Module 2
Theoretical Framework
Chapter 2: Good Practices
2.10 Good Practice in Slovenia: Cultural meetup
Cultural meetup is an exercise that was tested by Humanitas several times as part of the KeyCode project and it was confirmed that it encourages multi-perspective thinking; it gives students the opportunity to try out “cultural glasses”, it is a teambuilding activity and activity to develop communication skills. Students have been experiencing more diverse cultural backgrounds year after year, so activity gives them an opportunity to think and reflect about different cultures in a safe space.
The children were eager to share their experience after the exercise and tell, how it was to communicate with others with completely different code of conduct and rules of behaviour, how they felt when they talked to a person from their own group. They shared, whether they have misunderstood or misjudged the approach of the person from another group and if they can find parallels with their every daily life. It was also interesting for them to talk about how they created the image of other groups and how did they come up with a name for them.
They also discussed about the way of communicating in their everyday lives with someone from a culture not their own. Do they pay special attention to anything? Have they ever misjudged the actions of a certain group in real life?
Through the questions the teacher or the facilitator also started the discussion on stereotypes, asking how would a prevailing opinion of a certain group in the society influence their opinion about that group, how do stereotypes affect our acceptance of other cultures, what stereotypes do they know and how would they define a stereotype?
Through the discussion the students understood that – in order to make the world around us simpler, we tend to relay on stereotypes, which are a simplified representation of a specific group, a nation, a gender, a profession etc. But through a conversation they realize that every group is much more diverse than initially thought and that we have to explore and understand their perspective, why they behave the way they do and what their ways of conduct actually mean. We tent to judge based on our perspectives and cultures not trying to understand the real meaning behind others’ actions and gestures.
The activity helps students develop or enhance their social skills with which they can better manage their daily interactions and communicate with people from their own or other communities in a better and more sensitive way. The activity also enhances students’ empathy, which helps them feel and understand different persons and groups in their full diversity better.
The children were eager to share their experience after the exercise and tell, how it was to communicate with others with completely different code of conduct and rules of behaviour, how they felt when they talked to a person from their own group. They shared, whether they have misunderstood or misjudged the approach of the person from another group and if they can find parallels with their every daily life. It was also interesting for them to talk about how they created the image of other groups and how did they come up with a name for them.
They also discussed about the way of communicating in their everyday lives with someone from a culture not their own. Do they pay special attention to anything? Have they ever misjudged the actions of a certain group in real life?
Through the questions the teacher or the facilitator also started the discussion on stereotypes, asking how would a prevailing opinion of a certain group in the society influence their opinion about that group, how do stereotypes affect our acceptance of other cultures, what stereotypes do they know and how would they define a stereotype?
Through the discussion the students understood that – in order to make the world around us simpler, we tend to relay on stereotypes, which are a simplified representation of a specific group, a nation, a gender, a profession etc. But through a conversation they realize that every group is much more diverse than initially thought and that we have to explore and understand their perspective, why they behave the way they do and what their ways of conduct actually mean. We tent to judge based on our perspectives and cultures not trying to understand the real meaning behind others’ actions and gestures.
The activity helps students develop or enhance their social skills with which they can better manage their daily interactions and communicate with people from their own or other communities in a better and more sensitive way. The activity also enhances students’ empathy, which helps them feel and understand different persons and groups in their full diversity better.
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