Elliott Weber

03/28/2024 · Elementary School

and reverse the trends of disciplinary sanctions such as office discipline referrals and suspensions among African American males. The first practice is to enhance staff members' cultural knowledge. It is beneficial for school staff to gain better knowledge and understanding about cultural dimensions that tend to be divisive among people. These dimensions include language, communication styles, socioeconomic status, and level of authority. The second practice is to enhance staff members' cultural self-awareness. This practice is a prerequisite for appreciating and understanding others' cultural backgrounds (McAllister \& Irvine, 2000). The process of deconstructing and reconstructing one's thinking through analysis of biases, stereotypes, and the status quo is essential (Lewison, Flint, \& Van Sluys, 2002). The third key practice supports the validation of others' cultures. To establish meaningful connections with diverse student populations, researchers have proposed educators acknowledge cultural backgrounds instead of being colorblind (Delpit, 1992; Ladson-Billings \& Tate, 1995; Weinstein, Tomlinson-Clarke, \& Curran, 2004). Cultural relevance is the fourth key practice that applies not only to academic content but also to social skills. Relevance allows school staff to create spaces for students to have rich discourse around disciplinary sanctions. This fosters an approach where discipline is