1. FACTORS THAT MAY ACCOUNT FOR THE DISPROPORTIONATE PLACEMENT OF CULTURALLY DIVERSE STUDENTS IN SPECIAL EDUCATION Wincongruence in interactions between teachers and culturally diverse students and families, Winaccuracy of the assessment and referral process for culturally diverse students in special education, and Wineffective curriculum and instructional practices implemented for culturally diverse students. T 3.1 W. L. Heward, Exceptional Children, 6e,  2000 by Prentice-Hall, Inc. All rights reserved.

2. CULTURE WRefers to the many different factors that shape one’s sense of group identity: race, ethnicity, religion, geographical locations, income status, gender, and occupations (Turnbull et al., 1995, p. 8). WCan be defined as "the way of life of a social group; the human-made environment. Although culture is often defined in a way that includes all the material and nonmaterial aspects of group life, most social scientists today emphasize the intangible, symbolic, and ideational aspect of culture... Cultures are dynamic, complex, and changing. (Banks, 1994a, pp. 50-51) WIs determined by the "world view, values, styles, and above all language shared by members of a social group" (Hilliard, 1980, p. 585). WPeople who share a particular culture's ideas and values usually interpret events in similar ways because they are exposed to (socialized by) the same set of expectations and consequences for acting in certain ways. As a result, certain types of behavior become more probable (Banks, 1994b; Skinner, 1974). W. L. Heward, Exceptional Children, 6e,  2000 by Prentice-Hall, Inc. All rights reserved. T 3.2

3. FOUR BASIC CHARACTERISTICS OF CULTURE Our cultural heritage is learned. It is not innately based on the culture in which we are born. Vietnamese infants adopted by Italian American, Catholic, middle-class parents will share a cultural heritage with middle-class Italian American Catholics, rather than Vietnamese in Vietnam. Culture is shared. Shared cultural patterns and customs bind people together as an identifiable group and make it possible for them to live together and function with ease. Groups many not realize the common cultural aspects as existent in the cultural group--the way they communicate with each other and the foods they eat. Culture is an adaptation. Cultures have developed to accommodate certain environmental conditions and available natural and technological resources. The culture of urban residents differs from rural residents, in part because of the resources available in the different settings. Culture is a dynamic system that changes continuously. For example, the replacement of industrial workers by robots is changing the culture of many working-class communities. (Gollnick & Chinn, 1998, pp. 5-6) W. L. Heward, Exceptional Children, 6e,  2000 by Prentice-Hall, Inc. All rights reserved. T 3.3

4. STANDARDIZED TESTS AND STUDENTS FROM DIVERSE CULTURAL BACKGROUNDS Several ways that tests may discriminate against those from different cultural backgrounds (J. R. Brown, 1982): 1. The tests use formats and items that are more germane to one group than another. The test may include restrictive time limits, vocabulary tasks that require the child to read the word, and items that require a child to read in a task designed to measure listening comprehension ability. 2. Children have differing amounts of "test wiseness," which is more likely to be a problem with the preschool-age child than with the school-aged child. White, middle-class, preschool-age children tend to be familiar with question-and-answer formats, with puzzles, and pointing and naming tasks often included on tests. The same degree of familiarity cannot be assumed when evaluating a child from a low socioeconomic background. 3. The skills reflected by the test items may not be relevant to the skills demanded from children in low socioeconomic and/or culturally different environments. "the tests, rather than assessing the disadvantaged child's ability, measure the extent to which such children have assimilated aspects of the dominant culture" (p. 164). W. L. Heward, Exceptional Children, 6e,  2000 by Prentice-Hall, Inc. All rights reserved. T 3.4

5. UNDERSTANDING MULTICULTURAL TERMINOLOGY minority group represents an attempt to categorize by race, not by culture, and implies that the racial group being referred to constitutes a recognizable minority in society W in many communities and regions of the country "minorities" constitute the predominant population W the majority of students now enrolled in the 25 largest public school systems in the United States are from ethnically diverse "minority" groups W carries some "negative connotations of being less than other groups with respect to power, status, and treatment" (Chinn & Kamp, 1982, p. 383) culturally diverse is preferred when referring to children whose backgrounds are different enough to require, at times, special methods of assessment, instruction, intervention, or counseling W implies no judgment of a culture's value W does not equate cultural diversity with disability W. L. Heward, Exceptional Children, 6e,  2000 by Prentice-Hall, Inc. All rights reserved. T 3.5

6. WORKING WITH CULTURALLY AND LINGUISTICALLY DIVERSE FAMILIES 1.Many families may be potentially English proficient, less well-educated, come from low SES, or be undocumented immigrants. Practitioners should provide materials in both the native and English language and preferably communicate with the family directly through home visits or by telephone. 2.Practitioners must understand that although the parents may not have finished school or are unable to read, they are "life educated" and know their child better than anyone else does. 3.If families are suspected to be undocumented immigrants, it is natural for them to be fearful of interaction with anyone representing authority. 4. Families from culturally diverse backgrounds tend to be family oriented. A child's disability may be extremely personal for them to discuss with "outsiders," and solutions for problems may lie within the family structure. 5.Culturally diverse families may have different experiences and views about disability and some may hold idiosyncratic ideologies and practices about the cause and treatment of disability. In some Hispanic cultures, parents may believe that God sent the child with disabilities to them as a gift or blessing, while others may believe the child was sent as a test or a punishment for previous sins. 6. The educational system—in particular, the special education system—may be extremely intimidating to the family. W. L. Heward, Exceptional Children, 6e,  2000 by Prentice-Hall, Inc. All rights reserved. T 3.6

7. CULTURALLY RESPONSIVE PEDAGOGY WContext-embedded instruction. Provides meaningful content that is culturally responsive and uses students’ experiences as tools for building further knowledge. WContent-rich curriculum. Students who receive instruction within a content-rich curriculum develop a positive attitude about learning, a heightened self concept, and pride in their culture. WEquitable pedagogy. Varies according to students' needs and teachers' styles, focuses on providing an appropriate educational experience for all children regardless of their disability or ethnolinguistic background. WInteractive and experiential teaching. “Hands-on” teaching approach empowers learners as they share the responsibility for the learning process while teachers provide guidance in the construction of knowledge. WClassroom materials and school environment. Classroom materials and the school environment should reflect students’ diverse backgrounds. [Source: From V. I. Correa, M. Blanes-Reyes, & M. J. Rapport, 1995] W. L. Heward, Exceptional Children, 6e,  2000 by Prentice-Hall, Inc. All rights reserved. T 3.7

8. BILINGUAL SPECIAL EDUCATION bilingual special education "use of the home language and the home culture along with English in an individually designed program of special instruction for the student in an inclusive environment" (Baca & Cervantes, 1998, p. 21) transitional approach the student's first language and culture are used only to the extent necessary to function in the school until English is mastered sufficiently for all instruction maintenance approach helps the LEP student function in both the native language and English, encouraging the student to become bilingual and bicultural in the process restoration model seeks to restore the students' ancestral language and cultural heritage that have been lost or diminished through cultural assimilation enrichment program designed to teach a new language and cultural ways to a group of monolingual students; e.g., some school districts offer language "immersion schools" in which all or most instruction is provided in a second language (Spanish and French are the most common) W. L. Heward, Exceptional Children, 6e,  2000 by Prentice-Hall, Inc. All rights reserved. T 3.8