Throughout my degrees I have completed a variety of readings that have influenced my teaching philosophy and practice. One such reading is “Culturally relevant pedagogy and critical literacy in diverse English classrooms” by Ann Lopez (2011). Lopez stresses the importance of using “critical approaches” in language arts instruction to increase student engagement, achievement, and critical consciousness.  In an increasingly diverse school community, students must learn to question the structures through which they understand their communities.  Language is the lens through which we view and describe the world, and teaching English is about inviting students to engage with the worldviews of others. Both teachers and students have personal text that they bring into the classroom that warrants exploration; funds of knowledge that are valuable and worthy of discussion. Through all types of text, we can explore the experiences of others and build understanding and profound empathy. Ann Lopez (2011) writes that “[t]here is no higher social calling than to teach critical approaches to the consumption and production of language” (Lopez, 2011, p. 75). This academic reading has prepared me to implement teaching and assessment strategies that are culturally relevant and critically focused. English language arts teachers are not only responsible for helping students decode the text of their own worlds, but to critically examine the implications of text all around them.