Cultural content knowledge
From WikEd
[edit] Definitions, synonyms, organizer terms
Definitions (received Jan. 28, 2005)
- Cultural - adj. Denoting or deriving from or distinctive of the ways of living built up by a group of people.
- Content - n. The subject matter of a written work, such as a book or magazine. Often used in the plural.
- Knowledge - n. 1. The state or fact of knowing. 2. Familiarity, awareness, or understanding gained through experience or study. 3. The sum or range of what has been perceived, discovered, or learned. 4. Learning; erudition: teachers of great knowledge. 5. Specific information about something.
Cultural Content Knowledge, in turn, is defined as the awareness and understanding of the subject matter pertaining to a particular group of people either of or other than one's own.
[edit] Application in classroom and similar settings
Cultural Content Knowlege Viewed as Literacy
Learner Centered - Attention given to knowledge, skills, attitudes, and beliefs. In 1995, Ladson-Billings referred to "learner centered" learning as "culturally responsive," "culturally appropriate," "culturally compatible," and "culturally relevent."
"Learner-centered instruction also includes a sensitivity to the cultural practices of students and the effect of those practices on classroom learning" (How People Learn: Brain, Mind, Experience, and School, National Research Council, 2000).
Wells (1981) has observed the social role of language and states that it represents "people collaborating in the negotiation of meaning; talk as a form of social action; the reciprocal influence of language and context."
Gee (1990) also argues, "Literacy has no effects--indeed, no meaning--apart from the particular cultural contexts in which it is used, and it has different effects in different contexts."
Gutierrez (1992) maintains that "language learning is socially and cognitively constructed."
Cultural Content Knowledge in Mathematics
While in the past mathematics has often been considered to be one of the few fields of study that was acultural, over the last 10 - 20 years more exposure has been given to the cultural constructions in mathematics, and how to more effectively teach mathematics to students from diverse backgrounds.
These fields are found generally within the equity literature in mathematics education, but more specifically is known as ethnomathematics. D'Ambrosio is a leading scholar in this field.
Some of the problems seen in traditional mathematics teaching when it comes to issues of cultural content knowledge center around applications of mathematics and historical figures in mathematics. Traditionally, the mathematicians who were highlighted were white, rich, European males. This is a source of equity issues for racial minority students, lower SES students, and females. These groups find it difficult to relate to the interests, goals or achievements of people from such different backgrounds as themselves, and often develop the belief that math is only for "those people". There is a wealth of mathematical heroes from nearly every continent (possibly not native Australians, but there may be some of whom I'm not aware). Many societies developed quite advanced methods of dealing with numbers and had a great respect and love for mathematics. With a little time and research these examples can be used to help students become more motivated in their knowledge of mathematics.
In addition, many of the examples used center around engineering, which is statistically a white, male, middle to upper-class undertaking. Suggestions have been made to expand mathematics teaching to include more applications related to everyday life, taking into account the living conditions of students. In urban schools, settings such as public transportation, museums, buying and selling are common and make good contexts for problems. Situating problems in a context with which students are familiar helps them to focus on the mathematics and also allows them an advantage as they will have an intuitive sense regarding that domain. This is especially true for students from low SES backgrounds, as higher SES students generally have more advantage from their home life in decontextualizing information (extracting the data from its context, and being able to work with the data itself, regardless of their knowledge of the context). With this in mind, we find we have been doing exactly the opposite of what makes sense; if we are going to confine ourselves to one domain, it should be the domain of the less privileged, as those who are more privileged seem to have the necessary skills to adapt to such an environment. But, for all students, the exposure to a variety of domains helps students grow in not only their mathematical knowledge, but also their understanidng of people who are different from themselves. This is an invaluable skill which will well serve our students.
[edit] Evidence of effectiveness
People, particularly students, with disabilities are considered to be part of a multicultural influx occurring in classrooms and in literature; therefore, when a teacher, such as myself, encounters this cultural diversity, it is crucial, though at times daunting, to become educated in that area. Teachers must make the effort to learn about the students in order to provide a safer-learning environment.
True Personal Stories
Aside from the various ethnicities, and this is not to say that they are any less equal of importance, and SES of students, it was during my student teaching that I was put to the test. One student of mine was hearing impaired and not considered inclusion. He is able to read lips and speak but hears only muffled sounds if not spoken directly and near him. Another student was considered inclusion at the time because she had been diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder. In both these instances, it was my responsibility as an educator to self-educate about these two extremely different worlds.
First, I learned minimal sign language to help the male student know which page to turn to or if we were to read together or silently, for example. He was a popular student and did not want to be treated differently from his friends; however, he was easily distracted by muffled sounds and, therefore, needed to sit near the front row. Also, when the class viewed film clips, it was necessary to turn on Closed Captioning. Furthermore, I made it a point in my units to include the bare minimum of lecture/instruction time because this student would quickly lose interest in a lesson if he was unable to understand what was being said. This type of behavior is similar to ESL or bilingual students. Overall, during this student's IEP evaluation, he commented that he had the most fun and learned the most in my class because he "was able to do stuff." In many of his other classes, teachers lectured the entire time or did not show effort to help him succeed in an environment of hearing-able people. Needless to say, this student did receive detentions "for not paying attention." Is that fair? Is that right?
My second encouter with a diverse student also happened during my student teaching. This young female had been recently diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder and I quickly came to realize that I knew nothing about this disorder. The school provided Bipolar Disorder training for all those who came in contact with this student and we mastered our documentation skills. This was challenging because according to this student's IEP, she was allowed double the time for homework whether it was a one-night assignment or a two-week project. Also, this student was liable for random outbursts or tantrums, which, despite her having an aide, occurred often. It was a humbling experience, to say the least, to be called various insulting names before my career even began. Though, if I hadn't made the effort to learn more about the disorder in addtion to the training from the school, I would not have known what to do in such instances.
Having both these students in my classroom further proved that teachers must consider students of multiple intelligences and multiple needs .
[edit] Critics and their rationale
The following passage is comes from British Council
This passage gives a unique combination of the Cultural Content Knowlege influx by including topics such as economics, stereotypes, and the humankind evolvement
"It is too simplistic to view culture as a list of facts that we associate with a society, for example, that Britain is an island and that Australians like barbecues. Apart from creating stereotypes we risk a ‘trivial pursuit’ approach to culture. It is true that members of a given society share a body of knowledge which could be termed common culture or shared culture. This could be anything from knowing the name of a television programme from the 1970s or the symbol of a political party. In essence, it is the Who wants to be a millionaire?knowledge which comes from living there and going through the education system. It would be difficult to transmit a fraction of this knowledge to a foreign learner. It is possible however to identify commonly shared values and trends in the English-speaking world. These factors determine the social and economic fabric of everyday life and can be used as the basis for cultural studies in a language classroom. Instead of simply looking at a who’s who? of the Royal Family, the approach can, by comparison, be far less superficial by looking at how the Royal Family are viewed in the UK today and what their role was in the past. It is important to transmit the concept that societies, like your and the students’ own, are not static. Behaviour, habits and attitudes have evolved and are constantly changing. Stereotypes of yesteryear are no longer valid. One major theme, for upper secondary in particular, is the impact that the Information Revolution is having on working patterns, life styles and ways of learning, free time and communicating."
Also see Cultural Diversity
[edit] Alternative explanations due to Diversity considerations
[edit] Signed �?life experiences�?, testimonies and stories
Dr. Violet J. Harris is a professor at UIUC in the C&I department teaching Multicultural Children's Literature this semester (Spring 2005). She recently demonstrated what she considers to be her wheel of culture. In other words, this wheel contains various sub areas that create a culture, which in turn create a multicultural world. This multicultural world plays a crucial role in understanding Cultural Content Knolwedge in addition to Cultural Diversity.
The contents of the wheel are: Race & Ethnicity, Geographic Location, Disabilities, Class (SES), Religion, Sexual Orientation (GBLT), Age, Language (including signing), Gender, and most importantly, Other.
Other is important to remember because the wheel does not stop growing and changing, just as our world does not stop growing and changing.
Recently, as I have been working on other projects, my wheel contents have grown. My personal wheel now also includes politics and the arts.
