When we can identify and respect our culture for what it really is; we will not want to be like anybody else. We will have pride in who we are! As we respect the culture of other, we help them to respect and accept who they are and discourage them to change into a person that is acceptable in our eyes.
For this Blog post I am highlighting the definitions
of culture and diversity that I received from some friends. Most of these definitions just focus on the
surface of culture without identifying the deep characteristics of culture. Some of the definitions of diversity did not
come close to being the correct definitions.
“Culture is complex, consisting of easily recognizable elements, as well
as more hidden yet equally powerful factors” (Laureate, 2011) and as I found out,
is defined differently by each person. I
asked four of my acquaintances to define culture and diversity just to provide
a sample of the different views of these two terms.
Brian Dunkin (a White, male that lives in Oregon)-“Culture
is the way things are done in your region and diversity is being able to do
many things in a wide scope (Personal Communication, 2013).
Donna Shands (An African-American woman that lives
in Texas)-“My definition of
culture is the norms and ideals of the community in which one lives. Diversity
is when there is more than one cultural group or ethnicity represented in a
group. (Personal Communication, 2013).
Eqah
Igbal (A Woman living in Malaysia)-she
provided me with information of their culture and diversity instead of the
definitions of the terms. I have decided
to include her answers because our classrooms are so diverse and this
information might be of some assistance to one of my colleagues.
In
Malaysia, the majority of the population are ethnic Malay Muslims. And the rest
followed by the Chinese and Indian. The festival, which is celebrated every
year just like other Muslims. Special about the Malays are in terms of food,
music and dance. Food more towards eastern like nasi lemak, roti canai and so
on. While the music arrangement is creative ethnic, rhythm Malaysia eg Nirmala
song. Dance also is comprised of zapin and dondang sayang. Malay is also well known for their politeness
and courtesy. We are still using the
services of a midwife to the birth in some places. Despite increasingly
sophisticated technology, midwife services are still needed for women to
abstain as massage. (Personal
Communication, 2013).
The previous three communications
took place via the Internet on Facebook.
I have another answer that I received during a training session at the
One Goal Summer Conference this week that was hosted in Tampa this week. My partner for the session was another Walden
University student named Maria Broome-Levinus.
We exchanged information about our cultures with each other and shared
our delight of meeting each other as Walden University Students pursuing
Masters in Early Childhood Studies. Her
definitions of culture and diversity were that culture is “who you are, the
combining of your parents traditions and the forming of your own. Diversity is how we learn based on one family
experiences, how I learn as an individual based on my own personal relationship
to my family’ (Personal Communication, 2013).
As I reflect on their definitions
and notice the different perspectives of their views, I began to form my
answers to the very same questions.
Culture is all of the aspects of our lives that make us who we are. Culture is not just identified by the surface
aspects like our race, foods that we eat or clothes that we wear. Culture is also identified by our language
spoken, values we have, who we identify as family, our religion, the gender
roles our people play, and even how we show emotions. Diversity refers to all of the different
cultures that are represented in a particular place. There are so many diverse cultures but when
we learn about and respect each other’s cultures we can say that we are truly the
United States of America that respects diversity.
Resource
Wow, your interviewees perspectives on culture and diversity are awesome. I agree that self-awareness will lead to self-respect and build high self-esteem. Having high self-esteem encourages and acceptances of difference and identity. Great post!
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