Sharing Both Language and Culture
Why this virtual Method?
The team behind Culturesconnect Website chose this method because it encourages direct participation by learners in their own learning. This trend seems to be gaining a momentum as THE method which keeps all who are involved in the learning process active. Some research scholars of pedagogy, McCombs and Miller (2006), favor the model of child-centered teaching by asserting that it "supports students' growth, development and achievement" - in essence all of the phenomena are continuous and progressive. McCombs and Miller have noted that this method is mostly practiced in institutions of higher learning, but the Culturesconnect project progressively counters and expands this practice by engaging learners while they are in elementary classes. By implication, most opportunities of enhancing intrinsic motivation as a basis for life-long learning have been minimized or forfeited completely in most students' education programs. The approach of putting a child at the center of learning, as the Cultureconnect project attempts to do by shifting the paradigm of the teacher's position from being an authority figure to that of a facilitator of learning - helps learners to navigate their own course of discovery learning (Bloomberg 2008). Students learn new cultures and languages from other nations through the Culturesconnect medium.The learner-centered approach is even more rewarding than the traditional method of teaching (the teacher is the decider, producer and exporter of knowledge, the learner only consuming knowledge) to teachers and learners because everyone who engages in that pedagogical encounter creates and shares such information knowledge. If life-long learning is to be a reality, the learner-centered method of teaching is the way to accomplish this goal. It should be placed above all other methods because it "places emphasis on person who is doing the learning" (Weimer 2002, - cited by McCombs and Miller 2006).
Sources: McCombs, B.L., and Miller, L. (2006). Learner-centered Classroom Practices and Assessments. SAGE Publishers.
Bloomberg (2008). Learner-Centered Teaching. (http://www.Uscience.edu/teaching/Learner-center).
The team behind Culturesconnect Website chose this method because it encourages direct participation by learners in their own learning. This trend seems to be gaining a momentum as THE method which keeps all who are involved in the learning process active. Some research scholars of pedagogy, McCombs and Miller (2006), favor the model of child-centered teaching by asserting that it "supports students' growth, development and achievement" - in essence all of the phenomena are continuous and progressive. McCombs and Miller have noted that this method is mostly practiced in institutions of higher learning, but the Culturesconnect project progressively counters and expands this practice by engaging learners while they are in elementary classes. By implication, most opportunities of enhancing intrinsic motivation as a basis for life-long learning have been minimized or forfeited completely in most students' education programs. The approach of putting a child at the center of learning, as the Cultureconnect project attempts to do by shifting the paradigm of the teacher's position from being an authority figure to that of a facilitator of learning - helps learners to navigate their own course of discovery learning (Bloomberg 2008). Students learn new cultures and languages from other nations through the Culturesconnect medium.The learner-centered approach is even more rewarding than the traditional method of teaching (the teacher is the decider, producer and exporter of knowledge, the learner only consuming knowledge) to teachers and learners because everyone who engages in that pedagogical encounter creates and shares such information knowledge. If life-long learning is to be a reality, the learner-centered method of teaching is the way to accomplish this goal. It should be placed above all other methods because it "places emphasis on person who is doing the learning" (Weimer 2002, - cited by McCombs and Miller 2006).
Sources: McCombs, B.L., and Miller, L. (2006). Learner-centered Classroom Practices and Assessments. SAGE Publishers.
Bloomberg (2008). Learner-Centered Teaching. (http://www.Uscience.edu/teaching/Learner-center).
Why Culturesconnect?
Classrooms in the US today symbolize a mixed population which includes children belonging to different ethnic, social, cultural, religious and language backgrounds. This mixed classroom structure has enhanced the need to build a platform where children can share their cultural similarities and differences with other children living all over the world. Exposure to different cultures and practices all over the world will give the children of today the opportunity to vicariously experience those cultures and lives. It will provide the real picture of how cultures differ from country to country although the language of conversation is the same. Since the Internet has become more accessible and can be used as a medium of exchange, we felt that this website would create the platform for the sharing of information, knowledge and experiences of primary school children.
We are taught that it is good not only to respect other people's cultures but also to know about these cultures (Toh, 1993). It is highly appreciated that one accepts others even though they come from different cultures. Children are often influenced by peers and feel connected to their similar age group. Through video sharing, children will be able to see and hear the information that is shared. It will create a sense of community and belonging which will connect them to each other. Moreover, it will help children to speak with preferred patois and accents and learn new words. This is a purely educational site which is monitored by education experts and teachers to ensure that the information shared is child-friendly and informative. Although we have started with sharing cultural experiences between Spanish speaking children, it will expand to other languages if schools' administrations and teachers show an interest in working together to build this into their classroom settings.
Toh, S.H. (1993) Bringing the world into the classroom: Global literacy and a question of paradigms. Global Education. Vol. 1, No. 1, January, 1993.
We are taught that it is good not only to respect other people's cultures but also to know about these cultures (Toh, 1993). It is highly appreciated that one accepts others even though they come from different cultures. Children are often influenced by peers and feel connected to their similar age group. Through video sharing, children will be able to see and hear the information that is shared. It will create a sense of community and belonging which will connect them to each other. Moreover, it will help children to speak with preferred patois and accents and learn new words. This is a purely educational site which is monitored by education experts and teachers to ensure that the information shared is child-friendly and informative. Although we have started with sharing cultural experiences between Spanish speaking children, it will expand to other languages if schools' administrations and teachers show an interest in working together to build this into their classroom settings.
Toh, S.H. (1993) Bringing the world into the classroom: Global literacy and a question of paradigms. Global Education. Vol. 1, No. 1, January, 1993.