Culture and Community Resource Used: Anita Woolfolks Educational Psychology: Ninth Edition I.

Individuals, Groups, and Society A. Melting pot: Absorption and assimilation of immigrants into the mainstream of society so ethnic differences disappear. B. Cultural deficit model: An explanation of school achievement problems of ethnic minority students by assuming that the culture is inadequate and doesnt prepare them to succeed in school. C. Multicultural education: Education that teaches the value of cultural diversity. II. American Cultural Diversity A. Culture: The knowledge, values, attitudes, and traditions that guide the behavior of a group of people and allow them to solve the problems of living in their environment. B. Socioeconomic status (SES): Relative standing in the society based on income, power, background, and prestige. III. SES and Achievement A. Health 1. Poverty-stricken families have less access to good prenatal/infant care. 2. More frequently have premature babies. a. Leads to cognitive/learning problems. 3. Babies in the womb are more likely to be exposed to substances such as a. Nicotine b. Alcohol c. Heroin d. Cocaine e. This causes problems with organization, attention, and language skills. 4. Old Houses a. Lead paint b. Lead-soldered pipes c. Lead poisoning is associated with lower achievement and long-term neurological impairment. B. Low Expectations/Self Esteem 1. Wear old clothes 2. Speak differently 3. Less familiar with books/school activities 4. Preconceived to be unintelligent C. Learned Helplessness 1. Coming to believe that doing well in school impossible. a. Friends/Relatives never finished school. b. Seems normal to quit. c. Racial discrimination makes them believe they cannot advance in life by attending school. D. Peer Influences and Resistance Cultures 1. Resistance culture: Group values and beliefs about refusing to adopt the

behaviors and attitudes of the majority culture. 2. To maintain identity/status within a cultural group, they think must reject behaviors that would make them successful in school. a. Studying b. Cooperating with teachers c. Coming to class E. Tracking: Assignment to different classes and academic experiences based on achievement 1. Streamlined into below-average classes 2. Deprived of the possibility of a better education 3. Hinders them one they leave school because they never got certain academic experiences. F. Childrearing styles 1. Home environments of low-income families often dont provide the head start students need. 2. Middle and upper class families often provide scaffolding and intellectual stimulation children need prior to the start of school. G. Home Environment and Resources 1. Poverty-stricken families often have less access to high quality daycare/preschool. 2. Poverty-stricken families lack resources such as books, computers, and library access. Therefore, these children dont get intellectual stimulation when school is out of session. IV. Ethnicity/Racial Differences A. Ethnicity: groups that are characterized in terms of a common nationality, culture, or language. B. Race: a category composed of men and women who share biologically transmitted traits that are defined as socially significant (skin color/hair) C. Minority group: A group of people who have been socially disadvantaged (not always a minority in numbers). V. Ethnic and Racial Differences in School Achievement A. There are consistent differences among ethnic groups on tests of cognitive abilities B. Differences are mainly the legacy of discrimination, the product of mismatches, or a result of growing up in a low SES environment. VI. The Legacy of Discrimination A. Prejudice: Prejudgment or irrational generalization about an entire category of people. B. Authoritarian personality: rigidly conforming to the belief that society is naturally competitive, with better people reaping the rewards. C. Stereotype: Schema that organizes knowledge or perceptions about a category. D. Discrimination: Treating particular categories of people unequally. E. Stereotype threat: apprehensiveness about confirming a stereotype VII. Girls and Boys: Differences in the Classroom A. Gender-role Identity: Beliefs about characteristics and behaviors associated with one

sex as opposed to the other. B. Men on average: More assertive, active, and aggressive in actions. C. Women on average: More extroverted, anxious, compliant, emotionally sensitive and dependent. D. Androgynous: One who rates high on both male and female characteristics. E. Gender schemas: Organized networks of knowledge about what it means to be male or female. F. Gender biases: Different views of males and females, often favoring one gender over the other. VIII. Language Differences in the Classroom A. Dialect: language variation spoken by a particular ethnic, social, or regional group; is an element of the groups identity. B. Code-switching: Successful switching between cultures in language, dialect, or nonverbal behaviors to fit the situation C. Bilingualism: Ability to speak two languages fluently. D. ESL: Designation for programs and classes to teach English to students who dont speak it as a first language. E. Limited English proficiency: Students who have limited abilities in use of English F. Semilingual: Inability to speak one language proficiently; possibly speaking more than one language inadequately. IX. Creating Culturally Compatible Classrooms A. Culturally compatible classroom: classroom in which procedures, roles, grouping strategies, attitudes, and teaching methods dont cause conflicts w/ the students culturally influenced ways of learning/interacting. B. Social Organization C. Learning Styles D. Teaching Styles E. Sociolingustics: study of (in)formal rules for how, when, about what, to whom, and how long to speak in conversations within cultural groups. F. Participation structures: (in)formal rules for how to take part in a given activity X. Culturally Relevant Pedagogy A. Culturally relevant pedagogy: Excellent teaching for students of color that includes academic success, developing/maintaining cultural competence, and developing a critical consciousness to challenge the status quo. B. Students must experience academic success. C. Develop and or maintain their cultural competence. D. Develop a critical consciousness to challenge the status quo. XI. Bringing It All Together: Teaching Every Student A. Know and respect your students. C. Teach your students.