Pedagogical Applications of Tara Yosso’s Community Cultural Wealth Model in the Puente Classroom
Presentation by: Gustavo Flores, MA (ABD)
Puente Teacher at Norte Vista High School
Community Cultural Wealth Model
“Reclaiming Our Histories, Recovering Community Cultural Wealth” by Tara J. Yosso and Rebeca Burciaga
What does the CCW Model, through Critical Race Theory, ask us as educators to do?
Community Cultural Wealth Wheel
Survey
Directions: (handout)
Use the survey to rate your 9th grade self: What was your middle school or 9th grade Cultural Wealth for each capital?
As you complete the survey insert your scale score for each CCW capital in the survey linked below:
Reflection on your Cultural Wealth Wheel and
implications of connecting with our students.
Questions for you to consider:
Connections back to students:
How do we introduce the Community Cultural Wealth Model to Puente students?
Introducing CCW to middle school students & 9th graders
Activities introducing the Cultural Wealth terms:
Literature resources:
Community Cultural Wealth Classroom Tree
Building your own fruta/fruit
Have students respond in writing:
Fruit handouts for students: (directions); (fruit)
(Credit to: Puente at Desert Mirage High School)
Student identifying his CCW fruta and semilla
Student response written on the fruta/fruit:
“Familial capital is my fruta. My dad explains the difference without school and how hard life will be and with it. He understand and does what it takes so I can get my work done.”
“Resistance capital is my semilla. I am secure my right to education by removing myself from people who only put me down about wanting to further my education. I am growing my semilla capital by changing my attitude towards my education.”
Community Cultural Wealth Fruta Artifacts
CCW Fruta Artifacts in Chicano Studies
What does each Cultural Wealth Capital look like when applying them in pedagogical practices in classroom spaces?
Aspirational Capital
Puente student response:
“Puente community circle, and stuff like that really lit up aspirational capital for me. Being in that kind of setting inspired me, to be like, I gotta keep going.”
Pedagogical applications:
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Linguistic Capital
Puente student response:
“I used to not really like speaking Spanish and I didn’t appreciate it. But as soon as I got in the Puente class, I was just like wow, this is a beautiful language to speak and just hear you and others speaking Spanish. It just made me love my culture and language more.”
Pedagogical Applications:
Familial Capital
Puente student response:
“So I think like doing that [shoebox altar] just in a way connected me to her because we put in the altar the traditional ways putting stuff that they liked and doing that helped because it just brought like the feeling of connection . . . I can’t really describe it.”
Pedagogical applications:
Social Capital
Puente student response:
“Social capital has helped me to be more outgoing and more confident, to know that when I need help, I know who to go to and where to ask for help, whether it be to clarify a simple thing or more personal more in depth...it has empowered me.”
Pedagogical applications:
Navigational Capital
Puente student response:
“I feel empowered because they [college students] look like my ethnicity and that just made me proud to see another person of my culture being able to go to a college...I feel like I can because somebody from my culture did it.”
Pedagogical applications:
UC & CSU Research Project
Resistance Capital
Puente student response:
“I was quiet and just accepted my grades before Puente and I wouldn’t talk about it to teachers, but now in high school I joined Puente. You talked about it to us, talk to us how we need to speak up and ask for extra help, and I just ever since, I just try to do the best I can for my grades.”
Pedagogical applications:
What does it look like to apply the CCW Model to a video clip or a movie with a Jamboard activity?
Applying CCW Model in Breakout Groups on Jamboard after watching the movie, “Walkout”
Process.
What does it look like to apply the CCW Model to writing responses after watching a video clip or a movie?
Writing Responses using the CCW model to the movie: “Walkout”
Process:
Student Writing Response Sample:
Let’s Practice Together
Apply CCW Model to “Mi Problema,” excerpt from Michele Serros’ Chicana Falsa
“Mi Problema,” excerpt from Chicana Falsa,
by Michele Serros
Practice how to apply CCW Model to a poem:
How does this Jamboard activity of applying CCW Model look like in a Puente virtual classroom space?
Jamboard Activity Applying CCW to the movie:
“McFarland USA”
What do student written responses look like using CCW Model to the poem, “Mi Problema”?
Student responses applying CCW to “Mi Problema”
Linguistic capital is immediately noticed in the poem when Serros writes about the difficulties non spanish speakers face even though they are of Mexican descent. A Mexican person could not be viewed as a “true Mexican” if they do not speak the language. I believe the linguistic capital is strongly shown in the idea where there is a lack of communication and help leads to doubt and struggle. Personally when I was little I learned both spanish and english while growing up, so I would always mispronounce simple words like “ya se” to “ya sabo”. My family was not helpful either, most of them learned spanish as a first language or grew up in Mexico, so of course they knew spanish perfectly. They’d alway make fun of me because I didn’t have a mexican accent when I spoke in spanish. If I stuttered or in any way messed up a sentence they would immediately go and make fun of me. Even to this day there are some phrases I hear when I visit my family that make me question if I even know the language because I have no idea what they mean. I was glad after reading Serros’ poem because it made me realize I wasn’t the only one who faced these issues. The linguistic capital here serves to show the division between fluent and learning spanish speakers.
There is also evidence of aspirational and navigational capital in the poem. Michele is determined to better her Spanish speaking skills, so she searches for S.S.L classes and practices with her grandma. Again, I feel as if my Spanish isn't "good enough" when I try and speak it around other Hispanics, so I try to better my Spanish speaking skills. I am currently taking a Spanish class and try to partake in more conversations with my mom in Spanish. She doesn't speak English or understand, so I always talk to her in Spanish, but I try to engage with her more than I usually do.
What does it look like to apply the
CCW Model to writing a
Biographical Narrative?
Writing implications using Yosso’s CCW framework:
Biographical Narrative:
Have students complete this handout before they start writing the essay. It becomes a road map to write it.
Student Biographical Response essay:
Implications of CCW Model to writing:
By understanding the Community Cultural Wealth Model, students are able to apply their lived experiences in more profound and empowering ways in their writing practices in the classroom, and they are able to include their community lived experiences inside and outside of academic spaces.
Final thoughts from Tara Yosso’s CCW Model:
“Indeed, by recovering ancient traditions of passing on cultural knowledge, in spite of and to spite efforts of historical erasure, we do more than honor the brilliant ingenuity of those who employed community cultural wealth in spaces, places, programs, and action-research agendas--we re-write our place in history and re-inscribe our place in building the future” (Yosso & Burciaga, 2016).
Framing Pedagogical Applications Inside and Outside
of Classroom Spaces
Questions?
In Solidarity - Yes, we can!
Thank you!
Gustavo Flores
gustavo.flores@alvordschools.org