Using Culturally Responsive Teaching and Data-Driven Instruction in Mathematics to Create Equity and Equality

Abstract

The diverse nature of school populations in current education requires teaching that not only considers the differences in their students, but how their own practices have an impact on a student's ability to learn content. Traditional Eurocentric models of education are not relevant to the lives of racially culturally ethnically linguistically diverse students, thus creating barriers to learning for students who do not fit neatly into categories of Black or White. For the academic environment to be accessible for all students, classroom instruction must become culturally aligned. This may be somewhat of a challenge given that classroom teachers are ill-prepared to meet the needs of RCELD students in math education. Teachers are faced with the critical challenge of creating learning environments that bridge the gap between culture and curriculum with appropriate strategies and resources, while all the while adhering to state and federal standards. This chapter explores using culturally responsive teaching to teach mathematics.