Using 'CQ' to help minorities succeed
By RICHARD BUCHER, Published October 16, 2008

The implications of the widening achievement gaps among college students—community college students, in particular—are profound.

There are significant racial and ethnic differences when success in college is examined. For example, two in five African-American and Hispanic freshmen earn a bachelor’s degree within six years of entering college, compared to about 60 percent of white freshmen and 64 percent of Asian Americans, according to recent reports.

Among community college students, African Americans and Hispanics are also underrepresented among associate degree graduates. African-Americans who began their studies at community colleges in 1995-96 were less than half as likely to earn an associate degree within six years as were white students, according to studies.

Community college reforms have a wide focus, including curricula, financial resources, support for nontraditional students, environmental climate and programs that bridge high schools and middle schools. Nevertheless, at a time when we are witnessing dramatic change in the racial and cultural makeup of college students, reforms have largely ignored the cultural competencies of faculty and staff.

A promising development that has received scant attention as a path to closing the gap is building “cultural intelligence” (CQ) among community college educators. CQ refers to specific key competencies that allow educators to effectively relate to people from diverse backgrounds and adapt to diverse cultural settings. As a result, CQ is not just about promoting students’ self-esteem, cultural pride and unity.  More importantly, it provides educators with the tools to promote achievement among all students and minorities, in particular.

For example, “culturally intelligent” faculty members possess an array of tools to teach anyone in any situation.  They are not “color blind” or “culture blind.” Rather, they are continually alert to cultural differences in their classes and adapt their teaching as necessary. Culturally intelligent faculty members have the knowledge base to understand how cultural diversity impacts student learning. Equally important, they have the motivation to put this awareness and understanding into practice.

CQ skills allow community college staff and faculty to nourish a more inclusive climate in and out of the classroom and transform myriad interpersonal relationships that can help all students excel. These skills include:

• Extensive working knowledge of culture and how it shapes educational experiences. Culturally intelligent educators are constantly developing their awareness and understanding of cultural dynamics, such as home/community/school differences and how to bridge them. For example, they can better understand and adapt to the strong mistrust shown by some African-American students. Personal life experiences involving racial bias and the historical treatment of minorities in society and its institutions have taught some students of color not to trust white people. While culturally intelligent educators understand the cultural underpinnings of this mistrust, they are not stymied by it.

• Respect for students’ diverse backgrounds and abilities. Culturally intelligent educators view students’ unique and varied backgrounds as assets to nourish rather than as problems or challenges to overcome.  

• Cultural problem-solving ability. Culturally intelligent educators are confident of their ability to adapt to emerging, diverse and unfamiliar cultural environments and situations. This confidence stems, in part, from their knowledge base, their awareness of diverse perspectives and their continuous commitment to learning more about themselves and others. Their ability to solve problems is reflected in their decisions, comments, nonverbal communication and active listening. To illustrate, cultural intelligence allows faculty members to expand and vary their communication styles and pedagogical approaches to make learning more accessible and meaningful. They situate themselves in the histories and life experiences of their students. 

• Self-assessment. Culturally intelligent educators focus on their own strengths and weaknesses. They educate reflectively, constantly examining taken-for-granted ideas about teaching, as well as their own personal and professional backgrounds. They reflect on how their behaviors and perceptions are influenced by ethnicity, gender, class, sexual orientation, educational background and professional training. Furthermore, CQ allows educators to examine diverse cultural expectations about learning, what is to be accomplished and how it is to be done—taking into account the influence of various dimensions of cultural diversity.

• Awareness of the effects of CQ on student achievement. Culturally intelligent educators know the bottom-line value of their skills, thereby providing the motivation to continue building and refining their competencies in this area. They are well aware of their ability to help close the achievement gap by shaping the climate of their classrooms, offices and institutions.

Community college students are the most culturally and racially diverse in higher education. However, relatively little attention is given to the cultural intelligence of community college educators and the implications for narrowing the achievement gap. Research is needed to assess whether faculty and staff possess the necessary CQ skills to support, engage and educate all students, and in turn, help close the achievement gap in higher education.

Bucher is a sociology professor at Baltimore City Community College (Maryland). His book, Building Cultural Intelligence: Nine Megaskills, was recently published by Prentice Hall.