About the author

Cynthia Milonas Cummings is currently an adjunct professor of English Language Learning and American Culture at Bunker Hill Community College. She holds a M.A.L.S. in Social Sciences from Hollins College, a TEFL certificate from Georgetown University, and a M.A. in Applied Linguistics with an emphasis on Teaching English as a Second Language from the University of Massachusetts, Boston. She has worked in education for over thirty-four years at various colleges, universities, and language programs. Outside of teaching, Cynthia enjoys spending time with her husband, and two children.

Self-check:

Directions – Answer each question ‘Yes’ or ‘No’

1)    Do you think that standardized/high stakes tests should be the sole guide for placement and progress?

2)    Do you believe that students can demonstrate knowledge if they are properly taught or if they study hard enough?

3)    Should students’ control over Academic English guide their community college experience?

4)    Do your classroom strategies emphasize memorizing important facts in the discipline or developing students’ metacognitive strategies?

5)    Does your classroom approach view students’ home language and culture as unconnected to academic success?

6)    Does your curriculum address global awareness and cultural wealth as an add-on to the more important objectives? 

Self-check:

Answers

• If you answered ‘YES’ to 5-6 questions, your classroom strategies are inclusive and meet the needs of a wide variety of students.

• If you answered ‘YES’ to 4 out of 6 questions, you are on your way!

• If you answered ‘YES’ to 3 or more questions, don’t despair.  Perform one or more (detailed) audits to further uncover your hidden bias and revise your curriculum.

• Visit https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/ for more information on hidden bias.

References

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