Every teaching situation
presents its own unique characteristics.
I have taught in the Middle East for most of my teaching career. Each country, each school, and I could argue
each student has been distinctive and different. Having said that, I believe good teaching
practices are good no matter what country, socio-economic background or culture
you work in. Myself, I believe that
student (self motivation) and teacher attitude can go a long way to defining a
good classroom. Because my learning and
ultimately how I teach is Western, and my students have been Middle Eastern,
there are some things that really are different. The use of the KE-LeGe Table #4 is useful to
a certain extent for comparisons or one could argue for analyzing ones teaching
methodology and style. As an outsider,
trying to analyze a student's role can only be accomplished by analyzing my own
experiences and my own class observations because I'm not a student and I
didn't experience being a student first hand here in the Middle East. I do however, believe that I am a good
observer and I have talked to my own children as well as my own students. From my own perspective Middle Eastern methods
of teaching rely heavily on rote memorization.
Al-Omari (2008:19) gives a cultural reason for this as, "A good example
is rote learning. In some cultures, such
as Arabic and Chinese cultures, rote learning is an integral part of the
education system, whereas it has become redundant in many Western
cultures. In the Arabic world, the
ability to recite poetry and the need for leaders to be good orators remains
strong." In its own time and space
this teaching methodology works. More to
the point, my student have been in the system of education for about 12
years. This is a long time in any
system. Then my students are moved into
a "western" teaching philosophy situation in which their entire
thinking process has to adjust if they wish to be successful. Some of my students are able and do this quite
well. A majority of my students struggle
to cope with opposing methodologies that they have known all their lives. Some of my students do not cope well at all
and we both find the situation to be quite stressful.
There are a couple
of areas that I think need to be highlighted:
group work and critical thinking.
One of the most difficult aspects for me as a teacher to deal with has
been that my classes wish to discuss and share every answer. If I give an in class assignment, they are
always checking with their classmates.
At the beginning of my teaching career, I found this behavior extremely annoying
and disruptive (only because of my western idea of coming up with the answer on
your own). From my students perspective,
they would rather check/seek the correct answer before speaking/sharing with
the class so they can save themselves (and the class) embarrassment. They see nothing wrong in sharing. I wouldn't either except that their
assessments are based on the "western" idea of multiple choice and
fill in the blank high stakes testing – not on rote memorization. We are asking our students to analyze,
synthesize, create, etc., when for 12 years that is not how they were taught,
nor how they learned. Albon (2009)
shares her autoethnographical ideas such as, "They (the parents of UAE
students) wanted the text books back that they had used in the past and where
were the tests for this new curriculum?
The parents were also concerned that their daughters where not bringing
home text books." These are the
exact same concerns my students share with me now. This affects the entire atmosphere of the
class. The students question every move
you make as if you aren't an authority figure to them unless you are demanding
that they memorize and spit out a list of information. My students have a very hard time with the Socrative
method of teaching. When asked to
analyze, synthesize, or just plain think for themselves, they find this task
very difficult. This shapes even how
creative they are. When asked to produce
a piece of writing from their imagination, they are stymied. Give them a formula and words to use, they
could produce a decent essay, but if asked to produce one out of thin air,
forget it.
All of this wouldn't be so much of a problem except that my students
must show a level of proficiency of English that demonstrates that they are
able to function in a college level course at a level of English that is able
to perform in that said class. The fact
that not just my college, but the entire world is moving toward more online
courses and more e-learning in general is good for my students as they thrive
in a collaborative environment.
E-learning breaks down the cultural barriers that may or may not
exist. As Pratt (1999) says when
defining the term 'contact zone' to refer to social spaces where cultures meet,
clash, and grapple with each other in finding a way forward, "…experiments
in transculturation and collaborative work and in the arts of critique, parody,
and comparison (including unseemly comparisons between elite and vernacular cultural
forms): …ground rules for communication across lines of difference and hierarchy
that go beyond politeness but maintain mutual respect; a systematic approach to
the all-important concept of cultural mediation."
So how do I move forward now? I
try to make a safe place in my class. A
place where students are free to discuss any idea they wish. Most of the time the ideas are fairly
mundane, and I wouldn't risk my job discussing any idea that I felt could cost
me my position. That still leaves a
broad base to choose from. My biggest
struggle has been just getting my students to make even a first step….thinking
for themselves. They really struggle with
that concept. But I will carry on
because we still give multiple choice exams, and essays that require their
opinions.
I believe that the world and ultimately the world of education is
getting smaller and larger at the same time and that my students will and would
benefit from exposure to more of this 'world'.
Albon,
N., & Australian Teacher Education Association, (. (2009). Beyond the
Abaya: School Reform in the Middle East. Australian Teacher Education
Association,
Al-Omari, J. (2008))
Understanding the Arabic culture. U.K.: How to
Books Ltd.
Pratt, M. (1999) Arts of the contact zone.
In
Ways of Reading, 5th edition, ed. David Bartholomae and Anthony Petroksky
New York: Bedford/St. Martin's.
