Date of Award

Summer 2022

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Education (EdD)

Committee Chair

Kathi Gibson

Abstract

This study explored K-4 teachers and school district curriculum leadership’s understanding of and inclination to implement culturally relevant pedagogy as a framework for teaching reading, especially for African American students. This qualitative study sought the potential basis that teachers and educational leaders retain from their experiences and perspectives regarding using culturally relevant pedagogy as a framework for educating minority students. It was conducted in a rural school district located in eastern North Carolina; all 13 elementary schools in the school district had teachers who participated. Data were collected by analyzing teachers’ and school curriculum’s definitions of the impact of culturally relevant pedagogy in reading for elementary African American students in the fourth grade in rural eastern North Carolina. It used two research instruments: an online platform questionnaire called Survey Monkey and an interview protocol. This study found that teachers and school curriculum leadership are willing to implement culturally relevant pedagogical practices into their reading instruction. Interview responses and survey data were analyzed to determine how inclined teachers and school curriculum leadership were to integrate culturally relevant pedagogy practices intentionally. Student achievement, student engagement, and cultural awareness are positively related; the findings indicate when culturally relevant pedagogy is utilized in reading instruction for minority learners, student mastery of new skills is more likely at a higher level. In addition, this study aimed to add to the current body of knowledge on achievement gaps, student engagement, and student achievement.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 4.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 4.0 License

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