Have you ever clapped at the wrong time at a concert? Eaten with the wrong utensil in a restaurant? Asked a question at an inappropriate moment during class? Imagine, then, having been taught for 18 years that your professor was the absolute head of the class, should not be spoken to directly, and must be addressed strictly as “Professor”, only to enter a classroom in which the exact opposite is expected.
What happens then?
We all know what it feels like to be a fish out of water, navigating the world when our cultural norms don’t fit the setting. For students, an unfamiliar classroom, a research lab or an in-person discussion group can feel much the same. If the goal is learning, it’s up to the teacher to guide students through unfamiliar cultural norms within our classrooms.
As Joseph Shaules explains in The Intercultural Mind, educational and cultural norms encompass the ways people make sense of knowledge. Part of the larger paradigms, these norms should not be ignored in the classroom.
So, yes, we need to navigate cultural difference in the classroom, but as importantly, we want to tap into diversity as a conduit for innovative thinking.
To do this, I suggest that educators employ these scaffolding and metacognitive strategies:
- consult with students consistently
- create guidelines and practise engaging behaviours
explore external resources.
1. Consult with students
First and foremost, we consider our students’ needs. But how do we know our students when their cultural norms do not allow them to speak to us about their opinions? Can we coax information from them through non-graded personal feedback?
- Navigating the choppy waters of intercultural differences in an international classroom
- Supporting self-directed learning across cultural boundaries
- How to foster debate in multicultural classrooms
I suggest a bi-directional scaffolded approach to do this. In this context scaffolding – that is, steps put in place for student learning – becomes a tool for the teacher, too. You’re learning about your students and their differences precisely to navigate and incorporate those differences into the classroom.
One type of scaffolding is an exit survey. I suggest offering your students an open-ended survey at the end of each week. This survey activates metacognition and serves to make the teaching process transparent (for more on transparency in teaching, see the TILT framework). Questions could include:
- What helped or hindered your learning this week?
- What about the classroom setting is confusing?
- Please name something the professor can do to help you learn.
Explain to students why you are asking for their feedback. Be specific, authentic and transparent. If you are interested in cultural differences in learning, remind them that you want to centre your classroom in this way. For true transparency, share feedback and your thoughts in the following class session.
You can even take this transparent metacognition strategy to a deeper level. For example, during class, after you have given an explanation or a solution set, pause. Look around. Tell the students that you want to shine a light on their learning for a moment, then lead them into the following peer-to-peer exercise.
Here’s a sample script: “I’m thinking about how you might be processing or understanding the material I just lectured about, so I want to give you a chance to repeat it. I want to see if anything new or different comes up from the way you understand it.”
Now, have students repeat (not merely discuss) the content explanation that you just gave to the class. They could do this in another language if they want. This strategy not only offers students a chance to repeat the lesson but also to practise being engaged in a classroom setting. Afterward, be sure to debrief with the whole class, asking whether any information was introduced in the pair activity that was not in the original explanation. This debrief can reveal cultural differences in teaching and learning that enrich the classroom. If preferred, collect this debrief anonymously or online.
You can use the debrief for your own reflection, and to comment openly and transparently during the next class on what was interesting or valuable to you.
2. Create classroom guidelines and practise engaging behaviours
No, I’m not suggesting you post a list of “dos and don’ts” at the front of the class. Instead, classroom guidelines, which frame how engaged learning is expected, should be consistently spoken about. Again, think transparency.
How do clear guidelines support learning? Let’s say you believe in engaging students during lectures. If you want students to interrupt you with questions when you lecture, for example, remind them as you lecture and share something authentic about your reasoning for this guideline.
You could say: “OK, let’s start the lecture. Remember, I like being interrupted by your questions. I only ask that you raise your hand first, so I can finish my thoughts. Then I’ll call on you. You may recall that last class, we had five interruptions in a 20-minute lecture, and each question added a unique insight to our learning.” With this one guiding statement, you’ve reminded students of your expectations, illustrated that you remembered their engagement, and that you valued the contributions. This is transparency and authenticity.
Likewise, we know repetition is key in learning and offers language scaffolding, which builds knowledge connections with targeted use of language.
How about making repetition a classroom guideline? As the teacher, you’ll model repetition to your own statements with: “Let me repeat that.” When students ask questions, automatically say: “Let me repeat the question.”
The guide becomes the new standard; regardless of background, students can participate in the rules of this class, which, while not written down, are explicitly referred to and demonstrated in the structure of the class. This transparency strategy helps everyone navigate differing cultural norms.
3. Other resources for bringing different cultures into the classroom
A final recommendation is to tap into resources about navigating diverse cultural norms in the classroom.
- Outside observer. Ask an intercultural communication expert to observe your class and offer practical feedback. Contact your Center for Teaching and Learning or Office of International Education.
- Universal design for learning (UDL) Using UDL principles not only helps you navigate teaching and learning equity but also strengthens your teacher metacognitive muscle.
- Deep Culture podcast by Japan Intercultural Institute. Short episodes dive into intercultural difference and learning.
- International graduate students are a rich resource for tapping into cultural differences. Request their input in designing or reflecting on your course content and materials. Even if they are not seasoned teachers, they can be a helpful resource.
Habituate your own commitment to designing classrooms that navigate and incorporate differing cultural norms. From there, this becomes a norm itself.
Sarah Kegley is the international teaching assistant programme manager in the Center for Teaching and Learning at Georgia Institute of Technology.
If you would like advice and insight from academics and university staff delivered direct to your inbox each week, sign up for the Campus newsletter.
comment