M ULTICULTURAL C URRICULUM D ESIGN : B RIDGING P OTENTIAL AND P ERFORMANCE Ebonia M. Williams Michigan State University

B RIDGING P OTENTIAL AND P ERFORMANCE : T EACHER E XPECTATIONS If curriculum is a canvas, teacher expectations are the brush. The assumptions teachers hold impact: What teachers are willing to try Relationships built with students Extent of encouragement provided (Sleeter 127).

B RIDGING P OTENTIAL AND P ERFORMANCE : T EACHER B EHAVIORS Research shows that students from historically underserved communities can achieve when their teachers: Take responsibility Focus on strengths Build strong parent relationships Seek additional forms of support Aim higher than ‘The Gap’ (Sleeter, 128)

B RIDGING P OTENTIAL AND P ERFORMANCE : A IMING A BOVE ‘T HE G AP ’ Teachers with high expectations craft curriculum which exceeds state standards. Achievement can (and should be) re- framed to meet international standards of excellence. International comparisons of average European American student performance tend to be mediocre (Perry, 2003).

B RIDGING P OTENTIAL AND P ERFORMANCE P ERSPECTIVES OF K NOWLEDGE Emphasis on structure and hierarchy of knowledge Mastery of ‘basics’ as a prerequisite for advancement ‘Basic skills’ are drilled to mastery Higher order concepts reserved for proficient students The Disciplinary Perspective

B RIDGING P OTENTIAL AND P ERFORMANCE P ERSPECTIVES OF K NOWLEDGE The Developmental Perspective Student thinking is central to learning Focuses on the processes of knowing Instruction is individualized Content connects with student’s lives

B RIDGING P OTENTIAL AND P ERFORMANCE C URRICULUM P LANNING T OOLS Screen with Bloom’s Classify the domains of thinking addressed in the unit In its design In state standards Evaluate Materials Classify the domains of thinking addressed in student materials

B RIDGING P OTENTIAL AND P ERFORMANCE C URRICULUM P LANNING T OOLS Consult the College Level Identify what enduring understandings translate to collegiate-level work(Sleeter, 135). Resources such as Standards for Success (Center for Educational Policy Research, 2003) are useful. Planning curriculum through this framework maximizes learning opportunities for students while also assisting teachers actually provide access to the most salient points within a unit.

B RIDGING P OTENTIAL AND P ERFORMANCE S CAFFOLDING Apprenticeship approach Modeling drives the learning process Retains high expectations Exemplars show students the end at the beginning Breaks tasks into manageable parts Teacher makes content comprehensible through adaptation

B RIDGING P OTENTIAL AND P ERFORMANCE : T EACHING AS I NTELLECTUAL A PPRENTICESHIP If classrooms were thought of as intellectual spaces the teacher would be the senior practicing intellectual who is apprenticing young people in a world of complex academic work (Sleeter, 145). Apprenticeship prepares children for their futures by empowering them with knowledge of and facility with information. These new dimensions can shift the trajectory of a child’s future.

R ESOURCES Conley, David T. University of Oregon, Center for Educational Policy Research. (2003). Understanding university success. a report from standards for success (ISBN ). Eugene, Oregon: Center for Educational Policy Research. Perry, T. Steele, C. Hilliard, A. III. (2003). Young, gifted and black. Boston: Beacon Press. Sleeter, Christine. (2005). Unstandarizing Curriculum: Multicultural Teaching in the Standards-Based Classroom. New York. Teachers College Press.