Culturally Responsive Schools

NASSP Position 

• NASSP supports the Professional Standards for Educational Leaders (PSEL) which states that effective leaders strive for equity of educational opportunity and culturally responsive practices to promote each student’s academic success and well-being. 
  
  
• NASSP believes that by establishing a positive school climate and setting high academic standards for all students, the principal plays a key role in ensuring their school is culturally competent. 
  
  
• NASSP supports building relationships with students and parents as individuals rather than a particular racial or cultural group. Teachers and administrators can apply student and family voice, backgrounds and experiences to develop curricula that support academic achievement. 
  

Recommendations for Policymakers 

• Congress should prioritize funding under the Higher Education Act for partnership grants that prepare school leaders and teachers to create a culturally responsive climate for diverse populations, including children with disabilities, English language learners, and children from low-income families. 
  
  
• The U.S. Department of Education should conduct research on the impact of culturally responsive schools on student achievement and provide support and technical assistance to states and districts to help them incorporate best practices into their education systems. 
  
  
• Congress should authorize a competitive grant program to assist states and districts in implementing an early warning data system to identify struggling students and create a system of evidence-based and linguistically and culturally relevant interventions. 
  
  
• State policymakers should adopt or adapt the PSEL to ensure that principal certification and licensure requirements include a focus on equity and cultural responsiveness. 
  
  
• State policymakers should revise teacher certification and licensure requirements to ensure that new teachers understand the cultures of the students they teach, how different cultures affect student learning and classroom and school behaviors, and know how to change their management style and differentiate instruction to embrace the diverse learning styles of their students.
  
  
• State policymakers should revise teacher evaluation requirements to include a measure of culturally responsive practice and ensure that teachers have access to professional development to help improve their practice. 

Recommendations for Educator Preparation Programs

• Prepare teacher and principal candidates to understand the cultures of the students they teach, how different cultures affect student learning and classroom and school behaviors, and know how to change their management style and differentiate instruction to embrace the diverse learning preferences of their students. 
  
  
• Promote culturally responsive leaders by providing principal candidates with a curriculum that is focused on preparing school leaders to support diverse learners including instruction on data analysis, content knowledge, and learning experiences that strengthen leaders’ ability to support all students’ academic achievement. 

Recommendations for District Leaders 

• Develop school budgets which prioritize professional development and continued training of principals and teachers to help them assess their own cultural viewpoints and biases, set high expectations for all students, acknowledge diverse learning preferences and use culturally responsive pedagogy. 
  
  
• Ensure that district staff reflect on their own identities, assumptions, beliefs, and values and how those factors influence decisions they make about the staff and students they serve. 
  
  
• Develop a baseline of cultural competency for your district and all schools by conducting a cultural audit that incorporates various forms of stakeholder feedback including diverse families and community members and includes a review of key policies and practices. Use those results to identify areas of improvement and develop strategic goals and objectives. 
  
  
• Develop schedules, structures, and staffing that provide opportunities for school leaders and teachers to enhance student, family, and community engagement. 
  
  
• Implement multitiered systems of support that encompass prevention, wellness promotion, and interventions that are based on student need and promote close school-community collaboration such as restorative practices and positive behavioral interventions and supports. 
  
  

Recommendations for School Leaders 

• Ensure that all staff, students, families, and community members have a sense of belonging at your school and provide forums both inside and outside of the classroom where everyone can learn about diverse student backgrounds. 
  
  
• Review special education referrals and participation rates of students to identify areas for improvement and provide insight on professional development needs. 
  
  
• Use the College Board’s Diversity Responsive Principal Tool to determine whether policies and practices have been implemented that enhance the academic success of students from diverse racial, ethnic, cultural, and linguistic backgrounds. 
  
  
• Ensure your school has systems in place to mitigate racial or cultural tensions. 
  
  
• Offer curriculum and assessments that are unbiased and culturally sensitive and consider teachers’ knowledge and support of culturally responsive teaching in your hiring decisions. 
  
  
• Reinforce professional development efforts by mentoring, supporting, and evaluating teachers’ use of culturally responsive pedagogy and differentiated instruction. 
  
  
• Create a school leadership team and student advisory council and utilize your school’s student council comprising a diverse group of voices to help you make decisions about policies and procedures at your school.