Cultural Competency

1
Cultural Competency

• The ability to work effectively across cultures
  in a way that acknowledges and respects the
  culture of the person or organization being
  served.
• J. H. Hanley (1999) - Beyond the tip of the
  Iceberg Five Stages toward cultural competence

2
Cultural Competency Continuum

• Cultural Destructiveness
• Individual or groups refuse to acknowledge the
  presence or importance of cultural differences in
  the teaching/learning process
• Any perceived or real differences from the
  dominant mainstream culture are punished or
  suppressed

J. L. Mason, M. P. Benjamin, S. A. Lewis (1993)
The cultural competence model Implications
for child and family mental health services.
3
Cultural Competency Continuum

• Cultural Incapacity
• Cultural differences are neither punished nor
  supported
• The individual or organization chooses to ignore
  differences
• There is no attention, time, teaching, or
  resources devoted to understanding and supporting
  cultural differences

J. L. Mason, M. P. Benjamin, S. A. Lewis (1993)
The cultural competence model Implications
for child and family mental health services.
4
Cultural Competency Continuum

• Cultural Blindness
• Individual or organization actively proffers the
  idea that cultural differences are
  inconsequential and of no importance
• Cultural differences may be noted, but being
  color blind (and culture blind) is the desired
  state.
• No resources, attention, or time are devoted to
  understanding cultural differences

J. L. Mason, M. P. Benjamin, S. A. Lewis (1993)
The cultural competence model Implications
for child and family mental health services.
5
Cultural Competency Continuum

• Cultural Pre-competence
• Teachers, learners, and organizations recognize
  and respond to cultural differences and attempt
  to redress non-liberating structures, teaching
  practices, and inequities
• Individuals and organizations recognize the need
  for cultural competency and this serves as a
  first step in extirpating some of the
  debilitating practices that limit the educational
  progress of diverse learners

J. L. Mason, M. P. Benjamin, S. A. Lewis (1993)
The cultural competence model Implications
for child and family mental health services.
6
Cultural Competency Continuum

• Cultural Competence
• Organizations and individuals learn to value
  cultural differences and attempt to find ways to
  celebrate, encourage, and respond to differences
  within and among themselves
• Teachers and students explore issues or equity,
  cultural history and knowledge, social justice,
  and privilege and power relations in our society

J. L. Mason, M. P. Benjamin, S. A. Lewis (1993)
The cultural competence model Implications
for child and family mental health services.
7
Cultural Competency

• Educational leaders who are not culturally
  competent cannot be fully effective.

Institute for Educational Leadership (2005)
Preparing and supporting diverse, culturally
competent leaders Practice and policy
considerations
8
Cultural Competency

• Culturally competent leaders work to understand
  their own biases as well as patterns of
  discrimination. They have the skills to mitigate
  the attendant negative effects on student
  achievement and the personal courage and
  commitment to persist.

Institute for Educational Leadership (2005)
Preparing and supporting diverse, culturally
competent leaders Practice and policy
considerations
9
Cultural Competency

• Much of what culturally competent leaders must
  know and be able to do is learned in
  relationships with families and communities.

Institute for Educational Leadership (2005)
Preparing and supporting diverse, culturally
competent leaders Practice and policy
considerations
10
Cultural Competency

• Culturally competent leadership develops over
  time and needs to be supported from preparation
  through practice. Creating collaborative
  frameworks structures can be useful.

Institute for Educational Leadership (2005)
Preparing and supporting diverse, culturally
competent leaders Practice and policy
considerations
11
Cultural Competency

• State and local policies need to build a sense of
  urgency about preparing culturally competent
  leaders.

Institute for Educational Leadership (2005)
Preparing and supporting diverse, culturally
competent leaders Practice and policy
considerations