Module 4 Unit 1 Activity 2: Different Perspectives on Climate and Culture

Report requirements

• Venn diagram and written summary comparing and contrasting culture and climate of two schools and own classroom
• Pinterest board with ideas and resources to create a positive classroom climate

Here I included 4 types of elementary schools: Irish public schools, Japanese public schools, Chinese classes taught at my current bilingual school in Taiwan, English classes taught in my current bilingual class in Taiwan. My answers were informed by my experience teaching in Japan and Taiwan and my experience with Irish schools, as an Irish citizen. I could have also written about British or German schools, as I have experience in those too, but this was already pushing things a bit too far and there are limitations with this format.

There are a lot of similarities between Chinese classes in Taiwan and classes in Japan. They follow a lecture format, the class must listen and respect the teacher at all times. There is limited and very controlled discussion, the students are there to absorb knowledge, and not to think, question, express their own opinions or try to find new solutions. There are advantages to this approach, it creates a mindset that respects order, authority and rules. It helps for the development of technique and memorization. Students can do well in fields where persistence, and organization are valued and innovation is not essential. The individual is downplayed, and the group is more important. This is even more true in Japan. In Japan the society tries to avoid conflict and so true feelings are hidden and problems are ignored. Bullying is ignored and dismissed as playing, teachers will even step over two children fighting on the floor, completely oblivious. Children who do not come to school will be left alone. Japan has the best facilities of all the four situations. Taiwan thus looks up to Japan, the students and teachers believe they are inferior and so they work harder and experiment more than Japanese students. They also do much better at English and they view it as more important. Taiwan is also very competitive, and this is evident in the constant line of competitions. It never stops. Taiwan emphasizes both individual and group accomplishments, whereas in Japan, it is not the cultural norm to have prizes for individuals, but rather for groups. Victories are group victories, and individuals that try to separate their accomplishments from the group or otherwise would be shunned. Three things are common in all four learning environments: singing, basketball, and Sports Day. Each of these plays a part in the school culture and climate of these school environments. There are plenty of things I did not include in these diagrams and things I included that are not typical but were part of my experience (e.g. games in Japan is related to English in particular). The environment is also more autocratic, but students can respond well to this approach, many may even prefer it.

In Ireland, there is less order in general, and also more expression and emphasis on opinions, finding your own solution, and creativity. The environment is more friendly and democratic. Irish people as a result tend to have a more flexible mindset, but they are also less organized and orderly. Irish children may even have less knowledge in many areas. They are also less likely to be exposed to after school clubs and activities outside areas related to sport. The environment can be, in general, warmer. However, most accomplishments are individual accomplishments. Even in sports, individuals will may try to achieve more points for themselves at the expense of their team's overall result.

In the west, there are very different opinions on ideal types of environments, teaching approaches, culture, climate and teacher/student personalities. In my school, we aim to have a more western style approach for our classes. We try to increase student involvement, expressing concern for students (not ignoring bullying or students that are repeatedly absent), creating collaborative exercises, introducing fun games, trying to encourage and demonstrate innovation and student centered learning.

My pintrest board had a number of fun ways to help create a positive climate and culture, including 27 ways to greet students, 10 ways to praise, compliment sheets, emphasizing the importance of using names, ways to reward students without spending money and various ideas for posters and boards. I really like a lot of ideas, in particular the ways to praise and greet students, and I would like to experiment with some of these methods. These ideas are definitely in line with our schools approach to building positive culture and climate.

You can see my Pinterest board here: https://www.pinterest.com/benjamin4827/teach-now-school-culture-and-climate/

I've also added a post on the discussion board sharing one of my favorite pins and discussing how it can be adapted for various grades to improve class climate.