Nearly two decades ago, Gloria Ladson-Billings (1995) proposed culturally relevant pedagogy, “a theoretical model that not only addresses student achievement but also helps students to accept and affirm their cultural identity while developing critical perspectives that challenge inequities that schools (and other institutions) perpetuate” (p. 469). Culturally relevant pedagogy has not only ignited countless studies, but the theory has also assumed a central role in teacher education, inspiring a generation of teachers to enter the classroom with a renewed commitment to affirming students’ cultural, racial, and ethnic identities.

As the study of culture in education has exploded in scale, the Harvard Educational Review has been an active and instrumental participant in the conversation (e.g., Cochran-Smith, 1995; Conklin, 2008; and Yosso, Smith, Ceja, & Solorzano, 2009). While this discussion remains vibrant, a great deal has changed since Ladson-Billings first offered her original formulation. Demographic change continues to re-shape student identities, and students themselves continue to reimagine the meanings of those identities. Social scientists and educators, meanwhile, continue to rethink pedagogical theories and practices that best respond to this dynamic reality.

In this vein of scholarship is culturally sustaining pedagogy, a theoretical stance proposed by Django Paris (2012) that “seeks to perpetuate and foster—to sustain—linguistic, literate, and cultural pluralism as part of the democratic project of schooling” (p. 93). In this symposium, we present the continued development of culturally sustaining pedagogy as a theory for a new century—one that bears the intellectual hallmarks of the work that has preceded it but is also uniquely responsive to the dynamic nature of culture, society, and the lives of young people.

Culturally sustaining pedagogy is an emergent idea, a still-nascent concept appearing on the pages of this symposium to usher a crucial return to questions of identity and culture that remain central to the lives of young people. We encourage scholars and practitioners to take this work into their studies and classrooms and to use the concept of culturally sustaining pedagogy in ways that will test, hone, and clarify the theory. Whatever new theoretical or empirical findings may result, we look forward to engaging with those ideas on our pages.

References

Cochran-Smith, M. (1995). Uncertain allies: Understanding the boundaries of race and teaching. Harvard Educational Review, 65(4), 541–­571.

Conklin, H. G. (2008). Modeling compassion in critical, justice-oriented teacher education. Harvard Educational Review, 78(4), 652­–674.

Ladson-Billings, G. (1995). Toward a theory of culturally relevant pedagogy. American Educational Research Journal, 32(3), 465–491.

Paris, D. (2012). Culturally sustaining pedagogy: A needed change in stance, terminology, and practice. Educational Researcher, 41(3), 93–97.

Yosso, T. J., Smith, W. A., Ceja, M., & Solorzano, D. G. (2009). Critical race theory, racial microaggressions, and campus racial climate for Latina/o undergraduates. Harvard Educational Review, 79(4), 659–691.

Articles in the Symposium

Culturally Relevant Pedagogy 2.0: a.k.a. the Remix by Gloria Ladson-Billings

What Are We Seeking to Sustain Through Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy?: A Loving Critique Forward by Django Paris and H. Samy Alim

Critical Culturally Sustaining/Revitalizing Pedagogy and Indigenous Education Sovereignty by Teresa L. McCarty and Tiffany S. Lee