Culturally responsive teaching is an essential practice to equitably educate multilingual learners (MLs) and support ML families. However, understanding what culturally responsive teaching actually looks like when implemented in schools and classrooms can be challenging to envision. In this interactive session, you will discover five guiding principles of culturally responsive teaching for MLs. You will explore the role of culture in teaching and learning for MLs and use and apply practical, research-based look-fors, tools, and strategies to integrate culturally responsive teaching for MLs into your context. Using a planning tool, you will prioritize your next steps in applying the five guiding principles to your context.
Mindi Teich, MEd, regularly provides professional development to schools and districts around building strong culturally responsive school and district practices to support MLs. Ms. Teich also leverages significant experience observing and coaching teachers of MLs, utilizing tools and strategies she has developed to build upon teachers’ strengths to better serve their MLs.
Diane Staehr Fenner, PhD, has extensive experience working with and advocating for the use of effective instructional practices in support of multilingual learners, including culturally responsive teaching. Her latest books Culturally responsive teaching for multilingual learners: Tools for equity and Unlocking English learners’ potential: Strategies for making content accessible. In the books and through professional development she shares research as well as practical tools and ideas to promote culturally responsive school environments and support and promote the successes of MLs.