Online Tutoring on Cultural Dissonance

In the current world, when people are travelling to different countries, cultural differences are inevitable. They tend to embrace different cultures which result in causing discomfort to the visiting party. This discomfort is termed as cultural dissonance and the individuals who are suffering with this discomfort find it hard to adjust as the causes have not been explored. In this essay cultural dissonance has been explained. Further, cultural dissonance based on my experience in the past has been explored.

The concept of cultural dissonance theory cannot be explained as it results from cultural differences; hence, the scope of negotiation is very less for the affected person. Allan (2002) states that cultural dissonance refers to an experience based differences in various attributes of culture and sort of discomfort which results from cultural interactions. The attempts to resolve dissonance issues can be distressing as it can be experienced by all parties. The students, who move to another country in order to get higher education, usually encounter cultural differences that result in experiencing dissonance. The performance of these students is specially affected. Cultural dissonance can have a negative and profound effect on the academic achievements and personal development of students. It may provoke the possibility of either abandon inherent cultural values and adapting school’s culture to achieve success, or resorting to ethnocentrism. It may also lead to misunderstandings between school and home as there exist a risk that the surrounding environment may not support students’ individual and cultural needs (Heine & Lehman, 1997).  Cultural and social dimensions are usually part of dissonance and at times can be explained as a process that individuals has to go through while trying to adjust in a new culture. (McKillop-Ostrom, 2000). Allan (2002) has described the experience of students in international schools as worst traumatic and best challenging in his study of cultural dissonance. However, experiencing different cultures can result in development of cross-cultural communication skills and personal growth, if it is well managed (Pollock and Reken, 2002).

 

Having come from Saudi Arabia, a country which has different culture, I braced myself for the effects of cultural diversity when I came to study in a University in Australia, which is completely a different country. Universities usually accept students from all different countries and cultures, therefore the possibility of coming across people from different backgrounds and cultures is very high. I have personally experience incidents where I felt being a victim of cultural dissonance. I believe its not only me but a lot of international students go encounter the same feeling, while studying at the university as an international student.. The university based factors which contributed to the dissonance includes adjusting to the unfamiliar environment in a second language and establishing new set of expectations for academic requirements and classroom behavior.

According to Hofstede, (2013) in majority of the Universities specially in distance countries, teachers are tend to have more respect and are treated with more decency, however my experience at the University was different. Teacher’s have more respect in Saudi Arabia where the learning is more teacher-oriented. It was uncomfortable for me to learn in such environment. Also, in Saudi Arabia, the learning process is completely dependent on teachers while it was entirely opposite in Australia (Al-Sunbul et al, 2004). The students were encouraged to dig deeper to attain knowledge as they focus on independent thinking, exploration and research (Pohl, 2000b) and I had to put in extra efforts to catch a hold of this system and achieve impressive grades. The teaching and learning was more relaxed in Saudi Arabia where the teachers write lots of notes and the environment was also less competitive (Howell, 2014). As a result, I became self-driven. Further, dissonance was experienced on the basis of language differences also. In Australia, it is required to master the alphabets as the participation of teachers was very less as compared to Saudi Arabia, where the art oriented education system called for a teacher to direct the learners on writing (Al-Sunbul et al, 2004). This experience of suddenly having to cooperate in a different classroom was accompanied by having to manage the cultural norms of a new language and classroom environment. One of the major issues I was facing, was due to the second language that I am not very familiar and comfortable with. As for such reason, I was reluctant to ask questions in class, and had to spend a bit more time after the class in order to clarify my queries with the lecturer. As everyone in the university speaks English, I was afraid that I won’t be able to speak English and wished to go back to Saudi Arabia.

It was difficult for me to solve the cultural dissonance as I was going through a process that every international student has to go through while studying in Australia. Rote learning or memorization has been criticized by the institutions in the West as a learning technique (Dixon & Hawe, 2016). By applying ‘active listening skills’, I was able to engage with the lessons actively. This strategy helped me as a means of improving English proficiency and mastering the concepts. Along with this, I also gave careful attention to the feedback given by teacher on assignments and essays, which helped me to know how to do the assignments properly. Participation in the study groups outside of class served as an important source to establish cues and understand assignment requirements in the learning environment.  Individual attitude towards the system seem to have a significant impact on the success in the course. The participation in the classroom delivered a great sense of satisfaction when the contribution was valued by the teachers and peers.

Despite the difficulties I experienced initially, an enduring belief in the value of course served as sustaining factor. By adapting these learning strategies, a satisfaction was experienced for being able to participate in an educational system and meet the demands of the course. I learnt skills like writing essays, learning critical thinking and coordinating with people, which was very useful for me and will continue in future. The positive attitudes carried me through the process of uncovering cues in the learning environment and understand the assignment requirements clearly. Having overcome this dissonance, I had experienced satisfaction and broadened my world-view. However, I am strongly of the view that the success of the international student program should be measured by the extent of the success of the students in their studies, broadening the learning methods along with enriching the whole group by letting them share the values and believes of their cultures.

 

References

Allan, M. (2002). ‘Cultural borderlands: a case study of cultural dissonance in an international school’. Journal of Research in International Education, 1(1), pp. 63–90.

Al-Sunbul, A., Al-Khateeb, M., Metwali, M., and Nour-Deen, M. (2004). Educational System in Saudi Arabia. Riyadh: Al-Kheraiji for Publishing and Distribution.

Dixon, H. and Hawe, E. (2016). Utilizing an Experiential Approach to Teacher Learning: A Consciousness Raising Opportunity. Australian Journal of Teacher Education, 41(11).

Heine, S. and Lehman, D. (1997). ‘Culture, Dissonance and Self-Affirmation’.  Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 23(4), pp. 389-400.

Hofstede, G. (2013). ‘Cultural differences in teaching and learning’. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 10, pp. 301-19.

Howell, N. (2014). Difficult times ahead: the challenges facing Saudi Arabia. Available at: http://www.futuredirections.org.au/publications/indian-ocean/1825-difficult-times-ahead-the-challenges-facingsaudi-arabia.html [Accessed: 20 January, 2017].

McKillop-Ostrom, A. (2000). ‘Student mobility and the international curriculum’, International Schools and International Education, pp. 73-84.

Pohl, M. (2000b). Learning to think thinking to learn. Australia: Hawker Brownlow Education.

Pollock, D. and Van Reken, R. (2002). Third Culture Kids: the Experience of Growing up among Worlds. Maine: Intercultural Press Inc.