Cultural Variable

Culture is a factor inherent in our schools and in the academic outcomes of learners. Cultural mismatch negatively impacts academic success. Dominant, dominated, and immigrant cultures are discussed in this paper as well as the challenges that educators face in helping students to gain equitable access to relevant instruction and academic success across cultures. Culturally responsive teaching provides a vehicle for teachers to implement positive instructional practices through the examination of their own cultural frames of reference, and the cultural norms and values of their students and families.

Keywords Cultural variable; Cultural competency; Cultural frame of reference; Cultural mismatch; Culturally responsive teaching; Dominant culture; Dominated cultures; Immigrant cultures; Monocultural

Overview

In the U.S. public education system, culture matters. Many policy makers, school leaders and educators assume that what counts as necessary knowledge, how it is taught and how it is learned is based uniquely on principles of good teaching and that the identification of this knowledge as well as the manner in which is taught and learned, is not connected to any given culture (Gay, 1994). However, culture influences every aspect of the teaching and learning process (Ahearn et al., 2002; Gay, 1994). When educators say they want to treat children as human beings regardless of cultural variables such as race, creed, ethnicity, linguistic background, gender or economic status, they fail to realize that the humanity of each person is inseparable from culture (Gay, 1994).

There are many variables that influence the successful transmittal and acquisition of standards-based knowledge and skills in public education. In the past, it was acceptable for public schools to simply deliver instruction and expect students to adapt to the environment and gain whatever education they could from the system (Ahearn et al., 2002). With the expectations placed on schools through the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) schools are required to close the academic achievement gap between students with high academic performance and those with low academic performance. NCLB (as cited in Stickney, 2003) specifically addresses the educational achievement needs of different groups of children and requires that children in these groups demonstrate adequate yearly progress in meeting state-specific learning standards. The subgroups monitored by federal law include children from minority ethnic and cultural backgrounds, children with disabilities, economic disadvantage, or limited English proficiency. Often, children included in one or more of these groups are from non-dominant cultures in the United States (Stickney, 2003).

Cultural Mismatch

Students come from a variety of cultural frames of reference. Villagas (as cited in Hollins and Oliver, 1999) states that mainstream children have an advantage in classrooms typically based in mainstream or dominant culture as these students find the culture of the classroom an extension of their home and community. However, for many students of diverse backgrounds, the home and classroom cultures are in opposition. Hollins (as cited Hollins and Oliver, 1999) calls this cultural mismatch. The theory of cultural mismatch holds that academic achievement is affected by the relationships between school culture and home culture. Cummins and Entwistle (as cited in Saifer et al. 2005) found that by the age of 8, children's enthusiasm for learning and their belief in their ability to learn could be undermined due to the mismatch of school and home cultural values and communication patterns.

Now, instead of simply expecting diverse students to change to fit the school, it is understood that institutions and teachers must themselves adapt to the students in providing the opportunity for academic success (Ahearn et al., 2002). Saifer, Edwards, Ellis., Ko, and Stuczynski (2005) cite Bensmann, Bowman and Stott, Cummins, Delpit, Entwistle and Ladson-Billings in that many studies have found a link between low academic performance and the misalignment of the cultural norms of the educational institutions and the cultural norms of students' families and communities.

Cultural Competence

In an effort to make sure that educators have the necessary skills and knowledge to effectively teach students of historically underserved diverse cultures, many states are training their teachers in cultural competency (Klump and McNeir, 2005). Diller and Moule (as cited in Klump and McNeir, 2005) define cultural competency as the mastery of complex awarenesses, knowledge, and skills that are required to effectively teach across cultures.

The role of culture as a major component in teaching and learning (Trumbull & Pacheco, 2005). How well these individual and community cultural attributes are identified, mediated, and capitalized upon affects learner outcomes (Ahearn et al, 2002). In examining the cultural variable in education, this paper will address what culture is as well as the broad general cultural frames of reference from which participants approach the educational process. Next, the concept of culturally responsive teaching is introduced as a facilitative approach to improving instruction and promoting academic achievement opportunities for an increasingly diverse student population (Klump & McNeir, 2005).

Further Insights

Defining Culture

An exact definition of culture is problematic in that the actual definition of culture is still debated among scholars and many definitions exist (Ahearn et al., 2002). Saifer et al. (2005) provide one of the more comprehensive definitions:

Culture can be defined as a way of life, especially as it relates to the socially transmitted habits, customs, traditions, and beliefs that characterize a particular group of people at a particular time. It includes the behaviors, actions, practices, attitudes, values, communication styles, language, etiquette, spirituality, concepts of health and healing, beliefs, and institutions of a racial, ethnic, religious, or social group. Culture is the lens through which we look at the world. It is the context within which we operate and make sense of the world and its influences on how we process learning, solve problems, and teach (p. 6).

Payne, (as cited in Klump & McNeir, 2005) states that in addition to the association of culture to race or ethnicity, scholars have found noticeable cultural differences among and within groups of people based on their socio-economic status. Culture is influenced by social class, religion, the region in which people live, the generation of the individual, the extent of urbanization, and gender (Banks et al., 2001). These cultural differences also affect learning and teaching.

Ahearn et al. (2002) explain culture as the context from which people behave and understand the world around them. Most people are often unaware of their own culture until they encounter another culture. When differences are noticed, people usually focus on the other culture instead of critically examining their own culturally-based conceptions of reality (Ahearn et al. 2002). Because culture has such a pervasive influence on the perceptions and behaviors that an individual considers as normal, it is hard to learn about one's own culture as if from the outside looking in. For this reason, it is much harder to learn about one's own culture in comparison to learning about the culture of another person (Trumbull, Rothstein-Fisch & Greenfield, 2000).

Cultures change as societies adapt to new situations. In addition, within a given culture, there are variations of beliefs, behaviors, and values among individuals (Ahearn et al., 2002) While patterns may exist based on cultural variables, care must be taken not to stereotype members of a culture or people who share a common cultural variable. There are general patterns but there are also individual differences (Ahearn et al., 2002).

Cultural Frames of Reference

Each educator and learner brings a unique cultural frame of reference to the teaching and learning process. Members of different cultures within the United States have different attitudes towards the institution of school that are dependent on the cultural variables of group history and current power status (Spring, 2006). These cultural frames of reference are also known as cultural perspectives. They influence the way a person interprets information from the outside world based on the norms, values, and experiences of a given group of people (Spring, 2006).

Monocultural vs. Bicultural Perspectives

Spring (2006) also explains that in a multicultural society, cultural frames of reference are influenced by the cultures in which people live. When people are socialized according to the norms of one culture, they filter information from that one viewpoint, and are thus monocultural. In contrast, when one learns to function in two cultures of a multicultural society, he or she is bicultural. Spring (2006) notes that behavior depends on the cultural milieu in which a person is functioning at the time. Furthermore, a person's monocultural or bicultural status influences how they interpret the actions of others. Most Americans identify themselves with one or more cultural groups within the overall American identity (Spring, 2006).

Spring (2006) makes a distinction between the general culture of the United States, the dominant culture, dominated cultures, and immigrant cultures. Many of the educational problems faced by dominated and immigrant cultures are a result of the incongruence of their cultures and that of the public school (Spring, 2006). The general culture of a country is defined as what the majority of individuals in that country consider to be its characteristics. Defining American culture is very difficult (Spring, 2006) as it is dynamic. In addition, Spring (2006) asserts that American culture is affected by three issues: the left-over anger and ill will that exists between cultural groups within the United States, the adjustment of new groups of immigrants into American culture and the desire of some cultural groups to maintain their cultures within the broader American culture.

The Dominant Culture

Spring (2006) describes the dominant culture of a country as the culture of the group of people with the most power in a given society. He explains that it is the culture upon which many of the nation's institutions, including its schools, were founded. As a result, schools often mirror the dominant culture of society (Trumbull, Rothstein-Fisch, & Greenfield, 2000). When the institution of public education in the U.S. formed in the early 1800's, it incorporated white, Anglo-Saxon Protestant values and traditions (Spring, 2006). In the early 1900's, those values were modified to reflect the values of corporations which required specialization of knowledge, competition, and cooperation. These values were built into the public school system through the introduction of extra-curricular activities such as clubs, pep rallies, athletics and school spirit activities that educators into the 1920's felt would prepare students to develop attitudes and skills for the corporate world (Springer, 2006).

The institution of public education in the United States is not culturally neutral (van Broekhuizen & Dougherty, 1999). Most public schools do not adequately reflect, in their practices and educational decisions, the cultural and ethnic diversity of the greater U.S. society (Gay, 1994). Because the education system in the U.S. is based in the dominant culture, there is an argument that it is inherently biased in favor of children who come from the dominant culture and against children of other cultural origins (Klump & McNeir, 2005). When one culture is considered normal or correct, the values of other cultural groups are invalidated and the children from those groups can be considered as deficient in the cultural variables they bring to the classroom (Ahearn et al., 2002; Klump & McNeir, 2005).

Dominated Cultures

Dominated cultures in the U.S. are defined by Spring (2006) as groups of people that were made to become part of the dominant culture. These groups' forced inclusion was brought about by slavery, colonization or military conquest. Examples of these groups would be people from Africa forcibly relocated as slaves, Native American tribes enveloped, killed or displaced by the "discovery" of the New World and implementation of Manifest Destiny, Mexicans who lived in the part of Mexico that became the southwestern United States, and the peoples of Puerto Rico and the Hawaiian Islands. For students and families who belong to dominated cultures in the United States, there is some degree of anger and hostility towards the institutions which played a role in their loss of power and current dominated status (Spring, 2006).

Many members of dominated groups have had negative experiences in the public schools. Brown (as cited in Spring, 2006) implies that for many dominated groups, the difference in the language and culture of public schools threatens an identity they want to maintain. Furthermore, there has been a loss of trust. Ogbu, as cited in Diaz-Rico and Weed (2006) states that some individuals from dominated cultures may not believe that education will provide a path for upward social mobility. Students and families often have attitudes towards school that are a combination of hope, a mistrust in the school's ability to meet their needs, anger, and frustration (Spring, 2006). In addition, they may feel that academic achievement and adaptation to the school behaviors and language means that they have to give up their own cultures (Spring, 2006) and assimilate into the dominant culture at the loss of their identity.

Immigrant Culture

Spring (2006) defines the members of immigrant culture, in general, as people who have chosen to come to the United States to improve their economic or political situations. Brown (as cited by Spring, 2006) states that many immigrants do not see the culture and language of public schools as a threat to their identity. They have hope that the public schools will provide advancement for their loved ones. While members of dominated cultures and immigrant cultures may both face discrimination and prejudice, the two groups have different educational issues (Spring, 2006).

It should be noted that within the current general culture of the United States, there are a significant number of students from the immigrant culture who face these issues. Gann, Dean and Marquez (2005) state that by law, all children regardless of national origin have access to K-12 public education. Yet for children without legal status, membership in the school and greater community is fragile at best due to forces beyond their control. Students affected by this legal and cultural limbo access learning in a context quite different from other peers belonging to dominated, dominant or immigrant cultures that enjoy official recognition as members of society. They strive for learning while under immense anxiety that their families could be divided and their lives upturned at any moment.

Teachers

Teachers too, are products of culture. Their belief systems, values, knowledge, and ways of doing things affect how they teach and how they provide for student learning (Ahearn et al., 2002). While, the student population is increasingly diverse, most teachers are white and middle class (Stone & Chiero, 2004) and many are monocultural. Abi-Nader states (as cited in Stone & Chiero, 2004) states that teachers are finding that motivational strategies, teaching styles, classroom management routines once found effective, are not meeting the needs of students.

Sleeter (as cited in Pewewardy, 1999) brings the variable of bias that many teachers coming from the European American dominant culture bring, often unknowingly, to the profession and the classroom. For example, a white teacher understands the meaning of race based on personal experiences. His or her knowledge about the social world is basically true but only for understanding people of the same race. McIntosh (as cited in Pewewardy, 1999) explains that many people, including teachers, who are white may not realize that they benefit from privileges within the greater culture based on their skin color and culture.

Furthermore, as noted by Ahearn et al. (2002), if educators evaluate children from diverse backgrounds based on the point of view of the dominant culture, they often miss the abilities and potential of certain groups of children. It is not the lack of ability or intelligence of linguistically and culturally diverse children that leads to poor academic performance, rather the incongruence between the school culture and the home cultures of the children (Ahearn et al., 2002). Teachers must figure out how to bridge the cultural gap, build on the children's prior knowledge and create an environment that allows them to succeed in the school culture while honoring the value of their home cultures and identities (Ahearn et al., 2002).

Students

Like their teachers, students' values, ways of acting, interacting and learning are also the products of culture. Suarez-Orozco (as cited in Stone & Chiero, 2004) states that culture affects a student's cognitive development as well as the achievement motivation of all students. Suarez-Orozo (as cited in Stone & Chiero, 2004) explains many minority children are not motivated by the mainstream American focus on individualism and competition. Rather, Abdi-Nader (as cited in Stone & Chiero,2004) found that Hispanic students, for example, were motivated through the concept of family in a successful college preparation program. The sense of belonging and unity found within the concept of family motivated academic success. Ryan, Connell, and Deci (as cited in Stone & Chiero, 2004) found that in order to create a learning environment where student were intrinsically motivated to engage and succeed in academics, teachers needed create a learning environment that met students' basic psychological needs be competent, related, and autonomous. To create such an environment, knowledge of the learner's cultural frame of reference is essential (Stone & Chiero, 2004). Cummins and Entwistle (as cited in Saifer et al. 2005) found that by the age of 8, children's enthusiasm for learning and their belief in their ability to learn could be undermined due to the mismatch of school and home cultural values and communication.

Culturally Responsive Teaching

According to Klump and McNeir (2005), many research studies (a few of which use the scientific method) indicate that teaching through culturally responsive practices benefits the academic achievement of culturally diverse learners. Williams (as cited in Stickney, 2003) has shown that when educators teach in a manner that is culturally responsive, academic achievement does improve. Culturally responsive teaching is defined by Gay (as cited in Stickney, 2003 and Gay, 2002) as pedagogy that incorporates the learners' cultural frames of references, experiences, prior knowledge, interactional and communication styles into instruction in a way that will make the academic knowledge meaningful and relevant to diverse students.

Culturally responsive teaching requires that teachers learn factual information about the unique cultural attributes and frames of reference of every child's culture in their classroom (Ahearn et al. 2002; Gay 2002; Saifer et al., 2005). They must not only learn about the cultures of their students, they must implement this cultural knowledge into instructional practices (Ahearn et al., 2002). Ahearn et al. (2002) suggest that information can be learned through home visits, conversations with community members, observing students, conversations with students, and conversations with colleagues. They stress that care should be taken to avoid over-generalizing information as there are many variations among individuals and groups (Ahearn et al., 2002).

Saifer et al. ( 2005) remind teachers that in addition to learning about the cultures of their students and families, they must examine their own cultural frames of reference and attitudes. Teachers of diverse students must also be aware of the dynamics that occur when cultures interact and find ways to make an inclusive classroom culture that blends both the cultures of the school and the students. They must be willing to adjust their teaching styles when needed and move out of their own cultural and interactional comfort zones for the benefit of the children and communities they serve (Saifer et al., 2005).

Terms & Concepts

Bicultural: the state of having two cultural frames of reference through which to view the world.

Cultural Variable: a general term used to denote the role of one or more multiple aspects of culture on what it taught, how it is taught, the learning process, engagement and academic success of students in the interactional process of education

Cultural Competency: the mastery of complex awarenesses, knowledge and skills that are required to effectively teach across cultures

Cultural Frame of Reference: a cultural perspective that influences the way a person interprets information from the outside world based on the norms, values, and experiences of a given group of people

Cultural Mismatch: the concept that when the culture of the learning environment differs from the home culture of the child learning is adversely affected

Culturally Responsive Teaching: teaching that incorporates the learners' cultural frames of references, experiences, prior knowledge, interactional styles, and communication styles into instruction in a way that will make the academic knowledge meaningful and relevant to diverse students as a path to student learning

Dominant Culture: the culture of the group of people with the most power in a given society

Dominated Cultures: a groups of people that were made to become part of the United States

General Culture: defined as what the majority of individuals in that country consider to be its characteristics

Immigrant Cultures: in general, people who have chosen to come to the United States to improve their economic or political situations

Minority Culture: any culture not belonging to the dominant culture

Monocultural: the state of having one cultural frame of reference through which to view the world.

Bibliography

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Suggested Reading

Amobi, F. (2007).The Message or the messenger: Reflection on the volatility of evoking novice teachers' courageous conversations on race. Multicultural Education, 14 , 2-7. Retrieved November 30, 2007, from EBSCO online database, Education Research Complete http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ehh&AN=24895467&site=ehost-live

Chung-ling, S. (2013). Bilingual and bicultural sense development: A hybrid translation teaching approach. English Teaching & Learning, 37, 1–45. Retrieved December 10, 2013 from EBSCO Online Database Education Research Complete. http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ehh&AN=89878980

Darling-Hammond, L. Third Annual Brown Lecture in Education Research. The flat earth and education: how America's commitment to equity will determine our future. Educational Researcher, 36 , 318-334.

Gay, G. (2002). Preparing for culturally responsive teaching. Journal of Teacher Education, 53 , 106-116.

Fredrick, T. (2006). Choosing to belong: increasing adolescent male engagement in the ELA classroom. Changing English: Studies in Culture & Education, 13 , 151-159. Retrieved November 28, 2007, from EBSCO online database, Academic Search Premier http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=19977879&site=ehost-live

Koo Moon, H., Kwon Choi, B., & Shik Jung, J. (2012). Previous international experience, cross-cultural training, and expatriates' cross-cultural adjustment: Effects of cultural intelligence and goal orientation. Human Resource Development Quarterly, 23, 285–330. Retrieved December 10, 2013 from EBSCO Online Database Education Research Complete. http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ehh&AN=80124415

Moore, S., Madison-Colmore, O., & Collins, W. (2005). Appreciating multiculturalism: Exercises for teaching diversity. Journal of African American Studies, 8 , 63-75. Retrieved November 30, 2007, from EBSCO online database, Academic Search Premier http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=18066124&site=ehost-live

Parameswaran, G. (2007). Enhancing diversity education. Multicultural Education, 14 , 51-55. Retrieved November 30, 2007 from EBSCO online database, Education Research Complete http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ehh&AN=24895474&site=ehost-live

Harry, B. & Klingner, J. (2007). Discarding the deficit model .Educational Leadership, 64 , 16-21. Retrieved November 30, 2007 from EBSCO online database, Academic Search Premier http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=23996905&site=ehost-live

Zhou, M. (2003). Urban education: Challenges in educating culturally diverse children. Teachers College Record, 105 , 208-225. Retrieved November 30, 2007, from EBSCO online database, Academic Search Premier http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=9096138&site=ehost-live