[EDU 3106] SITI HAJJAR BINTI ABD RAZAK

The Impact of Culture on Education

By M.S. Rosenberg|D.L. Westling|J. McLeskey Pearson Allyn Bacon Prentice Hall Updated on Jul 20, 2010 Cultural tendencies impact the way children participate in education. The table below describes different expectations about "normal" school behavior for students from individualist and collectivist cultures As you review this information, take a moment to think about how teachers who lack knowledge about culture might interpret the behavior of a child from a collectivist culture These differences may cause educators to inaccurately judge students from some cultures as poorly behaved or disrespectful In addition, because cultural differences are hard to perceive, students may find themselves reprimanded by teachers but fail to understand what they did that caused concern.

Individualist and Collectivist Cultural Perspectives on Education

Individualist Perspective Collectivist Perspective

Students work independently; helping others may Students work with peers and provide be cheating. assistance when needed. Students engage in discussion and argument to learn to think critically. Property belongs to individuals, and others must ask to borrow it. Teacher manages the school environment indirectly and encourages student self - control. Parents are integral to child's academic progress and participate actively. Students are quiet and respectful in class in order to learn more efficiently. Property is communal. Teacher is the primary authority, but peers guide each other's behavior. Parents yield to teacher's expertise to provide academic instruction and guidance.

Source: Adapted from Individualist and Collectivist Perspectives on Education, from the Diversity Kit (2002) Providence, R.I.: The Education Alliance. The influence of culture on beliefs about education, the value of education, and participation styles cannot be overestimated Many Asian students, for example, tend to be quiet in class, and making eye contact with teachers is considered inappropriate for many of these children (Bennett, 2003) In contrast, most European American children are taught to value active classroom discussion and to look teachers directly in the eye to show respect, while their teachers view students' participation as a sign of engagement and competence. Another contrast involves the role of Hispanic parents in education Parents from some Hispanic cultures tend to regard teachers as experts and will often defer educational decision making to them (Valds, 1996) In contrast, European American parents are often more actively involved in their children's classrooms, are visible in the classrooms, or volunteer and assist teachers These

[EDU 3106] SITI HAJJAR BINTI ABD RAZAK cultural differences in value and belief may cause educators to make inaccurate judgments regarding the value that nonEuropean American families place on education While it is important to keep in mind that different cultural groups tend to follow particular language and interaction styles, there is tremendous variability within cultural groups (Gutirrez & Rogoff, 2003) Thus, educators need to understand individual histories and ideologies regarding education and learning as well as the cultural patterns and beliefs of groups Let's look at a couple of cases to examine in more detail how culture impacts educational interactions.
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