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Cultural Competency Cultural Competence Model & Culturally

Responsive Practices

Shazia Akbar Ghilzai Anthropological linguistics Department of linguistics

“Cultural and linguistic competence is a life’s

journey not a destination”!

OUTLINE

• Introductions

• Cultural Diversity Bingo

• Rationale for Cultural Competency Training

• Definition of Terms

• Cultural Competence Model

• Cultural Competence Continuum

• Pedersen’s Developmental Model

• Culturally Responsive Practices

Rationale for Cultural Competency Training

• Demographic Shifts in Population

• Culture Influences All Aspects of One’s Environment

• Teacher vs. Student Composition

• Limited Preparation in Educating a More Diverse Student Population

• Deepen understanding and increase sensitivity

• Consideration as to what extent you perceive yourselves to be culturally competent

• Gain a Greater Appreciation of Diversity Issues

• Ethical Responsibility

DEFINITIONS OF TERMS

• CULTURE- Learned traditions, principles and guides of behavior that are shared among members of a particular group.

Codes of behavior, values, and norms, beliefs, customs, communications or “the way we do things here”. Art, music, food, literature, and clothing are all visible aspects of culture.

Ethnic groups have cultures Businesses have cultures Neighborhoods have cultures. It is dynamic and changes over time. There is diversity within cultures. Each person is a member of many cultures!

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Culture You continually construct from history, circumstance,

family and community…

Iceberg

Concept of

Culture

Weaver (1986)

CULTURAL COMPETENCY

It is the integration and transformation of knowledge

about individuals and groups of people into specific standards, policies, practices and attitudes used in appropriate cultural settings to increase the quality of services, thereby producing better outcomes

In the school setting, it involves the ability to acquire knowledge of education-related beliefs, attitudes and practices to improve student achievement. It is a developmental process occurring along a continuum from cultural destructiveness to cultural incapacity to cultural blindness to cultural pre-competence to cultural Competence to cultural proficiency.

• Cultural Proficiency knowing how to learn and teach about different groups in ways that acknowledge and honor all people and the groups they represent. • Ethnicity groups in which members share a cultural heritage from one generation to another; one’s geographical origin, group image and a sense of identity derived from contemporary cultural patterns and a sense of history. Many people are of multiple ethnicities. • Race a classification system based on physical characteristics and generalized conceptions of skin color. A political and social construct that is most often important in societies with a history of oppressing specific groups. • Racial Identity one’s sense of group identity or affiliation and association with others who possess the same racial heritage.

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Ethnicity

• You identify with

RACE

• You are classified as

Many terms to describe the work and concept

Culturally relevant Culturally aware

Culturally & Linguistically Competent Culturally Appropriate Cultural sensitivity

Culturally Competent Culturally Proficiency

Multicultural Competence

Culturally Effective

Cultural Humility

Linguistically Competent

Cultural Destructivene

ss

Refusal to acknowledge the presence or importance of cultural differences; Differences are punished and suppressed; Schools endorse the myth of universality.

Cultural Incapacity

The individual or organization chooses to ignore cultural differences; No attention is devoted to supporting cultural differences; Emphasis may be on the cognitive growth and maturity of youngsters versus addressing the issues of cultural awareness.

Cultural Blindness

Individuals and organizations believe that cultural differences are of little importance; People are viewed through a western cultural mainstream lens; Messages are communicated to students that their culture is of little consequence to the learning experience.

Cultural Pre-

Competence

The individual or organization recognizes and responds to cultural differences; There is an open acknowledgement of the need for cultural competence; Educators may seek out new information regarding diversity by attending training sessions or interacting with those individuals who have insider cultural information.

Cultural Competence

The individual and organization value and appreciate cultural differences; Exploration of issues related to equity, cultural history, knowledge, and social justice; Students’ cultural experiences are valued and integrated into the learning process.

Mason et al.’s Cultural Competence Model (1996) The Cultural Proficiency Continuum

1. Cultural Destructiveness. See the difference, stomp it out. Negating, disparaging, or purging cultures that are different from your own.

2. Cultural Incapacity. See the difference, make it wrong. Elevating the

superiority of your own cultural values and beliefs and suppressing those of cultures that are different from your own.

3. Cultural Blindness. See the difference, act as if you don’t. Acting as if the cultural differences you see do not matter, or not recognizing that there are differences among and between cultures.

4. Cultural Pre-competence. See the differences, respond inadequately.

Recognizing that lack of knowledge, experience, and understanding of other cultures limits your ability to effectively interact with them.

5. Competence. See the difference, understand the difference that

difference makes. Interacting with other cultural groups in ways that recognize and value their differences.

6. Cultural Proficiency. See the difference and respond. Honoring the

differences among cultures, viewing diversity as a benefit, and interacting knowledgeably and respectfully among a variety of cultural groups.

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Valuing Culture & Ethnicity

“People’s religion, culture, and ethnicity often are not just facts about them, but are central to their self-definitions. People are not just persons who happen to be Christians, women, or African Americans. These characteristics are not possessions, like clothing, that can be shed or changed at will. Instead, people are Christians, women, or African Americans. If so, then one reason that can be given for respecting diversity is that to fail to do so is to reject who people are. It is to deny their worth. It does an especially insidious kind of violence to them” (Strike, Haller & Soltis, 2005).

Pedersen’s Developmental Model

• Awareness – consciousness of one’s own attitudes and biases as well as the sociopolitical issues that confront culturally different youngsters

• Knowledge – accumulation of factual information about different cultural groups

• Skills – integration of awareness competencies to positively impact children from culturally distinct groups

• Attitude – belief that differences are valuable and change is necessary and positive.

Each domain builds successively on the previous one such that mastery of an earlier domain is necessary before proceeding to subsequent domains.

Attitude/Awareness • Believes that differences are valuable and that learning about

others who are culturally different is necessary and rewarding. • Is open to change, and believes that change is necessary and

positive. • Willing to self-examine and, when necessary, challenge and

change their own values, worldview, assumptions and biases.

• Is personally committed to justice, social change and combating oppression.

• Accepts other worldviews and perspectives and are willing to

acknowledge that, as individuals, they do not have all the answers.

• Believes that cultural differences do not have to interfere with effective communication or meaningful relationships.

Knowledge • Understands their own cultural heritage and acknowledges how it

affects their values and assumptions.

• Understands other worldviews and perspectives.

• Understands how social change occurs.

• Is familiar with the nature of institutional oppression and power.

• Understands that there are unjust institutional barriers that exist for diverse groups.

• Demonstrates a realization and understanding of

internalized oppression and its impact on identity

and self-esteem.

• Understands how class, gender, race, etc.

affect individuals and their experiences.

• Understands the ways that cultural differences

affect verbal and nonverbal communication and

the notion of personal space.

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SKILLS • Identify and openly discuss cultural differences

and issues. • Gain respect of individuals who are culturally

different themselves. • Challenge oppressive systems and serve as an ally

to those being oppressed. • Use cultural knowledge and sensitivity to defend

the rights and values of individuals and groups. • Accurately assess one’s own multicultural skills,

comfort level, growth, and development. • Use verbal and non-verbal (body language)

responses to communicate with diverse individuals and/or groups.

• Resolve conflicts in culturally appropriate manner.

• Use multiple viewpoints in problem-solving. • Employ critical thinking skills.

Five essential elements contribute to a system’s ability to become more culturally competent:

1. Valuing diversity 2. The capacity for cultural self-assessment 3. Consciousness of the “dynamics” inherent when culture interact 4. Institutionalization of cultural knowledge 5. Developing adaptations to service delivery reflecting and understanding between and within cultures. These five elements must be manifested in every level of the service delivery system as reflected in attitudes, policies, structures, and services.

Culturally Responsive Practices

• Provide services that acknowledges that culture is central to learning and encouraging students and others to learn by building on the experiences, knowledge, and skills they bring to the classroom, group, office or meeting.

• Service providers who are aware and respectful of the

importance of the values, beliefs, traditions, customs, and parenting styles of the children and families they serve.

• Educators and other staff who are also aware of the impact of their own culture on their interactions with others and take all of these factors into account when planning and delivering services to children and their families.

• Lindsey, R., Roberts, L., & Campbell-Jones, F., The culturally proficient school: An implementation guide for school leaders. Corwin Press, 2005.

• Keyes, Marian, Burns, Rebecca, Kusimo, Patricia, It Takes A School: Closing Achievement Gaps Through Culturally Responsive Schools, 2006.

• Educational Leadership, Vol. 64, No.6, “Responding to Changing Demographics”, March 2007.

• McIntosh, P. White privilege: Unpacking the Invisible knapsack. In Peace and Freedom, 1989.

• National Association of School Psychologists,

Provision of Culturally Competent Services in

the School Setting, 2004.

• Stiff-Williams, H.R., ”Increasing Teachers’ Cultural Competence to Promote Improved Student Performance, Conference Address, VDOE, 2006.

• Lindsay, R., Robins, K., & Terrell R., Cultural Proficiency: A Manual for School Learners, 2003.