educator to increase engagement and create a more equitable classroom environment.

The difficult part about CLR teaching, sometimes as an educator we don't know how to make the lesson content culturally and linguistically responsive in a way that actually matters. We teachers know the strategies and tools, but there is more an an art to applying the tools.

The reading that highlighted one of the main challenges my school faces is “The School Climate - Student Achievement Connection: If We Want Achievement Gains, We Need To Begin by Improving the Climate” by John Shindler and Albert Jones.  Middle school is the time of figuring out who you are, what you like, and who you want to be as you start to learn to take on more responsibility in life, and this all deals with the climate of the school and classroom. 

When a challenge comes along, I look at my students’ reactions to see how they handle the difficulty.  Many either give up and stop trying or break down in tears, and sometimes this leads to a lack of motivation in the future.  Another area that stood out to me was acceptance.  At my middle school, I saw that my students who accepted themselves and had supportive peers felt safer and were more willing to try tasks that they struggled with.  On the other hand, I saw many behavioral issues from individual students come about when students were not secure in who they were, their friendships, and life in general. This led to a specific student of mine trying to impress some other girls by changing her entire personality to fit in with the group, and it led to her being hurt and isolated. Making sure my students feel accepted and respected is paramount in my classroom.  Once students feel safe and valued, they are more willing to take risks, persevere through challenges, and succeed in their learning.   

After reading the article "How the Need to Belong Drives Behavior" the author stated that educators need to use 'wise' words when conversing with students. The examples used were very informative of how we as educators by simply saying the right thing can change a student's future. The power of influence is in our hands and we should strive to understand, guide, and empower each student to reach his potential. This task will not be easy because education is competing against students interest in social media and online gaming, but we must believe in the power of influence.

Living in a small, rural area has benefits. The major one is that the school is the focal point of the community. Practically everything revolves around the school. Our school offers each student an education, as well as numerous other extracurricular activities. The students know that to succeed that must all work together. This is where the emphasis on team is accelerated. A positive climate is a successful climate.

In the article "Culturally Responsive Teaching Matters" there is a section that is titled 'What are the Key Features of Culturally Responsive Teaching?'. In the article Culture and Communication in the Classroom" there is a section named 'Practice Possibilities.' At the beginning of every school year, teachers should read and discuss these points. If educators would use these in the classroom, I believe both teachers and students would benefit.

I’m Michelle Barnes, and I am thrilled to be teaching French at Mesa Middle School in Castle Rock, Colorado. Right now, I am working with students in French 1A, French 1B, and French 2. I also have the privilege of being the department head and being part of our school’s Guiding Coalition. 

After reading the Module 1 resources, I am convinced of the value of culturally responsive teaching (CLR) strategies. They help our students feel seen, appreciated, and truly connected to their learning. The concept of books and curriculum serving as “mirrors” and “windows” really struck a chord with me. It is essential for students to see themselves in what they are studying, while also getting a glimpse into experiences that differ from their own. 

As a world language teacher, I have observed how language and culture remain inseparably joined. When our students can relate their learning to their own lives and backgrounds, it sparks their engagement and motivation. 

Of course, there are challenges like trying to meet the diverse needs of all learners while juggling curriculum demands and limited instructional time. It can be tough to find materials that authentically represent a broad spectrum of voices and experiences. I really think that by using CLR practices, we can create a classroom that's welcoming and supportive, where every student feels like they belong and can succeed.

I’m really looking forward to connecting and learning from all of you throughout this course! 

Warm regards, Michelle Barnes

In my classroom I feel that it is important to represent many different cultures and differences even though they are not represented in our population. Over the years, I have worked hard to build a diverse book collection for our students. Exposing students to a wide variety of cultures helps them broaden their cultural view. After reading these articles and watching various videos, it has reminded me to keep adding more multi cultural books to my classroom. It is even more important to offer a variety of books because our population is not as diverse. It is important for students to be able to notice similarities and differences with the characters and stories.

A challenge we are all facing as educators is that we are mandated to adhere to Curriculum guidelines. Because of this we do not have the flexibility to change instruction to meet students needs. However, I feel like I create a classroom that is welcoming, safe and supportive in which every student feels like they can take risks and succeed. CLR strategies such as creating an inclusive community and exploring family histories and appreciating diversity have always been a priority in my teaching.

I am looking forward to learning more about CLR and connecting with fellow educators.

A challenge for implementing CLD is always the lack of autonomy we face as teachers in this age of heavily scripted, mandated curricula. I often find myself veering from prescribed resources in order to actively engage students. It's also a challenge in our particular community to recognize the diversity that's not immediately apparent. Students come from many backgrounds and families bring different expectations and norms that create subtle differences in learning preferences. Understanding and celebrating these differences makes a huge impact on creating an inclusive classroom community.

CLR strategies are essential because they help students feel seen and valued, especially in 5^th grade as they are forming stronger identities. Without these strategies, classrooms can fall into what Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie describes as the “single story” in her TED Talk The Danger of the Single Story. She explains that a single story “robs people of dignity” and “emphasizes how we are different rather than how we are similar.” In contrast, CLR strategies create a “balance of stories” that “empower and humanize” all students.

Another importance of CLR strategies is that when students see their cultures and languages reflected in lessons, it builds confidence and belonging. That sense of belonging is what opens the door for genuine engagement. The article “Culturally Responsive Teaching Matters!” by E.B. Kozleski, when discussing how to navigate curriculum and instruction, mentioned the “use of multiple paradigms.” This made me pause and think about how some of the challenges are with our resources. In 5^th grade, we discuss multiple perspectives and points of view. Teaching these critical thinking skills is one way to help students spot limited perspectives in texts – especially texts (resources) that unintentionally marginalize students’ backgrounds. Through these intentional open discussions with students, we can build a collaborative community where all voices genuinely belong.  

I found this weeks context very interesting. In the video The Danger of a Single Story, by novelist Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie she talked about how she wrote stories about what she experienced and it was not a true representation of who she was.

In Exploring the School Climate -- Student Achievement Connection: Making Sense of Why the First Precedes the Second, by Albert Jones and John Shindler, California State University we learned how school climate can have an impact on students and learning. This was not new information but more of a reminder that what i do in the classroom impacts kids learning in more than one way. I always try to let my kids know the classroom only works because everyone plays a role to make it work. Everyone wants to bbelong and they know they belong in my classroom. I also make sure to maintain a relationship with them after they leave my class. I want them to know I care always.

One way I create a safe environment in my school is by having lunch with all my students. At the binning of the year I rotate through my whole class having lunch with a few kids each week. Other teachers have told me to stop because they think it makes them look bad because they don't eat with the kids. I truly enjoy it because I get to learn more about them and they can see me in a more relaxed setting. I also think because ofthe relationships I take time to build with my students is why they make so much growth and work so hard for me.

My name is Lynn (Marilynn) Frickey, and I teach in Cherry Creek School District in Aurora, Colorado. I am an affective needs teacher. I manage a special education caseload, teach affective needs classes, and co-teach general education science and English.

I found the article, Culturally Responsive Teaching, especially relevant to our work as educators. I find that culturally and linguistically diverse strategies are vital because many students' behaviors are determined by cultural experiences, communication styles, family expectations, and past school experiences. Kozleski (2010) explains that culturally relevant teaching connects students’ cultural knowledge, prior experiences, and performance styles to academic learning while creating classroom communities that value multiple standpoints and shared leadership.

In the classes I co-teach with a general education teacher, students have a diverse range of needs, including identified learning challenges, social and emotional struggles, or language and cultural obstacles. Creating a plan with a co-teacher to develop inclusive solutions for all students and to foster shared leadership is challenging. Even in collaborative classroom opportunities, it takes planning to build student confidence among ELL students, preparing them and supporting them so they are ready and willing to emerge as shared leaders of the learning experience.

One challenge is balancing behavioral expectations with an understanding of cultural differences. The article specifically cautions that traditional behavior management systems can be “color and culture blind” and may unintentionally create resistance or avoidance when they fail to consider students’ cultural backgrounds and experiences. In my role, I address this problem by establishing strong relationships, actively listening to students and families, preserving high expectations, and creating opportunities for student voice and self-advocacy. These strategies are consistent with the article’s recommendation to involve students in establishing classroom norms and to focus on helping students develop internal systems for self-regulation and perspective-taking. Through these practices, I can better support students with behavioral and social-emotional challenges while supporting a more embracing and inviting learning environment for all learners.

Notably, the work in this article by Elizabeth Kozleski, my former advisor, remains pertinent to best teaching practices.

The resources that I explored this week were: Speaking of Psychology: How the need to belong drives human behavior, A Culturally Rich Curriculum Can Improve Minority Student Achievement and Culturally Responsive Teaching Matters! Each of these resources returned to the idea that belonging helps create student success, and that building a curriculum where students feel seen can actively engage students in the classroom and larger school community.

In the podcast Speaking of Psychology, Geoffrey L. Cohen noted that the need to belong is especially "acute" during the pre-teen and teen years, proving that building a CLR curriculum for students in certain transitionary ages is especially powerful. In the high school setting, I've seen first-hand how successful students can be when the see themselves in their learning, (especially as they transition from middle school to high school). I've also seen how disengaged students can be after moving through years of an educational system where they have never seen themselves in their school curriculum at all. My most successful lessons as a teacher have come from empowering student voice, and engaging my high school students in curriculum centered around social justice and social movements from U.S. History (Audrey Kim 1). And my least successful moments as a teacher have been working with curriculum that had no modern or emotional connection to students whatsoever.

So, clearly the act of creating representative curriculum is powerful, but is not without its challenges. As many of use have noted, school expectations, dictated district curriculum, parent concerns, and narratives around education all challenge us in building a reflective curriculum for our students. (And of course, the reality of representing all cultures with the time we are given each year). Therefore, I think the most successful approach that I have found is what many of us know to our core: fostering a safe and welcoming community of learning in our classrooms, building student voice by having students express pride in their own stories and communities, and allowing students to engage in materials that demonstrate social justice.

Cultural and linguistically responsive strategies in the classroom are important to help all students feel welcome and help them establish a learning identity in the classroom. This identity is a foundation for their learning and growth. Math is often seen as just a set of numbers that are manipulated into right and wrong answers. I would argue that this oversimplification is not even close to being the reality of a middle school math classroom. Math is more than just numbers; words matter in math. Because words matter so much in math, and because each student has a distinct understanding of the words math teachers/students use this leads us to the fact that the words we use in math are as important, if not more, than the numbers themselves.

The Bishop article Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors uses the analogy of literature as a analogy to see ourselves or to see others. I wonder how I can take this idea and translate it into something meaningful for all students in my math classroom. I suppose that is my ultimate challenge. The numbers we use in math can be considered [somewhat] universal but what can I do with the words (and ask students to do with the words) in math to help students make a real connection???

When I first began teaching, I held on to a quote of James Taylor that resonated with me: "To be a guide on the side instead of a sage on the stage." That may be why I gravitated to STEM later in my career. I strongly believe all students should have a guide along the way. Teaching is not a "One size fits all" field. The Culturally Responsive Learner needs a teacher who will guide them to resources that help them develop their own identity. In addition, that teacher will build relationships with her students and establish classroom norms that meet the needs of all students.

The resources that I chose to engage with included: Culturally Responsive Teaching Matters! written by Kozleski,

Podcast: Speaking of Psychology: How the need to belong drives human behavior, with Geoffrey L. Cohen PhD, TED Talk: The Danger of a Single Story by novelist Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, and A Culturally Rich Curriculum Can Improve Minority Student Achievement by Audrey Kim.

I particularly enjoyed the layout of the first article I read, "Culturally Responsive Teaching Matters!" I could identify with many of the Key Features as they relate to my STEM classroom. Key Feature 1: High Expectations for all students. Students worked in small groups frequently. Students were expected to engage with the materials, and I would walk the room and inquire about their thinking. Students knew this was my practice, and they were ready for these inquiries. Key Feature 2: Actively involve students in learning by encouraging them to ask questions, use original sources, relate ideas to their own lives, write and read widely, build and test models, and learn through exploration. Just as importantly, build strong relationships with them so setbacks feel manageable. This key feature is how I envision a STEM classroom. Key Feature # 4: Understand the assets and capabilities that students' families bring to their parenting. Relationships! Cohen from the podcast stated, "but the wisdom of practice, knowing how to create connection in our day-to-day encounters with people with whom we disagree." Teachers have the opportunity to get to know students and their families by engaging. Teachers can build a classroom with a climate that promotes positivity and togetherness. Students can take risks because it feels safe to do so. Key Feature 5: Anchor your curriculum in the everyday lives of your students. Audrey Kim stated in her article, "I simply found that curriculum rarely succeeded in getting me to question, reflect, and engage with the material I was learning on a deep level." CRT is about engaging students in inquiry about things that are meaningful to them. That is when students can learn more deeply. Key Feature #7 Engage in reflective thinking and writing. In the TED Talk, Chimamanda stated, "Stories matter.

Many stories matter.

Stories have been used to dispossess and to malign,

but stories can also be used to empower and to humanize.

Stories can break the dignity of a people,

but stories can also repair that broken dignity." As an educator, I can share my lived story, and students also have a story to share. There are so many books and movies available to "see life from a different perspective."

A challenge often discussed among teachers is the lack of flexibility in the curriculum. There are so many programs in the elementary school now. Not only that, but at many schools I have been to as a substitute, teachers plan closely together, and administrators expect the grade-level teachers to be in sync with each other.

I read/listened to the article “Speaking of Psychology: How the need to belong drives humas behavior”.  In this piece it talked about how we all have a desire to belong and when we don’t feel like we belong we can feel discomfort and self-doubt.  I see this in my kids at the beginning of the year when we read books and they have Spanish words in them, I can see some of my culturally diverse student’s kind of sink down because they don’t know what to think when I am reading a book in their native language.  In the piece it talked about how people who don’t feel like they belong can feel uneasy or anxious and I definitely can see these feelings in my students.  To combat these feelings, I tell the whole class I am not really good at pronouncing some of these words so I might need their help.  Most of the time these kids perk up and are more than willing to help (it also helps that everyone in the class always wants to help with something, so they feel like this is their time to shine).  After we get going and they feel more comfortable I might ask them to help me explain some of the things or some of the words in the story and it is cool to see them own it and see the other kids really pay attention to their peers and what they have to say and are teaching them making everyone feel more accepted and like they belong and have something to contribute to our classroom.

The piece also talked about making people/kids feel seen and how this can open up many more opportunities for them and their learning when they have felt seen and like they belong and someone cares that they are a part of the community or classroom.  To go along with this it talked about having our students know what they value and by expressing it to their teacher, they can feel like they are cared about and what they feel is important, their teacher knows that and can use that to make a connection with them and help them to feel more of a sense of belonging.  I think by starting the year out reading these culturally diverse books it helps to open that door and start that conversation with the class about how everyone is important and brings something to the classroom.  We all have our strengths and weaknesses, but we all have something to contribute to the class. 

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies are important to increase a student’s sense of belonging, create a safe and open environment for learning, and grow student confidence and level of engagement in the classroom and school community. 

One challenge of implementing CLR strategies is ensuring that cultural responsiveness is woven authentically through my curriculum rather than treated as an isolated lesson or activity.  Another challenge is recognizing and addressing my own biases while meeting the diverse academic, cultural, and social-emotional needs of every student.

I show “The Danger of a Single Story” to teach about stereotypes and their dangers before I teach about ethnocentrism and then dive into ancient history.  I want them to understand that when learning about history and various cultures, they should be aware of the lens through which they are interpreting information. They should be careful of individual biases through awareness and what they do with them. 

I strive to make these themes relevant not only to history but also to my students’ daily lives.  I am also continually reflecting on my own biases and grading practices, seeking to better understand and support each student’s unique background, strengths, and experiences. 

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) Strategies are vitally important as they help our student body feel connected, seen, and valued within the building, and in their individual class experiences. I have seen the video "The Danger of a Single Story" a few times, and it reminds me of why I flipped my classroom. When I first started teaching, I lectured a lot, and presented "what I knew", and I came to realize that students were getting information related to my experiences, but often not there own. As Human Geography is based so much around the topic of culture, I realized I wanted students to be able to share their understanding authentically. I wanted all students to be able to ask questions, and take in information from multiple perspectives, in hope that they could gain a broader understanding and feel connected with their classmates, their community, and the world. In the article and audio clip, "Speaking of Psychology: How the need to belong drives human behavior", I thought the most impactful line was "a sense of belonging isn't just a byproduct of success, but a condition for it..." It reminds me that building connections with my students always needs to be at the forefront of my classroom, and teaching experience, if students are to have a chance to grow and expand their understanding of themselves, and the world they live in.

I think one of the biggest challenges we face is trying to create a shared community in the classroom with specifically dictated curriculum, and the push to have all classrooms cover the same content, at the same time. When the content has a connection with the students, I see more engagement, and interaction among students. The content that doesn't mean much to them, or is distant from what is important or valued within their lives, provides a different classroom feel. The students are present, but not interested, or engaged, in much of the material.

I always try to build a community first within the classroom, before ever starting content. I want students to be able to feel welcomed and safe, while building a classroom community where differences of opinion can be expressed, and discussed, but with respect and humanity leading the atmosphere, while engagement is encouraged.

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s TED Talk “The Danger of a Single Story” continues to resonate with me. Paired with Rudine Sims Bishop’s “Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors,” it has pushed me to reflect more intentionally on the texts I bring into my classroom. Over the past decade, I’ve worked to build a more culturally responsive classroom through the texts I choose. As an English department, we’ve made significant changes, expanding the range of voices and perspectives in our curriculum. Still, a few years ago, a conversation with a student made me realize I’m never done learning. During a book club unit, students chose from a selection of seven novels. I remember feeling proud of the list—I had intentionally selected texts representing a range of cultural perspectives, as well as both male and female authors. In the middle of that unit, one of my sophomores asked me a simple but powerful question: why were all the Black characters in the books we’d read that year poor? In that moment, I mentally reviewed our reading list—and she was right. Even though we had included a variety of perspectives, the stories featuring Black characters shared a common narrative. Despite my intentions, I had unintentionally created a single story. I thanked her for pointing it out and promised to reconsider our book list moving forward. That moment has stayed with me. It reminded me that creating a culturally responsive classroom requires ongoing reflection, humility, and a willingness to listen—even when the feedback is uncomfortable.

Part of this work means being open to learning from students (and sometimes parents), and being willing to adjust when needed. Because ultimately, when we know better, we do better. Each year, my students change--and because of that, my reading lists should change, too. That creates a practical challenge: there is only so much room in an English budget for new books. However, incorporating articles, videos, and other types of texts has become a meaningful way to offer students both mirrors and windows while avoiding the trap of a single story.

After reviewing several of the Module 1 resources, one of the ideas that resonated with me most was the importance of helping students feel that they belong in the classroom. Geoffrey Cohen's discussion about belonging reminded me that students learn best when they feel accepted, valued, and connected to their school community. Fortunately, I belong to a school that is very focused and committed to closely monitoring CLD strategies.

I was also impacted by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s TED Talk " The Danger of a Single Story." As educators, it is important that we avoid making assumptions about students based on a single experience, culture, language, or background. Every student brings unique experiences and strengths to the classroom, and we must create opportunities for those experiences to be recognized and respected.

As an elementary Spanish teacher, I see the importance of culturally and linguistically responsive teaching every day. Language instruction naturally includes cultural learning, and I strive to create lessons that help students appreciate diverse perspectives while feeling comfortable sharing their own experiences. One challenge is ensuring that all students feel represented and included, especially when they come from different cultural, linguistic, and socioeconomic backgrounds. However, I believe that building positive relationships, creating a welcoming classroom environment, and incorporating diverse perspectives into instruction can help all students feel a sense of belonging and increase their engagement and academic success.

I have students who come from Latin American countries but arrived in the USA when they were very young. Their parents don't speak English, and their Spanish isn't very good. Therefore, these students speak English but not much Spanish. When they go to class and can hear and practice it, they feel a great sense of belonging and want to learn it because they feel they need it to even communicate better with their parents. It's a very characteristic example of parents and children who have communication problems.

I look forward to learning from everyone's experiences throughout this course.

Culturally and Linguistically Responsive strategies are critical in our classrooms. I teach in a district with little diversity and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's The Danger of a Single Story really resonated with me, in particular where she describes her own writing featuring characters that looked and acted like the characters in the British and American literature she read. I think in order for a child to succeed in any classroom setting, they need to feel represented and valued, not reduced to a "single story". Letting go of our preconceived notions and drawing from our students backgrounds, interests, and experiences can create not just a classroom, but a community. This is also discussed in Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors. I found the quote "Our classrooms need to be places where all the children from all the cultures that make up the salad bowl of American society can find their mirrors" to be particularly powerful. I loved how the article goes on to explain how important it is for dominant groups to see representation of non-dominant groups in text. This leads me to one of my personal challenges teaching in a homogeneous area. It will take intention to help my students understand the multicultural nature of our society, taking care not to reduce groups to a single story. I also found The School Climate article interesting and it highlighted challenges in creating a Culturally and Linguistically Responsive classroom. I appreciated that the article highlighted non-examples such as bribes and color cards/gimmicks as well as included practices that promote success. While I think some of the non-examples are easy to overcome (public shaming) others can be a challenge, such as extrinsic motivation. I think it is a challenge in any classroom to create that sense of community and ownership so that students can succeed.

I look forward to not only the modules to gain a deeper understanding of CLR strategies, but learning from my fellow educators as well.

My name is Beverly Bell.  I am a secondary special education teacher at Upper Rio Grande School District, in Del Norte, Colorado. I have been a special education teacher for 32 years, with 22 of those years having taught in Del Norte.  Prior to teaching in Del Norte, I taught, at a large high school, in New Mexico where I started my teaching career on the Navajo Reservation in the mid 1990’s. At that time, the market was flooded with teachers looking for a job.  Given I had gone to college to become an elementary teacher, I reluctantly took a high school special education position located 45 minutes from my home.  I did not know anything about special education and very little about the Navajo people or their culture and I was scared to death. However, through determination and hard work, I found myself quickly falling in love with my Navajo students.  My students were quiet, respectful and eager to learn. As students sat in my classroom, I learned about their language, and culture.  I developed lasting relationships and to this day, I am still in contact with some of my students. My experience on the Navajo Reservation is one I will always cherish.

As I read through the articles, listened to the recording and watched videos, I reflected back on my career in New Mexico and Colorado. With that reflection, it’s very telling that it doesn’t matter what district or where teaching occurs.  What matters is the fact that educators must be willing to learn and grow each and every day.  We must be open minded to listen to our students, to develop relationships and to meet the needs of everyone.

Although I rarely have a student who is identified as ELL, in my current special education program, I do have a vast majority of students who come from Hispanic backgrounds. With this being stated, these students have a culture that is tied to ‘The Valley” so to speak. Del Norte is located in the San Luis Valley that spans over several hundred square miles. It is somewhat evident in the spoken English language that has its own title.  For example, the word seven is pronounced ‘saven’ and the word eleven is pronounced ‘aleven’.

The Hispanic influence does not limit itself to just language. The influence can be seen in a wide variety of ways such as close family ties, religion, and food. The culture here is fascinating to say the least and what has taken me by surprise has been the outpouring of love for children.

Our schools are the hub for our little community where families come out and support their children. Our teachers are either Del Norte High School graduates or have transferred from neighboring school districts.  There are very few teachers who have come from out of state and if so, then they quickly learn the specific culture just like I did.

In terms of the importance and challenges of CLD within my school, I would have to say as an overall district, we truly understand the importance of culture as we weave those pieces into our everyday practice. Now, this is not to say we absolutely know it all, because there is always room for growth in everything we do, but at least we do have a staff that embraces the Hispanic culture as well as other cultures.

What I have seen as a challenge with CLD is the linguistic piece.  For example, last school year two brothers enrolled in our school. One was English proficient and the other was not. The boys did not grow up in the same household when younger. The boy who was not English proficient struggled in his classes. I took a liking to him and often helped him. He would often tell me he didn’t understand anything.  This broke my heart and I began having conversations regarding a program for students who are in need and are not English Language Learners. It’s my understanding this challenge is still being addressed. Please note our teachers strive to make every student feel like they belong.

My name is Brad Broughton. I am a secondary math teacher in Colorado Springs, Colorado. I have taught math for 25 years, at both the high school and middle level. I have taught at a variety of places, east of Colorado Springs and downtown alternative schools being the two extremes.

In reading and listening to the articles I always think of my first trip to Seoul, South Korea. Before landing in Seoul I believe (out of ignorance) that it would be a poor city and backwards. After being in the city for less than a day I started to feel a little sadness at myself for prior thoughts. I don't know where they came from and didn't really realize I had them. I believe that is the main focus of these articles: the baises that you have that you are not even aware you have. The expectations you have for students is very important in whether they will succeed.

I believe developing relationships with students is the most important part of teaching and setting up systems in your classroom to develop those relationships is key. I have found you can find similarities and differences with eveyone, but being respectful of others including culture is a good place to start.

As a teacher of primary students, I have a strong influence on my students so it is incredibly important for me to embrace culturally and linguistically strategies in my classroom.

After listening to the TED Talk, The Danger of a Single Story, by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, I was reminded of the importance of bringing a variety of cultural diversity into my classroom. I like to do this through children's literature.

Children's literature (introduced primarily through read alouds) provides a wonderful opportunity to explore different cultures. This helps reduce the formation of common stereotypes, which reduce cultures and people to "one thing", as Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie points out in her video.

A challenge I often encounter, is trying to immerse my students in cultural literature, is that I am limited by what the school district has selected in our approved curriculum. I will continue to supplement whenever it is possible.

My career started at a Denver school with the majority of students being English language learners of all levels. We had paraprofessional support in many languages and the students were ambitious and enthusiastic. I loved it. Contrast this to my current school, where there is a small ELL population. My students are much more shy and quiet - even those who have been in the district since elementary. It is so much more important that I am intentional in creating a community in my classroom to learn the scientific way of knowing using their cultural contexts. Few of my ELL students are pursuing an International Baccalaureate diploma and I would like to help them get on this path. 

CLR strategies are important to my science teacher's goal to have all students be able to see the world through a scientific lens - that there are interconnections everywhere that impact the living and nonliving systems that shape the universe. Culturally Responsive Teaching echos this idea of interconnectedness. In order for my students to engage in science, they have to feel like they belong in the science classroom. 

Our frame of reference will inform our view of the natural world. In the Speaking of Psychology discussion with Dr. Geoffery Cohen, he mentioned value affirmation activities. Part of science is our understanding and value of the natural world. Giving students a chance to express their values and validate them is a great way for students to enter the intimidating world of vocabulary and skills that a high school science class requires. 

Geneva Gay’s ideas that communication cannot exist without culture and that culture cannot be known without communication is essential to understanding science. Beginning to understand how culture plays into communication will aid in my effort for students to develop a scientific understanding of the natural world through their cultural lens. 

Making my class a community is the first challenge. Creating ways for my NEP and LEP students to express their values to me and to classmates at the start of the school is part of my instruction. I’ve worked closely with my ELD coordinator to create scaffolds for instructional and assessment tools like readings, videos, labs and tests, but after reading Culture and Communication in the Classroom, I want to develop conversational tools for my students to talk to each other about the content.

My name is Rachel Pickett and I am currently a substitute teacher in both the School District of Philadelphia and Greene Street Friends School. Previously I taught high school social studies in Thornton, Colorado. I love engaging with students, honoring diversity, thinking from multiple perspectives, and building thoughtful classroom learning communities rooted in belonging. I’m currently applying for full time positions for the fall.

I think Culturally and Linguistically Responsive (CLR) strategies are important because they nurture inclusiveness and healthy belonging. In Geoffrey Cohen’s podcast he says “we are, in ways more than we appreciate, molders of other people’s psychology. And we have the ability to create connection down on the ground in our day-to-day encounters in surprisingly powerful ways.” Then, in Bishop’s article, she explores the power and importance of students being able to see themselves in the learning materials. As educators, when we scaffold and communicate that we are here to support our students in reaching high standards, and simultaneously include representation of many diverse cultures in the learning materials and activities we assign, we are molding an environment of belonging. When we don’t have diverse representation in learning materials, then Bishop shares that for students in dominant social groups, “If they only see reflections of themselves, they will grow up with an exaggerated sense of their own importance and value in the world – a dangerous ethnocentrism.” Students in non-dominant social groups have an educational experience where they chronically sense a lack of representation and belonging and can then easily internalize a sense of being devalued. I think at their core, CLR strategies are meant to foster a sense of belonging so that we live in a less distorted, healthier, and more inclusive world. As I hopefully re-enter the classroom this fall, cultivating a sense of belonging and supporting all of my students in reaching high standards through representative, thoughtful curriculum is fundamental to me.

Some of the challenges I see are that we’re living in incredibly polarized times and CLR strategies are not seen as neutral. Addressing this thoughtfully and effectively can be a challenge. Also, applying CLR practices thoughtfully also adds planning time. Educators may not know whether they're doing it well or leaving anyone out, and they may not have colleagues engaging with CLR in their own classrooms to plan and talk it through with.