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"Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness . . . Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one's lifetime." - Mark Twain, 1867 - Designed by Delilah Heil
Introduction Introduction | Task | Process | Evaluation | Conclusion | Additional Materials _____________________________________________________________
Culture is everywhere. It is the spice of life.
Most people approach each other with good intentions, but we can get on each other's nerves just by being ourselves. Especially if our cultural beliefs are not the same and we push our beliefs on someone who does not have the same beliefs.
Understanding culture will allow you to respect others feelings as you encounter them in the world. It will reduce the potential for conflict and power struggles. It will allow you to work with the diversity of people by giving you insight into how to approach different people in different situations.
Our school is participating in a United Nations Foreign Exchange Program. The goal of the program is to foster an awareness of other cultures and to learn more about the values, beliefs, etc of other cultures.
_____________________________________________________________ Your class assignment is to research the cultures of the areas from which we may expect exchange students. They will have researched our culture and will, no doubt, attempt to fit in to our way of life; therefore, we should also make an attempt to understand them better and to help in the transition process. Some areas to explore are listed below but don't limit yourself to just these areas if you find something else in your research that may help bridge the gap between the cultures and make the transition easier. music customs and traditions religion clothing and costumes food/cuisine popular games and past time activities etiquette/manners/conduct (socially or business)
___________________________________________________________ The class will be divided into groups. Students will draw for their group assignments. Using the suggested internet sites, and materials listed in the Additional Materials section, plus any additional materials you find on your own, research the culture and specific area of the culture that you have been assigned. With that information you must complete the following steps: * Work within your group to collect information on your topic during class time provided and outside of class. * Create a technology-enhanced presentation in which all group members participate.
Some ideas:
- Create a skit (where you dress as people in the culture might dress) with music from that culture playing softly in the background as you present/demonstrate your information.
- Use programs such as Audacity, MovieMaker, or PhotoStory 3 to create a unique presentation. - Or come up with your own presentation method and have it approved by your teacher. NOTE: Your finished product should be entirely contained on the technology you select as your final presentation medium. It should contain pictures, video clips, etc showing us parts of the culture you feel are important. You will insert your narration into the presentation telling us about what we are seeing and why it is important.
* Create a handout of main points from the presentation that will be turned in to the teacher (via a WebCT assignment)
* Keep a list of technology used for the project on the given handout and turned in via WebCT assignment.
* Include a readable APA format bibliography at the end of your presentation
_____________________________________________________________ Group participation during the collection of data and planning class time. Presentation will be graded with presentation rubric. _____________________________________________________________ Culture is all around us. Even in America, which is the melting pot of many cultures, you will see American born people who still hold old family customs as a part of their family tradition. These rituals and traditions should not be considered strange. Instead, they should be cherished, and remind us of all the freedoms of expression we have. Now that you have completed your investigation of the different cultures, you should have a new understanding of various cultures and be more aware of your actions and the actions of others as you encounter them in your daily life.
_____________________________________________________________ Classroom Materials: Atlas of Islam: People, daily life, and traditions by Neil Morris Atlas of World Cultures by Brunetto Chiarelli Atlas of World Religions by Anita Ganeri China: A quick guide to customs and etiquette (Culture Smart) by Kathy Flower Greece: A quick guide to customs and etiquette (Culture smart) by Constantine Buhayer Grolier Illustrated Encyclopedia: Countries of the world India: A quick guide to customs and etiquette (Culture Smart) by Nicki Grihault Indonesia: A quick guide to customs and etiquette (Culture Smart) by Graham Saunders Iran: A quick guide to customs and etiquette (Culture Smart) by Stuart Williams Italy: A quick guide to customs and etiquette (Culture Smart) by Charles Abbott Japan: A quick guide to customs and etiquette (Culture Smart) by Paul Norbury Kenya: A quick guide to Customs and etiquette (Culture Smart) by Jane Barsby Multicultural Manners by Norine Dresser Saudi Arabia: A quick guide to customs and etiquette (Culture Smart) by Nicholas Buchelle Spain: A quick guide to customs and etiquette (Culture Smart) by Marian Meaney Library Materials: REF 390 CUL CultureGram REF 305.8 WOR Worldmark Encyclopedia of Cultures and Daily Life REF 394.26 ENC Encyclopedia of Holidays and celebrations REF 910 JUN Junior Worldmark Encyclopedia of the nations REF 910 M35 Marshall Cavendish New Illustrated Encyclopedia of the World and it's people. 200 BRE Religions of the World 290 MAC Culture Encyclopedia - Religion 297 HOD What Muslims think and how they live 305.4 ESH Women in the African world 305.4 VAN Women in the Japanese world 305.42 HUN Women in the world of India 305.42 SAN Women in the world of China 390 HAR Blackbirch Press Visual Encyclopedia: People of the World 390 MAC Culture Encyclopedia - History of Culture 391 KEN Ethnic Dress 391.009 CHE Cultures and costumes: symbols of their period: Middle East 391.009 GRE Cultures and costumes: symbols of their period: Africa 391.009 KIL Cultures and costumes: symbols of their period: India and Sri Lanka 394.2 ING A celebration of customs and rituals of the world 394.2 BRE Festivals of the world 394.2 JAC Splendid slippers: a thousand years of an erotic tradition 394.2 WOR World Book's celebrations and rituals around the world 394.26 FOL Folklore of World Holidays
Note: Use the online catalog to research each culture individually for other books on a specific culture.
Last updated on March 21, 2012
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