Culturally responsive classroom management: awareness into action

Theory Into Practice, Autumn, 2003 by Carol Weinstein, Mary Curran, Saundra Tomlinson-Clarke

In addition, the physical setting can promote social interaction and prosocial behavior. Desks arranged in clusters, for example, allow students to work together on activities, share materials, have small-group discussions, and help each other with assignments. Because racial and ethnic differences can lead to name-calling and teasing, the physical environment can reinforce the importance of being kind and tolerant. Students can drop brief notes about acts of kindness they do or witness into a "kindness box," from which the teacher periodically pulls a note and reads it aloud (Beane, 1999). Bulletin board displays can encourage students to commit "Random Acts of Kindness" or can remind students about the "DOs and DON'Ts of Teasing" (Hoover & Oliver, 1996).

Establishing expectations for behavior

Research on effective classroom management at the beginning of the year (e.g., Emmer, Evertson, & Anderson, 1980) has confirmed the importance of establishing clear expectations or norms for behavior. According to these researchers, effective managers typically have three to six general rules of conduct (e.g., "Be respectful" and "Participate in class lessons"), and they make certain that students understand what the norms mean in terms of specific behavior. This is especially critical in culturally diverse classrooms, since different cultures hold different views about appropriate behavior. In some cultures, for example, making eye contact is a sign of respect, while in others respect is communicated by maintaining an averted gaze. Teachers may expect children to sit quietly and "listen when someone is talking," but some African American students may be accustomed to a more active, participatory pattern of behavior ("call-response").

To avoid the possibility of confusion or misunderstanding (which can then lead to unnecessary disciplinary interventions and antagonism), teachers need to be explicit about their expectations, engage students in discussions about the class norms, model the behavior we expect, and provide opportunities for students to practice. Consider the following example:

   Because Ms. Frank values collaborative learning, she
   places her students' desks in clusters and encourages
   them to help one another. But she spends a lot of
   time at the beginning of the year explaining to her
   second graders exactly what that means. She takes
   pains to distinguish between helping and doing the
   work for the other person. She and her students role
   play different situations; for example, Ms. Frank pretends
   she doesn't know how to do a math problem
   and asks a student for help. Then she asks the class,
   "Was that good help? Was that explaining or was
   that doing the work for me?" Ms. Frank and her
   students also talk about when it's not permissible to
   help one another. She explains that sometimes work
   has to be done independently so that she can see
   what people know how to do on their own.

Ms. Frank realizes that it's important to be absolutely explicit about the norms for helping in her very diverse classroom. Some of her children have cultural roots in individualistic cultures; it is likely that the values of individual effort and self-sufficiency have been deeply engrained, so these children may resist her efforts to encourage peer assistance. In contrast, the children from more collectivist cultures (e.g., African, Asian, Hispanic, and Native American) have probably been taught the value of providing assistance to others; they may find it difficult to resist helping their peers, even when they are directed to work independently.