Students as Diverse Learners

Front

What factors affect a student's ability to learn?

Back

Age, cognitive development, language, culture, family background, community values, personal experience, talent, motivation, and past learning.

Front

What are group differences in learning?

Back

Behaviors that make members of a group more like each other than individuals outside the group, based on cultural, ethnic, gender, socioeconomic traits.

Front

What is culture?

Back

A group's shared system of beliefs, values, and assumptions about life and the world, expressed in customs, language, and artifacts.

Front

What is cultural mismatch?

Back

When a student's home culture and school culture conflict, potentially hampering academic performance.

Front

What are the three levels of culture proposed by Nitza Hidalgo?

Back

1. Concrete level: visible and tangible aspects like food, music, clothing. 2. Behavioral level: social roles, language, nonverbal communication. 3. Symbolic level: values, beliefs, customs, spiritual practices.

Front

How can cultural differences affect classroom procedures?

Back

Through language use, nonverbal communication, speaking and silence norms, and attitudes towards cooperation and competition.

Front

How do language use and dialect affect learning?

Back

Students may use nonstandard forms, different pronunciations, and syntax, which should be seen as cultural manifestations.

Front

How can nonverbal communication vary across cultures?

Back

Eye contact, physical distance, and gestures can differ, affecting interpretations of respect, interest, or rudeness.

Front

How do speaking and silence norms vary culturally?

Back

Some cultures encourage speaking freely, while others see unprompted questions as rude. Styles of conversation also vary.

Front

How do cultural attitudes towards cooperation and competition affect learning?

Back

Some cultures value cooperation and group work, while others emphasize individual achievement.