Connecting with Families from Culturally and Linguistically Diverse
Backgrounds:
Reflecting as Practitioners on Our
Own Beliefs and Values
Kim T. Zebehazy, Ph. D.
University of British Columbia
kim.zebehazy@ubc.ca
Silvia M. Correa-Torres, Ed.D.
University of Northern Colorado
Silvia.correa-torres@unco.edu
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As the number of students from culturally
and linguistically diverse backgrounds (CLDB)
continues to increase in today's classrooms,
teachers are expected to demonstrate culturally
responsive teaching and practices. Teachers who
are in tune to being culturally responsive strive to
gain knowledge about cultural diversity and incorporate cultural material and sociocultural contexts
into instruction in order to validate and empower
learners (Gay, 2000). Rapport and involvement of
family is also intimately linked with culturally responsive teaching practices (Araujo, 2009).
As teachers of students with visual impairments (TSVIs) and orientation and mobility
(O&M) specialists, the work we do with students
is directly tied to their daily lives. For example, we
attribute greater success of our students in the
different areas of the expanded core curriculum
(ECC) as being dependent on how frequently the
skills they are learning are used not only in their
school lives, but also their home lives. Families
are powerful partners in making instruction of the
ECC meaningful to their children. Our ability to
