Culturally relevant

teaching
Educational Leadership 504
Project Based Learning
Whitney Powell and Keisha Tennessee
Project Objective
Research indicates that a students who can relate to the instructional content
performs well in the course. Thus, it is vital for teachers to not only have
knowledge of students interest, background, and learning abilities; yet also
ensure the curriculum is inclusive.

When students are able to relate to the content that is being presented,
students engagement and motivation increases. Subsequently, it is vital that
instruction within a school is culturally responsive to ensure equitable
education and improve student academic success.
NELP Standards
❏ Element 1.4 (Improvement)
❏ Element 2.3 (Values)
❏ Element 3.3 (Responsive Practice)
❏ Element 3.4 (Supportive School Community)
❏ Element 4.2 (Instructional Practice)
❏ Element 5.4 (Advocacy)
CodeRVA REgional High School
❏ CodeRVA Regional High School year-round high school founded in August 2017
with an emphasis on Computer Science
❏ Diverse representation of race, ethnicity, religion, socioeconomic
status/class, and family structure from 13 school districts in Region I
 Offered to all 9 instructional teachers
and our executive director

Book Study Meets the first

Wednesday
each month

An investigation into why so few

African American and Latino high
school students are studying computer
science reveals the dynamics of
inequality in American schools.
Does the metaphor hold true-
”Stuck in the Shallow End?”

Difficult to relate to Students have a lack

es
all students’ prior of exposure to Lack of resourc
in
knowledge technology & ($$$) for certa
lack
resources at home… activities led to
as a
For example-
which leads to of participation
dent
“Meringue”
students rejecting low income stu
opportunities related
Fertilizers to tech
 Lesson

➔ 30 students
invited
➔ 34 students
attended
Standards of Learning
English
10.1 The student will participate in, collaborate in, and report on small-group learning activities.
10.8 The student will collect, evaluate, organize, and present information to create a research product.

Global Studies
WG.9 : The student will analyze the characteristics of the Sub-Saharan African region by identifying and analyzing
the location of major geographic regions
WHI.12: The student will apply social science skills to understand the civilizations and empires of Africa, with
emphasis on the Africankingdoms of Axum and Zimbabwe and the West African civilizations of Ghana,
Mali, and Songhai

Chemistry
CH.1: The student will investigate and understand that experiments in which variables are measured, analyzed, and
evaluated produce observations and verifiable data.
CH.4: The student will investigate and understand that quantities in a chemical reaction are based on molar
relationships
Standards of Learning
Geometry
G.3 : The student will solve problems involving symmetry and transformation.

Computer Science Principles

CSP.9 : The student will design and implement algorithms with compound conditional execution; and a variety of loop
control structures.
CSP.10: The student will solve a complex problem by decomposing it into subtasks consisting of predefined functions and
user-defined functions.

Computer Technology
C/T 9-12.2 :Identify and use available technologies to help complete specific tasks.
So How Does This Relate to Global Studies?
Groups of students read about
braids in the following time
periods

● African Origin
● Middle Passage
● Civil Rights
● Hip Hop

They created posters that summarized

their findings and shared with their
peers!
So How Does This Relate to Science...
What do you think?!
Sort the following hair products on
the pH scale-

● Use your best judgement and prior

knowledge
● Remember- healthy products will
have a pH similar to hair’s pH.
Let’s TEst & Find out!
● Each group will be given 4 items to
test.
● Make sure you wear your goggles and
gloves!
● Share results with class by placing
picture on the jumbo pH scale!
So How Does This Relate to Math
SO How does this Relate to Computer science
KEY TERMS
Transformation:Change in shape

• Translation- “slide”

• Reflection- “flip”

• Rotation- “turn”

• Dilation-“resize”
Pair programmer
Next Steps Book
Study

Ideas for n
ext
semester
References
Dias, M. F. R. G., Almeida, A. M., Cecato, P. M. R.,
Adriano, A. R., & Pachler J. (2014). The shampoo pH
can affect the hair: Myth or reality? Retrieved from
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC415862
9/

National Science Foundation. (n.d.) Cornrow curves.

Retrieved from https://csdt.rpi.edu/cms/
application-contexts/cornrow-curves/cultural-context-co
py/