Term
Summer 2022
Capstone
Capstone Project
Degree Name
MAEd
Facilitator(s)
Jana Lo Bello Miller and Tia Clasen
Content Expert
Jason Vogel and Dereck Grosskurth
Abstract
Research has demonstrated that incorporating culturally relevant and culturally sustaining pedagogy (CSP) into teaching can lead to greater academic success. The curriculum designed for this project focuses on using concepts of identity and culture as topics of study in a seventh-grade English language arts (ELA) class with the aim of improving student engagement and academic achievement. CSP argues that young people are in a fluid process of developing their identities, and our pedagogy should foster that development. CSP also maintains that classrooms need to provide space for communities of color to maintain, nurture, and sustain cultural practices. This curriculum design reimagined an existing seventh-grade ELA unit when taught with culturally sustaining practices, specifically asking students to consider their personal identity and cultural practices. In order to work within the constraints of the school where it will be taught, this curriculum is designed using the International Baccalaureate Middle Years Programme (IBMYP) Unit Planner. This curriculum will primarily be used in seventh-grade ELA classrooms in an urban district, but is adaptable to a variety of school settings. The goal of the project is to assist students in critical reflection and development of personal identity while promoting academic achievement and learning of Minnesota ELA standards.
Project Type
Curriculum
Keywords
Curriculum, Literacy, Culturally sustaining pedagogy
Recommended Citation
Pylvainen, Zara, "Studying the Self: Students Examining Culture and Identity for Improved Engagement and Achievement" (2022). School of Education and Leadership Student Capstone Projects. 816.
https://digitalcommons.hamline.edu/hse_cp/816
dc_type
text
dc_publisher
DigitalCommons@Hamline
dc_format
application/pdf
dc_source
School of Education Student Capstone Projects