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Cross Cultural TutoringWhat assumptions do you make about people based on the way they look? Do you have stereotypes about people from certain cultures? Has anyone ever misjudged you based on your ethnicity, race, or culture? Has anyone ever been offended by or misunderstood something you’ve said, and you didn’t know why? How close do you sit to your tutees? Do you look people directly in the eye when you are speaking to them, or look away? Is it good to ask a lot of questions in class? How does it change a tutorial session when a woman tutors a man, and vice versa? What about when a younger person tutors an older person, and vice versa? Have you ever misjudged someone, or been misjudged as "smart," "slow," "stubborn," "lazy," "resistant," or "shy?"
You will be a better tutor if you understand the influence of culture and stereotyping on communication and learning. The purpose of these exercises is to develop a deeper awareness of how our own culture influences us, and how cultural differences may affect tutoring.
What is culture?
Culture is not a simple thing! It can involve:
- ethnicity
- parents' education
- region of origin
- gender
- religion
- economic status
- language(s)
- sexual orientation
- race
- country of origin
- learning style
- disability
- intercultural or multicultural background
- style of dress
- group traditions
- and more...
Cross Cultural Communication Guidelines
- Ask yourself questions
- Clarify your own beliefs and attitudes
- Ask questions of others
- Listen
- Don't assume you know the answers
- Get to know (really know) people from other cultures. Make an effort to be friends
- Be honest and open
- Think about cultural reasons for actions
- Presume good intentions. Most people do not mean to be insensitive.
First Impressions Exercise
- Choose a partner who you don't know and who seems to be quite different from yourself.
- Without speaking take a few minutes to jot down how you think (or guess) the other person would answer these questions about himself or herself.
- When you both are finished, tell your partner your impressions, and what led you to guess that answer. It is up to your partner whether or not to discuss the issues. Be ready to relate the highlights of your discussion at the end of the activity.
- Where was your partner born? Where were his/her parents born? Where were his/her grandparents born? What language(s) does your partner speak?
- With what ethnicity(ies) and culture(s) does your partner identify? What other cultural groups influence your partner's identity?
- What does your partner’s name mean? Does he or she have a nickname?
- Who does you partner live with? What is his/her family like?
- In what academic areas does person do well? What does he/she have trouble with?
- How does your partner learn/study best (i.e in groups, at home, at school)?
- Discuss with your partner. Each person has 2 minutes to speak without interruption.
- How do you identify yourself culturally? (see list above)
- Describe an aspect about your culture(s) that others may not know about.
- How did your parents choose your name? Does your name have a meaning?
- What misconceptions or stereotypes might others have about people from your culture(s)?
- What misconceptions might you have about other people's cultures? How do family and social influences affect your perception of these cultures?
- Describe a time that you have felt discriminated against or misjudged, or a time when you may have discriminated against or misjudged another person.
- Discuss how cultural issues might relate to tutoring and school...
- Why is it important to know and use your tutee's correct name?
- Describe a situation in which you think cultural differences played a part in a misunderstanding. What happened? What did you do? What could you have done?
- How/when/why might you bring up issues of cultural differences with your tutee?
- Describe a personal experience in which differences in cultural values contributed to an interesting perspective. What did you do to encourage this interaction?
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