Cultural+Issues


 * __Possible questions:__**


 * What are some cultural issues an online instructor/e-moderator may face?
 * How can an instructor plan for and deal with the issues?
 * How can an instructor be culturally sensitive?

__**Books/Articles:**__

(no online link)**
 * 1. Salmon, G. (2000). //E-moderating: the key to teaching and learning online.// Taylor and Francis Books Ltd.

“Sensitivity and discretion may save you potential online embarrassment” (page 157).


 * __Issues to be aware of and strategies to use (157-159):__**
 * Styles of address, hierarchy and authority:** Some societies display a greater degree of formality than others. Titles may be used to address other participants and use of first names may not be common. __Strategy:__ Ask participants what they would like to be called, and invite them to sign their messages accordingly.
 * Male and female:** In some cultures, relationships between males and females are more constrained than in others, female opinions may carry less weight, they may appear inhibited or indeed ignored in the presence of males. __Strategy__: Be alert to ensuring everyone can contribute and everyone’s views are valued, and model these responses too.
 * Asking questions:** Asking direct questions may be a problem for some, and in some cultures there is an expectation that the teacher will ‘tell’ and the student will learn what the teacher has said. There may be an expectation of authority by the e-moderator on the part of the students. __Strategy:__ Difficult to change in short space of time, but create an atmosphere of equality and structured opportunities helps, encourage students to ask questions in a sensitive way.
 * Critiquing:** May be rude in some cultures, the person whose work is critiqued may lose face and feel slighted. __Strategy:__ Try to enable gradual development and support for all participants, and then encourage them to challenge. Some may need more help than others in working this way.
 * Opening up online:** Personal disclosure is not the norm in some cultures, some more reticent about articulating thoughts online. __Strategy:__ good e-tivites exploring cultural differences at stage two will help lay the ground for the valuing of all contributions. Make it clear people do not need to disclose personal information, and avoid posting own information based on marital status or career achievements, since this may otherwise ‘set the tone.’
 * Using names:** Asking for preferred names for addressing participants can save potential embarrassment, annotate list of participants with preferred name as you learn it. Genders can be easily confused too. (an example is given on page 159).


 * 2. Palloff, R. M. and Pratt, K. (2003). //The Virtual Student//.** **Jossey-Bass**
 * [|Online book]**

Multimedia**: Instructor needs to be careful not to reinforce stereotypes.
 * __Cultural issues (page 40)__
 * Writing styles**: Some students may be uncomfortable with informal language.
 * Role of student and instructor:** Co-creation of knowledge and meaning in an online course, may be different than used to.

[|Online article]
 * 3. Kim, K-J. and Bonk, C. J. (2002). Cross-cultural comparisons of online collaboration. //JCMC// 8/1**.


 * Investigate cultural issues in computer-mediated communication and interaction
 * Differences in expectations about the role of tutors and their learning styles
 * Most Asian students had been tutor-oriented learners in their native countries and tended to rely heavily on direction form their teachers even in the interactive online learning environment (Liang and McQueen, 1999).