Culturally responsive teachers can help to facilitate dependent learners to learn how to learn by “paying attention to ways to minimize the impact of school environments that are less than welcoming. (Hammond, 122). This means that teachers need to ensure that students feel comfortable to want to learn before they can begin on their educational journey. If the environment is not inviting, students might feel as though they are unwanted or that no one will believe that they can succeed. Making learning relevant is also another important thing to factor in because it does not always increase brain power. This is because remembering information is very different than processing it, and it needs to be held at a different standard for the students to become more intelligent as they go along in their educational journey. (Hammond, 123). This can go along with building intellective capacity. A student’s intellective capacity can be built in a way for them to take the knowledge that they learned in order to turn in to something they can use in everyday life. This means that this knowledge is meant to come with a purpose and is not only supposed to memorized. (Hammond, 123). 

Explicit information processing can be described as something that allows individuals to use the information they have accumulated for more higher levels of thinking. This means that the information isn’t just stored within the human brain, but has a purpose in case it ever comes across someone’s mind. This is part of being an independent learner because the individual will know when or not to use the information that they have accumulated. (Hammond, 124). The “Matthew Effect” can be described as the idea that students of color or other backgrounds not being able to close an achievement gap because of where they are in society. This means that since a lot of these students tend to be dependent learners, it will be harder for them to meet state standards or improve because their intellective capacity is not as big as others. (Hammond, 124). Building background knowledge is also important because it will give students the ability to process information which will be effective in the future. This will help with the growth of their brain and can help mold their minds to be more well rounded. (Hammond, 124). 

Teachers need to learn how the brain processes information because it will allow them to see how their individual students work. A lot of students might process information differently because of their different cultural backgrounds which will shape their everyday life choices. (Hammond, 125). During the processing of information in the brain, the input stage is where the brain decides if information is important enough to remember. Once the brain decides if this information might be useful in the future, the brain tries to go into more depth about it within the elaboration stage. This is where the brain tries to decipher the information presented to the individual. Finally, the application phase allows for the individual to use the information that was processed in real life situations. (Hammond, 125-126). During the stage of elaboration, the brain constantly has to stop and process the information that it is taking in. This is meant to be a way of letting the new info settle so that it can become part of the brain knowledge and so that other information can continue to flow in at a steady rate. (Hammond, 126). 

In order to meet the needs of these culturally diverse students, teachers need to go beyond incorporating culture into their learning. In the text, Hammond explains that “Culturally responsive information processing techniques grow out of the learning traditions of oral cultures where knowledge is taught and processed through story, song, movement, repetitious chants, rituals, and dialogic talk.” This means that students should be taught in a way which references these aspects because they are more likely to stick to the brain’s memory. (Hammond, 127). Teachers can help students to build their intellective capacity through the use of a four step plan. This includes “Ignite” which prepares the brain for the incoming information, “Chunk” which makes the information learnable, “Chew” which allows the brain to process what is coming in, and “Review” which will enable the brain to use the info in an educational way. (Hammond, 128). Teachers can ignite their students brains in many different ways in order to gain their attention. Hammond describes that simply saying that you are starting a specific lesson is probably not enough to get students on task from the beginning which is why they need to be gathered in ways that can help set the tone for what they are learning. A good example of this could be the use of drumming or clapping. (Hammond, 128). 

Teachers can chunk information by giving it to them in pieces at a time. This is important because the students shouldn’t be expected to memorize large amounts of information all at once. If the information is given to to them gradually, they will have an easier time processing it. (Hammond, 130). Giving students the opportunity to chew on information is also an important part of processing it. This can be completed through the use of cognitive routines that allow students to think about what they just learned. This should also show teachers that they shouldn’t lecture for the whole class period since some students might still be processing earlier information. (Hammond, 130). I feel as though one important way of reviewing information that students just processed would be through the use of exit tickets or closing activities. This gives students the opportunity to show what they just learned and apply their knowledge to well thought out prompts given by the teacher. 

One type of igniting activity that I have used in the classroom that I think would be very useful is the use of starting the lesson with a video. I feel as though this can capture the attention of students because the information being presented to them is in a different form other than the teacher which they are use to. I also think that starting with an opening question would be beneficial to the students learning because it will leave students wondering what they are going to learn about next. 7+1 can be important to understand in relation to chunking of information because it talks about how phone numbers are seven digits long. This is supposed to mean that the plus 1 is one of those small chunks of information and that it is there to allow for learning in small pieces. (Hammond, 130). 

Unstructured think time can be described as a way for the brain to mentally pause when it feels as though it is receiving too much information at one time. This means that if it feels like there is an overload occurring, it will take a few minutes to process what it was already presented before it continues to take in and memorize knowledge. (Hammond, 130). Students can learn through the use of cognitive routines because it allows them to link their existing knowledge to what they are currently learning. These injections can help to improve their memory of information because they will have something that they can relate it to. (Hammond, 131). The four questions that students ask as part of cognitive routines are “How is this new material connected to what I already know”, “What are the natural relationships and patterns in the material”, “How does it fit together”, and “Whose point of view does it represent”. These four questions are formulated in a way that allow students to cope with processing new information. (Hammond, 132). Some of the different cognitive routines that give these learners explicit learning moves are similarities and differences, whole-to-part, relationships, and perspectives. These routines allow the students to see how different concepts work or how things can relate to each other in order to grow dendrites. (Hammond, 133). 

If a student is showing signs of struggling, the amygdala will go under hijack, which will not allow them to process any new information at that time. This can be shown if the student is showing signs of resistance to the material or being unable to grasp the content. (Hammond, 133). Some strategies I want to use in order to engage students in chewing would be writing definitions in their own words. I feel as though this will enable them to put things in their own words before they are able to successfully get to the reviewing stage. 

One of the most optimal ways to use graphic organizers in order to grow dendrites would be through drawing pictures or making charts. This can allow students to collect their thoughts and connect what they are currently learning to what they already know. This would also be very helpful because it adds a visual sense which is better for memorization. (Hammond, 135). Rehearsal can be seen as the mental glue that cements learning because it is how things become part of an individual’s knowledge. Constantly repeating things will allow them to stick to your memory since people don’t learn by only doing things once. In order to hone your skills, it requires repetition. (Hammond, 136). 

Being culturally responsive is not only about tying things to a student’s culture because it doesn’t allow them to expand on that as much. In order for these diverse students to learn, there needs to be aspects of all cultures since learning is the main goal in the end. There would not be much learning if all of the content catered towards a student’s individual background. 

 

Hammond, Z. (2015). Culturally Responsive Teaching & the Brain: Promoting Authentic Engagement and Rigor Among Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.