Dr. Gholdy Muhammad’s Cultivating Genius: An Equity Framework for Culturally Responsive and Historically Responsive Literacy presents background and a tool based on the rich practices of Black Literary Societies of the 1800s. The framework includes 5 Learning Pursuits: Identity, Skills, Intellect, Criticality, and Joy. These pursuits are empowering and connected to the lives of students. They are used to design interdisciplinary unit plans through the use of multi-modal layered texts. Because most traditional unit planning is focused on Skills and Intellect, I am shifting to focus more on Identity, Criticality, and Joy in my planning and coaching. In this post, I will focus on the Learning Pursuit of Identity.

In the Schomburg Center’s “Unearthing Genius and Joy” webinar, Dr. Muhammad describes using multimodal texts (sound, image, performance, print, maps, etc.) to can engage students in rigorous, authentic and contextualized, anti-oppressive, energetic, and joyful learning experiences. She shares examples of units that incorporate the Learning Pursuits.

In the webinar, Dr. Muhammad defines Identity Development as answering the following question:

“How does my instruction
help students to learn about themselves
and others who are different from them?”

Below are some main ideas from the webinar and Cultivating Genius that stand out as I consider unit and lesson design:

• Center the voice of students, and give opportunities for them to tell their own stories.
• Focus on strengths, assets, excellence, beauty, and brilliance.
• Offer opportunities for students to explore who they are, to know themselves and who they desire to be.
• Celebrate who each student is, including the intersectionality of all of the aspects of identity.
• Provide windows and mirrors, so that students see themselves in the curriculum, author the curriculum, and learn about others.
• Know that, and teach that, each of us is dynamic and changing, as we learn and develop through self-work and relational work.
• Nurture an academic identity so that all students see themselves as exceptional learners, as having genius.

Some of Dr. Muhammad’s ideas to teach identity include:

• Ask students how they see the various parts of their identities (culture, language, family, gender, etc.).
• Explore name stories: What is your name? Is there a special story about or meaning to your name? What does your name reveal about your identity? “Are some names treated differently than others?” (Muhammad)
• What parts of our identity do we name and choose for ourselves? Chosen by others?

I also explored some ideas in my “Kid Equity Group” post. I was fortunate to collaborate with my art teacher, librarian, principal, and school counselor in developing these ideas.

What is the best source of ideas? Our students and their families. Centering their ideas is empowering and will lead to relevant and authentic experiences. Soliciting their feedback will improve our own practices and show that we acknowledge their expertise and that we are learners.

Not only is Identity a part of Muhammad’s Framework, it is also highly connected to a sense of Belonging. A sense of Belonging is one of the most important aspects of academic and emotional growth and success. Empower the Learner indicates Identity as one of the 5 Factors that Impact Learning, and defines Identity as including Belonging:

“Identity is:

• Self Understanding: We learn best when we have a deep understanding of who we are and how we learn.
• Sense of Belonging: We learn best when we feel connected to, as well as accepted by, the people and environment around us.
• Navigating Identity: We learn best when positive beliefs associated with our identity are maximized and when negative beliefs are minimized or buffered against.”

I will explore more of Muhammad’s Learning Pursuits in future posts. In closing I want to express my deepest gratitude to Dr. Muhammad and share how she brilliantly states my “why:”

“Literacy is important beyond the surface of learning how to read and write,
[it is] a necessary tool for justice, equity,
and a world where the humanity and dignity
of those pushed to the edges of society are front and center.”

Resources:
Cultivating Genius: An Equity Framework for Culturally Responsive and Historically Responsive Literacy, Gholdy Muhammad
Digital Schomburg Collection
5 Factors that Impact Learning
A Focus on Belonging, Kathy Collier
Kid Equity Group, Kathy Collier