To be completed before Wednesday, June 5, Zoom session.
Culturally sustaining pedagogy and trauma-informed pedagogy, like open pedagogy, are asset-based pedagogies. As we discussed, asset-based practices focus on strengths of our students and their communities, rather than deficits. Before our next Zoom session:
- Read about culturally sustaining pedagogy;
- Read Mays Imad’s article, “Leverage the Neuroscience of now,” about trauma-informed practices and review Trauma-Informed Teaching and Learning Examples, from the Columbia School of Social Work and Alex Shevrin Venet’s Principles of Equity-Centered Trauma-Informed Education.
After reading the information at the links above, respond in a few paragraphs to the following questions by posting a comment below.
- What are some ways you currently incorporate culturally sustaining pedagogy and trauma-informed practices into your courses?
- How might you apply asset-based pedagogies to other learning experiences in your courses? Give specific examples.
Bonus listen: For more information on trauma-informed pedagogy, Tea for Teaching has a terrific interview (39 mins) with Karen Costa, an educator who’s been working in this area for several years.
13 thoughts on “Reflection on Asset Pedagogies”
What are some ways you currently incorporate culturally sustaining pedagogy and trauma-informed practices into your courses?
Students have complete agency to choose what to write about for both the nonfiction and fiction parts of the course. For example, for their documentary project, they need to do some initial research on topics they like to find a story that could be told visually in three acts; the news story can be on any real-life person of their choosing (so long as the story has the elements needed for a script). And for the other half of the course, they write their own original story.
The course I teach is a script-writing class that has students write two short scripts (along with loglines, outlines, treatments, synopses and pitches) in just 15 weeks. During the first two weeks, in addition to getting started on a nonfiction script (which involves them finding and reading three long articles on subjects that interest them), the students must gain an understanding of story from a writer’s perspective, not a consumer’s perspective, which is what most of us are intimately familiar with from a very young age. I write all that because there’s not a lot of room — I’d argue there is zero room — to add asset-based pedagogies to the course.
But as it is, the course materials are chock full of asset-based pedagogies because the stories we read and watch represent a diverse group of writers and characters.
For example, we watch documentary and fictional shorts and read scripts written by women and men that focus on male and female protagonists. The scenes and scripts we read are written by both white people and people of color, as well as by straight and gay writers. For example, we read scripts and scenes by Jordan Peele, Ryan Coogler, Gale Ann Hurd, John August, Aimee Barth, Juanita Wilson. The short films we watch feature a highly accomplished African-American fencer, a gay Russian man, a Japanese widower, and many more diverse storytellers.
I’m wondering if it would make a difference to look at asset-based pedagogies as a way to frame or design learning experiences in our courses, rather than something that is added on. For example, it doesn’t sound like you added on culturally sustaining pedagogy when you choose a diverse group of writers to read and watch. Instead the framing or design of the course was informed by culturally sustaining pedagogy.
After reading the short articles, I immediately thought about several projects that students are assigned in the courses I teach. It made me fulfilled that these assignments were somewhat designed towards trauma informed pedagogy, and I will explain why.
The assignment I’m referencing here is called “Living 6 feet apart”, an informal class talk of the course HE 211: Health and Stress at York College, CUNY. Students are asked to share their overall experiences of living through the pandemic by fully answering the following questions: “What was your overall reaction to the pandemic? What coping methods did you use? What worked and what did not? Why do you think some methods worked while others did not?”. Because one of the main learning objectives of this course was to describe physiological, psychological, cognitive, sociological, and behavioral reactions to situations that are deemed stressful. Besides the cognitive component of this learning objective, students were able to draw on their experiences and understand what their families, spouses, friends and loved ones truly meant for them. This assignment created an atmosphere in classroom to openly discuss about what really had happened and what lessons that we learned as social animals. It was immensely emotional moments to hear about what students were going through, some of them lost their homes, lost their grandparents and thus their whole world shattered. It was also a moment of connectedness where students learned from each other and what they were capable of. A student from Uganda shared how he and his wife created a praying group in his tiny apartment which seemed the only thing that kept them strong and united during this turbulent time. This discussion invited students to share their individual coping methods that seemed to work and compare them with not so effective coping methods, i.,e Netflix binge watching, binge eating etc and explain why that is the case.
Appreciate that you tapped into the students’ resilience, Ari. In her book Equity-centered Trauma-informed Education, Venet talks about being aware that sometimes trauma-informed practices are approached from a deficit lens, and one way to avoid this is through tapping into our individual and community resilience and strengths.
• What are some ways you currently incorporate culturally sustaining pedagogy and trauma-informed practices into your courses?
I have been interested in collaborative online international learning and have joined in virtual exchange projects with professors from the University of the Bahamas and Jordan University of Science and Technology. In these collaborations, we have used the United Nations sustainable goal # 10 – Reducing inequalities. As collaborating professors, we ask students to share a social justice issue in their cultures. For example, students from Haiti mentioned children are manipulated to carry guns to support the mafia. These oral presentations need to be based on community posters in their own language (L1).
• How might you apply asset-based pedagogies to other learning experiences in your courses? Give specific examples.
In the website article, NYU’s professor, Dr. Diana Turk, states, “We have to know what they know” and mentions the asset-based approach in education. In writing an education essay, students bring in examples from their own college experiences and mention their aspiration to get an education and the challenges they experience at BMCC. They provide references from R. Rodriguez’s essay, “The Achievement of Desire”. This is an essay based on paired interviews. I expect students to bring their own experiences to the writing task.
Also, in the COIL projects, students are engaged in the reducing inequalities topic as researchers. They are asked to interview someone in their community collect narratives of discrimination and share them with their group members. Collecting narratives and writing an essay about differences and similarities of discrimination cases in the U.S. and Jordan provides a critical foundation on the topic of inequalities.
I look at my class as a space where I can create a loving environment for all my students and, as such, I try to build a pedagogy reflecting that dedication. I try to build trauma and asset-based pedagogies into my methods in both large, “official” capacities and in the smaller, “day-to-day” procedures I try to adhere to.
I feel like it all starts with smaller gestures such as putting extra effort into learning names (I’m terrible with names…there are friends I’ve had in my department for a decade I’m still not 100% on how to pronounce their names), starting class with a sincere offer to allow people to vent and discuss anything they want, welcoming everyone I see enter the room individually with a personalized “hello” of sorts and just being generally friendly. I’ve seen this create a warm environment for most students and they routinely express their appreciation.
Some of the larger ways I have built it into my course is through focusing on the individual. I teach a lot of public speaking courses so I have the benefit of being able to design assignments around personalization and introspection. As such, I offer students assignments where they can deliver their presentation in their language of choice, I offer them multiple paths through assignments, and offer class time to leave the class and work on assignments, and have adopted modified ungrading principles (for the record, whatever auto-correct my browser uses switched that to “upgrading” which I find a bit insulting) for public speaking. In non-public speaking courses I allow classes to create their own assessment outline in deciding what assignments they would like and for what percentage of semester grading, even treating it like a living document where they can adjust if they find their expectations and my application were out of line.
It’s all a process and I’m sure there is more I could be doing or perhaps doing better but for now I just try to feel the room and be open to what the students need.
Great work! Allowing students to deliver presentations in their preferred language?! That certainly demonstrates a strong commitment to accommodating diverse backgrounds and learning styles.
In my human biology courses, I attempt to integrate culturally sustaining pedagogy and trauma-informed practices in several ways. One approach is using relatable anecdotes to illustrate complex concepts. For instance, when explaining how the body responds to high glucose levels, I refer to common foods and compare the effects on a sedentary person (I often use my grandmother, her 45 years of service in a factory, coming home to sit in front of a tv for 5 hours after dinner) versus someone who regularly exercises or walks after meals. My hope is this makes the material more accessible and relevant to students’ everyday lives.
Additionally, I try incorporate current societal issues into my lessons. I discuss the body’s reaction to vaping, hookah use, and the impact of new marijuana laws and resulting products on the respiratory system. My hope is these examples help connect the material to real-world scenarios that students might encounter or hear about, my aim to build trust and transparency, creating a classroom atmosphere where students feel connected and understood. My goal is to make the material not only informative but also meaningful and applicable to their lives.
As I noted last week, in speech, I scaffold assignments that are lower stakes upon which students can build. Those assignments are centered on the students experiences and desires. They talk first about themselves, then about their culture, then demonstrate a process they know how to do. Then they deliver a poem or lyrics they choose as an oral interpretation. All of this before the major assignments — the informative and persuasive speeches, which have much higher stakes.
What are some ways you currently incorporate culturally sustaining pedagogy and trauma-informed practices into your courses?
Stories have the power to change lives, create a legacy and open our eyes to new things. I like the idea of culturally sustaining pedagogy because it helps us to redesign our curriculum in a way that promotes diversity and inclusion. Now more than ever, book banning is on the rise, particularly from African American writers. Our stories need to be told because it is the fabric of our nation. And as a professor of color, I believe that our stories are just as important as other authors from all realms of life. Incorporating culturally sustaining pedagogy into my literature classroom can be done in several ways by supporting writers of color. Some strategies might include but are not limited to the following: include a diverse literature selection. In my classroom I like to use writers such as Amy Tan, James Baldwin, and Paul L Dunbar. This can include books, poems, short stories and essays that reflect diverse cultures, experiences, and perspectives. By exposing my students to a variety of voices, I can provide opportunities for them to connect with characters and narratives that resonate with their own experiences. This also correlates with trauma informed practices. For example, the short story “Sonny’s Blues” by Baldwin focuses on the trauma that is surrounded in Harlem when it comes to a drug infested community. Unfortunately, many of my students can relate to the setting of Harlem and how it can be dangerous today. This is a prime example of not only culturally sustaining pedagogy but also trauma informed practices that are intertwined in the curriculum in which I teach.
How might you apply asset-based pedagogies to other learning experiences in your courses? Give specific examples.
As an educator, I can apply asset-based pedagogies to other learning experiences in my literature course to create an inclusive and empowering environment. Two specific examples I can think of are as follows:
(1) Literature Circles: I can implement literature circles, where students form small groups to discuss and analyze assigned texts. To apply an asset based approach, I will ensure that literature circle groups are diverse, including students from various cultural backgrounds. Each group will have a mix of strengths, such as strong analytical skills, creative thinking, or a deep understanding of a particular culture represented in the literature. By recognizing and valuing each student’s unique assets, I can create a collaborative learning environment where students can learn from one another’s perspectives and strengths.
(2) Multimodal projects: instead of traditional essay assignments, I can offer students the opportunity to showcase their understanding of literature through multimodal projects. For instance, students can create digital storytelling projects, podcasts, or visual presentations that incorporate elements of their own culture or the cultures represented in the literature. I have also done this by letting students do a poetry explication project where they can pick a piece of artwork and connect it to the overall theme or symbolism of the poem. By allowing students to use their strengths in different forms of expression, such as visual art, technology, or storytelling, I can honor their diverse assets and provide multiple entry points for learning and engagement.
Lastly, by applying asset-based pedagogies in these ways, I can foster a classroom environment that values and celebrates the unique strengths and cultural backgrounds of each student, promoting a more inclusive and empowering literature learning experience.
Crystal, your response beautifully illustrates the profound impact that stories have on our lives and the crucial role of culturally sustaining pedagogy in promoting diversity and inclusion within the curriculum. Your commitment to featuring diverse literature, such as works by Amy Tan, James Baldwin, and Paul L. Dunbar, enriches your students’ learning experiences by providing them with relatable and varied perspectives. It’s inspiring to see how you connect this approach with trauma-informed practices, recognizing the significance of narratives like “Sonny’s Blues” in addressing real-life challenges your students may face. These pedagogical strategies both honor the cultural heritage of your students and create a supportive and empathetic learning environment that acknowledges their emotional and psychological needs. Your dedication to telling these vital stories and fostering a diverse and inclusive classroom is commendable and serves as a powerful example for educators.
What are some ways you currently incorporate culturally sustaining pedagogy and trauma-informed practices into your courses?
I create opportunities for students to connect course content to their own lives and communities by drawing upon relatable experiences such as marathon runners, family members’ doctor visits, and lab results. In teaching human anatomy and physiology, I use these real-life examples to make the material more relevant and engaging for my students.