Abstract
It is important for special educators in urban environments to have a deep understanding of the values, beliefs, and practices of diverse students with disabilities and their families. Research indicates, however, that educators are often underprepared to understand the perspectives of members of their school community and often center their own perspectives on curricular decisions in urban environments. Therefore, it is important for special educators to engage in knowledge generation that provides them information about the assets and beliefs of their urban school community while also challenging their mindsets so that they can better center the perspectives of their students when making decisions. This column provides recommendations for special educators to prepare themselves by developing a deep understanding of their school community that they can use to subsequently link to the implementation of culturally sustaining practices.
Keywords
One critical characteristic of effective urban educators who engage in culturally sustaining practices is that they have a deep understanding of the diverse perspectives of the students, families, and communities they serve (Durden et al., 2016; Ginsberg et al., 2021; Senyshyn & Martinelli, 2021). Subsequently, effective urban educators use this understanding to then find and implement effective and sustaining pedagogies into their classroom environment (Paris & Alim, 2014; Warren, 2018). However, urban educators often are not prepared to engage in the development of this understanding. A lack of deep understanding of these diverse perspectives can result in educators failing to alter their “gaze” away from their own personal beliefs and values instead of toward centering the experiences of the students and families they are serving when engaging in complex decision making (Senyshyn & Martinelli, 2021; Warren, 2018). This is particularly true of educators who may have a cultural mismatch when working in school environments with students who identify as Black, indigenous, and persons of color (BIPOC) (Warren, 2018).
Perspective taking is a method that could be used to support teachers in preparing themselves to engage in the development of a deeper understanding of their school community by developing empathy for the students and families they are serving (Warren, 2018). However, it is important that educators engage in perspective-taking that shifts their empathetic views from an imagine-self framework, in which educators consider how they would respond or react in a specific situation based on their values and beliefs, to an imagine-others framework that has educators considering how the students, families, and communities they serve would respond to those situations (Warren, 2018, p. 174).
Warren (2018) recommended that educators working with diverse students develop their knowledge in two critical ways to best engage in taking an imagine-others perspective: (a) acts of knowing, and (b) processes of knowing. Acts of knowing refer to the methods that educators can use to develop concrete knowledge and typically involve engagement with external stakeholders or resources (e.g., talking with community members, reading books, attending professional development sessions). Processes of knowing are the cognitive experiences that educators engage in to create new schemas of understanding to enact culturally sustaining practices in their classroom environment (e.g., identifying potential biases, reflecting on classroom systems to better support diverse learners, challenging self to learn more about the community that is being served). This column outlines a four-step process that special education teachers might use to prepare themselves to engage in imagine-others perspective taking in urban environments prior to implementing culturally sustaining practices. This preliminary work helps ensure that educators are prepared to develop a deep understanding of their school community to link the implementation of culturally sustaining practices to the needs of their diverse students with disabilities. Specific recommendations for the implementation of components of the pre-work process can be found in Figure 1. This recommended process is highly individualized for each special educator based on their experiences, school placement, and students being served. However, a sample framework for organizing lessons learned at each step of the process is provided in Table 1.
Recommendations for special education professionals to engage in cultural perspective taking.
Questions to Guide Information Gathered During Perspective-Taking Process Steps.
Reflection and Analysis of Personal Narrative
The first step that special education professionals can implement to prepare themselves to better understand their school is to better understand their own beliefs and experiences related to education. This is critical as the beliefs held by an educator often align with the practices they implement in the classroom regardless of their cultural alignment to students’ experiences (Durden et al., 2016). A recommended method for engaging in this analysis of beliefs is through the development of a personal narrative (Cochrane, 2014). The development of a personal narrative related to education can support special education professionals in (a) identifying their beliefs about what it means to be a good student, (b) the role school plays in a student’s life, (c) how they believe schools connect with the community, and (d) what values they are bringing to the school community.
For special education teachers who identify as BIPOC, the development of a narrative can be a cathartic experience in which they identify potential impacts of systemic oppression they have experienced as well as identify the actions, people, and resources that supported them in navigating schooling so that they might identify related supports for students in a culturally sustaining way (Durden et al., 2016).
Some variables that might be considered in the development of a special educators’ personal narrative include (Cochrane, 2014; Senyshyn & Martinelli, 2021):
A reflection on their own personal history and family,
How they define privilege and what privileges they have had to support their academic success,
Topics related to educating diverse students that they find easier or more difficult to discuss,
Reflections on potential struggles they have had that developed their character,
What they believe to be the purpose of education and what values and beliefs they have about what “good schooling” looks like, and
How they have experienced interacting with diverse individuals throughout their own time as a student and their career as a teacher.
These narratives are a critical first step in developing empathy through perspective taking, as this critical reflection is essential for identifying personal values that may be influencing the perceptions educators have about students, families, and community members who identify as BIPOC when they make instructional decisions to support learning (Warren, 2018).
Importance of an Historical Perspective
In addition to understanding their own personal narrative, it is important for educators to learn about the history of education across sectors that influence variables in their school environment (e.g., United States education, the history of education in their own personal community, the history of education in their assigned school community). Engaging in culturally sustaining practices includes challenging deficit perspectives that educators often have about students with disabilities who identify as BIPOC by understanding the role that systemic inequity plays in creating unequal access to critical educational resources. Once educators understand these inequitable systems, they can better advocate for resources and refrain from thinking that tends to blame students, families, and the community due to a perceived inadequacy from the gaze of the teacher (Ginsberg et al., 2021; Paris & Alim, 2014; Stratton, 2016; Weissman, 2019). When analyzing the history of education, educators should make note of how this history is enacted in present day policies that may continuously be creating inequities that do not support the outcomes of diverse learners (Turner & Figueroa, 2019). This historical analysis, paired with educators’ development of their narrative, should support them in better understanding the context of urban education for the students they serve so that pedagogical decisions are centered on the outcomes of the student—not the beliefs of the educator.
Culture and Community of the School Neighborhood
Following development of a personal narrative and an understanding of historical events in education, special educators can begin to engage in acts of knowing by partnering with key stakeholders in the community (e.g., parents, veteran teachers, diverse teachers, community leaders, members of community organizations) to learn more about (a) their goals for schools in their community, (b) values and beliefs members of the community have about education, and (c) perspectives about how the school and community may partner to support the outcomes of diverse students with disabilities (Ginsberg et al., 2021). Engagement with stakeholders to better understand the cultural values and norms of the community can help special educators develop a complex understanding of the variables that influence educational outcomes within the school (Warren, 2018). This understanding can disrupt any preconceived notions or opinions that may exist due to the filter through which they view the school (e.g., beliefs about linguistic practices that may be viewed negatively in their home community but are celebrated within the school community; Paris & Alim, 2014). Educators can take note of assets, resources, goals, and needs identified by the community and should engage in critical discourse with stakeholders to ensure they are developing an appropriate understanding of the community context.
Build Relationships With Students, Families, and Communities
As special educators begin to develop a deeper understanding of the culture of the community, they can also actively find ways to engage in culturally sustaining practices by identifying opportunities to engage students’ home culture in the classroom environment and to connect classroom learning with opportunities in the community environment. It is important for special educators to know what is motivating to students, how they can access support for learning outcomes outside of the school environment, and how to provide generalizable opportunities to practice the skills that are being learned in their home community. However, these generalizable opportunities are ever-changing in highly diverse urban environments so consistent relationship building and communication is critical between the educator, their students, and the families and communities (Paris & Alim, 2014).
To build these relationships, educators can:
Provide opportunities to build rapport with both students and members of the community (Hargrave et al., 2016).
Ask students, family, and community opinions about complex topics and proposed solutions (Warren, 2018).
Develop “empathy maps” (Valenzuela, 2021) that highlight characteristics of students that can be leveraged during instruction.
Ensure that the community being served is reflected in the curricular experiences provided in the classroom (Senyshyn & Martinelli, 2021).
Be open to sharing their own perspectives and be willing to learn from the community (Chakravarthi & White-McNulty, 2020; Neville & Parker, 2019).
Follow through with requests, recommendations, and commitments that are of value and import to the students, families, and communities they are serving (Le Dantec & Fox, 2015).
Identify Connections Between Community and Personal Narrative
As special educators develop relationships with a focus on engaging in culturally sustaining practices in the classroom, it is important they take time to consider potential similarities, differences, opportunities, and discrepancies that might exist between their own narrative and the narrative of the students, families, and community being served. These reflections are important so that educators can continuously challenge themselves to engage in “imagine others” perspective taking and recognize where their own beliefs and values may be in conflict with the beliefs and values of the students and families and where there may be opportunities for connection. Warren (2018) indicated that it is essential for educators to remember that teaching is not about the individual educator, but rather the educators’ ability to connect with the students they are serving. Consistent engagement in this critical self-reflection can develop special education teachers’ skills to consistently center the student in pedagogical decision making.
Culturally Sustaining Professional Development
While developing relationships with diverse students, families, and community members through acts of knowing, it is important for special educators to (a) continuously reflect on their own skills for engaging in culturally sustaining practices that will be responsive to the identified goals, needs, and values of their community, and (b) find opportunities for their own professional development or coaching to better meet the needs of the students they are serving (Senyshyn & Martinelli, 2021; Warren, 2018). To support their learning, educators can:
Find other like-minded individuals on their school campus to engage in critical discourse and coaching,
Find local and national professional development opportunities to learn more about culturally sustaining practices,
Challenge themselves to read and learn more about the role of education within their school community, and
Ask students, families, and community stakeholders for additional information when something arises that they may not know or need to know more about.
One component of critical analysis is recognizing where additional skill may need to be built and finding opportunities to build and enhance skills to engage in effective culturally-sustaining practice (Warren, 2018).
Ensure Wellness and Continue Self Analysis
Through all the knowledge generation that occurs as special educators engage in critical analysis of themselves and in community-building with their students and families, it is important that they take time to care for their own mental health and wellness periodically during these cyclical processes. Challenging individual belief structures and ensuring that the needs of students and families who identify as BIPOC are being met can be complex, never-ending work, as the structure and nature of urban communities is ever changing (Paris & Alim, 2014). It is important that educators find ways to take care of their own health and wellness through attendance at a retreat, traveling during time off, finding opportunities to engage socially within the community, or engaging in mindfulness activities (Pyles, 2020). This is critical for ongoing analysis of self within an urban school community, as health and wellness can allow educators to consistently be present and aware of the decisions they are making when working with diverse learners.
Conclusion
Teaching students with disabilities who identify as BIPOC in an urban environment is a complex task. It is important for educators to consistently be aware of (a) self, (b) systemic inequities in the structure of schooling in their environment, (c) values and beliefs of their constituents, (d) implementation of pedagogy, and (e) determination of the effectiveness of their implemented practices (Durden et al., 2016; Ginsberg et al., 2021; Senyshyn & Martinelli, 2021; Stratton, 2016; Warren, 2018). This awareness happens simultaneously with the consistent challenging of deficit-orientation that is often brought to urban education environments and the education of diverse student populations (Paris & Alim, 2014). Developing skills related to perspective taking can be an important step in ensuring that, even in the face of these complex variables, special educators are consistently (a) considering the needs of the students and families that they serve as they make pedagogical decisions and stay engaged in this cyclical process of understanding self in relationship to the community and (b) elevating the perspectives of the students and families being served. There is no right nor wrong way to engage in culturally sustaining practices, and it is essential for special educators to develop a flexible, nimble mind-set that is centered on their students (Warren, 2018). Learning from others and challenging individual mindsets based on that learning is essential for providing a culturally sustaining experience for students with disabilities who identify as Black, indigenous, or people of color.
Footnotes
Declaration of Conflicting Interests
The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Funding
The author(s) received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
