Welcoming and Affirming Environment

Students Rubric

Team Version

Facilitator Guide (opens in new tab)

A Welcoming and Affirming Environment reflects the physical and social climate of the school where all cultural identities (including race, ethnicity, age, gender, sexual orientation, disability, language, religion, socioeconomic background) are affirmed and valued.

Instructions: Meet with the other students that your school has asked to participate in the rubric pilot (check with your teacher if you are unsure of the other students to work with). Use the guiding questions below to estimate together where your class or classes fall overall on each element of the rubric. Be honest – this activity is most valuable as a learning experience. We recommend spending about 45 minutes on the rubric. Save your notes and ratings for future discussions.

Note: Your rubric responses are not saved until you click the Submit button at the bottom of this page. If you're not ready to submit yet, keep this page open. Closing the tab will not save your work.

Progression of Engagement

Exploring

Cultural Responsiveness (CR) is in its initial phase

Growing

CR is practiced in some situations

Utilizing

CR is practiced in most situations 

Transforming

CR is continuously practiced and promoted

Commitments

The extent of school community members’ dedication to culturally responsive practices across the school experience

Commitments

School Environment

Guiding Questions:

What do we see in the common areas of our school (outside classrooms, such as displays or posters in the hallway or office) that shows our language, culture, and identities? Do we see materials that we created ourselves and that celebrate the identities of ourselves and all our classmates?
Exploring

Displays in the hallways and common areas of our school don’t represent our languages, cultures, and identities. 

Growing

Displays in the hallways and common areas of our school represent some of  our languages, cultures, and identities. 

Utilizing

Displays in the hallways and common areas of our school feature our languages, cultures, and identities. 

Transforming

Displays in the hallways and common areas of our school celebrate our languages, cultures, and identities and include student-created materials.

Selected Rating: None
Commitments

Classroom Environment

Guiding Questions:

What do we see in our classrooms (such as posters, displayed work, or books) that show our language, culture, identities, and accomplishments? Do we see materials that we created ourselves? Are all of our classmates represented?
Exploring

Our classrooms don’t represent our cultures, identities, interests, and accomplishments.

Growing

Our classrooms have some things that represent our cultures, identities, interests, and accomplishments.

Utilizing

Our classrooms feature our cultures, identities, interests, and accomplishments.

Transforming

Our classrooms celebrate our cultures, identities, interests, and accomplishments with special attention to include student-created materials from all our classmates.

Selected Rating: None

Empowerment

School practices include all school community member voices

Empowerment

Language Diversity

Guiding Questions:

What languages can we speak in school? Are we allowed and encouraged to speak our first language? Are there certain classes or spaces where we’re allowed to use any language we want?
Exploring

We are only allowed to use formal English at school.

Growing

We sometimes are allowed to use the language we are most comfortable with at school.

Utilizing

We are almost always allowed to use the language we are most comfortable with at school.

Transforming

We are encouraged to use the language we are most comfortable with at school because multiple languages are valued at our school.

Selected Rating: None
Empowerment

Input on School & Classroom Culture

Guiding Questions:

How much input do we have in developing the community of our classes, including the ways we interact with and respect our classmates and teachers? 
Exploring

We have almost no opportunities to share our opinions on what happens in our classroom(s)/school.

Growing

We have some opportunities to share our opinions on what happens in our classroom(s)/ school.

Utilizing

We have frequent opportunities to share our opinions on what happens in our classroom(s)/school.

Transforming

We have frequent opportunities to share our opinions on what happens in our classroom(s)/school, and adults in our school take our opinions seriously. 

Selected Rating: None

Relationships

The quality of connections amongst school community members

Relationships

Empathy

Guiding Questions:

Do we feel like our teachers care about us as people, not just as students? What do our teachers do to make us feel that they care about us as people? 
Exploring

We don’t feel like our teachers care about us beyond our learning.

Growing

We sometimes feel like our teachers care about us beyond our learning.

Utilizing

We mostly feel like our teachers care about us beyond our learning.

Transforming

We always feel like our teachers care about us beyond our learning and they make efforts to show us they care.

Selected Rating: None
Relationships

Teacher-Student Dialogue on Social Issues

Guiding Questions:

How do our teachers respond when we try to talk about things that are important to us, like things that are happening in our families, community, or world around us? How often do teachers take time to listen and talk to us about these things?
Exploring

When we try to talk about things that are important to us, our teachers are not interested.

Growing

When we try to talk about things that are important to us, our teachers. sometimes listen. 

Utilizing

When we try to talk about things that are important to us, our teachers listen and respond.

Transforming

When we try to talk about things that are important to us, our teachers listen, respond, and make time to talk about it further. 

Selected Rating: None
Relationships

Peer Relationships

Guiding Questions:

What opportunities do we have to build relationships with other students during the school day (e.g. home room, time during lunch, group projects etc.)? Do teachers and administrators give us time to get to know all of our classmates?
Exploring

We have almost no opportunities to build relationships with our classmates during the school day.

Growing

We have some opportunities to build relationships with our classmates during the school day.

Utilizing

We have many opportunities to build relationships with our classmates during the school day.

Transforming

We have many opportunities to build relationships with our classmates during the school day and the adults make efforts to give us a chance to get to know all our classmates.

Selected Rating: None

Collaboration

The extent of cooperation amongst school community members

Collaboration

Classroom Organization

Guiding Questions:

In what ways do our teachers involve us in setting up the physical organization of our classrooms? Are our classrooms set up in a way that works well for all of our classmates?
Exploring

Our teacher(s) arrange our classroom(s) with no input from us.

Growing

We have some input in the arrangement of our classroom(s).

Utilizing

We have some input and work together with our teacher(s) to arrange our classroom(s).

Transforming

We have some input and work together with our teacher(s) to arrange our classroom(s) to fit the learning needs of all our classmates.

Selected Rating: None
Collaboration

Classroom Rules & Expectations

Guiding Questions:

How much do we work together with our teachers to set the rules and expectations for our classrooms? How do we work together to make sure everyone follows the rules and expectations?
Exploring

Our teachers set the rules and expectations that we follow in our classroom(s) with no input from us.

Growing

We have some say in setting the rules and expectations that we follow in our classroom(s).

Utilizing

We have some say and work together with our teacher(s) to set the rules and expectations that we follow in our classroom(s).

Transforming

We work together with our teacher(s) to set the rules and expectations in our classroom and together we make sure everyone feels responsible for them.

Selected Rating: None
Collaboration

Student Participation in School Activities

Guiding Questions:

How much do we feel encouraged and supported to participate in, and plan, school wide activities (e.g. assemblies, morning announcements, etc.)?
Exploring

We barely participate in school wide activities.

Growing

We feel encouraged to participate in school wide activities

Utilizing

We feel encouraged and supported to participate in school wide activities and are occasionally able to contribute to the planning of school wide activities.

Transforming

We feel encouraged and supported to participate in school wide activities and regularly contribute to the planning of school wide activities.

Selected Rating: None

Submitter Details

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