Teach English in ShuAnglu Jiedao - Chongqing

Cultural Sensitivity in the ClassroomTeaching EFL students in a new country requires a strong understanding of the culture to build a stronger relationship with the students, teach students to understand and sympathize with cultural differences between countries and to allow teachers to focus on particular difficulties that country/culture has with learning English. If a teacher learns about the culture of the country they are teaching in they can understand the reasoning behind certain behaviors that may seem strange or even frustrating at first, but when understood they can then sympathize with the students and teach accordingly. This strengthens the relationship between the students and the teacher as it humanizes them as opposed to alienating them. For a teacher, it would make running a classroom much smoother as they could plan classes with these differences in mind, careful not to interrupt the natural learning process these students have grown up with. A teacher should be careful with the way they behave in the classroom and make sure they do not disrespect the students who may regard certain behavior rude that the teacher isn?t even aware of. There is the risk of students losing respect for the teacher if they feel respect isn?t being given them. For instance, in korea you are supposed to use both hands when giving or receiving an object from another person, whereas in Western countries, there is no thought about how one should hand something over to another and giving someone something with one hand is seen as perfectly fine. It is also expected in korea that younger people bow to older people because respecting elders is very important whereas in Western countries, this strict behavior towards elders is more relaxed. A teacher should therefore learn these cultural details and be mindful of them in everyday life but more importantly in the classroom to show they understand, but more importantly, respect the students and their culture. It is also important to teach the students the cultural differences between their country and the country the teacher is from to further strengthen the teacher/student relationship. The students can understand where the teacher is coming from and also sympathize with their situation as well. Spending a unit or a few lessons on different cultures is a good way to help the students understand that countries can have traditions, beliefs, and customs different than their own, and may explain the reasons behind the way you act or run a classroom compared to their native teachers. A teacher should also learn about the language spoken in the country they are teaching in order to foresee difficulties students may have with learning English. If they understand the structure of the language and how it differs phonetically, alphabetically as well as in written form, teachers can then focus on the needs of the students and what they struggle with. Many Asian countries don?t have an ?r? or ?l? equivalent in their alphabet so their pronunciation of this sound is difficult for them, so spending extra lessons on the pronunciation of these consonants would benefit the students a great deal. Many Asian countries also have a different alphabet altogether that are written differently on paper, so extra classes on writing would then be needed. To identify and focus on the particular needs of students in a given country/culture helps the teacher understand why students may have difficulty with something and prevents them from getting unnecessarily frustrated with the students? learning process, and also makes the students feel understood by the teacher. Learning the culture, traditions, beliefs and language of a different country breaks down barriers, uncovers cultural mysteries, and humanizes the people in a given country. Through education and understanding a teacher is able to relate to and uncover the said differences in order to focus on the fundamental similarities between these people of such varying cultures to build stronger relationships based on understanding. Resources. 1. Teaching "Diversity": A Place to Begin by Janet Gonzalez-Mena and Dora Pulido-Tobiassen. November 1999. http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/article.jsp?id=3499 2. Your Dictionary: ESL Classroom and Cultural Sensitivity. http://www.yourdictionary.com/esl/ESL_Classroom-and-Cultural_Sensitivity.html