Culturally Responsive Teachers

Culturally Responsive Teachers

Rebecca Morgan
EDUC 615
George Mason University

Abstract:

I collected data about my urban elementary school that includes 903 students of diverse
backgrounds in grades K-6. In collecting this data, I realized that this population of students are
the lowest socio-economic population in the county and consist of mostly Hispanic children
(81%) that are EL students. After analyzing the data and comparing it to other schools across
the nation, state and the district, I found several inequities that surprised me. When looking at
the number of students who are not native English speakers, and come from diverse
backgrounds, compared to the number of white, English-only teachers, I discovered a large
mismatch. This data and its comparison to other schools, created the foundation for the
following inquiry and proposed plan for solutions.
Culturally Responsive Teachers

Context and Importance

Presentation of the Problem

According to Spring (2012), it is the school system’s job to ensure equality of

opportunity to each student. Meaning that students’ education should provide them with an

equal playing field when competing for jobs and wealth. Based on data presented by the

National Center for Education Statistics (NCES, 2016) in 2013, the reading gap between White

and Black 4th graders in the United States had decreased by 6 points from 1992 to 2013.

However, the White-Hispanic reading gap had no measureable change at 25 points (NCES,

2016). The gap for White-Hispanic students narrowed slightly by grade 8 (decreased by 5

points) but by 12th grade, the gap for both Black and Hispanic students was still significant

(NCES, 2016). The White-Black gap was 30 points in 2013 and the White-Hispanic gap was 22

points (NCES, 2016). This data demonstrates that we are not meeting the needs of our minority

students to ensure that they have equality of opportunity.

According to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES, 2017), the number of

Hispanic students enrolled in public schools in the United States increased from 9.3 million to

12.8 million in 2014, which was an increase from 19% to 25%. In addition, there was an

increase in Asian students, representing 5% of the student enrollment in 2014, while there was a

decrease in White and Black students enrolled (NCES, 2017). The demographics of our school

populations are changing and that does not appear to be stopping. The NCES predicts that by

2026 the Hispanic student population will continue to grow, estimated to account for 29%, and

the White and Black student populations will continue to decrease (NCES, 2017). In 2016,

NCES reported that there were 4.6 million ELL students enrolled in public schools in the United

States; 78% of those ELL students are Hispanic.

Culturally Responsive Teachers

In Virginia, there were 97,169 ELL students enrolled state-wide in public schools as of

2014 (Tate, V., 2014). Fairfax County has the highest enrollment in the state with 35,035 as of

September 2014 (Tate, V., 2014). Fairfax County reports that 29% of their total student

population receives ELL services and that 25.4% of their student population is Hispanic (Fairfax

County Public Schools, 2018). That means that roughly one out of 4 students speaks Spanish as

their native language. Nationally and locally, this data points to a significant need to understand

how we can best serve our minority students, particularly ELL students, in order to close the gap

and contribute to their success.

Potential Causes

Teachers want to help their students reach their full potential. Working with low-ELL

students or newcomers can be very challenging. Research shows that oral language and content

vocabulary are critical pieces to growth and understanding for these students (August, D., Carlo,

M., Dressler, C. & Snow, C., 2005; Mendez, L., Crais, E., Castro, D. & Kainz, K., 2015).

Without the academic vocabulary necessary to understand the content, ELL students struggle to

keep up with their English-only (EO) peers (August, D., Carlo, M., Dressler, C. & Snow, C.,

2005; Mendez, L., Crais, E., Castro, D. & Kainz, K., 2015). This gap becomes larger as the

content and vocabulary become more challenging (August, D., Carlo, M., Dressler, C. & Snow,

C., 2005; Mendez, L., Crais, E., Castro, D. & Kainz, K., 2015). Teachers need to be better

prepared to meet the needs of their ELL students. Specifically, they need to have a greater

understanding of which strategies and/or interventions are best for closing the gap.

Students who speak other languages at home also have cultural differences from the

dominant school culture. The cultural differences prevent them from being able to access all of

the opportunities that are available to their white, U.S. born peers (Applebaum, 2003; Collazo,
Culturally Responsive Teachers

2017). They do not understand the nuances of American culture and it holds them back (Collazo,

2017). These cultural differences also cause conflict when the teachers who are providing the

instruction, do not share the same culture as the students (Delpit, 2006). It has been stated that

teachers will often unintentionally lower their standards for ELL students and this prevents them

from receiving equality of opportunity (Applebaum, 2003; Collazo, 2017; Spring, 2012).

Policy

The issue of equality of opportunity for all students has been an ongoing problem for

many years that decision makers have tried to overcome. Historically, many policies have been

set in place to try to ensure that all students receive equitable instruction and opportunities. One

example is No Child Left Behind (NCLB). This policy was put in place to try to close the

achievement gap of low income students, ensure that all students receive a quality education and

to hold schools accountable for student progress (NCLB, 2004). Under this policy, standardized

tests would demonstrate how well all students were learning the content and schools that were

not demonstrating growth would be penalized (NCLB, 2004). Schools who were demonstrating

growth, would receive a higher standard to reach for the next school year (NCLB, 2004). In

addition, other programs such as Reading First were initiated to ensure that schools were using

research-based reading instructional programs (NCLB, 2004). The NCLB act had mixed results.

The positive results were that test scores rose, teachers spent more time focusing on reading and

math instruction, and there was a focus placed on teacher qualifications as well as the under

achieving groups of students (Jennings & Stark Retner, 2006). However, the negative results

were that reading and math instruction sometimes took away from other subjects such as science,

social studies and art (Jennings & Stark Retner, 2006). Additionally, students are taking a lot
Culturally Responsive Teachers

more tests and the focus for student progress demonstration has become standardized tests

(Jennings & Stark Retner, 2006).

The most recent policy initiative is Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). It took effect in

December 2015 and was meant to build upon the NCLB act (Department Of Education, 2017).

Like NCLB, ESSA strives to support the low performing students in the most underperforming

schools (Department Of Education, 2017). However, ESSA also includes stipulations for

ensuring that these schools have high standards in an attempt to guarantee that the students are

receiving the same quality of education as their peers at higher performing schools (Department

Of Education, 2017). Standardized tests are still required under this law and the results are to be

made public for all stakeholders to see (Department Of Education, 2017).

Recommendations

The previously mentioned policies have attempted to support the growing population of

EL students in our nation’s schools. It is our obligation, as educators, to do our best to provide

an equitable learning experience for every student that we serve. The following

recommendations should be considered by the district, schools and classroom teachers who serve

the large EL population that are struggling to find success in school.

District:

 Institute professional development for teachers to increase cultural awareness and to

educate them about culturally responsive instruction (Hollins, 2008; Nieto, 1999;

Villegas, & Lucas, 2007)

Culturally Responsive Teachers

 Create an incentive program for bilingual teachers to increase the number of bilingual

teachers working with this diverse population (Nieto, 1999)

School:

 Institute teacher home visits to create a more significant relationship with families and to

learn more about students funds of knowledge (Gonzalez, 1995)

 Provide schoolwide support for teachers learning Spanish (Nieto, 1999)

 Provide professional development opportunities for teachers to increase cultural

awareness and to educate them about culturally responsive instruction (Hollins, 2008;

Nieto, 1999; Villegas & Lucas, 2007)

Classroom:

 Use culturally responsive instruction (Hollins, 2008; Nieto, 1999; Villegas & Lucas,

2007)

 Begin to learn Spanish through one or more means (Nieto, 1999)

 Make home visits to as many students as possible (Gonzalez, 1995)

 Become a teacher leader by attempting to influence peers to incorporate culturally

responsive instruction, learn Spanish and make home visits (Danielson, 2007;

Katzenmeyer & Moller, 2009)

Action Plan
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What I Will Do and Why

After conducting an equity study at my school and analyzing the data, I noticed several

inequities. These inequities seemed to stem from the cultural and linguistic differences of the

student demographic and the dominant culture. At my school, there are 903 students (Fairfax

County Public Schools, 2016). Out of the 903 students, 864 receive free or reduced lunch (FRL)

and 612 are labeled as English Language Learners (ELL) (Fairfax County Public Schools, 2016).

These are two significant factors that can have a detrimental impact on student success in school

and the majority of the students in my building face these challenges. According to Hollins

(2008), the definition of oppression is the power that one group holds over another. She

discusses how the differences in race, socio-economic status and ethnicity cause struggles for

student success and this demonstrates a discrepancy of power in our country (Hollins, 2008).

This is evident in my school. According to the Test Results (Fairfax County Public Schools,

2016), one quarter of the students in 1st and 2nd grades are reading below grade level. This

deficit increases to 35% of students in 3rd grade who are unable to pass the Reading SOL

(Fairfax County Public Schools, 2016).

Hollins (2008) suggests that teachers need to be taught to be more accepting of the

different cultures represented in their buildings by analyzing it objectively through a non-

emotional perspective. Nieto (1999) feels that teachers’ outlooks and opinions can affect how

they perceive their students, the expectations they have for students as well as, impact parent

participation. When teachers view their students through a deficit lens, they perceive their

students as being less capable and they lower their expectations and often teach the basic level of
Culturally Responsive Teachers

curriculum which limits their students’ opportunities to reach their full potential (Gonzalez, et

al., 1995; Nieto, 1999).

The racial/cultural demographic breakdown of the students in my school is 81%

Hispanic, 10% Black, 5% Asian and 2% White (Fairfax County Public Schools, 2016). The

racial/cultural demographic of the teachers (certified staff) are 78% White and only 22% Black

and Hispanic, combined. According to Sato and Lensmire (2009), teachers in our country are

mostly white women from middle-class backgrounds. Only 7% of the certified staff members

are bilingual. This is a significant mismatch when compared to the number of bilingual and/or

ELL students represented in the school. (See Appendix B)

Specific Steps and Timeline

Based on the data collected and the research conducted, I recommend implementing the

following steps in this order:

Immediate Implementation:

District:

- Create a salary incentive program for teachers who currently speak or choose to learn a second

language

- Be purposeful in trying to hire more ethnically/racially diverse teachers by scheduling more job

fairs at ethnically/racially diverse colleges

September/October:

School:
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- Conduct first of 4 quarterly professional development sessions about diversity and

changing our perspective of our ELL students from a deficit to a positive

- Institute monthly Spanish classes for staff members who desire to learn another language

- Hold the first of 4 quarterly family nights at school to encourage family/staff interaction

and promote family involvement at school

- Provide support for grade level teams to institute home visits for select students

- Provide support for grade level teams to learn more culturally responsive teaching

strategies by holding quarterly professional development during CLT time

Classroom:

- Implement home visit program for 1-2 students

- Attend monthly Spanish classes

- Begin using a monthly newsletter translated in Spanish to increase family involvement

- Incorporate more culturally diverse mentor texts to help students relate to the academic

curriculum

December/January:

School:

- Conduct 2nd of 4 quarterly professional development sessions about diversity and

changing our perspective of our ELL students from a deficit to a positive

- Continue with monthly Spanish classes for staff members who desire to learn another

language

- Hold the 2nd of 4 quarterly family nights at school to encourage family/staff interaction

and promote family involvement at school

Culturally Responsive Teachers

- Provide support for teacher home visits

- Continue providing support for grade level teams to learn more about culturally

responsive teaching strategies by holding quarterly professional development during CLT

time

Classroom:

- Continue home visit program

- Discuss findings from the home visit program with grade level team

- Continue attending monthly Spanish classes

- Continue monthly newsletter for families translated in Spanish

- Incorporate a culturally diverse holiday celebration where students and family members

can share their holiday traditions with the class

March/April:

School:

- Conduct 3rd of 4 quarterly professional development sessions about diversity and

changing our perspective of our ELL students from a deficit to a positive

- Continue with monthly Spanish classes for staff members who desire to learn another

language

- Hold the 3rd of 4 quarterly family nights at school to encourage family/staff interaction

and promote family involvement at school

- Provide support for teacher home visits

Culturally Responsive Teachers

- Continue providing support for grade level teams to learn more about culturally

responsive teaching strategies by holding quarterly professional development during CLT

time

Classroom:

- Continue home visit program

- Discuss findings from home visits with grade level team

- Continue attending monthly Spanish classes

- Continue monthly newsletter for families translated in Spanish

- Incorporate a culturally diverse spring celebration where students and family members

participate in spring activities

June:

School:

- Conduct final quarterly professional development session about diversity and changing

our perspective of our ELL students from a deficit to a positive

- Hold an end of the year Spanish-style celebration for staff members who attended the

Spanish classes

- Hold the final quarterly family night at school to encourage family/staff interaction and

promote family involvement at school

- Hold a school-wide professional development session to discuss findings from the home

visit program

Classroom:
Culturally Responsive Teachers

- Complete home visit program

- Attend final Spanish class

- Send final monthly newsletter for families translated in Spanish

- Incorporate a culturally diverse end-of-the-year celebration where students and family

members participate in water activities

Resources and Permissions Needed

In order to institute these changes, support will be required from several sources. First,

the district will need the support of the Board of Supervisors to increase the budget so that they

will have the ability to offer salary incentives for teachers who speak multiple languages.

Additionally, they will need the support of the Human Resources department to implement job

fairs at more ethnically diverse colleges.

The second source that will be necessary to institute change will be my administration. It

would be impossible to implement any school-wide changes without their support. Admin will

need to approve the family night activities and provide the funding for the program. After

working with my administration for six years, I know that they will not implement changes

without a solid argument as to why the changes are necessary.

The final source is, of course, the teachers in the building. Without teacher buy-in, these

programs will not be successful. Teachers and administration will need to work together to make

these new supports successful. Administrators will need to provide the instruction and the

support for home visits, family nights, and professional development. The teachers will have to

participate in both the family nights and professional development, but they will have to carry

the majority of the responsibility for the home visits.

Culturally Responsive Teachers

Anticipated Obstacles

The first foreseeable obstacle will be finding the funds necessary to offer a salary

increase for bilingual teachers. It is never easy to convince the Board to spend more money on

school funding. In addition, they have recently increased the budget in order to give teacher

raises across the county, so it will be very challenging to convince them to yet again increase the

education budget. The second anticipated obstacle will be convincing administration to support

the proposed programs. It may be challenging to get them to agree that they should concentrate

the professional development in our building on the topic of diversity and culturally responsive

teaching. They may also need evidence-based research in order to convince them to allow

teachers to conduct home visits. Family interaction has, historically, not held a lot of value in

my building so I think this will take quite a bit of persuasiveness on the part of teachers and

administrators. Finally, I feel that the greatest obstacle in implementing these changes will come

from the teachers. I anticipate that teachers will agree that changes are necessary to supporting

our EL population. However, I also anticipate pushback from teachers in regards to the

increasing demands on their times. Additional professional development means more time out of

their classrooms or less planning time. Attending family nights means more time away from

their own families each month. Home visits will require a lot of time, particularly in the

beginning so it is a very big commitment. I feel that teachers will need a lot of convincing to

willingly participate in these programs. Possibly creating a monetary incentive plan to provide

compensation for teachers’ additional workload would be an effective means for gaining teacher

support.

Proposed Solutions
Culturally Responsive Teachers

In order to gain support from the Board, it may require that I attend Board meetings and

be willing to present the problem with supporting research so that they will understand that this

is a significant issue that affects many of our students and we must take action to support them.

Similarly, to gain support from my administration, I will need to have research to support my

argument as well as, including a well thought out plan and a list of ways that these

implementations will benefit our students and their families. Finally, to gain teacher support and

acceptance in my building, I will need to become a teacher leader in the building. Many of the

teachers in my building recognize that there is more that we can do to support our EL students

and they are motivated to make changes, yet they don’t know what to do. Therefore, I feel that

they will support most of these changes very easily. I will need to present research and answer

their questions about the home visits, specifically, but if I have the support of administration, that

will make it much easier to gain the support of the teachers.

I feel that the home visits should start slowly, so that teachers are not overwhelmed by

the experience. Possibly, just one or two teachers from each team can pilot the program and

provide feedback for the rest of the team in order to demonstrate the effectiveness of it. I think

this will create support from the other teachers when they see how impactful a home visit

program can be. Additionally, to ensure teacher safety during the home visits, teachers should

always conduct these visits in pairs; either with another teacher or an administrator.

Reflection

What I Learned

Throughout this process, I have learned many things. The data that I collected showed

that my building is most definitely not an equitable space for learning for certain groups of
Culturally Responsive Teachers

students. It shows that the demographic in my school is very segregated. The population in my

building is 81% Hispanic, 10% Black, 5% Asian, and 2% White. With everything that I have

learned about equality and equity during this course, I can say with all honesty that the students

in my building do not have the same opportunities as students who attend a mostly white school

on the other side of the county. It takes so much more for my students to succeed, so even if

they are provided the opportunity, such as the AAP center, the supports are not enough to help

them succeed there.

As a Title I school, we receive extra funds but the budget cuts have made resources tight

and we are still feeling the effects of that. Two major cuts in our building are a shortage of ELL

teachers and class sizes. 64% of the students in my building are ELL students. My grade level,

which consists of approximately 150 students, shares two ELL teachers with another grade level.

It is very difficult for them to meet the needs of our students when they have to divide their time

amongst two grade levels. I feel that this is one example of inequitable opportunities.

Additionally, our class sizes, typically 19 students, are still rather large when you consider how

much support every student needs. In collecting and analyzing this data, I have become more

aware of the difficulties that my students face in order to gain equal ground with their peers. As

a result, I have begun to consider what I can do to make positive changes to support my students.

My Role as a Teacher

This leads me to think about what I can do as a teacher, to improve this situation.

Conducting this study and thinking about student inequities has rekindled my desire to be a

teacher leader. I have had opportunities to act as a teacher leader in the past and I want to do that

again. I feel that my ability to work effectively with my colleagues, my desire to be a life-long

learner who strives to improve as a teacher, and my desire to have an impact on education
Culturally Responsive Teachers

outside of my classroom, will help me to develop as a teacher leader. In addition, I can begin to

look at my teaching abilities. According to Hargreaves and Fullan (2012), the best way to enact

change is by starting with yourself. This makes it seem less daunting, I think. It is also

something that I have always been driven to do, improve myself as a teacher. Improving myself

as a teacher, not only benefits my students, but it also sends a positive message to my team

members. Hopefully, they will be inspired by my actions to also work towards improvement.

Next Steps

Moving forward, as a teacher leader, I can express my concerns about these inequities

and be part of the solution. This might include implementing more effective strategies and

interventions in my classroom, as well as, being part of the School Improvement Plan (SIP) team

again so that my voice can be heard. As stated previously, I will start by examining myself as a

teacher. Since I work with a large population of Hispanic students whose culture is so different

from mine, I will begin by focusing on my effectiveness as a culturally responsive teacher. This

is not a short-term, quick fix. It will take time as well as, the ability to implement changes, as

they become necessary along the way. I feel, however, that the time and energy will be worth it

in order to increase my ability to support my EL students.

Culturally Responsive Teachers

References

Applebaum, B. (2003). White privilege, complicity, and the social construction of race.

Educational Foundations, 17(4), 5-20. Retrieved from https://search-proquest-

com.mutex.gmu.edu/docview/205235500/fulltextPDF/E6831747F34E4EF0PQ/1?account

id=14541

August, D., Carlo, M., Dressler, C. & Snow, C. (2005). The critical role of vocabulary

development for English language learners. Learning Disabilities Research & Practice,

20(1), 50-57. DOI: 10.1111/j.1540-5826.2005.00120.x

Collazo, J. (2017). Equitable Perspectives: First-year ESL teachers’ expectations of, and

pedagogy for, culturally and linguistically diverse students. (Order No. 10273997).

Available from Dissertations & Theses George Mason University- WRLC; ProQuest

Dissertations & Theses Global. (1937500834). Retrieved from https://search-proquest-

com.mutex.gmu.edu/docview/1937500834?pq-origsite=primo

Danielson, C. (2007). The many faces of leadership. Educational Leadership, 65 (1), p.14-19.

Delpit, L. D. (2006). Other people's children: Cultural conflict in the classroom. The New

Press. New York, NY: Routledge.

Department of Education. (2017). Every student succeeds act. Retrieved from

https://www.ed.gov/esea

Fairfax County Public Schools. (2018). About FCPS. Retrieved from

https://www.fcps.edu/about-fcps
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Fairfax County Public Schools. (2016). Demographics: Student Statistics. Retrieved from

http://schoolprofiles.fcps.edu/schlprfl/f?p=108:13:::NO::P0_CURRENT_SCHOOL_ID,P

0_EDSL:206,0

Fairfax County Public Schools. (2016). Test Results: Diagnostic Reading Assessment. Retrieved

from

http://schoolprofiles.fcps.edu/schlprfl/f?p=108:15:::NO::P0_CURRENT_SCHOOL_ID,P

0_EDSL:206,0

Gonzalez, N. (1995). Funds of Knowledge for Teaching in Latino Households. Urban education

(Beverly Hills, Calif.). 29 (4), p. 443 – 470.

Hargreaves, A., & Fullan, M. (2012). Professional capital: Transforming teaching in every

school. New York, NY: Teachers College Press.

Hollins, E. (2008). A framework for understanding cultural diversity in the classroom. In Culture

in school learning: Revealing the deep meaning. (2nd ed., pp. 135-160). New York:

Routledge.

Jennings, J & Stark Retner, D. (2006). Ten big effects of the no child left behind act on public

schools. Center on Education Policy. Washington, D.C.

Katzenmeyer, M. & Moller, G. (2009). Awakening the sleeping giant: Helping teachers develop

as leaders. (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.

Mendez, L., Crais, E., Castro, D & Kainz, K. (2015). A Culturally and Linguistically Responsive

Vocabulary Approach for Young Latino Dual Language Learners. Journal of Speech,

Language and Hearing Research, (58), 93-106.

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National Center for Educational Statistics. (2017). Racial/ethnic enrollment in public schools.

Retrieved from https://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/indicator_cge.asp

National Center for Educational Statistics. (2016). Status and trends in the education of racial

and ethnic groups 2016. Retrieved from https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2016/2016007.pdf

NCLB, (2004). Title I-Improving the academic achievement of the disadvantaged. U.S.

Department of Education. Retrieved from

https://www2.ed.gov/policy/elsec/leg/esea02/pg1.html#sec1001

Nieto, S. (1999). Who does the accommodating? The Light in Their Eyes. (72-102). Teachers

College Press. New York, NY.

Sato, M. & Lensmire, T. (2009). Poverty and Payne: Supporting teachers to work the children of

Poverty. Phi Delta Kappan, (90), 365-370.

Spring, J. (2012). Education and Equality of Opportunity. American Education (15th ed.). New

York, NY: McGraw Hill.

Tate, V. (2014). English language learners in Virginia’s schools. Virginia Department of

Education. Retrieved from https://governor.virginia.gov/media/4582/k-12-presentation-

all-in-one.pdf

Villegas, A & Lucas, T. (2007). The culturally responsive teacher. Educational Leadership,

64(6), p.28-33.
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Appendices
Appendix A: Equity Study
Appendix B: Equity Graph
 Culturally Responsive Teachers

Appendix A

General Data and Analysis Ongoing Thoughts/

(Report fraction and percentage for each as applicable) Notes

School profile 2016-

1. Number of students in your school 903
2017 data

2. Number of staff in your school School profile 2017-

89.5 2018
(certified and non-certified)

School profile 2016-

3. Number of students in your school 2017
206 (22%)
who transferred or moved into the
Specific information regarding race,
school the last academic year County mobility rate is
gender, ESL and FRL information
(disaggregate by race, disability, 13% so it is much higher
unavailable as it is confidential.
gender, ESL, and free/reduced lunch at my school.
- FRL)

Total: 3 18 total students in the

4. Number of students in your class class
Hispanic: 2/3 (66%)
who transferred or moved into the
Black: 1/3 (33%)
school the last academic year
SPED: 0/3
(disaggregate by race, disability,
FRL: 3/3 (100%)
gender, ESL, and free/reduced lunch
Male: 2/3 (66%)
- FRL)
Female: 1/3 (33%)

Status of Labeling at Your School (Report total number [fraction] and Ongoing Thoughts/
percentage) Notes

1. Students labeled “gifted” at your School profile, 2016-

66/903 (6.98%)
school. 2017 data
2. Students labeled “at-risk” at your Poverty: 864 (91.43%) School profile, 2016-
school. ELL: 612/903 (64.76%) 2017
3. Students labeled with a disability SPED teacher, 2017-
132/903 (14%)
at your school. 2018 data

4. Students labeled ELL or bilingual School profile, 2016-

612/903 (64.76%) 2017 data
at your school.

Reading below grade level: 25% of the 1st grade

5. Students with any other kind of 2nd grade students reading below students were reading
label at your school. grade level: below grade level. That
32/123 (26%) increased to 26% in 2nd
 Culturally Responsive Teachers

1st grade students reading below grade. Could this be

grade level: because the texts get
36/145 (25%) harder to read? Or
could this be because the
language gap is still too
great? How can we
change this trend? Are
there intervention
supports that are more
effective in this
demographic to help
close the gap?
These students are either
6. Total number of students who are labeled ELL, FRL,
895/903 (99%)
labeled at your school. Gifted or SPED)
Ongoing Thoughts/
Discipline Data
Notes
School Report Card,
Asian: 9% 2016-2017
1. Students who were suspended in Black: 9%
the past year (disaggregate by race, Hispanic: 72%
disability, gender, ESL, and FRL) (Specific numbers not available)

Principal
2. Students who were expelled the
past year (disaggregate by race,
0
disability, gender, ESL, and
free/reduced lunch)

3rd grade Reading Data: Based on 2016-2017 data

Total: 100 students from VDOE School
Female: Adv-22, Pass-74, Prof-52, Report Card
Fail- 26
Male: Adv-29, Pass-70, Prof-41, 74% of females passed
3. SOL grade level achievement Fail-30 70% of males passed
(disaggregate by race, disability, ELL: Adv-28, Pass-70, Prof-41, Fail- 70% of ELL students
gender, ESL, and free/reduced lunch) 30 passed
Black: Adv-17, Pass-75, Prof-58, 75% of Black students
Fail-25 passed
Hispanic: Adv-26, Pass-71, Prof-45, 71% of Hispanic students
Fail- 29 passed
White & Asian: 0
 Culturally Responsive Teachers

SPED: Adv-38, Pass-88, Prof-50,

Fail-13
FRL: Adv-26, Pass-72, Prof-47, Fail-
28

School profile, 2014-

4. Retention (disaggregate by race,
disability, gender, ESL, and FRL)
2015 data
2/896 (0.2%)
1 Kindergarten student
1 first grade student
Other information not available

Principal

5. Drop-out rate (disaggregate by

race, disability, gender, ESL, and 0
FRL)

6. Participation in ACT/SAT/AP
exams (disaggregate by race, N/A
disability, gender, ESL, and FRL)

7. Test results of ACT/SAT/AP

exams (disaggregate by race, N/A
disability, gender, ESL, and FRL)

Social Class Ongoing Thoughts/

(Report fraction and percentage for each as applicable) Notes

School profile, 2016-

1. Students receiving FRL in your 2017
864/903 (91.43%)
school. Highest in the county,
according to principal
 Culturally Responsive Teachers
2. Students receiving FRL in the
district
3. Students identified for special
education in your educational setting
4. Of the number of students
identified for special education, what
fraction and what percentage receive
FRL?
5. How does the response to Item 4
compare to Item 1 in this section?
The answers should be similar to be
“equitable.” If, for example, 60% of
students identified for special
education also qualify for FRL, and
your educational setting has 20% of
its students receiving free/reduced
price lunches, then students who
receive FRL are overrepresented in
special education. In other words, a
student from a lower socioeconomic
class family would be three times
more likely to be labeled for special
education.
6. Students identified as “gifted” in
your setting who receive FRL.
Compare the response to Item 1.
7. Students identified as “at-risk” in
your setting who receive FRL.
Compare your response to Item 1.
8. Report two pieces of academic
achievement in your setting as they
relate to social class.
54,000 (29%)
132/903 (14.6%)
130/132 (98%)
64/66 (98%)
At-risk for Poverty (FRL): 864/903
(95%)
ELL: 612/903 (64%)
Referrals for consideration to the
AAP Center: 5/903 (<1%)
District Referrals: 10% or higher
depending on the school
2nd graders reading below grade
level that qualify for FRL: 33/123
(27%)
County website
SPED teacher, 2017-
2018
SPED teacher, 2017-
2018
The percentages are very
similar. It is not
surprising that the
majority of the SPED
students in our building
receive FRL because the
majority of our student
population receives FRL.
These statistics do not
raise any flags that
would indicate an
overrepresentation of
low SES students
receiving SPED services.
However, what are
schools doing to support
the students who receive
FRL to make sure that
they are academically
successful?
AAP Teacher
School Profile, 2016-
2017 data
AAP Teacher
This is an extremely low
percentage of students
compared to other
schools in the county.
The data implies that
students from our school
are unrepresented at the
AAP center.
 Culturally Responsive Teachers

Other data collected from

School profile, 2016-
2017 data

Safety Patrol information

9. Collect social class comparison came from the P.E.
data on at least two other areas in teacher who runs the
PTO: 8/11 (72%)
your school/setting (e.g., parent- program
Safety Patrol: 31/35 (88%) FRL
teacher organization participation, PTO information came
student council, safety patrol, band). from the parent liaison

Our low SES population

10. What do these social class data is underrepresented in
mean? In your analysis, include the the AAP program. What
strengths and areas of improvement is the county doing to
for serving students of low improve access to the
socioeconomic status. gifted curriculum?

Race & Ethnicity Ongoing Thoughts/

(Report fraction and percentage for each as applicable) Notes

17/18 (94%) 2017-2018 data

1. Students of color in your class. Black: 2/18 (11%)
Hispanic: 15/18 (83%)
Black: 97/903 (10.26%) School profile, 2016-
2. Students of color in your school. Hispanic: 767/903 (81%) 2017 data
Asian: 50/903 (5%)
3. Students labeled for special SPED teacher, 2017-
132/903 (14%)
education. 2018 data
4. Of the number of students 128/132 (96%) SPED teacher, 2017-
identified for special education, what Hispanic: 100/132 (76%) 2018
fraction and what percentage are Black: 19/132 (15%)
students of color? Asian: 9/132 (7%)
The majority of the
students in my building
and in my class are
5. How does the response to Item 4
students of color, either,
compare to Item 1 in this section?
Black or Hispanic.
Therefore, the
representation of
 Culturally Responsive Teachers
6. Students identified as “gifted” in
your setting who are students of
color. Compare the response to Item
1.
7. Students identified as “at-risk” in
your setting who are students of
color. Compare your response to
Item 1.
students of color is
extraordinarily high.
This makes me think that
my school is racially
segregated. What is the
county doing to fix this?
Since there are very few
students who are white in
my building, the majority
of the students identified
as ‘gifted’ are students of
color. This is good to
see but all this really
means is that they are
pulled out of class once a
week to receive some
rigorous instruction by
64/66 (97%)
our AAP teacher. It is
possible that their
classroom teacher may
provide above grade
level
materials/instruction for
them as well throughout
the day, but this can be
difficult to do when the
majority of the class
needs re-teaching and
interventions.
All of the students in my
room fall under one ‘at-
risk’ category or
another. They are either
SPED, ELL, or FRL or a
combination of 2 or 3 of
these categories. That is
100%
a large deficit for most of
them to overcome. How
are the county, the
teachers in my building
and I supporting these
at-risk students to ensure
that they are successful?
 Culturally Responsive Teachers
8. Certified staff who are people of
color in your school: Compare this to
Item 1.
9. Uncertified staff who are people of
color in your school: Compare this to
Item 1.
10. People of color serving on the
school board.
11. Report two pieces of academic
achievement data in your setting as
they relate to race and/or ethnicity.
2017-2018 data
Considering that such a
large number of students
in my building are
students of color, there
are a significantly low
number of staff that
represent the same races
and cultures. It makes
12/54.5 (22%)
me wonder what is being
done to ensure that
culturally inclusive
instruction is used to
help our students ‘see
themselves’ in their
education and not feel
isolated in their
educational experience.
2017-2018 data
This is also relatively
low compared to the
number of students of
color we have in our
building. The majority of
these uncertified staff are
15/35 (14%)
on the custodial team
and never even interact
with students. What can
be done to demonstrate a
more positive reflection
of people of color in our
school?
County website
3
2nd grade students reading below School profile, 2016-
grade level: 2017 data
Total students tested: 123
Asian: 0
Black: 4/12 (33%) 4/123 (3%)
Hispanic: 28/99 (28%) 28/123 (22%)
White: 0
1st grade students reading below
grade level:
Total students tested: 145
 Culturally Responsive Teachers

Asian: 0
Black: 3/15 (20%) 3/145 (2%)
Hispanic: 33/121 (27%) 33/145
(22%)
White: 0
PTO: PTO data came from the
Black: 2/11 (18%) parent liaison
Hispanic: 6/11 (54%)
12. Collect racial comparison data on Asian: 0
at least two other areas in your White: 1/11 (9%)
school/setting (e.g., parent-teacher African: 2/11 (18%)
organization participation, student Safety Patrol:
council, safety patrol, band). Black: 5/35 (14%)
Hispanic: 30/35 (85%)
White: 0/35
Asian: 0/35
With such a high
population of students of
color, they represent the
majority of the
participation in extra-
curricular activities such
as band and safety
patrol. This is an
13. What do these racial data mean?
overrepresentation.
In your analysis, include the
However, when it comes
strengths and areas of improvement
to referrals to the AAP
for serving students of color.
center and role models in
the staff, the numbers are
significantly low. This is
an underrepresentation.
How can we, as teachers
and those at the county
level, change this
situation?

English Language Learners (ELLs) Ongoing Thoughts/

(Report fraction and percentage for each as applicable) Notes

2017-2018 data
1. How many English Language 15/18 (83%)
Learners are in your class and what Spanish: 14/18 (77%)
languages do they speak? Twi:1/18 (5%)
 Culturally Responsive Teachers
2. ELLs in the school.
3. How many students are labeled for
special education?
4. Of the number of students
identified for special education, what
fraction and what percentage are
ELLs?
5. How does the response to Item 4
compare to Item 1 in this section?
6. Students identified as “gifted” in
your setting who are ELLs.
Compare the response to Item 1.
7. Students identified as “at-risk” in
your setting who are ELLs. Compare
your response to Item 1.
8. Certified staff who are bilingual in
your school: Compare this to Item 1.
School profile, 2016-
612/903 (64.76%)
2017 data
SPED teacher, 2017-
132/903 (14%)
2018 data
SPED teacher, 2017-
2018
109/132 (82%)
The percentage of ELL
students in my classroom
almost matches exactly
the percentage of ELL
students in the building.
It is very high. One of, if
not the highest
percentage in the county.
AAP teacher
The percentage of
students identified as
‘gifted’ in my classroom
1/18 (5%)
is very low. The ELL
population is
underrepresented in the
‘gifted’ class.
2017-2018 data
The data demonstrates
that all of my ELL
students qualify for FRL.
83% of my class is at risk
FRL & ELL: 15/18 (83%)
for both poverty and
ELL. There is an
overrepresentation of
ELL students who are at-
risk.
This is a shockingly low
percentage. It makes it
extremely difficult to find
a translator when a
3/54.5 (7%) teacher needs to make a
phone call home. It also
demonstrates that the
students in the building
are presented with the
 Culturally Responsive Teachers
9. Uncertified staff who are bilingual
in your school: Compare this to Item
1.
10. Bilingual people serving on the
school board.
11. Approximately what percentage
of school-family communications is
translated?
12. Report two pieces of academic
achievement in your setting as they
relate to ELLs.
13. Collect ELL comparison data on
at least two other areas in your
school/setting (e.g., parent-teacher
organization participation, student
council, safety patrol, band).
14. What do these language data
mean? In your analysis, include the
strengths and areas of improvement
for serving English learners.
majority of role models
that do not share their
same culture and
language. This indicates
that bilingual staff are
underrepresented.
This percentage is higher
than the certified staff,
however, the majority of
the bilingual uncertified
12/35 (34%) staff are on the custodial
team and never interact
with the students so they
are not acting as a role
model or instructor.
Unavailable
99% of school-generated Parent Liaison
communication
40% of county-generated
communication
2nd grade students reading below School profile, 2016-
grade level: 2017 data
32/123 (26%)
1st grade students reading below
grade level:
36/145 (25%)
Patrol information from
P.E. teacher, 2017-2018
ELL Safety patrol: 30/35 (85%) data
PTO: 10/11 don’t speak any English
(91%)
The ELL students in this
building account for 64%
of the population. Only
7% of the teachers and
34% of the uncertified
staff speak a language
other than English. This
represents an
 Culturally Responsive Teachers

underrepresentation of
bilingual staff. Could
the certified staff serve
this demographic better
if they spoke Spanish,
which is the main
secondary language
spoken in the building?

(Dis)abilities Ongoing Thoughts/

(Report fraction and percentage for each as applicable) Notes

2017-2018 data

1. Number of students labeled with

7/18 (38%)
disabilities in your class.

SPED teacher, 2017-

2018 data
2.Students labeled with disabilities in
132/903 (14%)
your school.

SPED teacher, 2017-

LD: 84/132 (63%) 2018
3. Fraction and percentage of
CD:1/132 (0.7%)
students by disability label (i.e.,
EBD: 0/132
EBD, LD, CD, etc.)
ED: 1/132 (0.7%)

SPED teacher, 2017-

2018 data
4. Students labeled with a disability
5/132 (4%)
who participate in full inclusion.

SPED teacher, 2017-

5. Students labeled with a disability 2018
who are partially included in the 127/132 (96%)
general education classroom.
 Culturally Responsive Teachers

SPED teacher, 2017-

6. Students labeled with a disability 2018
who are not included in the general
0
education classroom with their grade-
level peers.

7. Collect special education

comparison data on at least two other
areas in your school/setting (e.g.,
Not available
parent-teach organization
participation, student council, safety
patrol, band).

8. How many SPED teachers and

SPED teachers: 8
assistants are there to support the
Assistants: 5
SPED students?

Strengths: All identified

students participate in
some level of inclusion.
Areas of improvement:
There are not enough
SPED teachers and
assistants to meet the
9. What do these special education needs of all of the
data mean? In your analysis, include identified students.
the strengths and areas of The number of SPED
improvement for serving students students that participate
with disabilities. in full inclusion is
underrepresented. The
number of students in my
classroom is
overrepresented
compared to the
percentage of SPED
students in the building.

Gender Ongoing Thoughts/

(Report fraction and percentage for each as applicable) Notes

1. Gender make-up of the teaching 9 males (16%) 2017-2018 data

staff 45 Female (83%)
 Culturally Responsive Teachers

2. Gender make-up of Primary grade 24 Females (96%) 2017-2018 data

teachers 1 Male (4%)
3. Gender make-up of Upper 15 Females (83%) 2017-2018 data
elementary teachers 3 Males (17%)
12 Females (85%) 2017-2018 data
4. Gender make-up of Specialists
2 Males (15%)
5. Gender make-up of Resource 9 Females (90%) 2017-2018 data
teachers 1 Male (10%)
1 Female (100%) 2017-2018 data
6. Gender make-up of AAP teachers.
0 Males
6 Females (100%) 2017-2018 data
7. Gender make-up of SPED teachers
0 Males
8. Gender make-up of discipline data. Not available
9. Gender make-up of students with Male: 1 (100%) 2017-2018 data
an emotional disability. Female: 0
10. Gender make-up of the Male: 2/4 (50%) 2017-2018 data
administrative team. Female: 2/4 (50%)
11. Gender make-up of the school Female: 10/13 (77%) County website, 2017-
board. Male: 3/13 (23%) 2018 data
3rd grade Reading Data: VDEO School report
Total: 100 students card
12. Report two pieces of academic Female: Adv-22, Pass-74, Prof-52,
achievement in your setting as they Fail- 26
relate to gender. Male: Adv-29, Pass-70, Prof-41,
Fail-30

P.E. teacher, 2017-2018

PTO: data
13. Collect gender comparison data
Female: 10/11 (91%)
on at least two other areas in your
Male: 1/11 (9%)
school/setting (e.g., parent-teacher
Safety Patrol:
organization participation, student
Female: 20/35 (57%)
council, safety patrol, band).
Male: 15/35 (43%)
 Culturally Responsive Teachers

Areas of improvement:
Male teachers in our
building are
underrepresented. Could
this create fewer positive
14. What do these gender data male role models for our
mean? In your analysis, include the students?
strengths and areas of improvement Males participating in
for serving male and female students. the PTO are
underrepresented.
Strengths: There is an
equal representation of
male/female
administrators.

Gender Identity & Sexual Orientation Ongoing Thoughts/

(Report fraction and percentage for each as applicable) Notes

1. Does your school have any active Guidance counselor,

policies that address sexual 2017-2018 data
No
orientation and gender identity?
(LGTBQ)
2. To what extent does your school’s Guidance counselor,
anti-harassment policy address No specific policy 2017-2018 data
LGTBQ issues?
3. How many staff are open about Guidance counselor,
their LGBTQ identity to other staff? 2017-2018 data
1/89.5 (1%)
To students? To families and the
community?
4. Does your school offer partner
Unknown
benefits to its employees?
5. To what extent are invitations to Guidance Counselor
school functions, staff gatherings,
100%
and so forth, inclusive of LGBTQ
relationships?
4th & 5th grade health lessons address Guidance Counselor
6. How and to what extent does your general harassment and accepting
school’s curriculum address LGBTQ differences
issues? 6th grade health lessons address more
specific sexual harassment topics
 Culturally Responsive Teachers

7. Does your school have a Guidance Counselor

Gay/Straight Alliance or some
No
organization supporting LGBTQ
youth?

8. Are there books available in the Librarian

52 Books on bullying available
library that address LGBTQ issues?

9. How many disciplinary issues Guidance Counselor

have been related to LGBTQ youth
or issues? (e.g., bullying, name-
calling, etc.)
10. To what extent are students
required to adhere to a gender-
specific dress code?
11. What do these LGBTQ data
mean? In your analysis, include the
strengths and areas of improvement
for serving this student group.
Unavailable
Guidance Counselor
Unknown
LGBTQ staff members
are underrepresented in
the building. There is
very little to support the
LGBTQ community in
our building. It was
difficult to even find
information about the
few services we have.
What can be done to
increase the supports
and make them more
easily accessible to staff
and students?

Source:
Frattura, E., & Capper, C. (2007). Leading for social justice. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
Culturally Responsive Teachers

Appendix B

PERCENTAGE OF BILINGUAL STAFF COMPARED TO

BILINGUAL STUDENTS

64.76%

34%

7%

% of ELL students % of Bilingual Certified % of Non-cert. Bilingual

Staff Staff