Lessons at the

Home visits with recent immigrant families can lead to culturally relevant teachingwhen solid preparation points the way.
Margery B. Ginsberg

s Ms. Mason, principal of Iona Barnes Elemt-nUir\',' prepares tor the new school year, she hears a knock on her office door. She greets translator Zanab Omir and the Hassan family, who have just arrived from Somalia. Looking at the family and speaking ihrough Mr. Omir, Ms. Mason says, "We are so happy that you are here. Let me show you a book

made by a Somalian student that shows photographs of our

school."

Ms. Mason is looking forward to leaming about the Hassan family's experiences and expertise. Iona Barnes Elementar)' educates students from many parts of the world. Teachers frequently \isit the families of new immigrants who have enrolled their children. Because teachers have pui in the

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Kitchen Table
groundwork to make these encounters enriching, the school has developed warm relationships with immigrant families. Ms. Mason learns from the families and values their contributions. Their personal stories have taught her lessons about struggle and determination, and their contributions have helped make the school's curriculum rich and relevant in terms of global awareness. For example, with input from immigrant families, teachers al Barnes recentiy created story problems for a math unit on double-digit division that originated in real-life situations these families had faced in the process of resetding in the United States. The Impact of Immigration As a consultant to schools like Barnes that have large numbers of recent immigrants. I have seen how visits to the homes of culturally and linguistically diverse students can lead to more relevant leamingfor immigrant students as well as teacbers. An increasing number ol U.S. schools are opening their doors to families from myriad locations. Almost 30 million people who live in the United States were bom in other countries. Fortyeight percent of students in New York City's public schools come from immigrant-beaded households that represent more than 100 languages. In Caiifomia, 1.5 million students are classified as Fnglisb language learners. In Dodge City, Kansas, more than 30 percent oi" public school students are the children of immigrants (Suarez-Orozco SrSuarez-Orozco, 2001). Educators are grasping the importance of bringing the life knowledge and expertise of immigrant Families into classroom learning (Gay, 2000). Infusing the perspectives and talents of diverse cultures into the curriculum can enhance motivation and achievement (Ginsberg &r Wlodkowski, 2000; LadsonBiltings, 1997; Vel6z-Ibafiez&Greenberg, 1992). Just as significant. It creates a way to channel tbe voices of historically underserved families into our collective attempt to bring equity and excellence to schools (Valdez, 1996). Working in urban and suburban schools, 1 have come lo see how preparing teachers to visit with immigrants in their homesand to thoughtfully follow up on wbat they leam from tbese familiescontributes to increased learning for the scbool community Preparing the Ground Why Home Visits An excellent starting point for preparing for home visits is to meet with teachers to discuss why home visits are valuable. I find tbat tbe following four questions spark discussion about the purposes of visiting in families' homes. These questions work well as a carousel activity, v^-itb each question written on a piece of chart paper and groups moving from question to question, writing their responses on the paper. What might bome \isits teach us that would be hard to leam in another context? What might we want to leam, with greater breadth and depth, about the lives of diverse linguistic communities to inform teaching practices? As teachers, how can we dismantle our own deficit thinking? How can we show respect when visiting with people in tbeir homes? Seeking Funds ofKnowkdge Tbe concept of funds of kntjwiedge can be traced back to Velez-Ibariez (1988) and has been adapted by educators in a variety of ways (Gonzalez, Moll, & Amanti, 1995; Moll, Amanti, Neff, & Gonzalez, 1992). Tbis concept can help set tbe stage for approacbing home visits positively. Funds of knowledge are strengths and talentsacademic, civic, or

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Perceptions from a single visit don't qualify teachers to speak with certainty about the rich and complex lives of the families they visit.
What do you particularly enjoy about this community? ToUow-up: For example, whal have you discovered that makes Jamily life easier? Can you tell me a little about your skills or talents? Follow-up: Aie you able to currently use many of the skills or talents that you developed in your home country in this community? m What bave you leamed or experienced since coming to the United States or moving to this community that you never imagined experiencing? What gives your family strength? What regular household routines does your child participate in? Followup; What contributions to the family does your child enjoy making? m What things at school make your child feel included? What are you most proud of about your son or daughter? We are developing a unit/teaming experience about . What do you think rnight be particularly important or interesting for your cbild to leam in this unit? Are there any ways you would like to participate at school that you may not have had the opportunity to try? Nuances of language are important, and sometimes the idea bebind a question is difficult to communicate. Ideally, teachers should work with interpreters

technicalthat are characteristic of families. The premise is that all people are competent and have worthwhile knowledge, often derived from sources outside of school. When educators approach home visits with tbe expectation of leaming about each family's knowledge, these visits can reveal rich social fabrics, fascinating oral histories, ways of organizing complicated lives, and technical expertise that can enrich everyday curriculum. Another source that can help teachers appreciate bidden cultural strengths is a report by the Center for Applied Linguistics describing a 1992 research project in which teachers and anthropologists in Tucson, Arizona, interviewed minority students' families. Teachers can read the following excerpt from the report and compare what the Tucson teachers leamed from home \isits with their own expectations about visiting with families. iViewing students' households as places full of knowledge] challenges traditional
58

notions of culture as only being represented through dances, food, folklore, and the like . . . Teachers in the Tucson project learned, among other things, how households nclwork in informal market exchanges and how cross-border activities enabled their students to act as miniethnographers. They also recognized that students acquire a multi-dimensional depth and breadth from their participation in household life. (National Center for Research on Cultural Diversity and Second Lingiiage Leaming, 1994) Identifying Questions and Practicing Note Taking Another important wa)' to help faculty prepare for \isiting witb families in tbeir bomes is to identify and practice questions that teachers migbt ask families without being intrusive. I often show teacbers tbe following set of questions: What does your child talk about wben he or she mentions school? What things about schools in the United States seem different from tbe learning opportunities you had as a child? How did your life m other communities differ from your life bere?

EnucATiONAL LEAnERSHip/MARrn 2007

throughout the process. Some families may wish to keep certain experiences private. If translators join in an initial review of questions, they can signal to interviewers any questions tbat might be problematic. Give teachers an opportunity to practice these questions through role playing. With the understanding that teachers will eventually pose questions through an interpreter and likely visit students' homes in teacher pairs, let teachers take tums posing these questions to each otber. Becoming lamiliar with the questions makes it easier to converse authentically It's also important to prepare teachers to conduct visit5 in a culturally respectful way Teachers migbt consider the following four questions and the accompanying suggestions, which are grounded in research on intrinsic motivation and culturally responsive teaching (Ginsberg, 2005; Wlodkowski &r Ginsberg, 1995); How can we promote respect and a feeling of connection among all panicipants? For example, families often appreciate il if teachers bring a small gift oi fmit or cookies. In addition, teachers should look at the family member to whom they are speaking rather than at tbe interpreter. How can we make each visit a relevant leaming experience and pve families choices in the visiting process? For example, teachers might share questions they plan to ask up front, tell families to feel free not to answer any question, and assure families tbat tbey can stop the interview at any time. To respect the family's schedule, try to keep interviews 10 45 minutes or less. How can we create a positive, challenging, and engaging experience for everyone? For example, teachers might start with easy questions, ask follow-up questions that encourage in-deptb responses, look at family photographs

and keepsakes with the family to draw out stories, respect the need for silence when it occurs, and accept emotion as a part of tbe process. How can we identify what has been successful in a visit? For example, before leaving, share with tbe family one or two responses that were particularly informative or interesting. If possible, tell the family at a later date about something you learned from them that you applied in your teaching and saw reflected in student work. To promote accuracy and reflection, have teachers practice observing and taking field notes. Use a notebook tbat provides space for a two-column chart, noting on one side a family member's response to a question and on the other side the thoughts or feelings that response evokes in tbe interviewer. The

goal ts to distinguish between personal thoughts and observable data. Both of these can be informative in developing culturally relevant curriculum, but it is important to remember that teachers' notes are ftltered through their own cultural lenses. Visitors to students' homes must be cautious about tnaking assumptions. Their own perceptions from a single visit may be informative but don't provide sufficient evidence to enable them to spieak with certainty about tbe rich and complex lives of the families they visit. Applying What Teachers Learn Analyzing the Findings One of the challenges of making home visits is the time it requires of teachers outside the classroom. To ensure a smooth process, schools should put in

FIGURE 1. Funds of Knowledge Chart

Family sings together. Father and son fish together for family meals. Oldest son helps navigate bureaucracies. Daughters clean house and cook. Parents show regard for children's happiness. Family participates actively in church. Daughter directs choir and plays piano. Family discusses faith as the foundation for survival. Large family lives well in a small space. Space is efficiently organized (bikes and other items stored on porch). Family takes pride in bospitality (all diildren welcome guests). Family successfully navigated bureaucracies of two countries so family members could immigrate. Family found resources for traveling with limited income.

Family Unity and Cooperation

Religion

Household Management

Immigration

Principal Benv Cobb and teachers at Hawthorne Elementary School in Everett, Washington, prepared this report after visiting a family that emigrated from Russia.

ASSOCIATION

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Focusing on families' strengths is enormously motivating to educators.

place a reasonably efficient way to analyze dala from the visits. I generally ask teacher pairs to follow these steps after completing home visits:
Fill infield notes. Once you have left a

family's home, sit quietly somewhere together, read through all the data you have collected, and round it out together. Write down parts of the conversation you may have missedas well as personal reflectionsas soon as possible after a \isit.
Reread completed notes. Read the notes

a second time, making a conscious attempt to note your own assumptions. Be as clear as possible about your personal feelings and thoughts.
Share your thoughts. Discuss what you

leamed with other members of your teaching team who are also doing home visits or wilh whom you share students. A\lihough the focus of your analysis is identifying household funds o(" knowledge, insights may also emerge from exchanging general thoughts and feelings. Creating a Funds of Knowledge Chart A funds of knowledge chart is a visual representation of the specific knowledge ihe family you visited possesses, grouped into general categories. A chart might reflect the knowledge or skills of an mdividual family (as shovm in the sample chart in Figure 1) or the knowledge oi" a cultural group. Once teachers complete a round of home visits, they can create funds of knowledge charts. One chart, created by a team of teachers who had visited several Somali households, listed the strengths of multilingualism, household management, fabric design, knowledge of imrnigration policy and practices, development of social networks, cross-

cultural knowledge, survival skills, and problem solving. Although teachers should be careful to convey that there is often as much variation within a group as between groups, such charts can provide a composite illustration of the range of expertise present in immigrant households. To construct the chart, teachers should review their field notes looking for key words or phrases that give insight into tbe skills and talents of each host family All categories and examples in the chart should be based on obser\'able evidencesuch as "family has ceramic sculpture in garden" or "family uses a single area in multiple ways." Comments in field notes like "creative" or "resourceful" reflect the observer's own values and would not be appropriate to list. Connecting insights to the Classroom Seeking out the strengths of immigrant families is a significant step toward developing culturally relevant and respectful curriculum. It can also lead to more engaging forms of family partnership. My observations in schools that encourage regular home visits reveal that teachers draw on understanding gained from \asils lo suggest ways for students to leam more about one another and their teacher, use examples from students' lives to bring curriculum to life, and provide opportunities for students to demonstrate their success to their families. For example, as a follow-up to home visits, one group of 6lh grade teachers shared with students the insights they had gleaned from being "home visit researchers." Then, to encourage students to think of themselves and

their family members as researchers, they asked students lo think ofa topic that they or their family had recently researched and to consider what knowledge they had gained. Each studenl described to the class one family researcb project. Their experiences ranged from downloading statistics on favorite soccer players to identifying people who might purchase homemade taquitos for a family business.

WhatTeachersTake Back
As teachers listen to stones ahoul living in refugee camps in Kenya, negotiating the health care system in Seattle, and becoming self-sufficient by working three jobs, tbey are reminded of the strength and determination of the families they serve. Focusing on families' strengths is enormously motivating to educators. This is why the University of Washington requires all students in its doctoral program in systems-level leadership to visit with the families of students in their homes as part of learning to conduct research. Visiting with families new to the United States in their homes has taught educators witb whom I have worked many lessons: Oral communication is important in many homes, especially homes with rich oral traditions. As mediators of language and culture, interpreters play a pivotal role in giving families opportunities lo voice their opinions. School leaders play a vital role. In addition to promoting warm home/ school relationships, they can assess the extent to which everyoneincluding members of linguistic minority communitiesparticipates in making decisions on scbool matters. School is vital in maintaining relationships associated with leaming, nurturing, and everyday coping. Working with teachers who have

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visited families at home, I've 'witnessed how hopelessness about lack of parent involvement disappears as a topic of teacher discourse. As educators get to know students and families in new ways, respect emerges. Teachers become more likely to view households as contexts tn which rich learning occurs. At schools like Iona Barnes Elementary, each time a new student arrives from a foreign country, the school staff meets not only the student, hut also the family with determination to develop relationships and compelling learning experiences. 10 ' All names of individuals and schools are pseudonyms.

Ginsberg, M. (20031, Cultural diversity, Suarez-Orozco. G., &r Suarez-Orozco, M. motivation, and diflerentiaiion. Theory (2002). Children oj immigration. Into Practice, 44(3), 218-225. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Ginsberg, M.. & Wlodkowski, R. (2000). Velez-lbanez, G. G. (1988). Networks of Creating highly motivating classrooms: A exchange among Mexicans in the U.S. schoolwide approach lo powerful leaching and Mexico: Local level mediating with diverse leainers. San Francisco; responses to national and inicrnational Jossey-Bass. transformations. Urban Anthropology, Gonzalez, N., Moll, L. G., SrAmanii, G. 17(1), 27-51. (1995). Funds o/knowledge: Theorizing practices in households, communities, and Velez-IbiSflez, G.,& Greenberg, j . (1992). classrooms. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum. Formation and transformation of funds of knowledge among U.S. Mexican houseLadson-Billings, G. (1997). Dream keepers: Successjul teachers of African American chil- holds. Anthropology and Education Quarterly, 23(4), 313-335. dren. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Wlodkowski, R.J..&r Ginsberg, M. B. Moll, L. G., Amami, G., Neff, D., & (1995). A framework for culturally Gonzalez. N, (1992). Funds of knowledge responsive teaching. Educational Leaderfor teaching: Using a qualitative approach ship. 53(1), 17-21. to connect homes and classrooms. Theory Into Practice, J](2), 132-141. National Genter for Research on Gulmral Margery B. Ginsberg is Director of Diversity and Second Language Leaming. Leadership for Learning and an Associate (1994). Funds oj knowledge: Learningfmm Professor of Educational Leadership at the References language minority households. Washington, University of Washington-Seattle; 206Gay, G. (2000). Culturally responsive leaching. DG: Author. Available: www.cal.org 221-3427; ginsbm@u.Washington.edu. New York: Teachers Coilege Press. /resources/Digest/ncrcdsO 1 .html

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