Developing Cultural Competence - Assignment Example

Cultural Identity Insert your name Insert institution Date of submission Develop Cultural Competency Assessment 1 Question One: Three significant events that have influenced value, beliefs and attitudes Attending the same schools with culturally diverse group including the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Being a member of a forum for cultural development where we were having weekly discussion on impact of past and current government policies and practices on the lives and outcomes of Aboriginal people My father participating in campaigns and materials that are culturally respectful to the needs of other communities Summarizing the three events, it is worth noting that I have been brought up in a large family and my parents introduced me to the aspect of integrating with others at my tender age as they were the typical ‘Baby Boomer.’ As a result, I have always enjoyed growing in a large family where we learn from different social background and cultural orientations. When one father participated in different campaigns I was made to be aware of dynamism among people. This process has indeed inculcated in me the sense of understanding as well as responding to areas of tension and conflict when I encounter people from unfamiliar cultures. Based on this position, it is worth concluding that cultural self-awareness or competence helps develop the sense that it is worth accommodating divergent and new cultures. Question Two: Record and explain aspects of your environment on cultural identity Schooling environment: this is where I got to learn different background of people with divergent views and understanding about life Neighbourhood: The environment where I was raised had people from mixed socio-economic backgrounds including culture. I lived with the natives, Caucasians and Aboriginal people which were indeed the cornerstone for appreciating values and social-cultural background concerning ethnicity, race, gender, social class and rationality Teachers: self-cultural awareness has been integral part of what my teachers have constantly put in me. My teachers have insisted on respect for other cultures by helping us to draw examples from different cultures not only in Australia but across the world. These values have helped me understand, explore, value and acknowledge social-cultural backgrounds as far as culture is concerned. Question Three: Potential Impact of own Background on Interactions and Relationships The background has helped me recognize and appreciate differences among us. Since have had interaction with people from different cultural backgrounds including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander the background taught me the need to have clear understanding on diversity. This has included the need to take time and reflect in the values of respecting other cultures as I learn new concepts. This perspective has further been shaped by studies such as Kohnert (2010) which recognized that background shapes one’s view of culture so as to be inclusive in practice. Question Four: Skills, Knowledge or Attitudes needed to Develop for Cultural competency Supporting different cultures including awareness of Aboriginal belief about life Choosing realistic as well as non-biased or stereotypical resources Interactional teaching of different cultures Learning ways in which government can foster minority (including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander) community networks especially in the process of partnership and policy development Working closely with the Centre for Cultural Competence Australia (CCCA) Defining cultural competence as a case where people mind about other people’s beliefs, values, biases and perceptions Question Five: List of National Quality Standard (NQS) on Cultural Competence Children's health and safety Collaborative partnerships with families and communities Educational program and practice Leadership and service management Physical environment Relationships with children Staffing arrangements Relationship with children is the National Quality Standard element that is reflected in your practice. To begin with we need to recognize that cultural competence reflects different areas of practice therefore with relationships with children there will be an understanding on specific needs of early years learning framework. Furthermore, relationships with children are about interaction and attitude that further shapes child’s need to respect different cultural orientations. It reflects on my area of practice since it teaches children on how to honour and celebrate diversity especially when they will be working with different people. When we appreciate relationships with children we train them on tenets of cultural competence. Question Six: Questionnaire that Address Aspects of Cultural Identity Interview on Cultural Competence Your Particulars Your name (Optional) Age and Occupation Area of residence Questions Your Response 1. What is your take on observing family obligations and responsibilities? 2. How did social and cultural context of your early life essential for effective shaping of your cultural belief? 3. What is your definition of “culture?” 4. How best do you tell when someone is culturally competent? 5. What type of value system do you have at home? 6. What your key values, attitudes and expectations about others’ culture? 7. Are the roles of men and women specifically defined in your family? If so, what are they? 8. Do your perspectives change when you meet someone from another country or cultural background? 9. Who is/are the person/s that has influenced you while growing up? 10. Does the environment reflect the cultures at your place of residence? Question Seven: The Five Aspects Relationships, Curriculum and Activities of Service The link between curriculum and different activities are embedded on our beliefs. For instance, language and family structure provides an understanding on the articulation of different cultural identities which in turn means moving from regarding our culture as superior to becoming flexible with other people’s cultures in the implementation of curriculum and activities of the service. Question Eight: Developing Cultural Competency of Children and Families Striving to be open on development of their understanding and knowledge regarding different cultural issues Exploration of the effects of their own cultural orientation and background on the development of their beliefs and values A reflection on how their values impact on others Being aware of limited values regarding stereotyping especially those from some ethnicities of cultures Development of specific education programmes that suit their cultural development Integrating culture and education on their health and safety Creating working relationship with families and children regarding their specific needs in culturally diverse environment Develop Cultural Competency Assessment 2 Question One: A significant event in your own family background or history I have spent a good part of my life living in the surrounding of a large extended family. A good amount of my childhood days I spent with my uncles, aunts, cousins, grandparents as well as intermingling freely with other children and adults from our neighboring families. My view on the family was shaped to include all these people and I am ready to seek advice from many of this extended family whenever I am not sure on what I should do in any pressing situation. The gathering in the family has been an integral component of my life journey and I am ever looking for all the opportunities to spend quality time the members of my family. I have been able to acquire and utilize many of the values and beliefs that I have had exposure to throughout my life due to the close contact I have with my extended family. I believe that the improvement or enhancement of my quality and value by the diversification of ways of operation and viewpoints that have undergone modeling by them. I have obtained life skills and trust through the gatherings where the elderly would teach us corporate living and responsibility and a positive view of the others, even from outside our community. Question Two: An aspect of the environment that you feel has influenced your cultural identity The environmental aspect of spiritual, social, and emotional safety as well as physical safety; where there was no denial of the identity of our needs and who we are or assault challenge had an influence on my cultural identity. The aspect of coming together to learn with other children from different walks of life created a shared experience and knowledge, common meaning and respect. The kinship system did place everybody in some kind of peculiar relationships with each other and special relationship with land areas depending on their kin or clan. The relationship concept has influence on decisions on marriage ruling to a greater degree peoples conducts. This has made me aware of the manner of behavior toward others and grounded my identity to be strong and positive about my belonging. I have developed respect to other cultures and able to interact freely with others and gain an understanding of the defenses in values and attitudes. My understanding of the Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander deepened and respect and an attitude of belonging and pride about language, food and history is the result. I cherish the culture that has been passed to me through my elders especially father, uncles, aunts and grandparents. I am a firm believer of the concept that there is a unique link between us and the land and that the land does not belong to us but rather we belong to the land. Question Three: Two to improve your skills and knowledge to become culturally competent Find resources and form partnerships Learning more about culture beginning with mine and speaking the language Question Four: How you can engage with colleagues / peers To help everyone feel part of the community, I will try to build social networks and friendships with the fellow workers and let it extend to the children. Encouraging the pears to make connections with other families to create a sense of cultural identity to support the development of self-esteem and identity of the child. Together with colleagues, we shall invite diversity into service to encourage a positive environment, hence developing mutual respect for diversity. This will mean openness to varied approaches and ideas for creating a sense of belonging in the child. The team can engage the families and the children in thoughtful conversation, demonstrate support and empathy, challenge, discriminatory behavior, stereotypes, and prejudices, increase the understanding of ideas to dispel or counter false professions and help the children develop a sense of belonging (Cazden & Beck 2003; Blue-Banning et al. 2004; Parkay et al. 2010). Question Five: How to encourage children to collaborate Acknowledge and appreciate the actions of helpfulness, care and kindness in whenever there is a recurrence Allow the younger and older children to be in their own age groups at times Create a small space inside the bigger space Develop a space and a program giving the option for individual and group work Employ informal mechanisms, determine and appreciate the talents and strengths of each child Give experiences, materials and equipments capable of encouraging proper association Help the children develop empathy skills through encouragement Provide choices to create a relaxed atmosphere Talk with them in groups and individually sensitizing them on comments and behaviors that offend others and the need of everyone to respect one another and pay attention to the needs of others Question Six: Promoting Linguistic Diversity It is possible for the people speaking English as their secondary language to make the attempt in following it in a manner that is similar to the way that they speaking their first language. There are many hindrances to speaking presented by this kind of language use. A service could demonstrate linguistic diversity in the following ways: Accent: different people may show varying intonation, speed of the language and pitch of voice when speaking English. This will manifest linguistic diversity even when a service is conducted in English. Difference in accent may hinder understanding and there is a need to create an atmosphere of bearing with one another (Fairclougn 2013) Variations in structure of sentences: it is possible to find on applying sentence structure with affiliation to their first language to Engish. This again depends on the first language of the speaker ad is a clear demonstration of diversity in language within a service. Variations in meaning and vocabulary: there is a difference in the use of vocabulary and expression of meaning in different cultures. In services where such a diversity is notable is concluded multicultural Use of jargon: the use of different slangs and vocabularies giving even different meanings from the others is a demonstration of linguistic diversity. Some of the terms can only be understood by a particular group and not the other (Kohnert 2010). Question Seven: Describe an experience / activity / event held Creating an environment where the children play together and interact freely with one another and with the workers. Playing is one of the primary actions that build social interactions in the childhood classroom. The children are able to share emotional needs. Through the same they will develop a trust for their fellows and know their importance. The art of giving, receiving, sharing, expressing feelings and ideas, making choices, expressing associations, seeing other people’s opinions, and including others develops through play. Including drama enables the children to cooperate with one another and employ language in shaping associations, be problem solvers and associate with the different roles in the society (Richards & Rodgers 2014).  Question Eight: Three ways to become effective oral communication I will use language, knowing that children have an emotional, linguistic, and cognitive connection to the language and even their home culture. When responding to the diversity of culture and language, I will endeavor to encourage the children to participate in anyway and from the notion that they are capable of expressing their knowledge and capability in many ways. Talk to the children sweetly and encourage them to be initiates of their own leanings, to play and explore and be ready to answer their questions politely. Question Nine: Establish a respectful relationship with children Developing culturally tolerant environment where children interact freely Question Ten: Propose an activity / experience that can promote Develop a Culturally Inclusive Program The program will include singing repeated rhythms severally during the day within or without and even during routine periods. The program develops and provide experiences and activities accomplishable without speaking English. This will create a sense of belonging to the children and help them appreciate other cultures (Fairclough 2014).  References Blue-Banning, M., Summers, J. A., Frankland, H. C., Nelson, L. L., & Beegle, G. (2004). Dimensions of family and professional partnerships: Constructive guidelines for collaboration. Exceptional children, 70(2), 167-184. Cazden, C. B., & Beck, S. W. (2003). Classroom discourse. Handbook of discourse processes, 165-197. Fairclough, N. (2013). Critical discourse analysis: The critical study of language. Routledge. Fairclough, N. (2014). Critical language awareness. Routledge. Kohnert, K. (2010). Bilingual children with primary language impairment: Issues, evidence and implications for clinical actions. Journal of Communication Disorders, 43(6), 456-473. Parkay, F. W., Stanford, B. H., & Gougeon, T. D. (2010). Becoming a teacher (pp. 432-462). Pearson/Merrill. Richards, J. C., & Rodgers, T. S. (2014). Approaches and methods in language teaching. Cambridge university press. Read More