home

School Culture Case Study
===The purpose of this Wiki is to collect, collaborate and present a final copy of your school case study from your field placement. ===  The Lens of Cultural Proficiency Lindsey, R. B., Graham, S. M., Westphal Jr., R. C., & Jew, C. L. (2008). //Culturally proficient inquiry: A lens for identifying and examining educational gaps.// Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

__**What is Cultural Proficiency?**__ Cultural proficiency is about being effective in cross-cultural situations…[ It] is about educating all students to high levels through knowing, valuing and using their cultural backgrounds, languages, and learning styles within the context of our teaching. The central tenet of cultural proficiency holds that change is an inside-out process in which a person is, first and foremost, a student of his own assumptions. One must be able to recognize one’s own assumptions in order to retain those that facilitate culturally proficient actions and to change those that impede such actions…. It is this ability to examine one’s self and organization that is fundamental to addressing achievement gap issues. (pp. 19-20)

__**What Does the Research tell us About the Academic Achievement Gap?**__ 
 * 1) The achievement gap is historical
 * 2) The achievement gap is quantifiable
 * 3) The disparity between student demographic groups is also evident from qualitative data
 * 4) The achievement gap persists in urban, suburban, and rural schools
 * 5) The achievement gap is not just about test scores. It correlates also with gaps in wellness, school readiness, opportunities to learn, opportunities to access educational programs and support, grade promotion and graduation, post-school opportunities including college entrance, employment and employability, and earnings (pp. 8-9)

__**What are the Current Factors that Contribute to the Achievement Gap?**__
 * 1) Ineffective, disengaging instruction
 * 2) Underqualified teachers
 * 3) Limited preschool attendance
 * 4) Prejudice, stereotype threat, and poor self –concept
 * 5) Low teacher expectations
 * 6) Competing technology
 * 7) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Test Bias
 * 8) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Poverty
 * 9) <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">High mobility

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">1. The demographic group you will be studying will be the community/school/classroom of your assigned school placement. 2. In one paragraph describe the community in which the school belongs. 3. In one paragraph describe the mission and goals of the school. 4. Utilize the WINNS website to collect the following information for your analysis: · <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Student Demographics ( 2-4 tables) · <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Student Performance on WKCE ( 2-4 tables) · <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Teacher Qualifications( 1-2 tables) · <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Student Attendance, Behavior or Graduation rates (1-2 tables) 5. Briefly summarize each data table (3-4 sentences). 6. Identify the source of the information.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">School Profile- Data Collection Process (Phase I) **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">1. As you walk through the school, what evidence do you see that the school practices culturally responsive practices? 2. In the classroom in which you are placed, how are issues of race, class, and culture addressed? 3. Look at the child and adolescent literature in your classroom or the school library. How well does it represent multiple cultures? Does it represent the cultures of the students who attend the school? Interview someone at the school who is responsible for selecting and ordering literature. How is the issue of multicultural representation addressed in the book selection process? 4. Use the Curriculum and Instruction Rubric as your guide, as you describe your school 5. __<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">This should be a 1 page only report __<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">School Profile- Data Collection Process (Phase II) **

Cultural proficiency encompasses all that is cultural competence and more. It is demonstrated by an educators’ commitment and action towards lifelong learning, social justice, and to advocate for what is right for all children. From your analysis of the information you gathered about the school you were assigned to for Field Placement II, you have undoubtedly gained a perspective about the importance of cultural proficiency and the impact it has on instruction ,and ultimately student learning. Discuss your findings using the following prompts: 1. What did you discover? Were you surprised? Briefly talk about an area you either found positive, supportive, or maybe toxic. ( 1 paragraph) 2. Discuss how you as a new educator in the building could begin to contribute, shape, or change the school culture. ( 1 paragraph) 3. __<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">This should be no longer than 1 page. __
 * School Profile- Discussion of Findings (Phase III)**