Paris (2012) posited that the time has come for terms like “responsive” and relevant” to evolve because the terms do not fully encapsulate the intent of the Ladson-Billings (1995) landmark study (p. 93). Paris (2012) presented an alternative term, culturally sustaining pedagogy, which “seeks to perpetuate and foster—to sustain—linguistic, literate, and cultural pluralism as part of the democratic project of schooling” (p. 93).
Culturally sustaining pedagogy went beyond tweaking the curriculum in responsive or relevant ways so that multicultural students can understand the mainstream canon; culturally sustaining pedagogy required that teachers “support young people in sustaining the cultural and linguistic competence of their communities while simultaneously offering access to dominant cultural competence” (Paris, 2012, p. 95).
According to Villegas and Lucas (2007), successful culturally responsive teaching “involves more than just applying specialized teaching techniques” (p. 29).
Ladson-Billings (2014) reflected on the impact of her research on culturally relevant pedagogy over the last twenty plus years and how the concept has evolved (p. 74). Ladson-Billings (2014) “argues for the importance of dynamic scholarship” and supports Paris (2012) in that “it is time for a ‘remix’ of her original theory” (p. 74).
References
Paris, D. (2012). Culturally sustaining pedagogy: A needed change in stance, terminology, and practice. Educational Researcher, 41(3), 93-97.
Ladson-Billings, G. (1995). Toward a theory of culturally relevant pedagogy. American Educational Research Journal, 32(3), 465-491.
Ladson-Billings, G. (2014). Culturally relevant pedagogy 2.0: A.k.a. the remix. Harvard Educational Review, 84(1), 74-84.
Villegas, A. M., & Lucas, T. (2007). The Culturally Responsive Teacher. Educational Leadership, 64(6), 28.