Culturally Responsive Teaching

Learn more about how to use students’ customs, characteristics, experience, and perspectives as tools for better classroom instruction

Explainer

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What Is Culturally Responsive Teaching?
Here's what it means to be a culturally responsive teacher and where critical race theory ties in—or not.
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The East Anchorage High and Scammon Bay students gather at a home in the Native Village to learn how to comb fur from a musk ox hide using special combs and common forks. The fur can later be spun into yarn.
Students from East Anchorage High School and Scammon Bay, Alaska, gather to learn how to comb fur from a musk ox hide through a federally funded cultural and educational program for Alaska Native students.
Erin Irwin/Education Week
Education Funding Grants Aim to Support Alaska Native Students' Education, Well-Being
The U.S. Department of Education is providing more than $35 million for projects in its latest round of funding.
Libby Stanford, September 6, 2022
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2 min read
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Reading & Literacy Whitepaper Leveraging Digital Book Investments as Key Classroom Tools
Looking forward to a post-pandemic world, digital books open up new learning opportunities for districts looking to further leverage the investments they made to accommodate remote learning.
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English-Language Learners Whitepaper 3 Strategies to Honor Students' Language Assets
Ellevation Education’s new white paper outlines strategies educators can use to make classrooms places where students can flourish.
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Teaching Opinion Christopher Emdin, Gholdy Muhammad, and More Education Authors Offer Insights to the Field
Want to know about culturally responsive teaching? Teaching kids to thrive? Scores of interviews highlight those topics and more.
Larry Ferlazzo, August 17, 2022
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7 min read
Banned books
Social Studies Florida Is Placing Limits on Social Studies Textbooks. Here’s What Has to Go
Earlier this year, Florida drew national attention for rejecting math textbooks. Could the same happen with social studies?
Ileana Najarro, July 14, 2022
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5 min read
Image shows a young student working on a laptop with a teacher.
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Science How to Close the STEM Achievement Gap for Indigenous Students: Feature Local Culture
Study examines factors that will positively impact Indigenous students' STEM proficiency.
Lauraine Langreo, June 28, 2022
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2 min read
Curriculum Spotlight Spotlight on Creative Learning
This Spotlight will empower you with findings about student motivation, the case for real-world problem-solving, and more.

May 26, 2022
Images shows colorful speech bubbles that say "Q," "&," and "A."
iStock/Getty
English-Language Learners Opinion Crystal Ball Predictions: What Will Education for ELL Students Look Like in 10 Years?
In the next decade, schools just might appreciate English-learners for whom they are and the language skills they possess.
Larry Ferlazzo, May 17, 2022
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12 min read
Thu., May 05, 2022, 2:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. ET
English-Language Learners Webinar Using Culturally Responsive Teaching To Support English-Language Learning
Explore how to apply culturally responsive teaching to equitably teach students who are learning English as a second language.
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May 5, 2022
Equity & Diversity Spotlight Spotlight on Education Equity
This Spotlight will help you learn about leaders who champion equity, the meaning of culturally responsive teaching, and more.
May 4, 2022
Illustration of diverse hands being raised.
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States How Laws on Race, Sexuality Could Clash With Culturally Responsive Teaching
Critical race theory and culturally responsive teaching are not the same thing. But bans of one could impact the other.
Ileana Najarro, April 21, 2022
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7 min read
teacher diverse classroom
DigitalVision Vectors/Getty
Equity & Diversity Q&A What Should Culturally Relevant Teaching Look Like Today? Gloria Ladson-Billings Explains
"The attack on anything that allows more participation and moves us toward equity is going full force," the scholar said.
Madeline Will, April 20, 2022
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8 min read
Explainer: What Is Culturally Responsive Teaching?
Teaching Video Explainer: What Is Culturally Responsive Teaching?
Plenty of educators say they use culturally responsive teaching in the classroom but many don't know its history or what it means.
Kaylee Domzalski, April 18, 2022
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3:02
A Black teacher helps a student with her work.
Drazen Zigic/iStock
Teaching Teachers of Color Are Linked to Social-Emotional, Academic Gains for All Students
These effects are driven, at least in part, by the use of culturally responsive teaching, a new study suggests.
Madeline Will, February 8, 2022
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5 min read
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