Culture Questions

1. You are a 4th grade teacher with a new boy in your class from an Arab nation. He speaks
very little English. He is having a problem getting along with the other students. He has fights
on the playground every day, which he seems to provoke by constantly touching the other
boys.
According to the book, Arab students don't usually interact with the opposite sex
because it is considered disrespectful. Also, right now the middle east has a lot of
violence going on in some areas. This boy might be acting out due to what he may have
been surrounded by in his home country. I would approach this situation by reaching out
to the school counselor for help. I would have the student go and see her during recess
time, and practice english and go over proper behavior on the playground.

2. You have a new Korean girl in your 4th grade class. The other students in your class don’t want
to sit next to her because they say she smells funny. You have a bad allergy and can’t tell. She
appears to be a clean, well-dressed child and you don’t understand your students’ objections.

There are a couple of possible outcomes here, one could be that in her culture, they do not believe
in deodorant or any body soap for that matter. A lot of different cultures believes the chemicals
can hurt your body. Another possible reason could be that this little girl might have different foods
that are part of Korean culture in her backpack or desk that could possibly smell bad like sushi or
any raw fish. If this was one of my students, I would approach the situation as kindly and respectful
as I can. I would pay close attention to what she was bringing for lunch, and I would always keep
some type of air refresher in my classroom and spray it when students left the room. This situation
is difficult to approach because you don't want to offend anyone or hurt anyones feelings. I would
also ask other teachers, and the school counselor for advice on how to approach tis situation.

3. You are a 3rd grade teacher who is having a parent conference with parents of an Asian
student in your class. You explain to the parents that the child needs to spend more time
working on his homework. The parents keep nodding and saying “yes” as you explain your
reasons. You are disappointed when there doesn’t seem to be any follow-up on the parents’
part.

Depending on what part of Asia this student is from, her parents could very well not understand
english very well or just be simply respecting the teacher by agreeing with whatever they are
saying. For example, in China teachers are recognized as an authority figure from the student
and parent point of view. The parents in Asian culture typically leave the teaching up to the
teachers. They do not have direct communication because it is considered rude. If i was this
teacher, I would talk to the students directly first, and make sure that he is understanding his
homework. Then I would ask to meet with the students and his parents together and make sure
they know that direct communication and to ask questions is not rude to you. Parent
involvement is very important and in a lot of different cultures do not practice that in respect to
the teacher.
 4. You are a 5th grade teacher who is using a lot of cooperative learning strategies in your
classroom. In the middle of the year you get a new Arab boy in your class. The student
doesn’t follow any of the rules you have explained through a bilingual classmate. He is very
disruptive in your class.

As a teacher, it is incredibly important to be culturally sensitive to your students. If I was this boys
teacher I would try my best to remain patient and understanding while he is going though this
difficult transition. According to the book it says that they have many unique and special traditions
such as hosting people and making them food, being extremely family oriented, being social with
others, religious beliefs, etc. I think one way we could make him feel more comfortable in the class
which could possible lead to less distractions would to have a class party to celebrate everyones
culture. Every student could bring their favorite type of food from their culture and socialize among
one another. This might make the student feel more comfortable. Also, since family is very special
to the arab culture, inviting the students parents to the classroom one day to meet the teacher and to
talk about what they will be learning would help as well. This will show the student that you are
respecting him and his culture which would make them feel much more comfortable in the
classroom.

5. You are a 6th grade teacher with your first student from China. She came with an excellent
report card from her school in China. She is outstanding in math but can’t seem to learn to read.

In Asia, school is taken very seriously and children are encouraged to just sit, listen, and study as
much as they can. Any interaction or questions for the teacher is somewhat discouraged and
parents are not involved in the students education because they have the upmost respect for their
child’s teachers and do not want to be disrespectful. I would ask this student, how her English is,
and if she is feeling comfortable with reading. I would make sure to take time out of the day, to
work on her English and reading skills with her. Since she doesn't know she can ask for help, it is
important for me to approach her and make sure she is getting the help she needs.
6. You are Ms. Smith, a 3rd grade teacher. You don’t think your new student from Egypt is
placed in the correct grade. You set up a meeting with the parents to discuss placing the child
correctly. The student’s father comes in to see you but doesn’t seem to take your concerns
seriously.
According to the reading in chapter 20, there could be a plethora of reasons why this students father is
not recognizing the problems or concerns. For example, most parents from this part of the country
refuse to recognize any problems with their family, as it is looked at as shameful. The culture in
classrooms in the U.S is also a lot different than in Egypt and requires a lot more understanding and
parent involvement. His father may not understand that Ms. Smith is reaching out to him for help to
place the child correctly, because teachers make the decisions regarding the child's education in
Northern Africa. Being Ms. Smith, the first thing I would do is read all of the values and unacceptable
behaviors of the people from Northern Africa or the Arab culture. This way I could avoid coming off
as rude or disrespectful to their culture. I would then ask to meet with the parents again, including the
student, and explain to them that in order to better their sons education, I need their help with making
decisions on where to place him. I would try and keep in touch as much as possible with his parents so
it is apparent that parent involvement is necessary.
 7. You are a first-grade teacher. A Korean student comes into your class in April. During a
discussion of age and birthdays, this student says that she is 8 years old. The other students
in your class are turning seven. The office tells you that she has been correctly placed.

My first thought, would be that this is happening because in Korea, students don’t start formal
school until age 7, and the school year is typically a year long. The typical school year in Korea
starts in early March and finished in early February. This student probably started first grade
already in Korea, and had her birthday during the school year there since it is so long. If I was the
teacher, I would make sure she does not feel uncomfortable or judged that she is older, I would
make her feel important that she “gets” to be the oldest. This way she can still be learning in a
comfortable environment with her classmates, and we can all still celebrate birthdays (whomever
does).

8. Guadelupe is a smiling 3rd grader from Argentina. She seems well-mannered and eager
to please. However, when you speak to her she refuses to look at you.

Guadelape was taught that making direct eye-contact is rude, because in this area and in this
culture, it is disrespectful to your superior to look them directly in the eye. I would approach
Guadelupe and let her know that it is completely okay to look me in the eye, and actually it is
encouraged in my classroom because then I know she is listening to me and I know she is paying
attention.
 9. You are a 4th grade teacher who wants to write a quick note home to an ESL student’s
family. You pick up the red pen that you use to mark papers and write the note. When you
hand the note to the student, she looks upset.
I do not know what culture this ESL is from, but from what I can infer, I know that I need to be
more sensitive to the idea of this student have specific traditions and beliefs in their cultures. I could
have handed to them with my left hand, or red ink could possibly mean hatred. So next time, I will
be more sensitive to these ideas.

10. The Japanese mother of one of your 1st graders picks up her child every day at your door.
You are upset because this mother seems unfriendly. She never smiles at you and you wonder
if you have done something to offend her.
In this culture, adults typically only smile at their friends and not people they are not familiar with
and don't know anything about. It is not considered rude in this culture, sort of like it is in America,
to not smile at people that you see, especially people that are relevant in your life but you don't
know. In this situation I would greet this mother, and ask her questions so she gets to know me
better.

11. Haitian brothers Jean-Baptiste and Jean-Pierre are often late for school. They are also each
absent about once a week but on different days.

In different cultures such as this one, education isn't always a priority to parents. These brothers
could have responsibilities at home. They could for sure have to miss school to help their parents
with whatever they need, and since there is two of them, they most likely take turns. What I would
do in this situation is simply ask the two brothers why they are missing school, and then I would
meet with their parents to see if there is anything I could to help, that would prevent these boys
from missing school.
12. Your new Kurdish student seems to be sick all the time. He is lethargic and doesn’t seem
to even try to learn what you are teaching him.
Students from the middle east travel a very long way to get to the United States, he may not be
getting much sleep at home because his family is stressed out settling down in a new area. He
also may have siblings to take care of at home, considering family is a huge part of their culture,
he will put this ahead of his school work. I would ask this student if everything is okay, and why
he is seeming so tired during class time. If this doesn't work, I will ask his parents if anything is
going on at home, and ask the counselor for help.

13. A Russian student, who has learned English and is able to do much of the work in your 4th
grade classroom, copies work from other students during tests. When you talk to him about
this, he doesn’t seem at all contrite. His parents act like you’re making a big deal about
nothing.
In this part of the country, students have the same teachers throughout primary school for the same
subject. Their teachers are familiar with them and vise versa obviously, because they've been in the
same classroom for years. American classrooms are a lot different in the sense that we get knew
teachers each year, and each teacher has new rules. In Russia, they might not have rules against
cheating or copying other students paper like we do here in our classrooms. I would talk to the
student privately and just let them know nicely that in class, it is not acceptable to copy the work
from another student, because we need to learn for ourselves.

14. You have a Puerto Rican student in the 3rd grade who speaks English fluently. She
participates orally in your classroom and socializes well with her peers. She even translates for
other students. However, she is doing very poorly in her content area schoolwork.

According to the book, Puerto Rican’s do not consider themselves as bilingual even though some
can speak English. However, the writing or cognitive part is not practiced in school. It makes sense
that she can participate in speaking activities and not writing because she has not practiced writing
before. As her teacher and having her as an ELL, I would have her focus her learning primarily on
writing activities.

15. Your 4th grade Malaysian student seems to be very good at Math. He gets “100” on his
spelling tests. No one in your class knows the names of the state capitals better than he does.
However, he seems to have a hard time comprehending a simple reading passage.

In this country, students don't focus on hands on activities and skills that involve a lot of critical
thinking. Reading is one activity that involves critical thinking because you have to think of the
meaning and comprehend the passage. The skills that this boy is good at, are all things that don't
necessarily involve critical thinking skills, but mostly memorization. I would have the student
work one on one with the ELL teacher or myself so we can improve his reading skills.

16. Some of your most advanced ESL students do not understand many of the geometric
concepts which are taught in American classrooms starting in kindergarten.

The metric system is different in every country, and it is important as teachers to understand that
each student is not always on the same level with each subject. These ESL students, although
advanced, probably have a hard tim understanding the geometric concepts because they have been
taught something different in their country. I would have these students of an after school math
club, or set aside time in the day for the students to work on these concepts.
17. Thi Lien is a new student from Viet Nam. She seems bright and alert but gets no help from
home. The papers you send home are still in her backpack the next day. Important
correspondence is never acknowledged. She doesn’t do homework and forgets to bring back
library books. Her home life appears to be very disorganized.
The education system in Vietnam is extremely strict and educators do not go off of the direct
material. The educator stands in front of the classroom and lectures all day, there is no
communication with the student and teacher at all because it is considered disrespectful to the
teacher. I believe Lien doesn't know how to do homework and have communication through
her teacher to her parents because it is not something that is practiced in her culture back home.
The students in Vietnam don't have communication with teachers and parents also do not speak
with teachers because they put all of the responsibility of the education on the teachers and
students. Something I would do as a teacher, is make sure my ELL is getting the extra help at
school so she can read her homework and papers I send home. Since they do not speak much or
have much communication, their english might not be very proficient. I would also be very
aware of their culture. I would ask to meet with parents so they know direct communication is
okay, and not disrespectful, I would encourage a relationship with the student and her parents
and help them stay organized with her homework and papers.

18. Pablo is a well-mannered boy from Colombia. He insists on calling you “Teacher”
instead of your name which you are sure he knows.
I believe Pablo does this because in South America, specifically Argentina with has very
similar Spanish culture just like Columbia, they have specific names they call their teachers for
each grade level they are at. In elementary school it is "maestra" which means magister. This is
supposed to help students to transition into secondary school where they came their teachers
"Profesor/a". They do not call the teachers by their actual names in this culture out of respect.
What I would do to help this situation is to make sure he feels comfortable with calling me my
name. I would also let him know that is completely acceptable to call me "Ms. Ellison" or "Ms.
Hannah".

19. Hung is a bright ESL student in your 3rd grade class. He listens to you attentively and
follows directions well. However, he is very rude when a classmate is speaking. He either
talks to his neighbor or daydreams. He never joins in any class discussions.

In a lot of cultures, especially in Asia, students are not allowed to talk to their peers, or engage in any
social activity during school hours. They are to listen to the teacher and only the teacher and
anything else is considered disrespectful to the teacher. Hung should be taught proper
communication skills and should work on this at home with his parents as well.
 20. You are a 3rd grade teacher. Your new student speaks Arabic. He seems to hold his pencil in
a very clumsy way and has a great deal of difficulty even copying work in English.

This student is most likely having difficult with writing in general because most arabic people write
their sentences from right to left rather than how we do it in America, left to right. This would
explain why we is holding his pencil weird as well, because he is probably struggling with what
hand he should write with because it is so new and confusing. This student needs to spend extra
time practicing his writing from right to left and I can help him find a comfortable way to hold his
pencil that will make him feel more stable.
21. Maria is a Mexican student whose attendance in your 6th grade class is very poor. It is
affecting her academic performance. After an absence of several days, you ask her why she
was out and she explains that her aunt was sick and her family went to help her. Although you
explain the importance of good attendance in school, the same thing happens a few weeks
later. You wonder if Maria’s family considers education important.
In Mexican culture, family is incredibly important to them. They out family ahead of most
priorities and will do what they need to do in order to help them. Maria’s family is most likely
pulling her from school because they believe her aunts well being is more important. In this
situation, I would ask to meet with Maria’s parents and explain to them the importance of Maria’s
attendance in class and I would ask if they could please make sure she is coming to school, so she
doesn't risk the possibility of having to repeat 6th grade.

22. Mei, a new student from China, is scheduled to begin your 4th grade class in the middle of the
school year. On the day she registers, she is introduced to your class and shown where she
will sit. She is to begin school the next morning. You arrive in your classroom at 7:45 a.m. for
a day that begins at 8:30. Mei is waiting at her desk in the dark. The custodian tells you that she
arrived at 7:00 a.m.

In China, some students gather for personal study time as early as 4am-7am, before school actually
starts, so Mei was probably thinking she was following the rules and being a good student. I would
explain to Mei that if she wants to have personal study time, to let me know and I could come a little
early every morning, or stay after school a bit, but she has to let me know.

23. Korean parents bring you a gift because you have helped their child. You open it and thank
them profusely for their generosity. The parents look uncomfortable.
According to the reading, if you receive a gift some someone from Korea, it is rude to open that
gift in front of them. If i was this teacher, and I did not know about this, I would kindly apologize
and continue to open it later. If I was aware, I would not have opened the gift in front of them, but
thanked them repeatedly for their kindness.

24. You notice that a Muslim child in your classroom refuses to take a sheet of paper from a
 classmate. This isn’t the first time this has occurred.
I would say that if this Muslim child is a girl, and she doesn't want to receive the paper from the boy,
this would make sense. In muslim culture, parents really discourage their daughters to interact with
boys. Young girls in this culture do not play with boys, or even really talk to them because their parents
are so strict. I would try and sit this student around only girls to make her feel more comfortable.

25. You have applied for a cultural trip for teachers to China. You know that you will be meeting
other teachers along the way. You buy small gifts for them and wrap them in white tissue
paper. At your first stop during the trip the recipients of your gifts upset.

Unlike here in america, where we typically wear black to funerals and use black as a symbol of
death, In China, white is a symbol of death. This doesn't surprise me that they were very upset, but
unknowingly I would have apologized for the mistake, and either brought the gift back with
different wrapping paper, or explained to them I was unaware.

26. Thu is a 6th grade girl from Thailand. She becomes hysterical when the other girls tease her by
playfully mussing up her hair. Her parents have to come to school and take her home. While
you understand her need to look tidy, you think she has over-reacted.

In Thailand culture, it is disrespectful to touch anyones head. This young girl obviously felt
disrespected when girls were playfully messing up her hair because where she is from, that is not
okay. I would bring the young girl inside and calm her down and explain that those girls did not
understand and that it will not happen again.

27. During a parent conference, you tell the parents of your Colombian ESL student that their
child is having difficulty in learning English. You suggest that they only speak English in their
home. The parents look confused. When you relay this conversation to the ESL teacher in
your school, she is very upset.

This is not a good idea, because in a lot of cultures including this one, their first language is a very
important part of their culture. By asking them to stop speaking it, it is extremely offensive to the
parents and student. I would apologize to the student and family, and just ask the ESL teacher to
work longer with him, or to practice more English during school hours.

28. You are a 4th grade teacher. You have a friendly boy in your class from the Dominican
Republic. He speaks very little English in the classroom and doesn’t seem to be making
much progress. When you give him directions, he seems to be confused. You are sure he is
putting one over on you by pretending not to understand because you have heard him
speak with the other children on the playground.

Im sure this boy is confused because a lot of people in this area are bilingual and when speaking, speak
 two different languages (Spanish and English). It makes sense that the young boy is speaking with
other people on the playground because he is more comfortable with young people and he can speak
social language and not as much academic which can be extremely intimidating. If this situation
was happening to me, I would address the student and explain to him that he can feel comfortable
and we can practice working on english one on one with a more comfortable environment.

29. You are a fourth-grade math teacher. Ayumi is one of the brightest students in your class.
She has been in the country for 2 years and it is obvious her background in math is superb.
She cannot seem to understand the units on fractions. You don’t know what to think.

This could possibly be because not everyone has the same metric system, or even so called “fractions” in
their countries. Ayumi could excel in multiplication or division, word problems, etc but when it comes to
something like fractions that not every culture has heard of or practice at such a young age it could be a
struggle. I would spend extra time her working on fractions, and maybe even give her practice problems to
work on at home for extra practice.

30. As a reward for good work in your class you give students a packet of 4 pencils with
decorative erasers. Your Japanese students take two and leave two behind.

A part of Japanese culture is giving gifts in two because it means good luck. That is why these
students took two and left behind two. To make it fair for these students so they get just as much as
the others, I would later on in the week, gift the other two pencils and erasers for them so they get
the same prize as the others.
31. Jean Pierre is a 5th grade student from Haiti. Your class is studying long division. Jean-
Pierre hands in his completed paper in a short time. You are upset because he has not
completed the work. There is no work showing. You think the problem is written
backwards. Maybe the student has a perceptual problem.
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In Haiti, this is how students solve their problems. In other countries like this one, students are
taught to solve the math problem mentally and no not write their work down. If this was my
student, I would have them practice writing their math out, as they solve it mentally to practice
showing their work. I would also, have them work one on one with me throughout the week for
extra help.

32. An Egyptian student in your 3rd grade class is a good math student but becomes
disruptive when you teach a math lesson using math manipulative.
As a teacher, you have to remember that not every student (especially ELL’s) are not always
learning the same things and are on the same page with certain subjects. Fore example in this
 situation, this student probably has never dealt with manipulative and doesn't understand why
you were teaching that, and didn't care. This student will need one on one extra help after or
before school to get caught up with the other students on this subject.

33. You have a new 3rd grade student from Bosnia. During recess time, the child hides under
and bench and cannot be persuaded to come out.
This new set up for this 3rd grader from Bosnia can be extremely overwhelming for this student,
and I believe he can't be persuaded to come out is because according to chapter 24, teacher and
student interaction is not encouraged in this area but it is very encouraged in America. This
student also comes from an area that has a lot of recent violence, and the child might be
experiencing PTSD. I would ask the counselor for help in this situation, because that is what they
are there for, and I will ask the student what I can do to help them.
34. You have new sixth grade student from Asia. The student appears to have an attitude from the
first day. Now he is out of his seat fooling around and you’ve just motioned to him to come
over to talk to you. He glares at you and seems even more angry. What happened?

I believe this student is acting out because they are experiencing culture shock. The student had to
move away from everything relative to his life and this can be very traumatizing to many students
especially if they are younger. I would consider many different things in this situation because you
never know, I would ask the student if everything is okay, and ask what I can do to help his
transition.

35. As your second-grade class lines up for a field trip, you count your students as you walk
down the line touching each of them on the head. You notice that several students pull
back from you.
This is very common in elementary schools and has been done for many years, even when I
was a kid. But, to be culturally respectful maybe try touching the students on the shoulder,
or giving them a high-five to count, This way, none of your students from other cultures get
offended.

36. You take photographs of your students working in small groups for a Back to School Night.
The grandmother of one of your Chinese students is very upset when she sees your photo
of her granddaughter.
In China, it is part of their culture to never have odd numbers for things because it is bad luck. This
could very well be part of the problem. I would possibly make sure that my Chinese students are
always in an even amount of groups to prevent anyone from feeling disrespected.
 37. You signal “O.K.” by making a “O” with your thumb and forefinger to a student who has
done a good job. Your 8th grade newcomer from Brazil looks very shocked.
This is typically a universal sign that means OK. But is some parts of the world such as Brazil, it
is a very disrespectful sign. This can be confusing because there is no way to know all of this,
so I would apologize to the student and explain what it means, and try to not use this sign in the
future, and maybe use a thumbs up instead.