Cultural Speak: Culturally Relevant Pedagogy and Experiential Learning in a Public Speaking Classroom

This study describes the efficacy of modifications made to a higher education Latina/o public speaking course to enhance student growth and understanding. The changes included the addition of a service-learning component and the incorporation of culturally relevant pedagogy. Selected research, particularly related to college students, on culturally diverse populations and culturally relevant pedagogy is reviewed along with literature on Latino pedagogy. Data were collected through student and instructor journals, student reflection papers, and instructor observations of students. Two main themes emerged from the data: student reflections concerning service-learning mentoring work with the elementary and middle school students, and their experience in relating course materials to this work. Results demonstrated the effectiveness of service-learning and culturally relevant pedagogy, and implications for their application on a larger scale and to other types of classrooms are discussed.