English Newsletter - March 2019 - Intercultural Critical Incidences
Intercultural Critical Incidences
Below you will find intercultural critical incidences taken from the Mumis Projekt, a collaboration between the Universities of Siegen, Kassel, and Hamburg1. Read the description and consider the questions. Click on “commentary” to read an explanation for the cultural misunderstanding.
1.
Ricardo from Columbia studies Computer Science at a German university. In his seminars
he notices that the lecturers often interrupt their lectures and ask the students questions or
prompt them to enter into a discussion. Ricardo is annoyed at this waste of time. The
students know a lot less about the subject than the lecturer. Therefore, they cannot
possibly contribute anything of value and it is completely superfluous to ask them at all.
Ricardo does not understand why the lecturer continually asks the students to comment
and waste so much time on pointless discussions.
How might Ricardo’s annoyance be explained?
Which university traditions might be behind the behaviour of German lecturers?
What are the lecturers trying to achieve with their questions?
Ricardo comes from a cultural setting where a frontal teaching style is common: the lecturer communicated the subject matter, which students then reproduce in exams and papers. The rather high power distance becomes visible in the lecturer’s authority qua knowledge and the students’ inferiority. To Ricardo, the teacher is the authority on the subject. That the teacher asks his fellow students for their opinion annoys him.
Though s/he is an authority the German lecturer demonstrates a lower power distance to the students and encourages their proactive participation in the lecture. This way of learning is embedded in the German university system, where (especially in the arts and humanities) a discursive style of knowledge acquisition roots in Humboldt’s unity of research and teaching.
2.
Raya, an Indonesian student, is studying for her master’s degree at a German university. Sheattends different seminars and likes to sit in the last row, from where she can best observewhat is going on in the seminar. In one of the seminars, she notices the following: At thebeginning of the class, a student is standing at the lectern; she is supposed to give apresentation that day and is getting her material ready. When the professor enters theclassroom, everyone stops talking and the seminar begins. After a few introductory words bythe professor, the student gives her presentation. The presentation is interspersed with livelydiscussions between the presenter, the other students and the professor. When the professorgets ready for a lengthy explanation, the presenting student sits down on a table. Raya findsthis behaviour outrageous. Finally, when the professor asks the presenter for her paper toquote from it, the student hands her the paper with her left hand. Raya can’t believe her eyes,and she waits for an angry reaction from the professor. But the seminar continues withoutincident, and the student finishes her presentation.
How is Raya’s outrage to be interpreted? From her point of view, which cultural normswere violated in the seminar?
Why does the professor remain calm and why doesn’t he consider the student’sbehaviour inappropriate?
In Indonesia younger people have to respect the older generation. Sitting down ON a table signals absolute disrespect for the hierarchically higher-ranking teacher. In addition to that, the presenter hands over the paper with her left, unclean, hand, which is never used to greet people or hand them things. Quite clearly the presenter is from a low-context culture, whereas Raya is from a high context culture.
In low-context Germany, the power distance between lecturers and students is lower. University teachers often seek to establish an atmosphere of mutual respect and open exchange of ideas. The old hierarchies in academia were reformed due to the student movement of the 1060ies. This is why today sitting down on a table in a lecture as a student may be interpreted as self-confidence.
3.
Jane, an American student, is spending a student year at a German university. She findscontacting German lecturers extremely difficult. In America, you can talk to your lecturersanytime and anywhere, and the lecturers usually take the time to address the student’sproblems, whereas in Germany, you have to make an appointment with the lecturers or seethem during their consulting hours. For her first written assignment, Jane needs a lot of helpand so whenever she has the chance, she asks her lecturer questions on how to write theassignment. However, the lecturer is usually in a hurry and asks her to see him duringconsulting hours. But even during consulting hours, Jane gets the impression that time islimited, as there are many other students waiting their turn with the lecturer. This makes Janecut her comments shorter than she had intended. At the same time, she is annoyed because ofthe time pressure.
What does Jane expect of a lecturer, and why is she annoyed at the way theconsultation system is organised?
Is there a reason why the lecturers are not available to consult with their students atany time and any place?
By paying tuition American students finance their universities and see themselves as paying customers and stakeholders who have an active say in university matters. Seminar groups are much smaller than at German universities and staff offer more service, i.e. there is more guidance but also encouragement to stick out and leave a mark by engaging in dialogue with the academic staff.
German lecturers have a much bigger number of students to teach and the academic process is very much seen as process of self-organization alongside a number of rules and regulations. Lecturers may advise on academic matters but send students to other institutions such as the Schreibwerkstatt when it comes to advice on how to write a paper.
Contrary to what it seems, both cultures are rather low-context cultures and communication is direct. Hierarchies are slightly higher in Germany than in the United States, but this does not explain the lecturer’s behaviour. What comes into play here is the attitude towards time and rules – the Germans making no exception and sticking to procedures, whereas the American student is used to being proactive and giving input to show initiative – and the different understanding of the role of a university.
4.
Ms. Kleinschmidt, a German lecturer, has a lot of contact with foreign students due to herteaching in an international course of studies. Overall, she thinks dealing with them is verypleasant: She finds foreign students to be much more polite than their German counterpartsand more respectful towards the lecturers. Sometimes, however, the respectfulness can bestrenuous. She has noticed that students from China in particular often choose not to askquestions or make critical comments out of politeness and respect, although Ms. Kleinschmidtrepeatedly encourages them to do so. Often, it’s her impression that the students have notunderstood everything, yet they never ask questions. She has offered the Chinese students tosee her during her consulting hours before an exam to clarify questions or problems, but theyhardly ever take her up on that offer. Ms. Kleinschmidt cannot understand this behaviour.
What bothers Ms. Kleinschmidt about the Chinese students’ behaviour?
What could be the reason that the Chinese students do not ask questions?
Ms Kleinschmidt is quite clearly not at ease with the situation and suspects that the obvious respect that the Chinese students show her may prevent them from asking questions. She would like to have a more open exchange with many factual questions so as to be able to help the students. In China, however, a lecturer is a person of respect, and while Chinese teachers assume almost parental roles for their students, there is a high power distance in this high context culture.
To ask a Chinese lecturer questions or to criticise her/him will lead to a loss of face for both: To the lecturer questions from students will signal that he did not explain well enough, the self-revelation on the student side is that they are too dumb to understand and just learn what has been presented in the lectures. Hence, it is felt as inappropriate to engage in an open exchange of sic et non. Good students copy the teacher and do not ask questions.
1MumisProjekt. Retrieved March 7, 2019, from http://www.mumis-projekt.de/mumis/