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Critical pedagogy and critical literacy
Critical pedagogy and critical literacy
Critical pedagogy and critical literacy
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One of the challenges of critical language pedagogy is to promote interculturalityin all the students that are in the classrooms that later on will become citizens of the world. A world that longer possess one culture but many that intertwine, create, recreate power relationships and that finally will help the students to have an identity that takes into account the local and the global, the more visions of the world students know, the better understanding they will have of it. So, pedagogical practices must be guided to foster this process of interculturality due to the fact that in this time more and more people migrate from one place to another for different reasons either to escape from conflict, or to have better job opportunities; students recognize and be aware of not only the problems this process brings as racism and xenophobia but also its benefits as cultural enrichment and creativity.
As kumaravadivelu states “in the colonialism, methods valorize everything associated with the colonial Self and marginalized everything associated with the subaltern other”. In other words, the method was a construct of marginality, a relationship between superiority and inferiority where the native self is the first one and the non-native the second one. Thus, the first analysis that must be done is the kind of methodology professors use when teaching a foreign language and observe if that approach supports interculturality in the classroom. One of the dimensions that are linked to a colonialist concept of method as a construct of marginality is the cultural dimension and that is focus on the native speaker; As stern (1992) claims, “one of the most important aims of cultureteaching is to help the learner gain an understanding...
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...icative activities that allow developing this interculturality on students that will live in the world from a critical perspective. Before, methods were permeated by a colonial perspective so it was not possible to develop this interculturality on students but now from the moment the post method condition started to inquire them and teachers now know that they can be adapted, combined, recreated and the center of the learning process is not the language itself but the learners and their process in a contextualized setting. Students when learning a new language have the possibility of “an encounter with another speech community offered by knowledge of its language can engender a sense of an insider’s experience of the Lebenswelt of that culture” (Guilherme) and understand they live in a world full of cultural manifestations when interacting in a now globalized one.
Throughout history, there have been various perspectives of multicultural differences. According to Meriam Webster (n.d.), culture is “the beliefs, customs, arts, institutions, and the thoughts or products of a particular society or group.” Unfortunately, African Americans, Native Americans, Italians, Irish, Jews as well as various other cultural groups have been profoundly discriminated against and negatively stereotyped (Good Therapy org.). With the frequent mingling of cultures in educational settings, the workplace, and in the social arena, we are bound to encounter cultural differences.
Throughout the span of the past few weeks I have traversed the globe, visiting several countries and regions, only to realize that although new methods develop, language as a way of expressing ones self has remained the most effective. Despite this fact, language still has its pitfalls. Neil Postman, in his essay “Defending Against the Indefensible,'; outlines seven concepts that can be used to aid a student in better understanding the language as a means of communication. He describes how modern teaching methods leave a student vulnerable to the “prejudices of their elders';, further stating that a good teacher must always be skeptical. He urges teachers of all subjects to break free from traditional teachings as well as “linguistical tyranny';
The technique relies on a holistic approach that adopts instructions that allow students to actively participate in the learning process. This is easier for children that feel that the society appreciates their diversity through bilingualism and biliteracy. The society and parents need to encourage children to take up bilingual classes because they offer a lot of benefit to the society through favoring critical thinking, rationality, and sensitivity to other cultures, empathy, and detached or balanced awareness. However, Sonia Nieto mirrors a society that is made to fake being American and become ashamed of their family. It helps appreciate that it is not by choice that anyone speaks any other language as the first language and that the society and community influence the language of choice. Therefore, bilingualism cannot be detached from any community that freely promotes and accommodate the language spoken by the other community. Children and community members learn each other’s language without disregarding each other favoring effective learning that influences bilingualism and biliteracy in the long
In this essay I will be addressing the argument if there is a collision of “two cultures” in this book. I will look at the fact the Hmong people have their own medical practices that is completely different from the western medicine practices. I will look at the fact that the Hmong and the doctors did not communicate well and that it’s hard for those people of different cultures to understand one another.
Even though the dominance of a language can allow for the loss of a culture, it can also bring awareness. In schools, local community centers and other various places, foreign languages are taught, not only do non-native speakers take on these languages but native speakers do as well to keep their culture. By doing so it “revitalizes cultures and cultural artifacts through foreign influences, technologies, and markets.” (Gerdes
The differences observed in society can be seen in almost every aspect of life and can separate every human from another through choice and perception. Considering a simplistic example where one driver in the United States drives on the right side of the road, compared to a European driver that drives on the left side of the road. Each may perceive that the other is incapable of driving when sharing the same environment. Yet both individuals are perfectly capable of operating a vehicle safely and successfully. The similarity is that both know how to operate a vehicle and this similarity is what creates cohesion between two individuals. The aspect of multi-cultural counseling operates across this same philosophy where the diversity of one client
America is built on the principle of “Land of the Free, Home of the Brave”. That means, the United States of America is a country made up of different cultures and beliefs. We as a country accept all religions, cultures and backgrounds. It was Native Americans who first discovered this great land on which we enjoy our Freedom on every single day. Thanksgiving, an American holiday, was first brought about from the Pilgrims after their Harvest, to celebrate their accomplishment of discovering the “New World.” Some Native Americans were also in attendance for this great feast. Somewhere, over the years, the comradery among cultures, would slowly diminish between the Americans and immigrants coming into the country.
The multiculturalism idea is about how to respond towards challenges that are associated with religious and cultural diversity. The term is used as a descriptive term that characterizes the diversity facts in the society. The proponent of multiculturalism rejects the melting point idea though the term has encompasses a variety of claims. The melting point idea is that members of the minority group maintain a distinct collection of practices and identities.in general multiculturalism means the practices and policies that respond and recognizes ethnic diversity (Roach et al, 2005 pg. 37). The first black president elected in us Barack Obama describes the different points of view regarding multicultural societies. Though each Atlantic side are
Adapting a multicultural perspective includes maintaining a unique understanding of one’s own cultural background and biases, and continuously striving to work through them. In the article, “White Professors teaching About Racism: Challenges and Rewards,” Smith and colleagues sought to address the challenges that white educators face when instructing multicultural courses, and to provide them with useful techniques to incorporate into their educational pedagogies. These challenges stem from their racial class orientation and can be summarized as fitting into one of three categories: (a) multiculturalism perfectionism, (b) multicultural impostor syndrome, and (c) multicultural projections (Smith, Kashubeck-West, Payton1, & Adams, 2017). Together
The unprecedented global spread English has experienced in the last years has paved the way for changes in the sociolinguistic profile of the language. In addition to the fact that new varieties have emerged, the number of functional domains in which English plays a role has increased significantly (Sharma, 2008). Currently, English is not only a tool serving national purposes, but also a language institutionalised in several former British and American colonies, and a lingua franca used worldwide. This phenomenon has raised concern about the classification of World Englishes, as well as, about the need to adapt English Language Teaching (ELT) to the new reality. Assuming Kachru’s Concentric Circles Model, this paper will argue that pedagogies based on English as a Lingua Franca (ELF) would be more consistent with the functions of English in Expanding-circle countries than native-centered teaching methods. With this objective, this essay will first give an overview of Kachru’s model, secondly, it will consider the implications ELF methodologies have for classroom practices, and, finally, the advantages and drawbacks of such a pedagogy will be evaluated.
I have learned a great deal about different cultures and the communication between those cultures. I didn’t really think I would learn as much as I did. I am from an older cohort than most of the people in my class; therefore my experience level is a little greater. This did not prevent me from learning a few things and enhancing the knowledge I already have.
Cultural Appropriation versus Multiculturalism In today's society, there are many different cultures that individuals identify with. Culture is very important to many people and is something that helps define who we are. When different cultures are respected and appreciated, it is a beautiful thing, it can bring individuals in society closer to one another. Ideally, this understanding of one another’s cultures can lead to multiculturalism.
Humans have been communicating since four million years. On the other hand, the birth of culture is estimated to have taken place about 35,000 years ago. Today, both culture and communication have evolved considerably and have become interdependent of one another, to the point that communication is considered to be a product of culture. Thus, our own culture has a deep impact on our thoughts and behaviors. Since each culture has its distinct aspects, intercultural communication can be the cause of conflict and disorder. There are three main issues which are at the root of the problem of intercultural miscommunication : language as a barrier, cultural diversity and ethnocentrism. I will analyze these three notions in situations in which intercultural communication is frequent such as : the workplace, the classroom and vacation trips.
The promotion of foreign language education in America’s primary schools is vital to a child’s learning process, cultural awareness, and future in the workforce. Although they are scarce, there are some elementary schools across the United States that incorporate foreign language courses in the curriculum. This is most common in areas bordering other countries and relative to the language spoken, as French is taught most often along the border of Canada and Spanish along the border of Mexico. The process of learning another language is beneficial the learning process of all subjects because the methods used combine teaching procedures present in every class. The broad learning capacity gained from learning a foreign language and the ability to converse with other peoples helps people in careers as well, making them apt for any profession. Special schools have been created to promote a mixed-culture learning environment, such as charter schools and bilingual schools. The students who attend these specialized schools are exposed to different ways of life at the early age that is best for absorbing new information and living in two opposite cultures successfully. Foreign language education in primary school is necessary because during the years a child is in elementary school is the time in which children are most susceptible to taking in new information.
In most institutions of learning today, the classes are made up of students from different ethnic backgrounds. These have different traditions and also speak different languages. In a typical classroom, the majority of the students will speak the same language. The teacher must then employ strategies which will accommodate all the students in the class. This will ensure that every learner gets the best quality of education. This will enable them to be better prepared for career and expressing themselves. In this paper, strategies to assist learners of the English language in their literal development for third grade learners. In the paper, three strategies that can be used by the teacher will be discussed. New strategies and research that will help the English language learners to gain in depth mastery of the language will also be discussed. Due to the widespread learning of the English language in most schools, addressing issues of the language learners is of vital importance. Teachers should have the understanding that cultures are what give someone identity and therefore no student should leave their culture for another. Instead, there should be the blending of different cultures so that students can appreciate and learn from each other.