Thesis advisor: Martin Scanlan / Culturally responsive practice (CRP) by educators is an essential tool to serve increasingly diverse public-school populations. This study examines the sensemaking and sensegiving that district central office administrators undertake regarding what it means for educators to be culturally responsive practitioners. This dissertation used a case study of a mid-sized urban district which has not yet undertaken systematic effort on CRP to explore three research questions: (1) How do district administrators understand what it means for educators to be culturally responsive practitioners? (2) How do district administrators seek to influence the cultural responsiveness of educators? (3) What does evidence suggest about the efficacy of these efforts to influence the cultural responsiveness of educators? Data included interviews with seven district administrators and nineteen teachers, a survey of 33 educators in the district, and a review of internal district documents. Findings included that administrators had limited understanding of CRP, though they believe it to be important. They connected CRP to methodologies and practices in which they were more fluent. Sensegiving by district administrators was more effective at conveying the importance of CRP than its meaning or how to implement it. Absent a shared definition of CRP, but with heavy signaling of its importance, educators developed varying conceptions through their sensemaking. This case study suggests several implications for research, policy, and practice, including for the study of sensemaking in multi-layered organizations grappling with multiple changes and for implementation by school districts of CRP, as well as barriers to such implementation. / Thesis (EdD) — Boston College, 2020. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Educational Leadership and Higher Education.

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The purpose of this study was to explore the perceived impact of critical reflection on my cultural competence and practice of culturally responsive caring as a high school choral director. Caring educators establish trusting relationships with students that support them as teachers in identifying their strengths and interests, then employ that knowledge to develop student-centric curricula that generate opportunities for student success (Gay, 2018; Hendricks, 2018; Noddings, 2012). This practice is what Geneva Gay (2018) termed culturally responsive teaching. Gay (2018) also asserted, however, that a teacher cannot not claim to nurture caring relationships without accompanying cultural awareness. Considering ongoing and increasing social and political tensions that lead to societal divides in the United States, educators could benefit from practicing awareness so they can facilitate learning environments in which students are challenged, courageous, and inspired to explore their identities in caring environments. The pursuit of such cultural awareness, competence, and humility demands ongoing, authentic critical reflection—a vulnerable and arduous practice (Howard, 2003). This autoethnographic study considers literature positing that caring relationships in education demand profound and intentional cultural competence. It explores critical reflection as a means for developing such competence. This is an in-depth investigation into my pursuit of a culturally responsive caring practice as a high school choral director and product of the community in which I teach. The implications of this study describe my “cultural experience as it is particularly—not generally—lived” (Adams, et al., 2015, p. 41). The resulting narrative may encourage further research and empower educators and teacher educators to commit to a similar critically reflective practice that can lead to an authentic practice of culturally responsive caring.

This study was designed to determine if teachers in one public school in Virginia were prepared to be evaluated based on culturally responsive practices (CRP) after completing Virginia Department of Education's (VDOE) Cultural Competency Training Module. This qualitative study sample included eight teachers from a suburban school division. The conceptual framework illustrated the connections between the evaluation of CRP and teacher preparedness after teachers completed VDOE's Cultural Competency Training Module. The research questions that directed this study were: (1) How has Virginia Department of Education's Cultural Competency Training Module prepared teachers to implement culturally responsive practices? (2) To what extent do teachers feel prepared to be evaluated based on culturally responsive practices after completing Virginia Department of Education's Cultural Competency Training Module? The research method included a basic qualitative research design that used interview protocol. Interview prompts were created based on Virginia's Cultural Competency Domains that underpin legislation approved by the 2021 Virginia General Assembly requiring that teacher evaluations include a standard for CRP. Interviews took place during the summer months of 2023 as virtual meetings using the Zoom video conferencing platform. Interview transcriptions were utilized as the data set. As categories and themes emerged, the interconnectedness of data was examined using open coding. The findings of this study revealed that teachers indicated a support for Virginia's Cultural Competency Domains. However, teachers perceived that VDOE's Cultural Competency Training Module did not achieve the desired focus of providing educators with the tools needed to implement CRP. Instead, teachers perceived that their lived experiences framed their individual approach to understand and implement CRP. The implications of the study encouraged VDOE to consider a redesign of the Cultural Competency Training Module. Another implication emphasized the need for school divisions to consider investing in professional trainers to provide deep level culturally competency training in a format that also accounts for the emotional security and comfortability of teachers. / Doctor of Education / This study was designed to determine if teachers in one public school in Virginia were prepared to be evaluated based on culturally responsive practices (CRP) after completing Virginia Department of Education's (VDOE) Cultural Competency Training Module. This study included eight teachers from a suburban school division. The conceptual framework illustrated the connections between the evaluation of CRP and teacher preparedness after teachers completed VDOE's Cultural Competency Training Module. The research questions that directed this study were: (1) How has Virginia Department of Education's Cultural Competency Training Module prepared teachers to implement culturally responsive practices? (2) To what extent do teachers feel prepared to be evaluated based on culturally responsive practices after completing Virginia Department of Education's Cultural Competency Training Module? The research method included teacher interviews. Interview prompts were created based on Virginia's Cultural Competency Domains that reinforced legislation approved by the 2021 Virginia General Assembly requiring that teacher evaluations include a standard for CRP. Interviews took place during the summer months of 2023 as virtual meetings using the Zoom video conferencing platform. Interview transcriptions were utilized as the data for the study. As categories and themes emerged from interview responses, the connection of data was examined. The findings of this study revealed that teachers indicated a support for Virginia's Cultural Competency Domains. However, teachers perceived that VDOE's Cultural Competency Training did not achieve the desired focus of providing educators with the tools needed to implement CRP. Instead, teachers perceived that their lived experiences framed their individual approach to understand and implement CRP. An implication of the study encouraged VDOE to consider a redesign of the Cultural Competency Training Module. Another implication emphasized the need for school divisions to consider investing in professional trainers to provide deep level culturally competency training in a format that also accounts for the emotional security and comfortability of teachers.

The purpose of this study was to identify the strategies that middle school teachers utilize when incorporating culturally responsive pedagogy and practices to build positive relationships with students and families while building and maintaining positive student-peer relationships in the classroom. This qualitative study design, conducted in an urban public-school division in central Virginia, employed a teacher interview protocol questionnaire featuring open-ended questions. The primary objective was to investigate how middle school teachers utilize and incorporate culturally responsive pedagogical practices to build and maintain positive relationships with students, families, and peers. The resulting findings indicated teachers established cultural awareness and diversity to build and maintain relationships, communicated effectively through conferencing and discussions with their students, and communicated effectively through emails and in-person with their students' families. Teachers used multiple communication strategies for parent involvement, such as phone calls, text messages, emails, conferences, and social media. Students sharing life experiences during discussion helped them understand the material and establish classroom culture and diversity. Thus, implications indicated school divisions and building administrators should continually participate in cultural competence training, provide teachers with professional development to establish regular and consistent communication channels with students' families to build positive relationships, provide teachers with professional development to implement culturally responsive pedagogy, provide time for teachers to incorporate open-ended questions and alternative perspectives into lessons to stimulate critical thinking, and building-level administrators should foster a school culture that embraces diverse values by establishing and consistently reinforcing clear expectations of respect for all students and adults. / Doctor of Education / The purpose of this study was to identify the strategies that middle school teachers utilize when incorporating culturally responsive pedagogy and practices to build positive relationships with students and families while building and maintaining positive student-peer relationships in the classroom. The synthesis of the literature review and the results of this study may perhaps provide information that would support middle school teachers not only with the ability to build relationships with their students and their families and positive peer relationships but also improve cultural knowledge to increase and enhance academic achievement and decrease discipline concerns. A qualitative study design was used in one urban public-school division in the central region of Virginia, which incorporated a teacher interview protocol questionnaire with open-ended questions. The researcher sought to examine: How do middle school teachers utilize and incorporate culturally responsive pedagogical practices to build and maintain positive relationships with students, families, and peers? An analysis of the responses to the interview questionnaire from the middle school teachers revealed strategies used consistently and inconsistently throughout the sample. From the findings, implications for practices and recommendations for future studies were supplied.

Shifting demographics in the U.S. population, persistent disparities in achievement, and student discipline call for school leaders who are culturally responsive to the diversity present in their schools and communities (Brown, 2005; deBrey et al., 2019; Khalifa et al., 2016a). A review of the literature revealed that researchers maintain the position of assistant principal plays a crucial role in moving forward to the principalship and that this position should be leveraged as an embedded opportunity to learn, which can more effectively prepare leaders for the future role of principal amidst changing school demographics (Oleszewski et al., 2012). Without culturally responsive school leaders and school environments, oppressive systems will continue to thrive in our schools, creating a sense of urgency to carefully explore and understand the ideology of cultural responsiveness concerning school leadership (Khalifa et al., 2016). Culturally responsive leadership practices and behaviors have been noted as "one of the most recent extensions of the research regarding how to meet the needs of culturally diverse learners" (Kranzlein, 2019, p. 22). These practices and behaviors create inclusive school environments responsive to all students' needs (Harris, 2020; Hollowell, 2019; Khalifa et al., 2016a). The purpose of this study was to investigate elementary assistant principals' perceptions of their preparedness to lead in diverse school settings through the lens of the culturally responsive school leadership (CRSL) framework. Additionally, this study sought to identify specific professional development assistant principals perceived they needed to lead diverse schools and determine which components of the CRSL framework assistant principals currently utilize in their leadership practice. This quantitative study sample included 26 elementary assistant principals from a suburban PK-12 school division in Central Virginia. The research questions guiding this study were as follows: (1) To what extent do assistant principals perceive they are prepared to lead in diverse school settings? (2) What components of the CRSL framework do assistant principals currently utilize in their leadership practice? (3) What are self-reported professional development needs for assistant principals to lead in diverse schools? The research method included a researcher-developed survey titled the Self-Perceived Culturally Responsive School Leadership Preparedness Survey aligned to the CRSL framework created by Khalifa et al. (2016b). The survey instrument consisted of 17 items: one demographic question, 15 Likert-scale questions, and one open-ended question. The researcher used quantitative methodology techniques to analyze the data, including descriptive statistics. This study offers awareness into the perceptions of assistant principals' preparedness to lead in diverse school settings, identifies CRSL practices utilized by assistant principals, and identifies professional development needs to prepare assistant principals to lead in diverse schools. Results indicated that assistant principals perceive they are prepared to lead in diverse school settings as the building principal and that their duties and responsibilities have prepared them. Additionally, assistant principals indicated a need for professional growth opportunities focused on supporting the development of culturally responsive teachers in their schools and engaging students, parents, and Indigenous contexts. / Doctor of Education / The purpose of this study was to investigate elementary assistant principals' perceptions of their preparedness to lead in diverse school settings through the lens of the CRSL framework. The results of this study offer awareness into the perceptions of assistant principals' preparedness to lead in diverse school settings. Additionally, the study results identify CRSL practices utilized by assistant principals. It also discusses their professional development. In this quantitative study, a survey research design was used. The study was conducted in a PK-12 suburban public-school division in Central Virginia; the study sample included 26 elementary assistant principals. The research questions guiding this study were as follows: (1) To what extent do assistant principals perceive they are prepared to lead in diverse school settings? (2) What components of the CRSL framework do assistant principals currently utilize in their leadership practice? (3) What are self-reported professional development needs for assistant principals to lead in diverse schools? Results indicated that assistant principals perceive they are prepared to lead in diverse school settings as the building principal and that their duties and responsibilities have prepared them. Additionally, assistant principals indicated a need for professional growth opportunities focused on supporting the development of culturally responsive teachers in their schools and engaging students, parents, and Indigenous contexts. Recommendations for future studies and implications for practice were provided.

Analysis of multiple data sources revealed a prevalent gap between high school and middle school African American students and their White counterparts in mathematics. Based on these data and a gap in the literature, further research was needed regarding how the mathematics performance of African American students is influenced by culturally responsive leadership and culturally responsive teaching. The purpose of this study was to determine if culturally responsive behaviors of high school and middle school principals influence the behaviors of mathematics teachers resulting in building conceptual understanding of their students; and, how teachers' culturally responsive actions impact the mathematics performance of African American students. The research questions guiding this qualitative study were (1) To what extent, if any, do principals at the high school and middle school levels that exemplify culturally responsive leadership influence mathematics teachers' use of culturally responsive teaching that results in building conceptual understanding in mathematics? and, (2) To what extent, if any, do culturally responsive teaching practices impact the mathematics performance of African American students at the high school and middle levels? The results indicated that the purposive sample of high school and middle school principals (n = 7) exhibited critical consciousness (self-awareness) and interrelationships amongst teachers and students; communication and being present; and, data- driven decision-making. The purposive sample of high school and middle school mathematics teachers (n = 23) exhibited content knowledge that allowed for differentiated instruction inclusive of building conceptual understanding through multiple mathematical representations; and, engaged their students in mathematical discourse requiring students to reason and justify their solutions. Thus, such actions created a familial-like atmosphere inherent in optimal learning environments for African American students. Students with culturally responsive teachers performed better on division-wide assessments, with the effect of reducing the achievement gap between African American and White students compared to teachers not self-identified as having high levels of cultural responsiveness with results statistically significant at the 0.01 level after conducting a two-proportions z-test. / Doctor of Education / The purpose of this study was to determine if culturally responsive behaviors of high school and middle school principals influence the behaviors of mathematics teachers resulting in building conceptual understanding of their students; and, how teachers' culturally responsive actions impact the mathematics performance of African American students. The synthesis of the literature review and the results of this study could provide information that would assist school leaders and teachers in not only understanding their respective roles impacting and influencing the mathematics performance of African American students at the high school and middle school levels, but also understanding the pedagogical, conceptual understanding, and leadership practices and factors that can lead to this improvement. A qualitative study design was used in one urban Virginia school division encompassing a preliminary screening of high school and middle school principals and mathematics teachers; observations of high school and middle school principals and mathematics teachers; and, a culminating culturally responsive leadership practices survey. The researcher sought to examine (1) To what extent, if any, do principals at the high school and middle school levels that exemplify culturally responsive leadership influence mathematics teachers' use of culturally responsive teaching that results in building conceptual understanding in mathematics? and, (2) To what extent, if any, do culturally responsive teaching practices impact the mathematics performance of African American students at the high school and middle levels? Data from division-wide assessments demonstrated that the students of culturally responsive teachers performed better and with a reduced achievement gap between African American and White students compared to teachers not having self-identified with high levels of cultural responsiveness. Observations from the high school and middle school principals and mathematics teachers revealed specific behaviors and strategies used consistently across the sample. From the findings, implications for practices and recommendations for future studies were rendered.

Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy (CSP) is a framework designed to help traditionally marginalized students. Other frameworks have previously tried to draw on culture to help students in similar ways. However, Paris (2012b) claimed that the word sustaining enclosed a meaning of maintaining and enhancing these students' language and cultural practices that no other frameworks did until that point. There is some confusion for educators and others about CSP since it is a newer framework and that there are many of these cultural frameworks analyzing similar concepts. Therefore, the purpose of this literature review was to examine these previous main frameworks that Paris cited as influencing culturally sustaining pedagogies (i.e., funds of knowledge, culturally responsive pedagogy, culturally relevant pedagogy, and culturally responsive teaching) and how these frameworks overlap with the four main key features of CSP. These four key features are: (a) centering of dynamic communities, their valued languages, practices, and knowledge across the learning setting; (b) student and intergenerational community agency and input; (c) working to be in good relationship with the land, with students, and communities; and (d) structured opportunities to contend with internalized oppressions, false choices, and inward gazes (Paris, 2021). The level of emphasis of each key feature by the main frameworks was also highlighted. Findings illustrate that the first CSP key feature was the most predominant since it was found in all previous frameworks. On top of that, the main framework that has influenced CSP the most is Culturally Relevant Pedagogy by Ladson-Billings since the four CSP features were represented in this framework.

Thesis advisor: Irwin Blumer / This case study examined the creation of a collaborative learning environment focused on the development of teacher attitudes, perceptions, and practices that are culturally responsive. Sixth and eighth grade teachers collaborated in small groups over the course of a school-year, focusing on dialogue, activities, and readings related to race and culture. The ways in which teachers involved in the study developed thinking in regards to their cultural awareness, sense of efficacy, and instructional practices played central roles in this study. This qualitative case study was conducted by the school principal, who was a participant-observer. Data collection instruments included pre-program interviews, mid-program reflective journals, post-program interviews, and researcher field notes. Prior to the start of the program, teachers expressed that they rarely spoke with students and peers about issues related to race and culture, provided minimal accommodations for students of color within the classroom setting, exhibited mixed beliefs in terms of their abilities as teachers to meet the learning needs of students of color, and had a limited understanding of their own racial identities. As a result of their participation in the Culturally Responsive Teaching Program, most teachers experienced growth in terms of their perceptions of the their own racial identity development, efficacy, and increased their sense of comfort and desire to speak with students and peers about issues related to race and culture. Implications for practice include the need for; courageous leadership, persistence, promotion of the development of racial identity, understanding of racial identity development, promotion of collaboration, advancement of transformational learning, and the development of multi-dimensional learning experiences. Limitations of this study include the researcher's role as school principal and participant-observer, small sample size, and relatively short study duration. Recommendations for future research include increasing the sample size and program duration, investigation of changes in student experiences as a result of teacher participation in a similar program, and investigating the effect of a similar program when focused upon particular racial and cultural groups, as opposed to the broad approach utilized within the Culturally Responsive Teaching Program. / Thesis (EdD) — Boston College, 2009. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Educational Administration and Higher Education.