A World of Difference: Culturally Competent Literacy Education Today

FOX CONFERENCE 2008FOX CONFERENCE 2008

Gregory P. MeyjesGregory P. Meyjes

Middle Tennessee State University Middle Tennessee State University &&

Solidaris Intercultural Services LLCSolidaris Intercultural Services LLC

A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE:A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE:

PrefacePreface

OverviewOverview

• INTRODUCTIONINTRODUCTION

• CULTURECULTURE

• LANGUAGELANGUAGE

• LITERACYLITERACY

• EDUCATIONEDUCATION

• GLOBAL EDUCATIONGLOBAL EDUCATION

• CONCLUSION: CONCLUSION: “METACULTURAL “METACULTURAL COMPETENCE” COMPETENCE”

INTRODUCTIONINTRODUCTION

TN TN && Davidson County: Davidson County:Some Recent Some Recent

SCHOOL DEMOGRAPHICSSCHOOL DEMOGRAPHICS

http://www.state.tn.us/education/reportcard

TN Students: White vs. Other TN Students: White vs. Other (‘94-’04)(‘94-’04)

55.80%

39.70%

44.10%

60.20%

35.00%

40.00%

45.00%

50.00%

55.00%

60.00%

65.00%

1994/95 2004/05

Year

Per

cen

tag

e

White

Non-White

TN: Ethno-Racial Student TrendsTN: Ethno-Racial Student Trends(‘94-’04)(‘94-’04)

0.00%5.00%

10.00%15.00%20.00%25.00%30.00%35.00%40.00%45.00%50.00%

Year

Per

cen

tag

e

African American

Hispanic

Asian

American Indian

0.00%

2.00%

4.00%

6.00%

8.00%

10.00%

12.00%

Year

Per

cen

tag

e

Hispanic

TN “Hispanic” Student PopulationTN “Hispanic” Student Population

Davidson: ELL Students Davidson: ELL Students (’99-’04)(’99-’04)

10.00%

4.70%

0.00%

2.00%

4.00%

6.00%

8.00%

10.00%

12.00%

1999/00 2004/05

Year

Pe

rce

nta

ge

Limited EnglishProficient/ELL

Economically Disadvantaged StudentsEconomically Disadvantaged Students(Davidson, ’99 –’04)(Davidson, ’99 –’04)

50.60%

63.60%

35.00%

40.00%

45.00%

50.00%

55.00%

60.00%

65.00%

70.00%

1999/00 2004/05

Year

Per

cen

tag

e

EconomicallyDisadvantaged

Davidson County: Davidson County: Sample Elemen. Schools Sample Elemen. Schools

Meeting Meeting AYP Standards & Econ. AYP Standards & Econ.

Disadv.Disadv.Amqui ElementaryCharlotte Park ElementaryCole ElementaryHaywood ElementaryHenry Maxwell ElementaryMt. View ElementaryTom Joy ElementaryUna Elementary

MTSU grad studentMTSU grad student

Diversity Survey 2007Diversity Survey 2007

Informants by GenderInformants by Gender

0.00%10.00%20.00%30.00%40.00%50.00%60.00%70.00%80.00%90.00%100.00%

Female Male

Informants by RaceInformants by Race

0.00%10.00%20.00%30.00%40.00%50.00%60.00%70.00%80.00%90.00%100.00%

2.60%

23.10%

2.60%

48.70%

23.10%

0.00%

10.00%

20.00%

30.00%

40.00%

50.00% None/Not at all

Not much

No opinion

Somewhat

Much/Verywell/Good

Exposure to Other Cultural GroupsExposure to Other Cultural Groups

Relevance of Global EducationRelevance of Global Education

0.00%

31.30%

26.30%

38.80%

3.80%

0.00%

10.00%

20.00%

30.00%

40.00% None / Not at all

Not much

No opinion

Somewhat

Much / Very well /Good

The Challenge of Cultural DiversityThe Challenge of Cultural Diversity

0.00%

5.10%

7.60%

45.60%

41.80%

0.00%

10.00%

20.00%

30.00%

40.00%

50.00% None / Not at all

Not much

No opinion

Somewhat

Much / Very well /Good

SomeSome Results Results byby Race Race

How relevant are global issues

African American - Caucasian -

Cultural diversity is rising in TN's public schools.  African American - Caucasian: - How well do you believe public

African American -Caucasian: -

to public education in TN?75%: somewhat or much.79%: somewhat or much.

How challenging do you think it is?75%: somewhat or much93%: somewhat or much

schools in TN succeed cross-culturally?75%: not much28%: not much

““CULTURECULTURE””

What do we mean by What do we mean by

““cultureculture?”?”

““working definitionworking definition””The set of values, customs, institutions and commodities that most characterizes a people’s identity, i.e. its “spirit” or “genius”, that which distinguishes it from others. We can distinguish material, social, and ideational factors of culture. Though different, cultures are a necessary, largely subconscious part of our humanity, of our needs. (See Sapir, 1949: 308-331)

LANGUAGELANGUAGE

Let’s talk about Let’s talk about

language…language…

Some Key ConceptsSome Key Concepts

INNATENESS

COGNITION: Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis

POWER

APPROPRIATENESS

POLICIES: Education

Language Dialect

Standard Variety Non-Standard Variety

Regional Dialect Social Dialect

Prestige Covert Prestige

Style Register

Pidgin Creole

World English Ebonics/B.E.V./A.A.E.V.

Multilingualism Multiculturalism

LITERACYLITERACY

WhatWhat literacy? literacy?

EDUCATION EDUCATION && CULTURAL DIVERSITY CULTURAL DIVERSITY

GLOBAL EDUCATIONGLOBAL EDUCATION

Does global Does global education education mattermatter??

CONCLUSION:CONCLUSION:

““Metacultural CompetenceMetacultural Competence””

Towards a Definition of Metacultural Competence in

Education

“A metacultural approach to teaching is not a top-down formula for promoting learning that ignores or negates different forms of knowing, doing, and valuing that exist in society…

Rather, it is a pedagogical stance that actively and creatively seeks a) to continually assess the cultural specificity of the learning content, expectations, and process, and b) to adapt these to an evolving appreciation for the existence and a-priori validity of the diverse cultural realities in society at large.”

Copyright © 2007 by Gregory Paul P. Meyjes

INFORMATION:INFORMATION:

NotesNotes

QuotesQuotes

ReferencesReferences

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