Reflection Journal
This is a writing sample from Scripted writer Natalie Cadena
Central to this week's studies has been the theme of the role of culture in education, defining success and how education is used to achieve success. As the anonymous author of the blog KB in East Africa (2007) points out, "Culture has mental, social, linguistic, and physical aspects. Culture is no longer thought of as the homogeneous thing it formerly was (colonial anthropology-era)". It was this that led to the thought of expanding my view of culture. Though I have been privileged to experience a great deal of cultural diversity in places I have lived and worked, I now face the challenge of leading in a district that is predominantly white and Christian, challenging me to think about how I will acknowledge and celebrate diversity among such a homogenous group.
This week's TED Talks were again informative and thought-provoking. Scorza (2013) states that the American Dream is attainable for those who work hard and possess a certain set of attributes, such as "order, industry, cleanliness, humility, justice, and chastity". He points out that barriers exist to this American dream and that global education is the probable answer as it can both "prepare students for financial success while opening us to different ways of measuring success" (2013). Amel Karboul (2017) mentioned a staggering statistic pointing out that "by the year 2030, half of the world's children will fail to learn". However, one measure used to gauge the success she speaks of is the PISA exam, or the Program for International Student Assessment, which according to Yong Zhao (2014) is limited in the scope of what it measures. Karboul (2017) made an interesting statement in that she spoke of how students in some countries are receiving education en masse using modern technology, which is intriguing when you ponder how this could solve the lack of education access so many children live with.
Questions I have after this week stem from the readings and the TED Talk videos, as well as the discussions. Karboul (2017) suggests that the PISA exam shows improved education outcomes for students in countries such as Vietnam who have fully funded education and made it a priority to educate all children, yet, seemingly the only measure of this success is the PISA exam scores. PISA measures the reading, math, and science literacy of fifteen-year-old students across the globe (Zhao, 2014, pp. 20-21). There is contradicting information between Karboul (2017) and Zhao (2014) in that according to Zhao, the PISA exam cannot account for student qualities such as creativity, individualism, and entrepreneurship, which many Asian cultures value less than westernized countries do. Zhao (2014) states "in China, the incentives for learning are all external and based on performance demonstrated by test scores. The goal is simply to be better than others in the prescribed tasks" (p. 130). So much like Scorza's (2013) nod to subjective views of success, so too are the cultural values of specific populations, which leads to a subjective view of what education should include. So is PISA a suitable tool to use when comparing students in the U.S. to others globally who may value different measures of success? Are students in westernized countries numb to their privilege and not as eager to learn? These are questions I am noting and hoping to think about and learn about more in the coming weeks. As a leader in education, this course has been eye-opening to the disparities in how we measure what a successful student looks like.
References
Karboul, A. (2017, Nov.). The global learning crisis -- and what to do about it [Video] TED Conferences. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9y7YEmyz-Do
KB in East Africa [Web log post]. (2007, February 14). Retrieved June 09, 2021, from https://kbineastafrica.blogspot.com/2007/02/masemann-vandra-lee-1999-culture-and.html
TEDxTalks. (2013, November 01). Global education and the American dream: Jason Scorza at TEDxFairleighDickinsonUniversity. Retrieved June 09, 2021, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Gq1o6WNAkc
Zhao, Y. (2014). Who's afraid of the big bad dragon?: Why China has the best (and worst) education system in the world. Retrieved June 10, 2021.
Written by:
My experience spans three continents and almost thirty years. My story telling draws from a childhood in the rural south, almost twenty years as a military family moving around the globe, thirteen years as an education professional, a mom, a daughter, a sister, aunt, niece, grand daughter, wife, divorcee, single female professional, volunteer, child advocate, etc. Having been immersed into multiple cultures around the world, I have the ability to understand and speak to a diverse audience. I will put myself in your client's shoes to send the message you need them to hear.
