2/2/2021 Week 5: Cultural Paradigms

When I moved from the state of Louisiana to California, I made jokes that I had moved to a new planet. Grocery staples that I could normally get at any store were nowhere to be found. The interstates were extra intimidating not only because of their size, but because it seemed that no one would ever let you merge. I was used to always being let over and a friendly wave exchanged between both parties. It felt like the people were rude because they never said hello or smiled when passing on the sidewalk. These differences were enough to make it not feel like home, but they didn't interfere with my ability to connect with others or understand situations. I could still feed my family with familiar foods easily found. I could still navigate my way around the interstate system even if it took longer to merge (though I still find it hard to call it the freeway). I was also able to make friends and connections even if strangers on the street kept to themselves. My life was minimally impacted. 

This video clip is an excerpt from "God Grew Tired of Us." It follows a few men from Sudan. They came to the United States from a refugee camp where they lived for some years after fleeing civil war in their home country of Sudan. The differences they experienced in moving to the United States was very different than mine. Things that I accept as common knowledge and trust that my 2 year old nephew knows are completely foreign to these men. Potato chips, donuts, and individual packets of butter were foods that these men had never even seen before. In order to bathe, they wondered if they would need to collect water in jugs themselves and didn't know what a shower was. The impact of these differences was immense, however, these are differences that can be taught easily enough with some instructions and experience. These are just the beginning of the challenges that cultural differences can present. There are some differences that effect not only how we experience the world, but how we view it. 

 In that same video, one man remarked that he had never use electricity and assumed it would be hard to do. With no knowledge that electricity is as easy as flipping a switch, he made the assumption that it would require force or skill or ability. The world view he had was one that required effort to accomplish tasks. Why would electricity be any different? In her TED talk at State Street Boston, Delali Bright relates her upbringing in West Africa. She was skinny. This was a problem. In West Africa, this is seen as a sign of poverty and illness. Her family worried about the judgments people would place on her and worried if she would be able to find a man willing to marry her. They took her to doctors and placed her on vitamin regiments and diets to try to help her gain weight. She was bullied and made to feel shame and embarrassment about her body and size. With her self-image low, she moved to the United States where her small waist was seen as beautiful and was praised. It is amazing how the same quality can be viewed so differently between cultures. 

With these thoughts in mind, I think about culture in the classroom and what effect it has. There are those small differences that are mostly about the function of things. There could be students that expect a prayer before meal time or students that do not use utensils to eat with. This can open them up to unwanted attention that has the potential to move into teasing. It can make students feel different and that can close them off to being receptive in all subject. This is one reason that I want culture and our cultural differences to be part of my classroom. I want even the girls form Louisiana, like me, to know that there are different people out there and they are no less valued because they do things differently.

The next thing I think wonder about has more to do with the cultural paradigms that effect our view of the world and our expectations of people. In this video the instructor, Brother Ivers, uses and example of one culture that finds it inappropriate for men and women to see each other eating. He also discusses cultures that think it is wrong for women to swear, but not men. I imagine teaching a student that comes from a culture like on e of these and is now in my classroom. How can I make it a safe space for them? How can I help them feel comfortable, but also help them understand that the belief is different? How can I help their fellow students to understand and accept.

In the video about the men from Sudan, they were told not to go out all together or in large groups because it made others in the community nervous because this was not something that people saw regularly and it made them uneasy. There was one convenience store that even called the police because they assumed the men were there to cause trouble. I will say that while it is not customary in the US to go in large groups to stores, this was probably more about race than the large group. Racism is another cultural paradigm that unfortunately still exists in the US that these men were possibly not prepared to handle. At first I start to think about how to help students from different area adapt to the way of thinking here, but I think there are paradigms in our culture and in our classrooms that can be addressed even if everyone comes from the same background. 

We need to be understanding, accommodating, accepting, patient, and kind. We need to teach that differences are just that - different. One isn't automatically better than another. Some can be harmful, but many can be helpful. We can learn from each other. Embrace each other and grow together.