Cultural Reflection

Cultural immersion is an essential part of the education experience. It has been used throughout time to allow people to understand those whose ideas and beliefs differ from their own. The experiences gained through immersing in an unfamiliar culture allow the mind to grow in ways that are beyond comprehension. Because our nation is advancing, and merging ides from other cultures, this process is more important than ever. Cynthia Kratzke and Melissa Bertolo (2013) state that if we only teach concepts and language from other cultures we are limiting the ability of future generations to be able to work with other cultures (p.1). Cultural immersion is a way for one to reach a new insight they may not have otherwise gained. Jesus Nieto (2006) says there are main goals to these experiences: 1) to interact with people of a different culture 2) to gain insight into aspects of others 3) to be of a minority group in a setting 4) to gain a new perspective on one’s own beliefs and values (p. 77).

After this, the students talked to each other and they decided that they enjoy it when the teacher reads to them. The teacher read the book and the students followed along with the reading. When the teacher finished reading, she asked various questions that the students had to answer. The students, had to discuss the question and the answer with their group members. The teacher, asked each group to give their answer and, all the students participated in the activity. They had a good teacher and student relationship. The students respected the teacher and she did an awesome job with the lesson. The teacher, talked to us and, explained that when she creates her lessons she tries her best to incorporate group work and class discussions. Her goal is, that her students are engage in the lesson that she created.

The girls I see this evening are young teens who are wearing too much makeup trying to be seen by the young boys who are wearing expensive sneakers and saggy pants. A few of the young girls I see are young mothers pushing baby strollers and conversing

The theme in my painting is the obstacles people face when trying to achieve a goal. The message my painting communicates is to be weary of the unseen dangers when attempting to reach an objective. My intention was for the viewer to see an image that seems simple but in reality contains a story that is up to the interpretation of whoever is looking at it. In my painting the seagulls are intended to represent a plan or a vision, the person on the boat is supposed to represent the person viewing the painting, the wind blowing the boat represents destiny, the animals and coconuts on the island represents wealth, the anchor represents doubt, the ocean represents life, the island represents success and the giant shark represents failure.

A professor of education at the University of Hawaii Kathryn Au wrote an article on Culturally responsive education titled “Culturally Responsive Instruction as a Dimension of New Literacies” in the article she talks about how she sees culturally responsive instruction as a theme running through literacy curriculum aimed at helping students of diverse backgrounds achieve high levels of literacy in their education. also how the idea behind culturally responsive teaching is that the teaching approach build upon the strengths that students bring from home cultures, instead of ignoring these strengths or requiring that students learn through approaches that conflict with their cultural values. Culturally responsive teaching has the goal of helping students grasp academic concepts through means and content responsive to their cultural values and practices.

In this paper, I explore the main methodological principles that shape my culturally responsive and emergent research design (Berryman, SooHoo, & Nevin, 2013; Nodelman, 2013). My meth-odological explorations reflect the research purpose and theoretical framework (Denzin, 2009; Leavy, 2014; Shugurova, 2015a). The purpose of my research is to describe and explore some of the local learning practices of a trans–Himalayan kingdom of Lo Mustang (Lo) before schooling was introduced in the 1950s (Reed & Reed, 1968; Shugurova, 2014a, 2015a). My rationale is to give voices to the local people and listen to their stories about their historical experience of learn-ing (Bowers, 2001; Gruenewald, 2003; Patton, 2002; Smith, 2012; Shugurova,

My culture is pretty close to the average human I guess. For example, when I see my family everyone gets excited and start talking about what’s new and what we’ve done. Sometimes my family talks about some stuff that doesn’t even matter but they make a lot of jokes.

I am enjoying the class so far and like the fact that some of my classmates are willing to openly express their opinions of the readings, both positive and negative. Taseem brings a cultural perspective she is willing to share. Even when others do not share, there is knowledge to be gained, as it drives my curiosity to understand those who are different than me.

I love working as a wedding and engagement photographer. Have I mentioned that before? Anyway, the enjoyment factor goes up at least a notch or two when the couple is fun, and they are themselves during their engagement photography session. I just love working with genuine couples who aren’t afraid to let me get to know them and who really want their personalities to show through during the session. That was definitely the case when I recently worked with Mindy Nicholson and Riley Webb during their engagement photography session.

The cultural assignment allowed me to gain a new perspective on the differences of others. I have grown up in a household of dissimilar belief systems. My mom is a dedicated Christian while my dad is unassociated with any religious beliefs. Though, he grew up as a Jehovah’s Witness. There differing belief systems have been the cause of various conflicts within their relationship. I often wondered if people with contradicting beliefs could effectively and peacefully discuss their belief systems. This cultural experience showed me that a peaceful discussion is possible between individuals of dissimilar beliefs.

As everyone has a story of their journey, my story begins as a child growing up in a traditional Hispanic/Latino home in a south suburb of Chicago. At a young age, I recognized that I viewed life differently in comparison to my peers, siblings and parents. My thought process was very logical, which helped me make rational decisions. It was not often that I made choices according to my emotions and feelings, but rather choices of what I thought would benefit me in the long run. However, many of my choices and protests that I did make were against the norm within my traditional Hispanic/Latino home, gender roles, and religious beliefs. As I reviewed my Life Story Board, I was able to identify different stages of my childhood/adolescence/teens were I had either a negative, or a negative/positive experience due to the challenges and consequences of my logical thought process and actions/reactions. It was a very confusing time for me to live in a culture where I was constantly being challenged for who I was, without feeling understood.

There are all kinds of feeling that are transpiring throughout my mind when think of the term cultural analysis. In executing the communication concepts of African American culture, I found that the Chinese and African American culture are strongly tied to their beliefs and family concepts. I define myself through my culture as being an African American male, thought out religions, education, and family is very essential in my culture. Also, being limited to making lifestyle changes, and the different ways we communicated with each other are how I define myself through my culture. Being African American my perception of my culture can be seen in unique foods, literature, religion, language, the community, family structure, the individual, music, dance, and being artist.

Throughout my first semester at Carroll University, I have learned a great deal about diverse cultures and how they differ from my own. Until I started my journey at college, I never reflected on cultures and if they affected my everyday life. In my cultural seminar, Music of the Movies, our class focuses on how culture is portrayed in movies throughout time. We also completed distinct assignments that assisted in our understanding of culture; this included reading discussions and outside events.

1. Culture is perceived as a way of thinking that influences the behaviors of a group of people.

When I was 5 years old I came to America from Ethiopia and experiencing the shift in culture was amazing. Coming to America was an exciting thing for me and my family. I remember hearing all of the great things America had to offer, my friends would describe it as a place of dreams filled with fun that had no limits. I was ready to see what type of culture the U.S. had to offer. As the time came for us to leave, it was hard to say goodbye to family and friends but the excitement balanced it out. When I landed in Atlanta Georgia I will never forget the feeling I had when I saw the unknown technology and the huge buildings. Furthermore, I began to notice that no one dressed the same, or talked the same. As we settled in I noticed that the norms, social inequalities, and race & ethnic stratification played a huge role in society.