Leadership, Development & Learning (The Class Film as case study) 15 June 2011 AAC& U HIPS The most distinctive mark of a cultured mind is the ability to take anothers place, and see life and its problems from a point of view different from ones own. --A.H.R. Fairchild 1

2 Knowledge Areas: Cultural Difficulties & Misunderstandings 1.Work: 2.Time & Space: 3.Language: 4.Roles: 5. Values: Bases of Cultural Differences 1.Categorization: put into a group 2.Differentiation: reason for groups 3.Learning Styles:

Personal Skill Levels Model by Sherwood Smith (modified from Gloria Yamato) 2007 Unconscious Conscious IncompetentCompetent Preconscious competency 3

DenialDefenseMinimizationAcceptanceAdaptationIntegration ETHNOCENTRIC STAGESETHNORELATIVE STAGES Bennetts Model of Intercultural Development 4

Extremes of Community Responses: BEING RIGHTUNDERSTANDING SILENCEATTENTION IGNORANCEKNOWLEDGE FEAR OFIDENTIFICATION WITH SEPARATENESSINTERDEPENCE SHUNNINGAPPRECIATION DEMEANIMPORTANCE INSENSITIVITYEMPATHY AVOIDANCE APPRECIATION 5

Information Processing Style Human-Relational Style Communication Style Learning Style Managerial Style & Workplace Dynamics Interactive Styles & Cultural Model 6

Some Fundamental Dimensions of Non- Western vs. Western World View Non-Western Emphasize group cooperation Achievement as it reflects group Value Harmony with nature Time is relative Accept affective expression Extended family Holistic thinking Religion permeates culture Accept world views of other cultures Socially oriented Western Emphasize individual competition Achievement for the individual Must master and control nature Adhere to rigid time schedule Limit affective expression Nuclear family Dualistic thinking Religion distinct from other parts of culture Feel their world view is superior Task oriented 7

Kolb Learning Style Theory Concrete Experience (Interpersonal) Abstract Conceptualization (Analytical) Active Experimentation (Action) Reflective Observation (Information) Accommodating Converging Diverging Assimilating 8

Some Learning Style Issues A person s learning style may be defined in part by the answers to five questions: 1.Type of information preferentially perceive by the learner: sensory – sights, sounds, physical sensations, or intuitive – memories, ideas, insights 2.Modality is sensory information most effectively perceived: visual – pictures, diagrams, graphs, demonstrations, or verbal – sounds, written and spoken words and formulas? 3.Organization of information which is most comfortable for the learner: inductive – facts and observations are given, underlying principles are inferred, or deductive – principles are given, consequences and applications are deduced? 9

4.How does the student prefer to process information: actively – through engagement in physical activity or discussion, or reflectivity – through introspection? 5.How does the student progress toward understanding: sequentially – in a logical progression of small incremental steps or globally – in large jumps, holistically? From: Reaching the Second Tier: Learning and Teaching Styles in College Science Education. by R. M. Felder, 1993, Journal of College Science Teaching. 23 (5) p

11 Culture can be like an iceberg,… So that much of the mass is often ignored. The influences of cultural elements need to be explicitly explored rather than taken for granted or ignored. LANGUAGE ARTS LITERATURE DRAMA MUSIC DRESS DANCING GAMES SPORTS COOKING /////\\\\\\//////\\\\\//////\\\\\\//////\\\\\////\\\\\///////\\\awareness level NOTIONS OF MODESTY CONCEPTS OF BEAUTY EDUCATION CHILD RAISING RULES OF DESCENT COSMOLOGY RELATIONSHIP TO THINGS, ANIMALS & PLANTS COURTSHIP PRACTICES CONCEPT OF JUSTICE MOTIVATION TO WORK CRITERIA FOR LEADERSHIP DECISION MAKING PROCESSES DEITIES IDEAS OF CLEANLINESS LOCUS OF CONTROL THEORY OF DISEASE PHYSICAL SPACE ROLES IN RELATION TO STATUS BY AGE, GENDER, CLASS, KINSHIP, OCCUPATION, RELIGION,.... CONVERSATIONAL PATTERNS IN VARIOUS SOCIAL CONTEXTS, CONCEPTION OF TIME AND SPACE, LIFE, GENDER, DEFINITION OF SANITY, FRIENDSHIP, LOVE, MURDER, GENDER, EXPRESSIONS 11

12 TYPES OF RESISTANCE 12 POLITICALSTRUCTURALPERSONAL Boss wont approve it Not enough time or resources Denial The staff will never buy-in Takes too much time Lack of experience with these issues Negative reaction by the community & staff There is no evidence that this is an issue Good intentions – I treat everyone the same!

13 Resources : Intercultural Communication: Bennett, M. (1998) Basic Concepts of Intercultural Communication. Intercultural Press, ME Nakayama, T.K. & Martin, J.N. (Eds.) (1999). Whiteness: The communication of social identity. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, Inc. Multiculturalism Rosenblum, K.E. & Travis, T.C. (2006). The meaning of difference: American constructions of race, sex and gender, social class, and sexual orientation (3rd Ed.) Boston, MA: The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Rothenberg, P.S. (2002). White privilege: Essential readings on the other side of racism. New York, NY: Worth Publishers. Social Justice Adams, M., Bell, L.A. & Griffin, P. (Eds.) (1997). Teaching for diversity and social justice: A source book. New York: Routledge.