L06:Collectivism & Individualism

"In all different culture orientations are pluses and negatives”

Should we question our own culture? I believe the answer is yes. The quote above is the reason why. Just because we were taught to act in a certain way doesn’t mean it is the best. I believe that teachers have a wonderful power to generate a “class culture”. Our classrooms can be places whit its own culture, so why not take the best from collectivism and the best from individualism and reject the worse from both orientations?

From collectivism we can learn to care for each other. I do believe that when a student acts in a certain way it will affect the learning process of the entire class, we can encourage group work. On the other hand, collectivism has its negatives like the shame that comes from making mistakes and standardization which certainly excludes those who are different.Individualism has a bright and a dark side as well. My favorite issue about individualism is how this orientation allow us to be ourselves, to question everything and to imagine infinite possibilities, however some individualism cultures also forget that the talents we develop have no meaning in we do not use them to help others.I strongly believe that as teachers we can encourage our students to question their own cultures. We can make the world better if we forget paradigms and take the best from both worlds.At BYUI I have experienced how both orientations are brought together, the learning model is a great example. You have the choice to be an agent on your own learning, and still by teaching one another what you do affects the others. I realized this is effective for me because I’m more conscious of my responsibility.