5 – Culturally Responsive Pedagogy
Jayden Smith
Introduction
In 1971, Canada adopted multiculturism as an official policy (Prokopchuk, ECUR 415, Module 3, 2017). This policy was created to be inclusive of all people of various cultural backgrounds living in Canada. According to the SaskCulture website, culture is dynamic; it is more than ethnicity and religion and includes all “symbolic forms and the everyday practices through which people express and experience meaning” (ECUR 415, Module 3).
Saskatchewan has been growing in diversity since 2008 due to a dramatic increase in immigration (ECUR 415, Module 2). In order to maintain and grow the population of the province, Saskatchewan sponsors skilled immigrant workers to move to Canada and become citizens through the Saskatchewan Immigrant Nominee Program (ECUR 415, Module 2; Anderson & Tilbury, 2014, p. 88). In response to rapid growth of diverse languages and cultures in Canada, there is an increased need for teaching practices that are culturally responsive. Culturally responsive pedagogy is defined as “teaching that integrates a student’s background knowledge and prior home and community experiences into the curriculum and the teaching and learning experiences that take place in the classroom (Ontario Ministry of Education, 2013, p. 2).
I believe that culturally responsive pedagogy is an approach to instruction that is essential for teachers to adopt all over Canada because not only is cultural inclusiveness a part of the Canadian identity, but the rapid growth of diversity in Canada means that soon every school in the country will have students from multiple cultural or language backgrounds. Having attended a small rural school, I failed to recognize the obligation that schools have to ensure that all students feel safe, included, and accepting of diversity. This paper argues that schools and teachers need to use culturally responsive pedagogy to create welcoming classrooms, dispel cultural assumptions, embrace linguistic diversity, and support diverse strategies.
Welcome Procedures
The school is often the first public building a new family visits and is the first impression newcomer families have of their new community (ECUR 415 Module 2). The first step to culturally responsive pedagogy is to create an inclusive environment. The reception of new students and families is a crucial step for implementing culturally responsive pedagogy to help newcomer families feel welcome. The reception process begins when a new family comes to the school or established welcome center for an initial assessment (ECUR 415, Module 2). To help make new families feel welcome, schools and welcome centers can anticipate language needs by having EAL specialists and counselors either on staff or available. Schools and school divisions should also have translated material and interpreters available to help bridge the language divide (ECUR 415, Module 2).
In her book Language and Learning in Multilingual Classrooms: A Pr