Glossary of terms
A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z
A
assessment, authentic
- A concept that refers to "intellectual accomplishments that are worthwhile, significant, and meaningful" (Wehlage, Newmann, & Secada, 1996, p. 23)
- When applied to student learning, defined through
the following criteria:
- " construction of knowledge found in significant intellectual accomplishments" (p. 24) .
- disciplined inquiry consists of three main features: (1) use of prior knowledge base, (2) striving for in-depth understanding rather than superficial awareness, and (3) expressing one's ideas and findings through elaborated communication" (pp. 24-25) .
- " value of achievement beyond the school. Reflects aesthetic, utilitarian, or personal value evident in significant intellectual accomplishments" (p. 26) .
assessment, methods of
- selected response : "includes all of the objectively scored paper and pencil test formats" (Stiggins, 2001, p. 88) .
- essay : "[R]espondents are provided with an exercise (or set of exercises that calls for them to prepare an original written answer..Evidence of achievement is seen in the conceptual substance of the response (i.e., ideas expressed and the manner in which they are tied together)" (p. 88) .
- performance : "[R]espondents actually carry out a specified activity under the watchful eye of an evaluator, who observes their performance and makes judgments as to the quality of achievement demonstrated" (p. 89) .
- personal communication : "includes questions posed and answered during instruction, interviews, conferences, conversations, and listening during class discussions and oral examinations. The examiner listens to responses and either (1) judges them right or wrong if correctness is the criterion, or (2) makes subjective judgments according to some continuum of quality" (p. 89) .
C
caring
- "values the individual and conveys belief in their capacity to learn.[;] entails listening sincerely to students, knowing something about students and their lives, and developing positive relationships with them.[;] creates the relationship, the 'bonds,' necessary to ensure learning" (Shannon & Bylsa, 2002, p. 28) .
- a caring teacher : "someone who has demonstrated that she can establish, more or less regularly, relations of care in a wide variety of situations" (Noddings, 2001, pp. 100-101).
class, socio-economic
- "economic, social, and political relationships that govern life in a given social order[;].reflects the constraints and limitations individuals and groups experience in the areas of income level, occupation, place of residence, and other indicators of status and social rank" (Grant & Ladson-Billings, 1997, p. 44).
- "groups of people who share certain characteristics
of prestige, patterns of taste and language, income,
occupational status (though not necessarily the same
jobs), educational level, aspirations, behavior, and
beliefs[;] arranged in a pyramid-shaped hierarchy
according to members' wealth, power, and prestige."
- wealth : "the control of material resources or economic clout"
- power : "authority in the political realm"
- prestige : "the control of ideological resources or cultural influence" (deMarrais & LeCompte, 1995, p. 168).
classroom management
- "myriad educational decisions, including the ways in which rules are established and reinforced, how consequences are enacted or exacted, how frequently communications with parents takes place, the physical set-up of the room, the ready availability of materials, the methods used for resolving conflicts, and verbal interactions with students" (McEwan, 2000, p. 5) .
-
democratic management-
characteristics:
- "typically centers more on societal expectations that promote the common welfare"
- "reflects society's expectations of cooperation where the basis of the rules is derived from the language of individual freedom balanced against mutual responsibilities"
- "relies on presenting guidelines and expectations to students and having students make choices about how to behave appropriately within those parameters"
- "Student participation in the decision-making process is one essential element"
- "arranging the classroom to be welcoming for all students is important" (pp. 19-20).
critical thinking
"the ability to judge and evaluate information and/or evidence, drawing conclusions that are objective and logical. A critical thinker is one who is able to identify and/or know premises, assumptions, hypotheses, appropriate theory, the quality (e.g., nonambiguous, ambiguous) of statements, false arguments, generalizations, the reliability of observations, and other factors that contribute to or detract from the process of critical thinking" (Dejnozka & Kapel, 1991, p. 147).
culturally responsive teaching
- Teaching that uses "the cultural knowledge, prior experiences, frames of reference, and performance styles of ethnically diverse students to make learning encounters more relevant to and effective for them. It teaches to and through the strengths of these students. It is culturally validating and affirming" (Gay, 2000, p. 28).
- supports "empowering forms of acculturation and teacher-student relations based on collaboration rather than coercion" (Gallego et al., 2001, p. 982) .
culture
- "The values, traditions, social and political relationships, and worldview created, shared, and transformed by a group of people bound together by a common history, geographic location, language, social class, and/or religion" (Nieto, 2000, p. 383) .
- "in relationship to school learning.those values and practices that shape the content, process, and structure of initial and subsequent intellectual, emotional, and social development among members of a particular group[;].provides the conditions under which human growth and development naturally occur" (Grant & Ladson-Billings, 1997, p. 74).
D
democratic education
"the education of children and youth-planned cooperatively and in a principled way-by parents, professional educators, and citizens[;].aimed at preparing children and youth for a life of civic self-government [and] to create citizens who are competent to share in the rights and obligations of ruling. This aim must also be applied to the planning of education experiences. In this way, democratic education is itself one instance of popular sovereignty" (Grant & Ladson- Billings, 1997, pp. 85-86).
diversity
"differences among people.usually referring to group differences" (Grant & Ladson-Billings, 1997, pp. 93-94).
E
English-language learners
- Students for whom standard English is not their first language and whose "linguistic and cultural backgrounds are different from the language and culture" of the curriculum of the mainstream classroom (Costantino, 1999, p. 1).
- Also referred to as "second language learners" (see Cary , 2000).
equity
- "The quality of being equal or fair; fairness, impartiality, evenhanded dealing";
- "What is fair and right; something that is fair and right";
- "The recourse to general principles of justice.to correct or supplement the provisions of the law" ( Oxford English Dictionary , 1989)
-
educational equity:
- "used to contrast 'equal education' with opportunity being viewed as a necessary, but not sufficient, step for educational equity to occur[;].
- "Justice and respect for individual and group rights, which actively promotes the view that all persons are equal, personally and socially, although living within a fundamentally unequal, stratified, and biased dominant culture[;].
- "pursuit of equity in education is a dynamic
process that recognizes contextual realities (e.g.,
institutional racism and sexism) and barriers to
the achievement of a truly just distribution of
power and opportunity, and works constantly to
name, address, and dismantle systems of oppression
which keep inequality in place" (Grant &
Ladson-Billings, 1997, pp. 100, 103).
engagement
"the extent to which learners actively and persistently participate until appropriate responses are firmly entrenched in their repertoires.[and is] indicated by absence of irrelevant behavior, concentration on tasks, enthusiastic contributions to group discussion, and lengthy study" (Walberg, 1999, p. 77) .
Essential Academic Learning Requirements
- Specific learning targets that are based on the state's Student Learning Goals (Education Reform-Improvement of Student Learning Act, 1993) .
- Represent "the specific academic skills and knowledge students will be required to meet in the classroom" (Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, n.d.) .
Eurocentrism
"a world-view [that] includes several beliefs:
- belief in the inherent superiority of all things European (i.e., European cultures, perspectives, values, behaviors);
- belief that these various aspects of European culture are valid universal norms for judging non-European cultures;
- belief that non-European cultures are inferior; and
- belief that non-European cultures should be denigrated and dominated" (Grant & Ladson-Billings, 1997, p.117).
G
gender
- "Consists of behaviors that result from the social, cultural, and psychological factors associated with masculinity and femininity within a society. Appropriate male and female roles result from the socialization of the individual within the group" (Banks & Banks, 1997, p. 434).
- "in addition to physiological traits, refers to the cultural understandings and behaviors associated maleness and femaleness[;].learned through a process of socialization [beginning] at birth" (deMarrais & LeCompte, 1995, p. 319).
- heterosexism : "Discriminatory beliefs and behaviors directed against gay men and lesbians" (Nieto, 2000, p. 383) .
L
learning community
- "fundamentally implies that a group of individuals are learning together in a supportive atmosphere toward a common purpose. The work of this community is guided by knowledge acquisition. Ample opportunities exist for both affective and cognitive responses. This learning in turn benefits not only the individual members of the community, but contributes to shared understandings and new points of view for all participants. Community in this sense combines both a task orientation toward a goal as well as the development of a bond among community participants imbedded in a democratic ethos." (Vavrus, 2002, p. 142; also see Merz & Furman, 1997)
- "recognizes and validates the individuality and
responsibility of each participant" (Cunat, 1996, p.
130 ).
learning targets
"defines academic success, what we want students to know and be able to do" (Stiggins, 2001, p. 57) . Types of targets vary according to the academic goals of a particular subject matter content that is being learned. Five types or categories of targets:
- Knowledge- mastery of substantive subject matter content, where mastery includes both knowing and understanding it.
- Reasoning- the ability to use that knowledge and understanding to figure out things and to solve problems.
- Performance Skills- the development of proficiency in doing something where it is the process that is important, such as playing a musical instrument, reading aloud, speaking in a second language, or using psychomotor skills.
- Products- the ability to create tangible products, such as term papers, science fair models, and art product, that meet certain standards of quality and that present concrete evidence of academic proficiency.
- Dispositions- the development of certain kinds of feelings, such as attitudes, interests, and motivational intentions (p. 66) .
low-status, historically marginalized students
"Examples of status characteristics are race, social class, sex, reading ability, and attractiveness. Attached to these status characteristics are general expectations forcompetence. High status individuals are expected to be more competent than low status individuals across a wide range of tasks that are viewed as important..Since in our culture people of color are generally expected to be less competent on intellectual tasks than whites, these racist expectations came into play in the innocent [learning activities]" (Cohen, 1994, pp. 33-34) .
M
multicultural education
- " a total school reform effort designed to
increase educational equity for a range of cultural,
ethnic, and economic groups " (emphasis in
original) (Banks, 1993b, p. 6; also see Banks, 2001) .
- "prepares all students to work actively toward structural equality in the organizations and institutions of the United States ."
- "[provides] knowledge about the history, culture, and contributions of the diverse groups that have shaped the history, politics, and culture of the United States ."
- "provides instruction in familiar contexts that are built upon student's diverse ways of thinking."
- "teaches critical thinking skills, as well as democratic decision making, social action, and empowerment skills" (Grant & Ladson-Billings, 1997, pp. 171-172) .
-
Dimensions include:
- content integration for an inclusive elementary and secondary school curriculum,
- multicultural knowledge construction processes,
- prejudicial discrimination reduction,
- an equity pedagogy, and
- an empowering school culture and social structure for all children and youth (Banks, 1993c, 2001) .
multicultural perspective/approach
- An inclusive orientation that is manifested in instructional planning and the classroom environment through the interactions of caring , culturally responsive teaching , a learningcommunity, democratic classroom management, multiculturalism , multicultural education , and transformative academic knowledg e (see definitions in Glossary) .
- evident when educators "explore alternatives to systemic problems that lead to academic failure for many students[;]. fosters the design and implementation of productive learning environments, diverse instructional strategies, and a deeper awareness of how cultural and language differences can influence learning. School reform with a multicultural perspective thus needs to begin with an understanding of multicultural education with a sociopolitical context " (Nieto, 1997, p. 389).
- organization of curricular "concepts around the perspectives of different ethnic, gender, socioeconomic, and ability groups, and curriculum is culturally responsive to the culture, language, and learning styles of students" (Grant & Ladson-Billings, 1997, p. 175).
multiculturalism
"a philosophical position and movement that assumes that the gender, ethnic, racial, and cultural diversity of a pluralistic society should be reflected in all of its institutionalized structures but especially in educational institutions, including the staff, norms and values, curriculum, and student body" (Grant & Ladson-Billings, 1997, p. 182).
P
pedagogy
a contemporary perspective that regards "teaching as a process, not a technique. It is more a variety of two-way communication than a mode of one-way transmission or delivery. In turn, teaching is held to be more about transformative relationships of production and exchange than about distributive mechanism for the dissemination and consumption of knowledge. Pedagogic thinking, therefore, prioritizes the constitution of learning over the execution of teaching" (Hamilton & McWilliam, 2001, p. 18) .
perspective consciousness
"recognition or awareness on the part of an individual that he or she has a view of the world that is not universally shared, that this view of the world has been and continues to be shapedby influences that often escape conscious detection, and that other have views of the world that are profoundly different from one's own" (Grant & Ladson-Billings, 1997, p. 213).
problem solving
"Cognitive processing aimed at figuring out how to achieve a goal. In problem solving, the problem solver seeks to devise a method for transforming a problem from its current state into a desired state when a solution is not immediately obvious to the problem solver..A problem occurs when a problem solver has a goal but initially does not know how to achieve the goal" (Mayer, 2003, p. 1441) .
R
race
- "a term with no scientific meaning that has been used historically to categorize people based on beliefs about their common ancestry and/or physical characteristics" (deMarrais & LeCompte, 1995, p. 320) .
- "a concept that signifies and symbolizes sociopolitical conflicts and interests in reference to different types of human bodies[;].selection of.particular human features for purposes of racial signification is always and necessarily a social and historical process" (Grant & Ladson-Billings, 1997, p. 227) .
race, gender, and class
"In the integrative and interactive analysis the relative significance of each factor [i.e., race, class, gender] in determining social inequality is neither fixed nor absolute, but rather, is dependent on the sociohistorical and cultural context under analysis" (Grant & Ladson-Billings, 1997, p. 230) .
representation
- "a discursive system that codes and encodes individuals and groups in ways that construct, reflect, and reproduce the hegemonic political, social, cultural, and economic order[;].social subjects (individuals and groups) are situated or positioned in relation to each other and to the world" (Grant & Ladson-Billings, 1997, p. 232) .
- hegemony : "a form of social control. It exists in the form of a social consensus created by dominant groups who control socializing institutions such as the media, schools, churches, and the political system; these institutions prevent alternative views from gaining an audience or establishing their legitimacy" (deMarrais & LeCompte, 1995, p. 319) .
S
Student Learning Goals, state of Washington
"[T]he goals of each school district, with the involvement of parents and community members, shall be to provide opportunities for all students to develop the knowledge and skills essential to:
- Read with comprehension, write with skill, and communicate effectively and responsibly in a variety of ways and settings;
- Know and apply the core concepts and principles of mathematics; social, physical, and life science; civic and history; geography; arts; and health and fitness;
- Think analytically, logically, and creatively, and to integrate experience and knowledge to form reasoned judgments and solve problems; and
- Understand the importance of work and how performance, effort, and decisions directly affect career and educational opportunities" (Education Reform Act, 1993) .
T
transformative academic knowledge
- "consists of concepts, paradigms, themes, and explanations that challenge mainstream academic knowledge and that expand the historical and literary canon...[under the recognition] that knowledge is not neutral but is influenced by human interests, that all knowledge reflects the power and social relationships within society, and that an important purpose of knowledge construction is to help people improve society" (Banks, 1993a, p. 9) .
- "changes the structure of the curriculum to enable students to view concepts, issues, events, and themes from the perspective of diverse ethnic and cultural groups" (Banks, 1993a)
compare to:
- contributions & additive multicultural content : "focuses on heroes, holidays, and individual cultural events.[and] adds content, concepts, themes, and perspectives to the curriculum without changing its structure" (Banks, 1993a) .
- transformative multicultural education :
- a "concept that explicitly articulates educational transformation in a society that addresses issues of race, class, gender, disability, and sexual orientation" (Grant & Ladson-Billings, 1997, p. 176);
- "changes the structure of the curriculum to enable students to view concepts, issues, events, and themes from the perspective of diverse ethnic and cultural groups" (Banks, 1993a, 2001) .
Contact information
Field Services Office
Cleveland 314
509-335-0925
hritter@wsu.edu