Teaching Ethical Awareness Within Cultural Conflict: A Case Study in Jerusalem
On this page, we explore one particular school where a technique of "bridging" has been used to work with classrooms featuring cultural conflict. Gili Benari’s article, “Teaching Ethics in Religious or Cultural Conflict Situations: A Personal Perspective”, offers both pedagogical attitudes as well as practical observations regarding the teaching of ethics in situations of cultural conflict. This article examines the situation of teaching nursing students at the Hadassah Nursing School in Jerusalem, where many of the students come from conflicting Jewish and Arabic backgrounds. Although we are not working with nursing students or in Israel ourselves, this article is extremely relevant, as it addresses broader issues of teaching ethical awareness in a classroom of different cultures. As future teachers of English, we value highly the teaching of ethics and awareness to our students, and the promotion of responsible and tolerant citizens. Many of the pedagogical attitudes and techniques of this article are highly applicable to our students as well.
The United States, like Israel, is home to an influx of many immigrants stemming from different cultural and religious backgrounds, and with this diversity comes an increased complexity of the teaching of ethics in a classroom (Benari, 429). In this largely diverse area of multicultural mingling, Benari promotes the importance of students learning to respect and understand others around them, in order to function and thrive in a multicultural living situation (431). Though her focus is on students becoming empathetic nurses, our focus of students becoming empathetic and respectful human beings is no different.
Benari first promotes the general teaching of cultural backgrounds in the classroom, addressing differences between students’ backgrounds, but also highlighting the many unsung similarities that exist between them. He brings for the realization that discussion can become tension-filled and guarded in a conflicting space, and furthers the importance of teaching general information regarding different views and backgrounds, so as to open the classroom to an educated and welcoming environment (431). In order to achieve this, Benari uses Yoder’s model of “bridging”, in which “educators encourage students to maintain their ethnic identity and modify their strategies to meet cultural needs of students” (Yoder, 320). Benari compares this approach to alternative teaching strategies, prompting that the bridging pattern “is not only tolerant of all these differences, but attentive to them” (431). In this way, teachers deeply address cultural identities and differences, addressing cultural norms, expectations, philosophies, and laws – working to unpack different viewpoints and to honor backgrounds.
We have observed this in our PCW class, as numerous class sessions have been devoted to discussing different aspects of the students' home cultures. Students have chosen "cultural artifacts" to share with the class that represent their culture in some way, ranging from food and festivals to greeting gestures. As students presented these artifacts, others asked numerous questions - not only being aware of each others cultures, but digging deeper and taking an interest in what each other brings to the table. This gaining of knowledge and respect for one-another's culture became more evident when the class watched a video of an American who offensively stereotyped Asian students. The Arabic students in the class shared their thoughts regarding the offensiveness of the video and the offensive stereotypes and insults that were being placed upon their Chinese classmates. In this moment, we saw the mutual respect traveling between the culture of the Chinese students and the culture of the Arabic students, as discussion, knowledge, and an open environment fostered understanding and tolerance in a diverse classroom.
As with any discussion of background, culture, and opinions, emotions will often run high in these sorts of classroom practices. Defensiveness, anger, aggression, shame, and guilt can arise from the comparing of cultures, and as teachers we must not only keep our own emotions intact, but also encourage a classroom of open and non-hostile discussion (Benari, 432). Benari stresses the importance in finding the balance between student discussion maintaining emotionally distant, but also drawing from students’ personal experience, as that is an important aspect to include as well (432).
Benari’s second approach to teaching ethical awareness in culturally conflicted classrooms is engaging in student involvement with the surrounding community. He tells of the final projects of his school’s nursing students, as they are required to assess the needs of a particular neighborhood in Jerusalem, and to implement a community health project into that community (432). Yet, these students were specifically assigned to work in a community opposite of their own (Jewish students sent to the Arab side of town, vice versa). Teachers went above and beyond to gain support for this project, finding translators to deal with language barriers and chaperones to ensure student safety. Overall, Benari states that the students were well received by their community members and did a wonderful job, as this community engagement pushed the students - “overcoming personal barriers and being willing to go the extra mile with open minds” (433).
Benari concludes that teachers must deal with cultural backgrounds with great sensitivity, making sure to foster basic knowledge of backgrounds, respect, and a welcoming and open atmosphere for discussion. He further states that “limitations should not be looked upon as barriers, but considered as a drive for further creativity” (433). We agree whole-heartedly that knowledge, respect, and openness are key ingredients in the valuing of cultures and the engaging of culturally diverse students in a classroom. Difference is what makes up countries like the United States, and that variation can lead to a wonderful classroom environment of shared knowledge and multifaceted perspectives. The community role is particularly intriguing, revealing the power of overcoming difference in a greater desire to help one another and be a part of a community. We want to maintain these ideals in our classrooms as well – working to value students’ cultural differences, but also striving to move from those differences to a place of mutual respect and working together.
In PCW, we led a lesson focused on discussing different aspects common to American cultural values, working to define these cultural norms as well as compare and contrast them to the background cultures of the students (for example, values competition, independence, familiarity, privacy, respect for elders, etc.). By addressing a community that the students are all living in now, the students could find something in common - bridging their backgrounds to a common experience of living in their current environments.
The United States, like Israel, is home to an influx of many immigrants stemming from different cultural and religious backgrounds, and with this diversity comes an increased complexity of the teaching of ethics in a classroom (Benari, 429). In this largely diverse area of multicultural mingling, Benari promotes the importance of students learning to respect and understand others around them, in order to function and thrive in a multicultural living situation (431). Though her focus is on students becoming empathetic nurses, our focus of students becoming empathetic and respectful human beings is no different.
Benari first promotes the general teaching of cultural backgrounds in the classroom, addressing differences between students’ backgrounds, but also highlighting the many unsung similarities that exist between them. He brings for the realization that discussion can become tension-filled and guarded in a conflicting space, and furthers the importance of teaching general information regarding different views and backgrounds, so as to open the classroom to an educated and welcoming environment (431). In order to achieve this, Benari uses Yoder’s model of “bridging”, in which “educators encourage students to maintain their ethnic identity and modify their strategies to meet cultural needs of students” (Yoder, 320). Benari compares this approach to alternative teaching strategies, prompting that the bridging pattern “is not only tolerant of all these differences, but attentive to them” (431). In this way, teachers deeply address cultural identities and differences, addressing cultural norms, expectations, philosophies, and laws – working to unpack different viewpoints and to honor backgrounds.
We have observed this in our PCW class, as numerous class sessions have been devoted to discussing different aspects of the students' home cultures. Students have chosen "cultural artifacts" to share with the class that represent their culture in some way, ranging from food and festivals to greeting gestures. As students presented these artifacts, others asked numerous questions - not only being aware of each others cultures, but digging deeper and taking an interest in what each other brings to the table. This gaining of knowledge and respect for one-another's culture became more evident when the class watched a video of an American who offensively stereotyped Asian students. The Arabic students in the class shared their thoughts regarding the offensiveness of the video and the offensive stereotypes and insults that were being placed upon their Chinese classmates. In this moment, we saw the mutual respect traveling between the culture of the Chinese students and the culture of the Arabic students, as discussion, knowledge, and an open environment fostered understanding and tolerance in a diverse classroom.
As with any discussion of background, culture, and opinions, emotions will often run high in these sorts of classroom practices. Defensiveness, anger, aggression, shame, and guilt can arise from the comparing of cultures, and as teachers we must not only keep our own emotions intact, but also encourage a classroom of open and non-hostile discussion (Benari, 432). Benari stresses the importance in finding the balance between student discussion maintaining emotionally distant, but also drawing from students’ personal experience, as that is an important aspect to include as well (432).
Benari’s second approach to teaching ethical awareness in culturally conflicted classrooms is engaging in student involvement with the surrounding community. He tells of the final projects of his school’s nursing students, as they are required to assess the needs of a particular neighborhood in Jerusalem, and to implement a community health project into that community (432). Yet, these students were specifically assigned to work in a community opposite of their own (Jewish students sent to the Arab side of town, vice versa). Teachers went above and beyond to gain support for this project, finding translators to deal with language barriers and chaperones to ensure student safety. Overall, Benari states that the students were well received by their community members and did a wonderful job, as this community engagement pushed the students - “overcoming personal barriers and being willing to go the extra mile with open minds” (433).
Benari concludes that teachers must deal with cultural backgrounds with great sensitivity, making sure to foster basic knowledge of backgrounds, respect, and a welcoming and open atmosphere for discussion. He further states that “limitations should not be looked upon as barriers, but considered as a drive for further creativity” (433). We agree whole-heartedly that knowledge, respect, and openness are key ingredients in the valuing of cultures and the engaging of culturally diverse students in a classroom. Difference is what makes up countries like the United States, and that variation can lead to a wonderful classroom environment of shared knowledge and multifaceted perspectives. The community role is particularly intriguing, revealing the power of overcoming difference in a greater desire to help one another and be a part of a community. We want to maintain these ideals in our classrooms as well – working to value students’ cultural differences, but also striving to move from those differences to a place of mutual respect and working together.
In PCW, we led a lesson focused on discussing different aspects common to American cultural values, working to define these cultural norms as well as compare and contrast them to the background cultures of the students (for example, values competition, independence, familiarity, privacy, respect for elders, etc.). By addressing a community that the students are all living in now, the students could find something in common - bridging their backgrounds to a common experience of living in their current environments.