Cross-Cultural Students in the Classroom W07 2.15.22

The more I learn about people, the less I realize I actually know. There are infinitely many factors that can make up a person's background, motivation, expectations; every step each of us takes can become defining in an instant. The fact that many people are still likely to assume that in a room of 20-30 people, every single one has experienced the same life and had the same amount of emotional and mental growth is somewhat mind-boggling, and yet, it seems to be a common theme. We pride ourselves (in the US at least) on being different than others; on being better than others, and yet when faced with new social interactions, we always assume that our partner is automatically on the same page. 

Perhaps this phenomenon is because we feel comfortable with the person; perhaps it's because we have ourselves exalted high enough subconsciously that it makes sense to us that everybody should know everything about us. Perhaps this same reason makes us feel offended in certain situations; don't you know who I am? You don't know me. 

We expect others to think these things about us, and yet, we forget to do it for others. 

One of the reasons I am pursuing the path of teaching is because I have been fortunate enough to come to understand just how different each one of us is as humans, and just how important understanding other people can be. I am pursuing teaching because I want to create a place where young people feel safe; where they feel empowered to learn and grow, and where cultural barriers are transformed into bridges. 

I will always remember the care my 6th grade Ancient Civilizations teacher took with her students. I remember her taking time to learn about each culture of students that were from different countries, or even just different parts of our country. We had an entire class centered on the culture of my Japanese classmate and practiced origami and made sticky rice balls with nori. 

Cultural differences in the classroom are not always so cut and dry, though. Sometimes they have to do with the neighborhood in which one was raised, or the situation of the guardians. The point is, everybody comes from an amalgamation of distinct and unique circumstances and because it is impossible to consider every single possibility of a student's background, we must be prepared for the unexpected and patient with the unconventional and we must teach our students to do the same.

The key, if you ask me, is to avoid overclaiming, assumptions, and to get used to not knowing everything. As tempting as it is in a group of people so young, there are things that they know and have seen that we never will. We must strive every day to stay open-minded to the methods and strategies of our students and be willing to negotiate with them. The more we learn from our students, the more they will learn from us; the more we observe our students, the more they will observe us. 

Teaching is not a competition between students and teachers; teaching is not strictly imparting knowledge to the uneducated. Teaching is learning, adapting, growing; teaching is a team effort with both sides of the classroom united against ignorance.