Somali people have encountered many challenges in the past into the present. These challenges have made them grow as a culture and become stronger as individuals and as a whole. It is important to analyze the culture, the gender roles, and the family roles when working with the Somali community.
To understand the Somali culture it is crucial to know what has happened to them in the past. According to Castel and Kurata throughout history the Somali people have been subjected to harsh oppression by dictators (2004). This dictatorship has caused many to flee the country to the United States find a better home for them and their families (Castel & Kurata, 2004). Many families that have fled Somalia eventually reunite with the other individuals who have fled before them.
For many Somalis that have came to the United States have a difficult time assimilating to the different cultural ways (Castel & Kurata, 2004). Many Somali individuals are judged based on the way they look and dress. Somali women wear the traditional hijab and when other individuals see this they immediately discriminate and judge their customs. In the United States there are some people that look at the Somali families and think that they should start dressing like “real Americans” and start to act like they fit in.
It is also very common for Somali children to fight with their classmates because of their culture. In school many Somali children are seen fighting with African American students because the African American student do not understand tae cultural differences that they have with the Somali students (Castel & Kurata, 2004). Many schools have to meet with parents to try and make everyone understand cultural differences between all students and teach th...
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...e a big deal about names or about the fact that women are now major breadwinners. I could not imagine sitting at home taking care of the kids and the chores. I would have to go out and get a job to have a major role in my family income.
This experience helped me get a feeling of professionalism. I have learned how important it is to do all the research before jumping into the interview. I have also developed personally through everything I learned. I learned that it is important to keep my cultural and religious customs so that I can pass them down to my children when I get to that point in my life.
This multicultural experience has given me a lot of knowledge that I will take with me in my professional career. My research with the Somali culture has given me a starting point to learn about heir gender and family roles and to their culture as a whole.
3. Delpit, Lisa D. Other People's Children: Cultural Conflict in the Classroom. New York: New, 1995. Print.
Racism and ethnicity continue to affect the sector of education in most parts of the world. More often, it influences adults and children’s experiences in education at all levels and in various ways. These include professional employment, academic performance, parental involvement, social interactions, assessment issues, and curriculum development. Certainly, the terms racism and ethnicity identify as problematic and arise socially. Therefore, many people fail to recognize that racism is a perception about the color of the skin and traditions of a particular group of people. Racism and ethnicity exist in quite blatant and subtle forms. As such, racism and ethnicity usually lead to negative consequences for the group that does not belong to the dominant culture. The contemporary racism originated from various avenues, one of it being the society norms and upbringing. Indeed, as children grow, they exclusively rely on their parents or guardians to learn new things. Moreover, part of the upbringing involves teaching the children things about the society and the
Family’s beliefs and values may be different for some and in other cultures they may not be accepted. As teachers, we have to learn about different cultures and expand our knowledge so families could feel more accepted. In the book, Anti- Bias Education for young children and ourselves by Louise Derman-Sparks & Julie Olsen Edwards, talks about how culture and fairness involves two dimensions, children’s development of a positive culture, identity, and their respectful interactions with other cultures. With these two dimensions, it will help the child to continue to express their home culture at school while learning the different cultures at school with their classmates. They learn about what’s right from wrong, how to dress, and talk
They invited the writer to dinner along with other people so the locals could get to know the Somalis and so they could help clear up misconceptions. They held another event at their house were they invited the women from the community and held a dinner. At this event the Somalis talked about why they fled their homes and come to Shelbyville. One of the girls even asked if the war would come to America since they were here. The somalis helped clear up that there would be no war here. This made the locals feel more calm about the situations and were able to start trusting there Somalia neighbors. According to the Washington Post, “We must remain compassionate toward refugees but we also need to make sure that we use common sense…”(Eilperin). As I did sense that the locals did want to try and accept the Refugees, however, they had never met these types of people before so they of course wanted to be careful. Which makes sense, you can expect someone to trust someone right away. The locals were trying to be careful and use common sense and keep their guard up. This was a cultural shock to the Somalis as they were not treated in a more positive manner. By the Somalis inviting the locals into their homes it set up a stage for the locals to start feeling a sense of compassion towards the
At that time in the early 1990’s, the U.S. was the only superpower country left in the world. The Soviet Union collapsed after the Cold War and the left the U.S. at the top. With the U.S. being the only superpower left, it meant that they were the only ones who could try to keep peace between other countries and hopefully end violence in the world. At the time, Somalia was a complete disaster and still is to this day. They have no structural government and warlords rule parts of the country.
In such a multicultural world, being knowledgeable and understanding of not only your cultural background, but that of others is essential. Building my awareness on cultures different from my own, and how it shapes an individual’s identity, will foster my personal and professional development. Subsequently, I conducted a cultural interview with an individual whose cultural background differed from my own. Several similarities and differences between our cultures were apparent in the interview, specifically in the areas of race, ethnicity, language, values, and worldview.
In the Africa, lies the country Somalia, which is located on east coast of the continent. Its capital, Mogadishu, however has inconveniently brought its own problems, from colonization to politics, disagreements arise, causing tension throughout the country. Somalia’s historical background and culture ultimately lead to the war in its capital, it lead to the War of Mogadishu.
In 1995, Delpit published Other People's Children: Cultural Conflict in the Classroom. Although the excerpt analyzed in this paper is from a larger work, it was written by Delpit (1995) as a self-contained speech. This excerpt includes many of the concepts Delpit believes to be the basic cultural conflicts in the classroom, which are stereotyping, child-deficit assumptions and student isolation and invisibility. Delpit's goal is to "remove the dynamic of oppression that are inherent in any classroom…that come together when (primarily white) teachers spend time with 'other people's children'" (Delpit, 1995, pg.69). Through Other People's Children: Cultural Conflict in the Classroom, Delpit lays the foundation for multicultural education and details ways teachers can solve the inherent problems that arise as a result of many cultures interacting in the classroom. The purpose of this paper is an analysis of this text through an analytic, interpretive and normative reading.
Somalia is a country fulfilling with geography, history, political systems, economics and culture. The country of somalia borders the gulf of aden, djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya and the Indian Ocean. The climate of Somalia is semi-arid with many main rain seasons which provides a conflict to the vegetation of the country. In the country of somalia, livestock is important to the economy. Somalia's pre colonial history includes trading because of its location in africa. The colonial period of Somalia lasted from 1840 to 1960. Somalia gained its independence in the year of 1960. The country of somalia has had a changing government system. The current leader of Somalia is Hassan Sheikh Mohamud. The country of somalia has a range of people that populate the country. The economy of somalia is important to the lives of the people. The country of Somalia has an access to exporting and importing. The country of somalia has a lot of culture. The country of Somalia is very important to the continent of
Many times, teachers will make the mistake of pre-judging families from different cultures and misunderstand their communication styles and value systems. In order to prevent such misunderstandings, teachers should not be afraid to step outside of their own culture bubble in an effort to comprehend differences between their own culture and these parents. When interacting with parents, teachers should also embrace the commonalities between the cultures. Everyone deals with work, school, relationships, communication, and life in general. I am a Black man, going to school, raising a family and working, just like one of my friends, who is a Native-American. Often times, the things we see as divisions can actually bring us
Culture is a powerful influence plays a big role in our interactions. Culture may also impact parenting style and a developing child. Having a strong sense of their own cultural history and the traditions associated with it helps children build a positive cultural identity for themselves. This also supports children’s sense of belonging and, by extension, their mental health and wellbeing. This class is crucial in understanding and working well parents, staff, and children. An effective educator understands how students’ cultures affect their perceptions, self-esteem, values, classroom behavior, and learning. As director, I need to use that understanding to help my students and staff feel welcomed, affirmed, respected, and valued. One way that I can do this is by using multicultural literature, especially children’s literature, to honor students’ culture and foster cross-cultural understanding. If cultural differences are not understood by teachers and management, it can lead to miscommunication and misunderstandings on both sides. It will be my job to do all I can to overcome both language and cultural differences to ensure a positive learning environment for
I have learned a great deal about different cultures and the communication between those cultures. I didn’t really think I would learn as much as I did. I am from an older cohort than most of the people in my class; therefore my experience level is a little greater. This did not prevent me from learning a few things and enhancing the knowledge I already have.
Learning about culture, language and fairness. It is important that educators must aware of the differences and similarity of the families and children. “Families communicate their culture’s values, beliefs, rules, and expectations to their children. What is acceptable in one culture may not be acceptable in another” (Edwards, 2010, p. 55).
"Culture", as a word, fits with a group of words that do not have just one definition or meaning, but multiple. With a diverse population prevailing in the United States today, our country is a melting pot of diverse cultures, every distinctive in its own respect. Culture is distinguishing one social group from another, including beliefs, language, traditions, art, food, religion and economic systems. Through lifelong and ever altering processes of learning, and sharing, culture shapes our patterns of behavior and thinking. A culture’s significance is so philosophical that it touches almost every aspect of who and what we are. As Henslin once said “Culture becomes the lens through which we perceive and evaluate what is going on around us.” It becomes who we are and how we see things differently from the people of a different nationality. In Warren St. John’s Outcasts United, culture is an important aspect that plays a significant role throughout the book and challenges the refugees in their daily lives. Having a pluralistic society can influence the behavioral and thinking styles of the people living around them. Some of these people may learn from the diverse range of cultures to find faults in their own living styles and try to better improve them. The Liberian’s, the Middle Easterner’s and the African’s are some of the examples of how one’s culture can impact lives of the people living around them.
The task of completing the mock interview was very insightful and yet nerve-wracking. This experience allowed me to learn a lot about how others and prospective employers may perceive me. In addition, I also learned a lot about myself. I took some time in advance to plan for the interview. I considered aspects such as when to arrive, what to wear and preparing a resume. This prior planning helped me to have a successful interview.