Cultural Diversity in Teaching and Learning
Teaching and
learning across
cultural strengths
What do you
see
in this photo?
Photo by Dawn Ellner (CC BY 2.0)
Artifacts and Behaviors
Beliefs
Values
Norms
Underlying
Assumptions
ELEMENTS
OF
CULTURE
culture
learned patterns or sets of group behavior and values imprinted on
individuals, beginning at birth. These patterns, both conscious and
unconscious, frame the “context” for individuals to perceive time and space,
to interact and associate with one another, and to establish modes of
perceiving and learning about the world. Anthropologist Edward T. Hall (1977,
1984, 1992) identified populations both here and abroad with similar patterns
of cultural context and clustered them on a continuum from “High” to “Low,”
signifying the importance or intensity of these patterns within certain ethnic
and gender groups.
Multicontext world (Hall, 1960’s)
National origin cultures that exhibited learned preferences (cultural
contexts) that influence how
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Self survey
Contextuality
“High Context Cultures” (HC)
predominantly ethnic minorities
Females
focus on streams of information
that surround an event, situation
or interaction in order to
determine meaning from the
context in which it occurs.
High use of non-verbal signals
to contextualize meaning
Indirect communication
“Low Context Cultures” (LC)
predominantly northern
European ethnic groups
Males
filter out conditions
surrounding an event or
interaction
focus as much as possible
on words and objective
facts.
Emphasis on words to
supply meaning
Direct communication
Steps to becoming culturally sensitive
Write you own cultural autobiography
Learn about other cultures
Learn how to be sensitive to other cultures in your classes and
teach to your students cultural strengths. improving achievement
by teaching diverse students
through
their own cultural filters
Low context / individuated
High context / integrated
Multicontext
Brainstorming pedagogies
Take a moment for some cultural reflection
Open to a blank sheet of paper, and create 2 columns, label one
‘Individuated’ or ‘Low context” and label the other column
“integrated” or “High context”.
Brainstorm as many pedagogies you can think of for each column
How do the columns compare? Does one have more activities?
What does that mean for you? For your students?
Find someone with the other cultural context, and compare your
lists. If you are multicontextural, find another MC
Gallery walk
On each easel is an assignment
Decide if this assignment is best for an integrated student (HC),
an individuated student (LC) or in between (MC).
Then provide suggestions on how this assignment can be better
designed to reach all?
•
Discuss and evaluate:
•
This exercise in terms of Context
Diversity; and
•
how would you revised it to broaden
the Multicontextual framework.
•
Critique the evaluations relative contextual
framework with each other.
•
Offer suggestions for improvement
See the Learning Community Questions page to help in this exercise.
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p
:
Now, share how your group evaluated this
exercise and how you revised it to broaden
the Multicontextual framework.
•
Critique the evaluations relative contextual
framework with each other.
•
Offer suggestions for improvement
See the Learning Community Questions page to help in this exercise.
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By teaching mostly within only one cultural framework, we are
not reaching in ways that incorporate a diversity of cultural
strengths. Subsequently, we create learning environments that
privilege some kinds of learning and underserve or even repress
others. This is one of the reasons some cultural groups have
greater success and retention rates in college than others (p
129)
Facilitating learning across cultures has to do in great part with
developing pedagogies, relational dynamics, and assignments
that promote a healthy balance of resonance and dissonance
with a diversity of learners (p 130)
Final thought
Where would you place the geosciences, as a whole, in this continuum?
What are some of the most distinctive qualities of the geosciences in relation to
teaching and learning?
Do the cultural norms of the geosciences center primarily in an integrated,
individuated, or balanced framework?
How might students from different cultural framworkes experience the
geosciences?
How might your own teaching within the geosciences evolve toward a more
balanced foundation of cultural frameworks?
Many faculty still teach from a content-driven framework, yet for
most students, learning happens more from a process-driven
framework (p 131)
Explore the impact of cultural strengths on education, examining how learned patterns and behaviors shape interactions and learning styles. Discover the concept of contextuality in different cultures and learn steps to become culturally sensitive in teaching practices.
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Presentation Transcript
What do you see in this photo? Photo by Dawn Ellner (CC BY 2.0)
Artifacts and Behaviors Beliefs Values ELEMENTS OF CULTURE Norms Underlying Assumptions
culture learned patterns or sets of group behavior and values imprinted on individuals, beginning at birth. These patterns, both conscious and unconscious, frame the context for individuals to perceive time and space, to interact and associate with one another, and to establish modes of perceiving and learning about the world. Anthropologist Edward T. Hall (1977, 1984, 1992) identified populations both here and abroad with similar patterns of cultural context and clustered them on a continuum from High to Low, signifying the importance or intensity of these patterns within certain ethnic and gender groups.
Multicontext world (Hall, 1960 s) National origin cultures that exhibited learned preferences (cultural contexts) that influence how One interacts and associates with others Uses living space Perceives concepts of time Processes information Responds to various teaching and learning styles Performs academically
Contextuality Low Context Cultures (LC) High Context Cultures (HC) predominantly northern European ethnic groups predominantly ethnic minorities Females Males focus on streams of information that surround an event, situation or interaction in order to determine meaning from the context in which it occurs. filter out conditions surrounding an event or interaction focus as much as possible on words and objective facts. High use of non-verbal signals to contextualize meaning Emphasis on words to supply meaning Indirect communication Direct communication
Steps to becoming culturally sensitive Write you own cultural autobiography Learn about other cultures Learn how to be sensitive to other cultures in your classes and teach to your students cultural strengths. improving achievement by teaching diverse students through their own cultural filters Low context / individuated High context / integrated Multicontext
Brainstorming pedagogies Take a moment for some cultural reflection Open to a blank sheet of paper, and create 2 columns, label one Individuated or Low context and label the other column integrated or High context . Brainstorm as many pedagogies you can think of for each column How do the columns compare? Does one have more activities? What does that mean for you? For your students? Find someone with the other cultural context, and compare your lists. If you are multicontextural, find another MC
Gallery walk On each easel is an assignment Decide if this assignment is best for an integrated student (HC), an individuated student (LC) or in between (MC). Then provide suggestions on how this assignment can be better designed to reach all?
In a small group: Discuss and evaluate: This exercise in terms of Context Diversity; and how would you revised it to broaden the Multicontextual framework. Critique the evaluations relative contextual framework with each other. Offer suggestions for improvement See the Learning Community Questions page to help in this exercise.
Sharing your Revisions Now, share how your group evaluated this exercise and how you revised it to broaden the Multicontextual framework. Critique the evaluations relative contextual framework with each other. Offer suggestions for improvement See the Learning Community Questions page to help in this exercise.
By teaching mostly within only one cultural framework, we are not reaching in ways that incorporate a diversity of cultural strengths. Subsequently, we create learning environments that privilege some kinds of learning and underserve or even repress others. This is one of the reasons some cultural groups have greater success and retention rates in college than others (p 129)
Facilitating learning across cultures has to do in great part with developing pedagogies, relational dynamics, and assignments that promote a healthy balance of resonance and dissonance with a diversity of learners (p 130)
Final thought Where would you place the geosciences, as a whole, in this continuum? What are some of the most distinctive qualities of the geosciences in relation to teaching and learning? Do the cultural norms of the geosciences center primarily in an integrated, individuated, or balanced framework? How might students from different cultural framworkes experience the geosciences? How might your own teaching within the geosciences evolve toward a more balanced foundation of cultural frameworks?
Many faculty still teach from a content-driven framework, yet for most students, learning happens more from a process-driven framework (p 131)
