The Mutually Adaptive Learning Paradigm (MALP) is a formula for change in the schools to provide struggling learners with equity pedagogy through a culturally responsive teaching model that is based on addressing the three hallmarks/deal breakers of the classroom: promise of future reward, the individual hand raise, and standardized testing. MALP gives teachers a framework for instruction that is mutually adaptive. To learn more - view the slide presentation.

1. Culturally Responsive Teaching
& Equity Pedagogy
in US Schools:
A formula for change
Helaine W. Marshall, Ph. D.
Long Island University
2013

2. Teachers and learners assume that:
1. the goals of K-12 instruction are
a) to produce an independent learner
b) to prepare that learner for life after schooling
2. the learner brings along
a) an urge to compete and excel as an individual
b) age-appropriate preparation for
i. literacy development
ii. academic tasks
Adapted from Marshall (1998); DeCapua & Marshall (2011)

3. (Ibarra, 2001)

4. Two Different Learning Paradigms
Familiar Cultural
Paradigm
U.S. Mainstream
Paradigm
Immediate
Relevance
Future
Relevance
Shared
Responsibility
Individual
Accountability
Pragmatic Tasks Academic Tasks
CONDITIONS
PROCESSES
ACTIVITIES
Interconnectedness
Oral Transmission
Independence
Written Word
(DeCapua & Marshall, 2009,2010; Marshall, 1994,1998)
Aspects of
Learning

5. The “me” of culture
me
Marshall (2013)
The farther a
student is from
the “me” of the
culture, the less
credible the
promise of
future reward
from education
will be for the
student.

6. Individualistic vs. Collectivistic
Cultures

7. Marshall (2013)
The farther a
student is along
the continuum of
individualistic to
collectivistic, the
less invested the
student will be in
the individual
hand raise.

8. Ways of Learning Continuum
U.S. Mainstream
Formal Education
Struggling
Learners
Informal Ways
of Learning
Deficit View – they know how
but cannot do it – lack ability
Dissonance View – they are starting
from a different paradigm

9. What are Academic Tasks?
• Definitions
• What is a tree?
• True/False
• Washington DC is the capital of the US
• NYC is the capital of NY state
• Classification
• Categorize these objects

10. (Luria, 1976)
Sample Task: Which does not belong?

11. Two Different Learning Paradigms
Familiar Cultural
Paradigm
U.S. Mainstream
Paradigm
Immediate
Relevance
Future Relevance
Shared
Responsibility
Pragmatic Tasks
CONDITIONS
PROCESSES
ACTIVITIES
Interconnectedness
Oral Transmission
Independence
(DeCapua & Marshall, 2009,2010; Marshall, 1994,1998)
Aspects of
Learning
Individual
Accountability
Academic Tasks
Written Word
Standardized Testing!

12. Marshall (2013) The
less comfortable a
student is with
mainstream processes
of individual
accountability and the
written word and the
less familiar a student is
with academic tasks,
the less successful the
student will be on
standardized testing.
Individual
Accountability
Academic Tasks
Written Word
Standardized Testing!

13. Hallmarks/Deal Breakers
of US Mainstream Classrooms
• Promise of future reward from education
• Individual hand raise
• Standardized testing

14. Summary of Equity Pedagogy through Culturally Responsive Teaching
with MALP – the Mutually Adaptive Learning Paradigm©
• Students who do not find the “promise of future reward”
credible in their lives need immediate relevance
• Students who do not embrace the “individual hand raise” to
compete and excel need interconnectedness
• Students who do not perform adequately on “standardized
tests” need the combination of:
 shared responsibility with built-in individual accountability
 oral transmission to scaffold the written word
 a clear focus on learning to execute academic tasks with familiar
language and content as scaffolds

15. Mutually Adaptive Learning Paradigm - MALP
Instructional Model
Familiar Cultural
Paradigm
U.S. Mainstream
Paradigm
Interconnectedness Independence
Shared
Responsibility
Individual
Accountability
Pragmatic
Tasks
Academic
Tasks
ACCEPT Learner
CONDITIONS
COMBINE Learner
& U.S. Mainstream
PROCESSES
FOCUS on U.S.
Mainstream
ACTIVITIES with
familiar language
& content
Immediate
Relevance
Oral
Transmission
Future
Relevance
Written Word
with
(DeCapua & Marshall, 2009, 2010; Marshall 1994, 1998)

16. Hallmarks/Deal Breakers of US
Mainstream Education
• Standardized Testing
• Individual Hand Raise
• Promise of Future Reward
• If you have all three, you’ve made it!
• If not, best of luck, and thanks for playing.

17. More about MALP?
Websites:
http://malp.pbworks.com
Http://malpeducation.com
Helaine W. Marshall helaine.marshall@liu.edu
Andrea DeCapua adecapua3@gmail.com