Cultivating Genius: An Equity Framework for Culturally and Historically Responsive Literacy by Gholdy Muhammad (and her follow up book, Unearthing Joy: A Guide to Culturally and Historically Responsive Curriculum and Instruction)
As I mentioned in a previous blog post, as a literacy educator in the state of Illinois, I have been (re)reading the new Illinois Comprehensive Literacy Plan (ICLP) that was passed in 2024 and corresponding recommended texts to understand the intent and implications of the plan. I have also participated in training led by one of the authors of the ICLP. There were four books recommended within the ICLP to aid in the development of a deeper understanding. Gholdy Muhammad’s first book, Cultivating Genius, was one of the four books included in the list, and it is a book that has had a PROFOUND impact on my thinking and instructional practices. It my opinion, it is a MUST read for every educator, particularly educators who have a role in choosing or designing curriculum.
Summary
Let me begin by giving a summary of the book. As the title implies, educators must first believe in the “genius” of every child. Or, as Lisa Delpit explains, is a warm demander—an educator who, “expects a great deal of their students, convinces them of their own brilliance, and helps them to reach their potential in a disciplined and structured environment” (2024). Instruction is designed with high expectations in mind while also nurturing identity and building knowledge. The book also encourages educators to think outside of the box integrating multiple paths to achieve genius.
History of Black Literacy Societies
Muhammad begins by describing for the reader the history and practices of 19th-century Black Literacy Societies. Literary pursuits are both individual and collaborative because literacy represents empowerment, which also comes with the responsibility to serve the greater community. She goes on to articulate ten lessons learned from Black Literacy Societies (pgs. 32-35):
1. Literacy learning encompassed cognition as well as social and cultural practices.
2. Literacy was the foundation and was central to all disciplinary learning.
3. Literacy learning involved both print and oral literacy and these were developed simultaneously.
4. Literacy instruction was a response to the social events and people of the time.
5. Literacy was tied to joy, love, and aesthetic fulfillment.
6. Learners of different literacies and experiences came together to learn from one another.
7. Literacy learning was highly collaborative.
8. Literacy learning involved reading and writing diverse genres.
9. Literacy learning also focused on how to reclaim the power of authority through critical literacy.
10. Identity and intellectual development were cultivated alongside literacy learning.
In other words, children who cultivate their literacy skills build knowledge and a sense of agency resulting the feeling of empowerment that encourages advocacy for a better future.
Historically and Culturally Responsive Literacy Model
Grounded in the practices and pursuits of Black Literacy Societies, a universal instructional framework for instruction is introduced. The framework includes four elements (pgs. 57-58):
- Identity Development (literacy as identity meaning making)—Reading, writing, and speaking texts that define one’s life; and making meaning of many complex identities within self, local, and broader contexts.
- Skill Development (literacy as skills)— Constructing meaning is the central goal of literacy development. Reading, writing, and speaking to project understandings to public audiences while learning skills across the content areas.
- Intellectual Development (literacy as intellect)—Reading, writing, and speaking to gain knowledge across disciplinary areas.
- Criticality (literacy as criticality)—Learning and developing the ability to read texts (including print, various other forms of media, and social contexts) to understand power, equity, and as a means to counter injustice and oppression.
- JOY is added in her follow-up book as a necessary fifth element. Learning should be JOYful!
Takeaways and Instruction Model
“Literacy was [is] the foundation of all learning” (p. 22). Books matter. Libraries matter—and should be the heart of a classroom or school. Multimodal texts from multiple perspectives matter.
Muhammad reminds educators that learning does not have to be an EITHER (knowledge, skills, test prep, college readiness)—OR (identity, criticality) proposition, we can and should do both. “Skills embody the learning standards that are promoted by states” (p.85) and they are important, but focusing solely on skill development is highly problematic. The focus on skills, often measured quantitatively using high-stakes tests, has resulted in the use of deficit language to describe and track our kids often reinforcing biases that do not support the identity of the whole child. The deficit language is also used to classify and segregate students in classrooms and schools. Schools have shifted focus to predominantly skills-based learning at the expense of building identity or developing intellect, which are both critical to literacy development, student engagement, and a collective sense of agency.
I LOVE her assertion that curriculum should be “dynamic” constantly in transition to reflect the events of the world. The criticality piece reminds us that our learning needs to have purpose (apply learning in authentic ways connected to the world), which is different than simply identifying a skills-based learning target to show growth on a standardized test.
This book incorporates so many practical ideas, a lesson plan template, and lesson plans to help educators move toward historically and culturally responsive teaching. This book reminds us that culturally responsive teaching, inclusion and a sense of belonging, should be embedded in ALL we do (a mindset), not just a performative act during heritage and awareness days/months.
From Theory to Practice—Thoughts on Classroom Implementation
- Books, libraries and multimodal texts matter! There are several things I do to accomplish this in my classroom:
o I have consciously worked to curate a large inclusive library in my classroom actively seeking input from my kids.
o When I don’t have, or can’t afford, books, I connect with local libraries to bring needed books into my classroom.
o When working on a specific unit of study, I curate a Padlet with multimodal texts – articles, infographics, videos, pictures, works of art, primary sources, etc.
- I read a picture book a day (#classroombookaday), and occasionally track the books I am reading to ensure I am reading widely.
- I have found ways to incorporate more purposeful learning by integrating disciplines into inquiry- or project-based learning (using a HRL lesson plan template).
- Consider collecting other forms of data to inform classroom instruction. I collect data combining the four key pillars of engagement found in Ellin Oliver Keene’s book Engaging Children: Igniting a Drive for Deeper Learning K-8, 2018 (a summary of this book that has also had a profound impact on my thinking and instruction will be in the next blog post) and learning JOY found in Muhammad’s book. The kids report this data, and it helps me revise and refocus my instruction
