Dear Mr. Dickson Adom,

In his book Race, Culture, and Education, James A. Banks alleged that teachers also need to use their own cultural knowledge and that of the students to enrich teaching and learning. The types of knowledge Banks 2006. have identified and described:

Personal and cultural knowledge

The concepts, explanations, and interpretations that students derive from personal experiences in their homes, families, and community cultures constitute personal and cultural knowledge. The assumptions, perspectives, and insights that students derive from their experiences in their homes and community cultures are used as screens to view and interpret the knowledge and experiences that they encounter in the school and in other institutions within the larger society.

Popular knowledge

Popular knowledge consists of the facts, interpretations, and beliefs that are institutionalized within television, movies, videos, records, and other forms of the mass media. Many of the tenets of popular knowledge are conveyed in subtle rather than obvious ways.

Mainstream academic knowledge

Mainstream academic knowledge consists of the concepts, paradigms, theories, and explanations that constitute traditional and established knowledge in the behavioral and social sciences. An important tenet within the mainstream academic paradigm is that there is a set of objective truths that can be verified through rigorous and objective research procedures that are uninfluenced by human interests, values, and perspectives.

Transformative academic knowledge

Transformative academic knowledge consists of concepts, paradigms, themes, and explanations that challenge mainstream academic knowledge and that expand the historical and literary canon. Transformative academic knowledge challenges some of the key assumptions that mainstream scholars make about the nature of knowledge.

School knowledge

School knowledge consists of the facts, concepts, and generalizations presented in textbooks, teachers’ guides, and the other forms of media designed for school use. School knowledge also consists of the teacher’s mediation and interpretation of that knowledge. (Banks, 2006, pp 151-160).

I hope I have been of some help,

Best in your research,

Andrija

Dear Mr. Dickson Adom,

In his book Race, Culture, and Education, James A. Banks alleged that teachers also need to use their own cultural knowledge and that of the students to enrich teaching and learning. The types of knowledge Banks 2006. have identified and described:

Personal and cultural knowledge

The concepts, explanations, and interpretations that students derive from personal experiences in their homes, families, and community cultures constitute personal and cultural knowledge. The assumptions, perspectives, and insights that students derive from their experiences in their homes and community cultures are used as screens to view and interpret the knowledge and experiences that they encounter in the school and in other institutions within the larger society.

Popular knowledge

Popular knowledge consists of the facts, interpretations, and beliefs that are institutionalized within television, movies, videos, records, and other forms of the mass media. Many of the tenets of popular knowledge are conveyed in subtle rather than obvious ways.

Mainstream academic knowledge

Mainstream academic knowledge consists of the concepts, paradigms, theories, and explanations that constitute traditional and established knowledge in the behavioral and social sciences. An important tenet within the mainstream academic paradigm is that there is a set of objective truths that can be verified through rigorous and objective research procedures that are uninfluenced by human interests, values, and perspectives.

Transformative academic knowledge

Transformative academic knowledge consists of concepts, paradigms, themes, and explanations that challenge mainstream academic knowledge and that expand the historical and literary canon. Transformative academic knowledge challenges some of the key assumptions that mainstream scholars make about the nature of knowledge.

School knowledge

School knowledge consists of the facts, concepts, and generalizations presented in textbooks, teachers’ guides, and the other forms of media designed for school use. School knowledge also consists of the teacher’s mediation and interpretation of that knowledge. (Banks, 2006, pp 151-160).

I hope I have been of some help,

Best in your research,

Andrija

As a teacher you have to constantly monitor yourself during a presentation or teaching session, so that you are inclusive of all your learners. It is too easy to engage people that you’re more familiar with, under your headings and this needs attention and appreciation by the educator. I also think that one has to be aware that some interactions have to be altered for individuals, particularly if they are not directly related to the subject matter, like humour.

Dear Dickson,

There is a cultural dimension that may impede education, which is the education culture in a given country. What I mean by this is the kind of perception of education in the family. There are parents who are so dedicated to their children's education and literacy that they deprive themselves of everything to help them. However, there are parents who can't care less about this, which impacts classroom motivation negatively. This is, for instance, typical of many classrooms in the Gulf countries, perhaps aided by wealth, which seems to have the upper hand in life over being educated.

Dear Dickson Adom

Cultural dimensions which you have pointed certainly influence on classroom interaction and learning outcome. But these influences would be function of time ,subjects to be taught, efforts of teacher, pre-service training of teacher and infrastructural facilities. Think about the uniform of the students. Whatever types of clothes influenced by their ethnicity , religion or social status are worn by the students in school every child becomes a student with no such biases. In that respect their attention is not disturbed. Take example of one language only medium of instruction for teaching science. It is possible that students would be using their different dialects. Certainly for some period the teacher would take care to use their dialects and slowly will take them to standard words to be used while teaching science. It is a matter of very short time. Take case of gender, nearly 50 years back people would not admit girls in science and technological courses as they used to think that girls do not perform better in these fields. But researches undertaken by the educationists showed that there is no significant difference in learning .Now you see that the parents are motivated with such findings and enroll their daughters for these subjects. If the teacher knows the superstitions, myths or taboos found in different races ,ethnicity or sects , he can remove through science teaching. If different physical facilities are available which can be used by the students collectively, a good citizenship would be developed among students and they will progress vertically . The training of the teachers in inclusive teaching would be very helpful in increasing the pace of learning and interaction of students.

R S SINDHU

Thank you for your very valuable views and references Dr. Andrija, Dr. David and Dr. Sindhu. I am very grateful to you all. Kind regards

Many thanks Dr. Zouheir for your rich comment. I am very grateful. Kind regards

Very good explanation Dr.Sindhu

Dear dr.Dickson Adom ,

The personal and family culture of the student affects the education but in my opinion is not very much. The university community has a particular nature and culture. Most of the students are trying to get involved and adaptation. Therefore, race, religion and sex do not have much impact, and as an example the students' scholarship abroad also exceeds all the distances and most of them succeed in their studies and return to their homeland with the certification.

I think that these indicators affect this, because of the difference in nature and genetic characteristics between nationalities and genders. The cultural background of the families of individuals also affects the degree of their acceptance of the insults within the class, as well as the religious determinants and teachings in this matter.

Thank you for your valued comments Dr. Hind, Dr. Santhosh, Dr. Ali and Dr. Lewis. I am very grateful. Kind regards

Yes.

I perfectly understand Prof. Aparna. Your presence and views in this thread of discussion is enough for me. Thank you so much. Kind regards

If there is a culture where the young generation is more controlled in unlimited juse of media, and there are other things more important, than this ethnic group has better chance to learn, I would assume. But only an empirical study can test the hypothesis.

agree with @ Andrija Kozina

regards

The cultural dimensions that are formed from the religious belief, customs and traditions agreed upon in general, and the ideas, trends, and special or common tendencies and the system of values that control the interaction of all this in society, all of the above has an intertwined effect in creating a promising and mature learning environment if directed correctly.

Interesting question.

Agree with R.s. Sindhu

regards

hi. classroom per se is a community of specific socio-cultural context interrelated to other communities. social and cultural norms of the society can influence social interactions occurring in English classes. if the participants are not aware of cultural norms, there will be a kind of breakdown in conversation. having socio-cultural competence can enhance can motivate learners to engage more and acquire more. lack of the competence leads to unsuccessful production or comprehension of the intended message. best regards

Good question.I agree with Isam Issa

Cultural dimensions can have a powerful impact on classroom interaction and even learning outcomes. This becomes most apparent when students come from different cultures or when the teacher is from a different culture. Culture affects the ways that students learn (Rogoff 2003), the meaning and value students give to learning (Li, 2003), student motivation (Clayton & Zusho, 2016), and student interaction with peers and the teacher (Frambach, Driessen, Beh, & van der Vleuten, 2013; Singaram, van der Vleuten, Stevens, & Dolmans, 2011). Knowing and understanding our students individually and culturally can enhance our teaching by informing how best to facilitate and motivate learning.

Clayton, K. E., & Zusho, A. (2016). A cultural heuristic approach to the study of Jamaican undergraduate students’ achievement motivation. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 86(1), 8–36. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjep.12081

Frambach, J. M., Driessen, E., Beh, P., & van der Vleuten, C. P. M. (2013). Quiet or questioning: Students’ discussion behaviors in student-centered education across cultures. Studies in Higher Education, 1–21. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2012.754865

Li, J. (2003). US and Chinese cultural beliefs about learning. Journal of Educational Psychology, 95(2), 258–267. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-0663.95.2.258

Rogoff, B. (2003). The cultural nature of human development. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

Singaram, V. S., van der Vleuten, C. P., Stevens, F., & Dolmans, D. H. (2011). “For most of us Africans, we don’t just speak”: A qualitative investigation into collaborative heterogeneous PBL group learning. Advances in Health Sciences Education: Theory and Practice, 16(3), 297–310. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10459-010-9262-3

I appreciate your valuable opinions and rich references Profs. Isam and Hein as well as Dr. Khalid, Dr. Jane, Dr. Farangis, Dr. Mohanad, and Dr. Hassan. Thank you so much for supporting the discussion. Kind regards

Cultural institutions for example the home, the school, the media, sports and the arts are accountable for the teaching.

Yes, cultural dimensions affect classroom interaction and learning outcomes in many ways.

Nice query@Dr Adom

Thanks

13th International Educational Technology Conference

Teaching Across Cultures: Considerations for International Language Teachers in Kazakhstan

Yusuf YAYLACIa , Aibarsha ISLAMb

Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences 103 ( 2013 ) 900 – 911

Many thanks professors Mahesh, Noori, and Dr. Qais for your very useful comments, and support to the discussion. Best regards

Dear Dickson,

Thanks for asking for my response. Without any doubt, cultural dimensions affect classroom interaction, particularly in countries like India, where caste and class play an important role. The responsibility of the teacher becomes more than teaching, in facilitating the balance of these variables within the class, without being seen as favoring one group or category. These are skills that are not there in the textbook and are learnt from experience & by having mentors. If we get to managing these forces right, we can see magic in class and be loved by students, and remembered for the rest of their life. Most of the time all that is required is an open mind, and the students will be your teachers in managing diversity and culture.

Yes, cultural dimensions strongly affect classroom interaction and learning outcomes.

I sincerely appreciate your rich comments Dr. Emmanuel and Dr. Dhiaa. Thank you dearly for supporting the discussion. Best regards

Just following answers.

Thanks for your great support Dr. Jumoke for this discussion. I appreciate it so much.

Culture can affect someone's ability to accept ideas, especially if they were or are brought up in traditional and conservative societies that do not permit discussion.

I utterly agree with you, Dr. Stanley. Thanks for sharing your valued opinion and supporting the discussion. Kind regards

In my opinion, diversity in class rooms helps in learning a lot for students. Students starts understanding and appreciating each other's culture and life style.

It helps them in giving better performance in their professional working life.

However, it brings challenges for a Professor for dealing with a class with diversity of views. Professor need to prepare accordingly. However, a Professor may get lot of satisfaction with such class. with diversity of students.

Cultural diversity does have an effect on learning and learning out comes. these effects could be both positive and negative. We can minimize negative effects by promoting respect for diversity attitude, towards each other; and increase positive effects by simply benefiting each other, with good aspects of each other cultures.

I agree with Mr. Pundir

Yes, i agree with Nazia about cultural diversity does have an effect on learning and learning out comes.

Cultural factors have been shown to affect learning outcomes and some even show that the impressive results posted by some groups are basically a result of cultural factors. Perhaps if I had not come across such studies, my response would have been different. I commend a number of those who have answered this question, they have done a very good job and their responses have opened up a number of directions on the subject.

A professor has to be inclusive in the classroom. They have to present the material in such a way or in different ways so that students can understand it. As an older professor, I have to be careful about references to books, movies and television shows. Most of my students were not even born when I watched that show or movie back i undergraduate school. They just don't get the reference. Another problem for the professor is to get students to speak up in class. This is especially true when there are only a few females or minorities in that particular class. You have to draw them out and get them to participate. They key is to be inclusive.

A professor has to be inclusive in the classroom. They have to present the material in such a way or in different ways so that students can understand it. As an older professor, I have to be careful about references to books, movies and television shows. Most of my students were not even born when I watched that show or movie back when I was in undergraduate school. They just don't get the reference. Another problem for the professor is to get students to speak up in class. This is especially true when there are only a few females or minorities in that particular class. You have to draw them out and get them to participate. They key is to be inclusive.

El que haya estudiantes de diferentes culturas justifica que el profesor abandone los enfoques monológicos de la didáctica tradicional y opte por enfoques dialógicos que tengan en cuenta no solo las diferencias de los grupos culturales presentes en la clase sino también las diferencias de los estudiantes por sus estratos sociales, sus experiencias y expectativas.

As far as what I observed from tran-cultural classes,I do agree that students learning incentive is under the influence of parental pressure,peer pressure and popular culture;their learning approach may be under the impact of their learning belief,which maybe be shaped by the education and personal preference.

Dear respected colleagues,

Thanks dearly for sharing these valuable points and very useful links. I am heartily grateful. Kind regards

The cultural dimensions affect the interaction in the classroom and the learning outcomes too, it is true.

This phenomenon is related to temporary fractures produced in the historical succession of modernity that are very changeable.

The migration phenomenon is inevitable, at least as long as there are economic differences and, therefore, differences in opportunities between countries.

Migration and cultural diversity are two phenomena that go hand in hand

The causes of the phenomenon are structural.

In the classroom, we only see part of the consequences.

Thanks Dr. Reinardo for your rich comment and support for the discussion. Kind regards

By promoting inclusivity and honouring cultural diversity one can create a playing field as level as possible. This is not easy because the teacher or professor has to be completely in tune with various differences arising from culture, language, gender, customs, etc. Respecting differences and accepting them is the first step. Creating an open environment in the class room where everyone feels comfortable sharing and participating is very important.

Multicultural classrooms are very unique in that they accommodate learners from different cultures. In such classes, every learner has his/her own self-perception which is influenced by nationality, ethnicity, religion, social class, generation, locality, etc. In addition, the affective factors are at their peak and teachers have a hard time to monitor learning effectively. At times like this, a critical needs analysis should be accomplished in order to identify learners' wants which might be inconsistent with the course necessities. Diversity in cultures has become an important feature of 21st century. Therefore, there is a great need to train prospective teachers for managing teaching in diverse/ multicultural classrooms because teacher / learner interactions must be based on social praxis and empowerment of learners for meeting the demands of daily encounters in the large culture.

Learning outcome will be affected by

cultural dimensions

Yes, i think so

I would like to say yes to the qestion. Cultural factors influence learning and achivement in school if the child comes frome another culture. There exist many experiences and many examples.

http://b-ok.xyz/dl/543630/3fd043

A very good question. Cultural factors have a great influence on class interaction especially when the learners come fro different cultures as each represent their social religious and ethnic groups with their varying traditions, beliefs and social norms. What is familiar and acceptable in one culture may be strange or unacceptable in another.

Thanks Profs Hein, Reza and Drs Hazim, Saif, Hassan, Noori, Srini for your useful comments and support for the discussion. Kind regards

Personally, I agree that cultural dimensions affect classroom interaction and learning outcomes. However, this is good question for further research!

Thank you so much Dr. Shamji. I appreciate your rich comment. Kind regards

Cultural aspect affect the learning in the class room

this link is useful

https://clutejournals.com/index.php/JIER/article/download/.../8526

regards

Many thanks my brother Dr. Hassan for this very useful link. Kind regards

Teacher or lecturer should consider the cultural dimensions during the teaching , lesson plan and class management

Dear Prof. Dickson Adom,

I strongly believe that the following should be considered in guiding decisions relating to such an inquiry :

1) Awareness of the relation between home and target cultures

2) A critical confrontation with facts about a foreign culture rather than the mere consumption of information related to the target culture (C2)

3) Opportunities to relate the C2 with the C1 (What is it like in your country?) Unfavorable comparisons

4) Make the learners go beyond mere surface impressions and engage them in activities whereby stereotypes are challenged and their world view is altered or defamiliarized

5) To foster critical thinking, acknowledge and respect diversity and otherness

Best regards,

Bahadoran

You may want to consider Geert Hofstede's cultural dimensions theory.

Also, Paulus, T. M., Bichelmeyer, B., Malopinsky, L., Pereira, M., & Rastogi, P. (2005). Power distance and group dynamics of an international project team: A case study.

Being a professor of Fashion Design , I have to work with the multi-culture dimension though I always believe in uni-culture environment for the good education.

Dear Prof. Ali Bahadoran, Prof. Md Zafar, Dr. Noori and Dr. Maura

I sincerely appreciate your very useful suggestions and great references. Thank you so much for supporting the discussion. Kind regards

Cultural factor should be considered in designing the curriculum

On the part of the students it exposes them to different values and cultural characteristics while on the part of the teacher he must strive to strike a balance in learning activities and presents an all inclusive learning environment

Great suggestion, Dr. Noori. Valuable comments Dr. Ajibola and Dr. Usman. I am very grateful for your kind support to the discussion. Best regards

The diversity of civilizations and cultures increases interaction within the classroom and enriches ideas. Closure on one culture limits the breadth of the world's vision and vision, cultural diversity, the beginning of human awareness, understanding and acceptance of the other

You are utterly right Prof. Houdas. I am very grateful for your support to the discussion. Best regards

Thank you Dr. Jack for your valuable comment and support for the discussion. We are looking at this in a holistic fashion. In your view, what are the degrees of the influence of the cultural dimensions in each of the educational levels? Which level is the influence felt more? My focus was rather on higher education with humanities in focus. Thank you so much

Yes, most definitely! If the content is not culturally relevant the assessment can also have culture bias which will affect learning outcomes. These articles can she more light on this topic:

Article One Style Does Not Fit All: Facilitating Cultural Difference...

Data Curriculum Inclusiveness Challenge: Responding to Multicultu...

Article Cultural Sensitivity Needed in Online Discussion Rubric Language

Article How Much Multimedia Should You Add to PowerPoint Slides When...

Conference Paper Culturally Responsive ICT Integration into Teaching and Learning

Article Workforce Education and Development (WED): Graduate Students...

Data Generation I: International and invisible in a workforce edu...

Dear Dr. Jack,

'We', I was referring to my team of researchers working on the proposition of 'this' (the subject under discussion). I meant that you could please comment in a generalized perspective while also indicating the cultural dimensions to a particular subject or level of your choice. Thanks

Many thanks Prof. Debra for your insightful comment and very useful links. I am very grateful. Kind regards

Yes, but should not. Teachers should give equal chance to every student to participate in classroom activities. Teacher should be be biased. If so then teacher should read about how to control such thinking.

cultural aspect should be consider during designing the curriculum

Culture affects school contexts in many ways (teacher, learners, ideas about teaching, school function and infrastructure).

There are plenty of interesting resources around that topic. I would go with Michael Fullan who speaks directly about school culture.

Fullan M., (2016). The New Meaning of Educational Change. 5th Ed. New York: Teachers College Press.

Dear Drs Konstantinos, Yasser, Nooriand Aamna

I appreciate your valuable views and great suggestions. Kind regards

The background culture education might be important to improve the curriculum

Hi,

I can share some experience. I have been a teacher of Italian language and literature in an Italian tech school. In my class there were different cultures religions and social classes. In general, most students were not very eager to study, they would have preferred to work and they were in school mostly because their parents would threaten them to cut them off. The class was made of 18 boys aged 17-21 years old (most of them could not pass and had to repeat at least one year of school). They had spent most of high school together so they knew each other very well.

Culture/religion/class issues (not to mention gender, as I was their 26 years old female teacher...) were constantly in their mind, and strongly affected class dynamics: one day during the break they threw bananas at a black student from South America. The student is a very popular boy who has a good relationship with the rest of the class. For them it was a prank, and he did not get offended, but the cultural factor had clearly something to do with the choice of the prank. They appeared to struggle with stereotypes, but they could not express this complexity logically and critically (for example, when I told them that I am from Sicily, they were startled because I didn't match the mobster-TVSeries type). At the same time, stereotypes were the only 'cultural' topics they were interested in. What I did was using this interest to teach them how to build arguments and bringing examples from Italian literature to make them remember some of it.

Hopefully it worked fine and their skills improved.

My point is the following: obviously class dynamics are influenced by a number of factors that cannot be ignored. Actually they can be an asset for the educator to sparkle interest in his/her audience.

Absolutely. Education occurs in a cultural environment, and the expectations, desires, values, pressures of all kind (psychological, emotional, of behaviour, of making some choices and no others, etc.), points of view about male and female role in society, capacities, carreers and others, make a great influence in what happens on the classroom. The thing is that as a fish don't see the water that suround him, because it is his natual environment, we usually don't notice the deeper cultural environment we are in to. For that reason, it is important to make visible such cultural contexts in which we learn or teach, to manage it, change it, and not let it have a bad influence on child learn and possibilities to develop their full potential.

I appreciate your great comments and experiences Dr. Maria and Dr. Juan. Thank you so much for supporting the discussion. Kind regards

Nice query and comments. In my opinion, yes, cultural dimensions affect classroom interaction and learning outcomes.

Yes, cultural dimensions affect classroom teaching and outcomes.

I agree with dear Dr. Aparna, thank you, dear Dr! We are used to living in the multicultural environment- we are the rainbow in the big family! Once I had 26 nationalities in my classroom- it was in my Germany, when we had the equal financial position. The thirst for knowledge was the basis for harmony. Then I had the caste experience, but my students turned out to be the decent members of society, thanks to our collective humanistic approach to every student. In the ancient times the greatest philosophers and scientists were extremely poor, but they were humanistic and independent to give their knowledge and soul to the younger generation. Every greatest teacher is a humanist, even if there were the totalitarian and market desert.

Dear Prof. Irina,

Your experience you have shared is really really touching and pregnant with many lessons for instructors on how they can cater for the cultural diversities in their classrooms. I wish every instructor apply this practical suggestion. Thanks dearly for supporting the discussion. Kind regards

Dickson

In my opinion, the cultural dimension of each student is filled with rich perspectives. Each student becomes a resource for any topic based on his or her inherent background. I am a facilitator of learning and I have come to realize that I learn much from my students/ participants when conducting seminars. This calls to mind that the educator/ facilitator must achieve a certain level of cultural sensitivity to be mindful of words, affect and actions and encourage each student/ participant to be culturally sensitive as well.

Dear Dr. Mary,

Thank you so much for your excellent comment on the topic under discussion. I am heartily grateful. Kind regards

A rigorous and relevant curriculum that prepares by the teacher in order to meet the requirement and culture of all students

according to socio-cultural theory, learning does not happen in a vaccum: it is determined by the social, historical, economic, political and cultural dimensions of the context of learning. therefore, gender, social norms and standard, religious views and personal beliefs can foster or impede learning. best regards

Valued comments from you respected Drs. Farangis and Noori. Thank you so much for supporting the discussion. Kind regards

The teacher could use social framing strategies to enhance student engagement by students who are less responsive to prepackaged texts.

n Germany, which accepts refugees from very different cultures with different religions, there are certainly difficulties in accustoming children and young people to completely different social conditions. In addition, there are great differences in education that young people from their home countries bring along, many young people are illiterate, others have a better education according to the social status of their parents. Many students are busy making up for missing things. But there is also aggression very quickly, and the use of knives is common among some young people in a way that is unknown in Germany and poses a threat. Overall, however, the project "Integration" as an accustoming of refugee families from Asia and Africa to the respective European host country is burdened with many difficulties, but there are also successes that give hope. Many EU-states today refuse to accept more refugees because they feel overwhelmed by the mass of arrivals. Also the expectations of newcomers are often disappointed if the hopes for education, work and business start-ups are not fulfilled as expected. This is a long-winded prouess, so one should be very careful with the superficial expectation that multiculturalism represents a peaceful, conflict-free togetherness.

Hein Retter

Dear Prof. Hein,

Thank you dearly for sharing your great comment and highlighting with practical examples, the challenges associated with multiculturalism. It has really improved the discussions. I am very grateful. Kind regards

All good teachers build a bridge between what students know and what they need to learn.