Plan - Knowing Your Students

A core challenge is teaching in a way that uses your students’ cultural background to support their learning.

The first step in doing so involves learning more about your students, and their background with the content area and skills you are teaching. A few tools can help:

Cultural responsiveness framework Links to an external site. for teaching and learning. The first part of the framework addresses knowing your students.
Formative assessments, as opposed to summative assessments Links to an external site. can help identify past student experience with the topic. Also, here are some techniques for conducting formative assessments Links to an external site..
Set aside time early in the term for developing rapport with your students. You can find rapport-building tips at the bottom of this Western Washington University Teaching Handbook webpage Links to an external site..

Your understanding of how to connect your students’ experience and lives to the content of the class will evolve during the quarter. Spending a few days early in the quarter learning about your students may feel like wasted time, but learning how to connect their lives and the outcomes of the course will pay dividends as the quarter progresses. While the core content and outcomes don’t change, the path to get there might get modified as you move through the course.

For more information

10 Tips for Designing a Culturally Responsive Canvas Course Links to an external site.

Culturally Responsive Educators Resources

Four Misconceptions About Culturally Responsive Teaching Links to an external site.

Is Your Classroom Academically Safe? Links to an external site.

The Highline College Learning and Teaching Center Cultural Responsiveness page includes information in how to join the Culturally Responsive Campus Canvas course.