•  
  •  
 

Document Type

Article

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to examine the relationship between culturally relevant teaching and science achievement in seventh grade African American students when compared to standards-based instruction. The study also examined whether the use of culturally relevant teaching improved students’ attitudes toward science, as well as their participation within the science classroom. The intervention was implemented over the course of eight weeks by using a unit test as a pretest and posttest, formative quizzes, a Science Attitude Survey, and field notes to analyze student performance. Although all participants made academic gains when comparing pretest and posttest results, the culturally relevant group made higher gains than the standards-based group. Data from the Science Attitude Survey revealed slight changes in students’ overall attitude toward science except in one area. The intervention showed culturally relevant teaching can increase student achievement and improve student participation within the science classroom.

Share

COinS

Tell us how this article helped you.