This working brief looks at the intersection between culturally responsive education (CRE) and competency education. It was developed by the Mastery Collaborative (MC), a group of over 40 New York City schools committed to mastery-based education. In their second year, the community of practitioners focused on the development of equity and CRE as core values. Read more about the group in this article.
The MC believes that certain elements of mastery-based education are inherently more culturally responsive:
- Transparency: path to success is clear and learning outcomes are relevant to students’ lives and interests.
- Facilitation: roles shift so students drive their own learning, and teachers coach them.
- Positive learning identity: growth mindset and active learning build agency and affirm students’ as learners.
This working brief includes a list of ideas, compiled from group conversations, on the ways mastery-based and culturally responsive education can affect curriculum design, facilitation, and grading policies.
School and district leaders may read this brief for ideas to increase CRE at their schools through mastery-based education. The brief would also be excellent background reading to kick off a school wide discussion on strategies to improve equity in the classroom through student-centered approaches.
Source Organization: NYC Department of Education