A Teacher's Perspective: Creating Culturally Responsive Learning Communities

by: Ana Vaisenstein, Sumner Elementary School, Boston Public Schools

In their essay, “Creating Culturally Responsive Learning Communities,” page 151, Eugene García and Okhee Lee begin with the idea that human beings construct knowledge by “applying knowledge of previous concepts to the new information that is presented.” They use this as a jumping-off point for a discussion of the idea of responsive learning communities, which are learning environments in which students’ out-of-school knowledge, values, experiences, beliefs, and histories are used as a foundation for learning academic subject matter. Ana Vaisenstein, a former first-grade teacher in a two-way bilingual school, shares her perspective.

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Type Book ChapterPub Date 1/1/2008Stock # PB218X_19

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