Bridget Williams discusses the importance of culturally responsive instruction for English language learners (ELLs). She emphasizes creating a classroom environment that represents diverse cultures through images and role models. Williams also stresses incorporating technology like websites to help ELL students and parents become familiar with academic resources. Her classroom celebrates cultural differences through open discussions to reduce bias. Student-centered instruction is highlighted as an effective approach, where students work collaboratively in groups and answer open-ended questions to develop curiosity. Williams' ELL students have become more engaged, independent readers and writers through these culturally responsive and student-centered teaching methods.

1. Bridget Williams
Culturally Responsive Instruction
EDU 669: The Reading Writing Connection
Instructor: LeConte Middleton
April 13, 2015

2. In my own personal and professional experiences I have come to realize the importance
of creating an environment that is conducive to learning by making sure that there are pictures
that depict men, women, boys and girls from all ethnic/racial backgrounds. When children see
people just like them who are famous are that have occupations that are significant in society it
gives them that extra boost of confidence that they too can achieve any goal that they set in life
as long as they stay focused and apply themselves.
It is important to incorporate the use of technology such as class websites, blogs, and
videos because many of the ELL students may not be familiar with American activities as it
relates to academics on the internet. (Moughamian, A. C., Rivera, M. O., Francis, D. J. 2009). At
the beginning of the school year I gave my parents a list of websites that the parents were
encouraged to visit so that they too could become familiar with them so that they could be
supportive of their child at home such sites as ABCMOUSE.COM, STARFALL.COM, and
BRAINPOPJR,COM. These sites will help in the acquisition use, and comprehension of the
English language.
In my classroom we celebrate our differences and we have open discussions about our
different cultures so that there will not be any misconceptions, or biased opinions as it relate to
us as individuals and a group of people. Culturally Responsive Teaching is a pedagogy that
recognizes the importance of including students' cultural references in every aspect of learning
(Ladson-Billings,1994). This is where student centered instruction plays a vital role.
Student centered instruction focuses on student engagement, and personal responsibility
in the learning process. This responsibility produces student independence and it is encouraged
through an assortment of action-oriented, hands on instructional designs that in one way
replaces, or support discussions in the classroom. (Felder & Brent, 1996). Student Centered

3. Instruction has been proven to increase the knowledge level of the students based on research;
especially when they are learning from their peers through literacy circles, being a part of a book
club and in reading pair share groups. (Daniels, 2002).
Three research based techniques that educators can use to support this pedagogy include;
an argument that Haneda, and Wells argued; they argued that educators can create a
collaborative community where the students are allowed to work together in groups in the
classroom instead of the old-style highly structured, teacher-directed classroom, students can
learned with and from each other as they actively engage in dialogic inquiry. (Haneda and Wells
pg. 2 (2008). Students can use their writings to show comprehension of what was read in class
during their pair share/group dialogue sessions.
According to an article titled Student-Centered Instruction: Involving Students in Their
Own Education (May 2008) Student Centered Instruction is simply learning experiences where
the students are actively engaged and involved in what they are reading.
The article also suggested that we as educators should ask questions that will lead
students to their own solutions rather than simply giving them the answers. When asking open
ended questions it will cause the students to be nurtured n a way that will promote their natural
curiosity concerning information that they are reading/studying. (Brown, J. K. pg. 1. 2008).
As educators we must make sure that we are doing all that we can to ensure that our
students are provided with choices for collaborating with their peers, and giving them the
necessary support when needed. In doing so we can encourage and develop students who are
engaged on a daily basis in the Reading/Literacy experiences throughout the day.
In providing support when needed the instruction still remains student centered we are
here to model, allow them to practice as a whole group then we release the control and allow

4. them to finish the learning/comprehension process with little or no excessive interruptions by the
teacher. The instructional implications will allow the educators more time to differentiate their
lesson plans and ensure that subject matter is presented in a way that it is relevant to the students,
or that they can find a connection in which they can identify with it/the text one way or another.
Students will develop a better sense of who they are as students and progressing readers
within the classroom community and in my case/classroom, the students are more self
confidence in being able to speak, read, write and overall communicate in English on a daily
basis not only with their peers but with adults as well.
Our text discussed the importance of daily reading on an independent level. During this
time students can select books based solely on the fluency aspect of the English language
acquisition, and daily independent writing.
Daily independent writing is a time that I like to call free style writing; this is where the
students can write about anything they want to and in the case of students that were struggling
with writing I encouraged them to draw pictures that they could tell me about and I would in turn
write what they said. (Cooper, David, 2012.)
These activities/learning experiences allows the students to strengthen their fine motor
skills, as well as their cognitive and linguistic skills by practicing their reading and writing each
day for several minutes at the beginning, middle and end of the day.
My ELL students have made great strides in their education by being active and
enthusiastic about their learning. They have taken ownership of their daily activities and are
independent and more self-confident based on having a classroom that is conducive to learning.
This has been my personal and professional experience and I am enthused about the
research that aligns with my way of conducting my classroom.

5. Reference:
Brown, J. K. (2008). Student-Centered Instruction: Involving Students in Their Own Education.
Music Educators Journal, 94(5), 30.
Cooper, J. D., Kiger, N. D., Robinson, M. D., & Slansky, J. A. (2012). Literacy: Helping
students construct meaning (8th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.
Daniels, H. (2002). Literature circles: Voice and choice in book clubs and reading groups.
Portland, ME: Stenhouse.
Felder, R.M, Brent, R., (1996). Navigating the bumpy road to student-centered instruction.
College Teaching, 44(2), 43-47. Retrieved April 13, 2015, from EBSCO database.
Haneda, M., & Wells, G. (2008). Learning an additional language through dialogic inquiry.
Language and Education, 22(2), 114–136. doi:10.2167/le730.0
Ladson-Billings, G. (1994). The dreamkeepers. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishing Co.
Moughamian, A. C., Rivera, M. O., Francis, D. J., Center on, I., & University of Houston,
T. (2009). INSTRUCTIONAL MODELS AND STRATEGIES FOR TEACHING
ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNERS. Center on Instruction. Retrieved from
http://centeroninstruction.org/files/Instructional%20Models%20for%20ELLs.pdf