Understanding Cultural Differences/Activities

Both my parents were australian, so that may have some significance over here. We always celebrate christmas and mother and fathers day, and we have personal family traditions which I think are our own and relate not to a national culture so much as a family one. But because they’re immingrants perhaps we have lost those defining australian traditions, certainly I’m not aware of them. We never really had many BBqs but in New Zealand that’s quite different from the recognised culture too.

As for tutoring peoples from differeing cultural backgrounds, things that you might do caussually and in an offhand way might be the most shoking to someone who has different attitudes, to see their values in such a different light, in such a way. Things that may have to be pointedt out, or noticed by the tutor, or the reactions of the tutee as they take note of an offence or “faux pas”.

Possible benifits would be the lightening of a new context or concept that had not, form one view or another been thought of before, or even copnsidered as a possibility. What you thought was quite serious, and important to the way you lived your life, might be taken as light hearted and as lightly by the person sitting opposite you.

To encourage an inviting environment, I might ask the student to tell me of an example of the subject we were discussing in their own terms, about their own country. How or Where, and in what way did this effect you , and do they still in this way? What will you do with this perspective – would it be accepted at home, or in your own country, will you share it with your friends, would your friends find it new or intersting? Also, I might have them bring along some music, if tere was the option, and I could bring along some of my own, or a snack to have between times, of that culture that they were wanting to discover for themselves or share with others. And I could do the same. These are all ways of breaking dsown barriers, and becoming more attuned to each others ways of thinking about the woyrld around them.

One cultural interaction I experienced involved having dinner with some afghanis. We all sat around on a tarpaulin and ate with our hands. There wereknives and forks but I thought I do what they were doing and wrap the curry we were eating up in the bread they’d ordered. We had serviettes though, and somehow I got confused and had a mouthfull of serviette in my curry. So evryone started handing me knives and forks. It was very humourous. In that situation being open and friendly and easy going with a bit of cautious reserve was a good rule.