Culture and Diversity: 3 Perspectives

I spoke with 3 friends, and asked them to share their definitions of culture and of diversity.  One friend, Topi, grew up in Finland, another friend, Monika, grew up in what was formerly East Germany, and my third friend, Tracey, grew up here in the U.S.  All three currently live in the U.S.

I asked each person to define culture.  Topi defined culture as the environment in which one lives.  Culture includes the physical environment (In Topi's case, Finland, which has a significant affect on the culture of the people), how people adapt to that environment, and how that influences the way people think about what they perceive.  Monika agreed with this definition and added that culture changes over time given influences for example from other cultures.  Monika remembers well when the former Soviet Union controlled much of what went on in East Germany.  She also remembers well, when in 1989 the Berlin Wall came down and reunification was enacted.  Monika stressed that a single geographical place can undergo drastic cultural changes over a given period f time.  Tracey, defined culture as the social aspects of a society.

I also asked each person to define diversity.  Topi defined diversity as basically what we have in the U.S.  He said that diversity makes life "interesting".  Topi also said that in Finland there is very little diversity, although it is changing.  Many Finns he said, are rather "closed-minded" in their willingness to appreciate other cultures, within their own country.  Like Topi, Monika stated that social diversity is what exists in the U.S.  By comparison she said that Germany is not diverse.  Monika shared a conversation she had with her father recently when she went back to Germany to visit.  They were talking about the non-German ethnic groups that were entering Germany.  Monika's father stated that if people from other countries want to come to Germany, than it is up to them to assimilate to German culture- that they have chosen to give up their own cultures in coming to Germany.  Monika then said, that as a German living in the U.S., she would greatly resent being asked to give up her German culture in order to live in the U.S.  She stressed that she and her husband Topi are in the U.S. in part because of the openness and social diversification of the country.  Tracey defined social diversification as the integration of cultures.

We have learned that social diversification is a strength.  Both Topi and Monika reflect this point of view as Monika stresses that one of the major reasons they came to the U.S. was for the cultural diversification.

The people I spoke with about the topics of culture and diversification are parents of children I have had in my class.  It is typical for teachers and families in Montessori school to form strong friendships as the children remain in the same class for 3 years.  Therefore connections often last well beyond the time that their children move on from preschool. The discussions we have had regarding culture and diversity have, to a point, confirmed and reinforced the lessons I learned about diversity and culture when I taught in South Central Los Angeles.  Immigrants to the U.S. need to be considered one family at a time.  People have different reasons for immigrating to the U.S. and it is critical that as Early childhood professions we understand as much as possible the unique reasons for the families move to the U.S., because the reasons for immigration provide meaning for the needs/desires/wishes families have for themselves and their children once in the U.S.    

Cultural Items of Personal Significance? A Hypothetical Scenario.

Nadiyah Taylor, faculty member of the Early Childhood Development Faculty at Las Positas College in Livermore, CA, (Laureate Education Inc., 2011) suggests that everything an individual does is related to culture- what we say, what we think, what we value, what we eat and how we eat it, what we wear and how we wear it, even how we sleep and go to the bathroom are all defined by culture.  For the purpose of this discussion an individual’s culture is defined by the individual’s environment as well as the relationships and experiences the individual encounters within that environment.   One possible way of defining an individual’s culture is through the symbols and objects the individual chooses to represent the important aspects of their personal identity.  What symbols or objects does one choose to represent the most important aspects of one’s own culture?

Our assignment for this week presents a “what if” scenario:  “Consider that a major catastrophe has almost completely devastated the infrastructure of your country.  The emergency government has decided that the surviving citizens will be best served if they are evacuated to other countries willing to take refugees.  You and your immediate family are among the survivors of this catastrophic event… You are told that you are told that your host country’s culture is completely different from your own, and that you might have to stay there permanently… you can only take 3 small items with you… You decide to take three items… that represent your family culture”  (Walden University, 2012).

After being assured that the needs of basic survival will be met, I would simply take photos of my children.  Although there are many objects and symbols that represent my personal identity and family culture, I would not feel it practical to take them given this precarious scenario.  Therefore, I would simply take the photos of my children.  The rest of my personal identity and family culture is within myself.  Any symbolic recreation of that I feel confident I could create anew in my family’s new location.  If I could only bring in one item, I would choose a photo that represented my girls and myself together.  The decision to bring only a photo of my family is reflective of who I am as a person and what I think is important… that being my family, which in this scenario will be with me.  In the case of such a catastrophic event my practical and pragmatic side would surface, guiding my decisions in such a way as to ensure the safety and wellbeing of my children.  Adapting to the new culture would become the priority, reinventing the culture I left behind would be secondary and come after some amount of stability had been achieved in the new environment.

Nadiyah Taylor, faculty member of the Early Childhood Development Faculty at Las Positas College in Livermore, CA, (Laureate Education Inc., 2011) suggests that everything an individual does is related to culture- what we say, what we think, what we value, what we eat and how we eat, what we wear and how we wear it, even how we sleep and go to the bathroom are all defined by culture.  For the purpose of this discussion an individual’s culture is defined by the individual’s environment as well as the relationships and experiences the individual encounters within that environment.   One possible way of defining an individual’s culture is through the symbols and objects the individual chooses to represent the important aspects of their personal identity.  What symbols or objects does one choose to represent the most important aspects of one’s own culture?

Our assignment for this week presents a “what if” scenario:  “Consider that a major catastrophe has almost completely devastated the infrastructure of your country.  The emergency government has decided that the surviving citizens will be best served if they are evacuated to other countries willing to take refugees.  You and your immediate family are among the survivors of this catastrophic event… You are told that you are told that your host country’s culture is completely different from your own, and that you might have to stay there permanently… you can only take 3 small items with you… You decide to take three items… that represent your family culture”  (Walden University, 2012).

After being assured that the needs of basic survival will be met, I would simply take photos of my children.  Although there are many objects and symbols that represent my personal identity and family culture, I would not feel it practical to take them given this precarious scenario.  Therefore, I would simply take the photos of my children.  The rest of my personal identity and family culture is within myself.  Any symbolic recreation of that I feel confident I could create anew in my family’s new location.  If I could only bring in one item, I would choose a photo that represented my girls and myself together.  The decision to bring only a photo of my family is reflective of who I am as a person and what I think is important… that being my family, which in this scenario will be with me.  In the case of such a catastrophic event my practical and pragmatic side would surface, guiding my decisions in such a way as to ensure the safety and wellbeing of my children.  Adapting to the new culture would become the priority, reinventing the culture I left behind would be secondary and come after some amount of stability had been achieved in the new environment.