A Culturally Responsive Curriculum

Examining our teaching and learning through equity

Increasing our community’s cultural, racial, and socio-economic diversity can only be fully realized in two ways: by clearly communicating the power of our teaching and learning to attract families and staff of diverse backgrounds, and by making institutional commitments to ensure that we are providing a truly inclusive environment for them.

Creating this kind of community requires an examination of practices and policies through many lenses: our culture and environment, the way in which we measure success, and the content and methods of instruction. It also requires providing staff with the support to identify and help overcome their own biases. We recently had the opportunity to engage as a staff in shared reflection and action on these issues through a self-study of three key areas: curricular progression; cultural responsiveness; and expression of our Quaker values.

For this process, teachers first documented the knowledge, understanding, and demonstration of ideas and facts each student was expected to acquire, for each class. This enabled them to come together to examine where variation in student expectations may occur, both from classroom to classroom and in transitions into our Lower, Middle, and Upper Schools. Establishing commonly understood standards in this way is a key method to insure that students are receiving an equitable education. Being able to establish clear progressions of skills and understandings in developmental stages can also help them identify ways to challenge themselves and provide clarity around access to different academic choices.

Our Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, Naa Norley Adom, led the staff in exercises to examine our own identities and biases and how those affect their teaching and interactions with community members. Teachers also met in small groups to share examples of intentional inclusion of diverse perspectives in the curriculum and culturally responsive tactics. Together they examined places where cultural, racial, or religious identities may not be affirmed. This could be due to lack of representation, or due to presentations that focus exclusively on the struggles of marginalized identities.

Photo at top: The National Association of Independent Schools’ annual People of Color Conference is an important event in advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion conversations at schools across the country. In recent years, we’ve increased our staff representation across units as well as the number of students able to participate. Some of our staff have also led sessions for other educators and administrators.

“Our teachers have a lot of flexibility in their curriculum to respond to current events in a way aligned with our focus on social justice. Recently a Durham Early School and a Lower School teacher were able to incorporate discussions on the public housing crisis at Durham’s McDougald Terrace, connected to ideas of children’s rights and environmental justice.”

— Naa Norley Adom

This examination was led by a committee representing each teaching and administrative unit, and was conducted as part of our re-accreditation process with the Southern Association of Independent Schools. The areas of focus were identified through polling all staff, and the work occurred in shared professional development time beginning in spring 2018 and concluding in fall 2019.

The School also partnered with the organization Villages of Wisdom on a Culturally Affirming Climate Survey, administered to Middle School third and fourth years and all Upper School students. The survey asked questions specific to racial and ethnic identity affirmation. These efforts together have built a firm foundation for our next steps.

Next year, our plan is to have a part-time Diversity Coordinator in each unit to provide support and resources to staff. Over the summer, the individuals identified for these positions will receive training through the Diversity Practitioners Institute. In their new roles, they will support teachers and students. They will lead staff in professional development on techniques and teaching tools, support students in identifying and forming affinity and ally groups, and advance institutional visibility at area cultural festivals and events.

The Middle School’s second year social studies curriculum, Mythic Worlds, has created an intentional focus on indigenous people of our area. At the North Carolina Museum of History’s American Indian Heritage Celebration, students were able to talk to members of the eight state-recognized tribes as well as learn how archeologists search for clues to peoples and ways of life lost to our history.