Date of Award

1-2026

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

College/School

College for Education and Engaged Learning

Department/Program

Teaching and Learning

Thesis Sponsor/Dissertation Chair/Project Chair

Helenrose Fives

Committee Member

Danné E. Davis

Committee Member

Rachel Garver

Abstract

In the United States, suburban elementary schools continue to diversify, while teaching staff remain predominantly White, creating urgency for culturally responsive practices (CRP) in non-urban settings (Stanford, 2023). In this study, I examined CRP’s goodness enacted by four teachers in New Jersey suburban elementary schools, a context shaped by state mandates for diversity and inclusion (New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE), 2022). The question guiding my research was: In what ways do New Jersey suburban elementary (kindergarten through fifth grade) schoolteachers engage in culturally responsive practices? Using Lawrence-Lightfoot and Hoffman Davis’s (1997) portraiture methodology, I developed portraits of four suburban elementary teachers committed to CRP. I collected data through questionnaires, semi-structured interviews, artifacts, and neighborhood walk observations. Through my analysis, I aligned teachers’ practices with four markers of culturally relevant education: academic skills and concepts, critical reflection, cultural competence, and critique of power (Aronson & Laughter, 2016). I found that English Language Arts (ELA) served as a primary context for CRP, with teachers leveraging bilingual and historically resonant texts, teacher-created materials, read-alouds, journaling with culturally significant music, and student-led research. In addition, one teacher facilitated difficult dialogues. Evidence of critiquing oppressive structures was evident in inclusive policy revisions made by one teacher. I recommend embedding culturally responsive texts across ELA units; structuring student choice for writing and inquiry while ensuring accuracy and safety; developing professional learning on facilitating difficult conversations, guiding research, and asset-based pedagogy; providing targeted supports for novice teachers; and enacting leadership actions that endorse CRP, review and revise exclusionary documents, and align policies with equity goals. I further recommend that educators avoid tokenism by situating cultural celebrations within sustained curricular study and expanding opportunities to address discourses of power through school- and district-level policy work.

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