“Stakes Is High”

Abstract

This article explores practitioner inquiry and culturally relevant pedagogy to create academic success with students facing high school exit examinations in Reading. In Florida, about one-third of African American students passed the test in 2010. Student perspectives on achievement, school processes, and engagement were incorporated with strategic practice to create a collaborative, classroom environment. Culturally relevant pedagogy, literacy theory, and English language arts instruction were integrated with student’s perspectives in curriculum design and instruction.

Exploring Cultural Responsiveness Among European American Principals in Rural Schools With High-Performing African American Readers

“…Future research on rural school leadership in the context of African American student experiences is much needed. At present, however, most scholarship specific to principal leadership and African American student experiences are contextualized through an urban lens (Houchen, 2013). We call for a mitigation of national narratives and scholarly conversations that whitewash rurality and-by default-urbanize the schooling experiences of African American students.…”

“No Time for Messin’ Around!” Understanding Black Educator Urgency: Implications for the Preparation of Urban Educators

“…One of the many important factors that influence the extent to which urban schools actualize their capacity to support African American educational achievement involves the instructional practices and approaches of educators (Darling-Hammond, 2010). Teachers are invaluable resources, and research has documented the impact that teacher expectations (Diamond, Randolph, & Spillane, 2004; Ferguson, 2003; Houchen, 2013; Irvine, 1990; Jackson & Wilson, 2012) and pedagogy (Cholewa, Amatea, West-Olatunji, & Wright, 2012; Griner & Stewart, 2013; Ladson-Billings, 1994/2009; Lindsey, 2015; Ware, 2006) have on African American student outcomes. In the pedagogical research, both the literature on effective pedagogy for African American children and on effective Black educators emphasize approaches to meet student needs and have found that teachers who demonstrate care and a consistent demand for excellence have a significant positive impact on African American student achievement.…”

"Y'all and all these assessments is a little bit too much" : the effects of high-stakes testing on critical literacy pedagogy.

“…What is taught and tested in the classroom upholds a certain discourse, whether implicitly or explicitly, which can affirm the social and political power of a certain culture. Thus, it is important to acknowledge language and literature as sociopolitical to challenge the power structures within the dominant discourses taught in schools, both in the past and present (Houchen, 2012). One must be fully aware of the perceptions of different ideologies presented in literature, as well as of languages and dialects, and develop a practice of questioning the rules of grammar created by the dominant culture (Janks, et al, 2013).…”