Investigating the Prospects of Enacting Culturally Responsive Pedagogy in Ghana; A Case of a Rural Local Government District

Abstract

This study investigates children’s aspirations to motivate broader theoretical discussion on the prospects for enacting culturally responsive pedagogy in Ghanaian Basic School to improve the education outcomes for rural school children and contribute to community sustainability. The study uses a collaborative case study design. The lead researcher collaborated with four teachers and twenty students in a rural Basic School, serving as both informants and co-researchers to gather ethnographic data on students’ inculcated images about their community, aspiration, and home cultural capital, as well as teachers’ experiences shaping rural school success. The research instruments used were a researcher-made student take-home student assignment worksheet, teachers’ focus group discussion guide and an open ethnographic observational guide.  Scaffolded by Bourdieu’s socio-cultural theory of habitus, thematic and summative analysis of qualitative data found that the participating rural students’ aspirations appeared low and were limited to few opportunities they see in their immediate environment. The rural students researched school success was influenced by their significance social others, including their parents, teachers, extended family member and community members in that order.  The study is concluded that inspiring rural children’s higher educational aspirations and school success would require socio-cultural and place sensitive teachers who can leverage the rich cultural capital in rural spaces and form collaboration with local and national education stakeholders to stretch their learners’ cultural assets and aspirations into local and global opportunities to raise productive citizens for sustainable rural futures.