Transcript Engaging Families Through Collaborative, Culturally Responsive

ENGAGING FAMILIES THROUGH
COLLABORATIVE,
CULTURALLY-RESPONSIVE,
AND STRENGTHS-BASED APPROACHES
Katharine Shepherd, Ed.D.
Associate Professor
University of Vermont
[email protected]
AGENDA
• Introductions and overview (30 minutes)
• Framing the Issues (1 hour):
– Legal and Historical Underpinnings
– Lessons from Research
– Framework for Culturally Responsive Systems
• People, Practice, and Policy Considerations
• Focus on People: Cultivating Self-awareness, Understanding and
Strengths-Based Attitudes and Beliefs (45 minutes)
• Break (15 minutes)
• Focus on Practice: Promoting Cultural Reciprocity, Collaboration,
and Family-Focused Decision-Making (90 minutes)
• Lunch (1 hour)
• Focus on Policies: Considering Language and Culture in School –
Based Policies, Practices, and Procedures (45 minutes)
• Closing: What’s Next? (15 minutes)
OBJECTIVES AND AGREEMENTS
Throughout the day, we will:
• Consider the need for collaborative, strengths-based and
culturally-responsive approaches for engaging families and
creating partnerships with families from diverse backgrounds
• Explore our own beliefs and assumptions about families
• Identify practices and policies that foster positive approaches
and the development of trusting family partnerships
• Listen to one another for new ideas
• Think about actions to be taken in the future
THE GOAL:
ENGAGING FAMILIES FOR THE PURPOSE OF
DEVELOPING FAMILY PARTNERSHIP
Family partnership occurs when families and
professionals have trusting partnerships
and families have multiple opportunities for
meaningful engagement in their children’s
education and in the life of the school.
-Haines, McCart, & Turnbull, 2013
INITIAL CONSIDERATIONS
“Historically, deficit views of culturally and linguistically diverse
families and of children’s learning difficulties have combined to
discourage family participation in schooling and in the special
education referral process (Harry, 1992)…. We recommend
professional development for teachers and administrators to change
a pervasive negative attitude towards culturally and linguistically
diverse families living in poverty and a propensity to blame them for
their children’s struggles… We see great potential in proactive
collaborative models that focus on family strengths and finding
common ground upon which to build, and include parents in
assessment, placement, and policy-making decisions, thereby
restoring the balance of power in parent-professional
discourse”(Klingner, Artiles, Kozleski, Harry, Zion, Tate, Duran, &
Riley, 2005, p.22).
YOUR CONSIDERATIONS
• What experiences have you had in engaging
parents from diverse backgrounds in
educational decision-making and planning?
– Positive experiences?
– Negative experiences?
– Questions?
FRAMING THE ISSUES:
HISTORY, LEGAL BASIS AND RESEARCH
• The IDEA and parent participation
• Research on parent participation:
– Benefits and barriers
– Family voices
• Persistent challenges for families from diverse
backgrounds
• Disproportionate representation of culturally
and linguistically diverse students
IDEA
•
•
•
•
•
•
Zero Reject
Nondiscriminatory evaluation
Appropriate education
Least restrictive environment
Procedural due process
Parent participation
MULTIPLE ROLES FOR PARENTS AND FAMILIES:
WHAT THE RESEARCH SAYS
• Changing perceptions of parents and families in
general education
• Family involvement and student outcomes
(e.g., Epstein, 2010; Henderson & Mapp, 2002;
Leithwood, 2010)
• Parents/Families as: recipients of professionals’
decisions, organization members, service
developers, teachers, political advocates,
educational decision-makers, partners
(Turnbull, Turnbull et al., 2015)
STUDIES OF PARENT PARTICIPATION
• Initial studies (1970s and early 80s):
Parents as passive participants, parents as satisfied
recipients of information and decisions, teachers viewing
passive roles as appropriate roles
• Paradigm shifts (1980s and 90s):
Family systems theory and family support models;
greater choice and definition of outcomes (e.g., BlueBanning et al., 2004; Bruder, 2000; Salembier & Furney,
1997)
• Alternative interpretations of earlier studies:
Language, power and privilege (Harry, 1992; LopezVasquez, 2001; Rao, 2000)
STUDIES OF CLD FAMILIES
• Cultural definitions of disability: Organic and medical
etiologies vs. collective and spiritual interpretations
(Kalynapur & Harry, 1992; Jegathaseen, Miller, &
Fowler, 2010; Lamory, 2002)
• Cultural interpretations/beliefs about the future: Ideals
about efficiency, independence, self-determination and
equity as compared to ideals of family associations,
extended family, collective goals (Kalyanpur & Harry,
2012; Sileo et al, 1996)
• Acknowledgement of special education as a cultural
institution (Kalyanpur & Harry, 2012)
VOICES FROM UVM RESEARCH:
THE PATH TO DIAGNOSIS
“To this day what remains my biggest frustration about
it is it feels like you are going to a country where
everyone knows the rules and everyone knows the
language and everyone knows the secret handshakes
and they don’t tell you anything about it.”
“I think that’s a really natural thing for any parent to go
through is at first you get this overwhelming sense of
grief. [Emotional] I’m sorry. The playback on this is
difficult to go there, because at the same time, I still
have some, I think that every parent gets that
sensation, even if it’s a physical defect, birth defect or,
and then you just pick it up.”
VOICES: KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERTISE
• “It’s like calling the fire department. You expect
a truck to come and you expect them to have the
right equipment and the right firefighters, the
right skills and they’re going to help you and
when they don’t show up and they don’t put out
the fire, you got your hands full and so I think
that, you know, as human servants, they need to
be firefighters and rescue people. …That’s what
parents need. It feeds their hope. I like to go
home, go to be and close my eyes and go to
sleep and know that somebody has actually got
my back.”
VOICES: KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERTISE
• “It almost seems that a generation or two generations
ago you went to a doctor, you didn’t bring a lot of your
own information, you didn’t challenge what the doctor
said, you took what they said and did it and it seems
like the whole special ed area needs, like it’s time for
that to happen because I think it still runs like an old
school doctor’s office where you show up and they will
tell you what you will or will not do and instead it needs
to be, “here’s my information” and here’s how we are
going to make it work for all of us and this is what I
don’t agree with and it’s okay for me to say that. I
shouldn’t be shut down for not agreeing…”
VOICES: KNOWING MY CHILD
• “It’s interesting because when he went to high
school, I had reached a point of cynicism almost
really. I was just like, yea, here we go again. My
expectations were very low and at his first IEP
meeting every one of his general ed teachers was
there and I was really shocked first of all at that and
I asked them questions that I always ask and they
all had answers for me. They all clearly knew [my
son] and I was just shocked. I didn’t hardly know
how to respond after years of not getting that…”
PERSISTENT CHALLENGES
• Lack of equity in family-professional relationships and
collaboration
• Challenges related to language and communication
within the IEP and assessment processes
• Disproportionate representation of students who are CLD
in special education
• Persistent achievement gaps
• Deficit views of parents/families
= Rhetoric vs. Reality
VISION FOR A CULTURALLY RESPONSIVE
EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM (KLINGNER ET AL., 2005)
• Move from a deficit approach to a focus on creating
culturally responsive systems
• Advance core values of care, respect and responsibility
among individuals and systems
• Look deeply at current patterns: special education
processes, decision-making, communication
• Account for complex interaction of language, culture and
context; make decisions within a “coherent theoretical
framework” (Miramontes et al., 1997)
THE FRAMEWORK AND VISION, CONTINUED
• Culturally responsive policies: Proactive, equitable,
inclusive, flexible
• Culturally responsive practices: Evidence-based,
collaborative, family-focused
• Positive, culturally responsive people: Strengths
based attitudes and approaches, intentional
communication and action, shared responsibility for
all students and families
FOCUS ON PEOPLE
• “Know Thyself”: Promoting Self-awareness
• Seek to understand the families with whom you work
• Encourage the “posture” or process of cultural
reciprocity(Kalyanpur & Harry, 2012)
• Encourage listening, openness, and family-centered
approaches
“The first thing you have to know is yourself. People who
knows themselves can step outside themselves and watch
their own reactions like an observer.” Adam Smith
ACTIVITY 1 A PORTRAIT
OF YOU
Language
and culture
Conception
of family
Your
beliefs and
actions
Experiences
with
disability
Experiences
in
education
TO THINK ABOUT AND SHARE…
• Discuss your responses to the graphic with a partner
• What did you learn about yourself in this process?
• In what ways do your beliefs and experiences contribute
to your ability to understand families from diverse
backgrounds?
• Which of your key beliefs and experiences may serve as
“blind spots” or triggers for you?
FOR THE GROUP…
• How can you encourage the people in your setting to
become more aware of their own beliefs and to adopt
strengths-based and culturally-responsive attitudes and
approaches that lead to trusting family partnerships?
FOCUS ON PRACTICE
• Encourage processes that promote cultural reciprocity
• Provide teachers, leaders, and families with opportunities to
gain skills in collaboration and cultural reciprocity
• Encourage the use of family-centered planning and
decision-making
• Look for multiple opportunities to engage all families in
school wide activities
PRACTICING CULTURAL RECIPROCITY
What is the difference between these terms?
• Cultural sensitivity
• Cultural responsiveness
• Cultural reciprocity
KALYANPUR AND HARRY’S (2012, P. 17) FOUR
STEP PROCESS OF CULTURAL RECIPROCITY
1.
2.
3.
4.
Identify the cultural values that are embedded in your
interpretation of a student’s difficulties or in the
recommendation for service
Find out whether the family being served recognizes and
values these assumptions, and, if not, how its view differs
from yours
Acknowledge and give explicit respect to any cultural
differences identified and fully explain the cultural basis of
your assumptions
Through discussion and collaboration, set about
determining the most effective way of adapting your
professional interpretations or recommendations to the
value system of the family
ACTIVITY 2 -
APPLYING THE PROCESS
OF CULTURAL RECIPROCITY
• Identify a situation in which you have recommended a specific service or
course of action to a family from a diverse cultural and/or linguistic
background.
– Why did you select this particular story?
– What factors played into the recommendation that you made?
– Which of your values and beliefs were “at play” in your
recommendations?
– In what ways might your recommendation align with the family’s values
/ beliefs?
– In what ways might the family’s own values and beliefs been different
from yours?
– What, if anything, might you do differently in a situation like this?
Prepare to share one or two important observations with the group.
PRACTICING COLLABORATION
Collaboration is effective when it:
Is voluntary
Embraces a sense of parity among members
Acknowledges the expertise of all team members
Is based on at least one mutually identified goal
Is rooted in trust and a sense of shared responsibility
KEY CHARACTERISTICS OF EFFECTIVE
TEAMS (THOUSAND AND VILLA, 2002)
•
•
•
•
Face-to-Face Interaction
Positive Interdependence
Interpersonal Skills
Monitoring and Processing of Group
Functioning
• Individual Accountability
TURN AND TALK…
What are some of the concerns or barriers
you hear about regarding collaboration
with families in your school?
What strategies have you put into place to
overcome these challenges?
CONSIDERATIONS FOR
COLLABORATION WITH FAMILIES
•
•
•
•
Time to meet and to listen
Family and cultural perspectives on collaboration
Family and professional knowledge
Prior experience with professionals, special
education, teaming
• Power and privilege
• Other…
VOICES: COLLABORATION
• “Collaboration is …rooted in your professionals’ understanding of
the things you know and don’t know. Your ability to articulate the
things you know and don’t know. Your ability to articulate the things
you know and defer to a more articulate person the things you
don’t. Collaboration is the art.”
• “Collaboration is when there is communication back and forth
between teachers and special educators and parents and parents
play a role in the education of their children…so collaboration is
everybody, everybody has a stake in the game. Everybody plays a
part in it and it’s not someone pointing a finger at someone else
saying, these are totally your responsibility.
VOICES: COLLABORATION
• And again, I come back to-- and gosh, I think this all the
time-- that I’m actually probably pretty good at this and a
lot of times it’s the parents who don’t really collaborate
but they are very aggressive and a lot of times they get
the services but I still don’t think that that’s the right way
to go about things. I’ve had several times over the years
that I think, well, look at so and so, their kid gets this and
this and they’re the kind of parent that goes to the
meeting and just launches an attack. There’s no
collaboration but they’re getting what they want and
sometimes I think, well maybe I should do that, but it’s
just not my style. I keep fighting for that collaborative,
the elusive collaboration.
PRACTICING FAMILY-CENTERED APPROACHES
MAPS (Forest & Lusthaus, 1987)
• Person centered planning process
• Designed to improve life outcomes
• Puts students and families in drivers seat of
future planning
• Brings together school personnel and
families on equal footing
ASSUMPTIONS OF MAPS PROCESS
• Guided and/or directed by the person that the
MAP is about and his/her family
– Self-advocacy and self-determination
• Strengths-based
• Helps with getting to know families, planning for
transitions, and resolving challenges
• May be useful in developing relationships with
families from diverse backgrounds
FIVE STEPS OF A MAP
• History: A short description of the person and family’s
background.
• Dreams: A list of desired future outcomes for the focus
person.
• Fears: A list of worries or concerns regarding the
person’s achievement of their dreams.
• Who is: A description of the person, including
strengths, skills, interests, activities, and friends.
• Needs: A list of things that need to happen to help
make the persons’ dreams for the future come true,
and/or to minimize concerns.
MOHAMMED’S MAP
•
•
•
•
17 year old youth from Burma
Receives services due to Intellectual Disability
Family concerned about transition to adult life
MAPS process included Mohammed and his
father, four sisters, two cousins, an uncle,
family friend, and three teachers
PRACTICE:
SUPPORTING FAMILIES IN DEVELOPING
SKILLS IN LEADERSHIP AND COLLABORATION
• Parents as Collaborative Leaders Project
• 32 parents from 10 states
• 8 parents from diverse cultural and linguistic
backgrounds
• Participation in leadership development curriculum
and a leadership internship
To view our site, go to:
www.uvm.edu/~pcl/
PRACTICE:
SUPPORTING PARENTS IN SKILL DEVELOPMENT
• “I’ve been to other trainings where we learned a lot of information,
but this curriculum introduced me to some new things I hadn’t
encountered before, such as collaboration with others, listening,
and conflict resolution.”
• “The training in conflict was really helpful. I had to learn that it’s
important both to stand my ground and to keep quiet sometimes.
This was a real ‘aha’ moment for me.”
• “As the parent of a child with a disability, you experience a lot of
raw emotion. I let that get in the way sometimes and I burned a lot
of bridges because of it…Through the project, I learned that school
districts don’t fear angry parents, but they will pay attention to
informed parents.”
FOCUS ON POLICIES: TURN AND TALK
• In what ways do school-based and/or
district policies enhance or inhibit
collaboration and the development of
partnerships with families from diverse
backgrounds?
CONSIDER DISTRICT & SCHOOL WIDE POLICIES RELATED TO…
–
–
–
–
–
Special education eligibility determination
Use of RtI and PBIS
Policies regarding discipline and punishment
Identification of evidence-based practices
Communication policies
ACTIVITY 3
• In pairs or threes, use the PPPC graphic to discuss
and list issues of concern related to people, practices
and policies at your school.
• You may also wish to describe contextual factors that
are unique to your setting.
• Choose one or two areas where change needs to be
made in order to promote engagement and partnership
with families from diverse backgrounds, and brainstorm
some potential strategies for bringing about desired
change.
• In selecting areas in need of change, identify any
existing strengths that can be built upon.
FACTORS
INFLUENCING
ENGAGEMENT
AND
PARTNERSHIP
WITH DIVERSE
FAMILIES
Context
Policy
Practice
People
CLOSING THOUGHTS
• What did you find most important about today’s
discussion?
• What is one thing that you will commit to doing
when you return to your work setting?
THANK YOU!
For more information on this topic,
please contact me at:
Katharine Shepherd
College of Education & Social Services
85 South Prospect St.
Burlington, VT
[email protected]
PRIMARY SOURCES
• Kalanpur, M., & Harry, B. (2012). Cultural reciprocity
in special education: Building family-professional
relationships. Baltimore: Paul H. Brookes
• Klingner, J.K., Artiles, A., Kozleski, E., Harry, B. Zion,
S., Duran, G., & Riley, D. (2005). Addressing the
disproportionate representation of culturally and
linguistically diverse students in special education
through culturally responsive education systems, 13
(38), 1-43.