Reflection on Autobiography

Reflection on Autobiography

Reflecting back on the discussions on cultural autobiography, value system, social differences, privileges and power inhibits the understanding of culture. My experience with various cultures has given me the skills needed to discuss both sides of power or powerless, privilege or unprivileged and social differences.

Starting with class and power, since India is a very diverse place where the caste/class system is dominant, I am quite familiar with this concept. Since I belonged to the higher class, I had several privileges, powers, and was able to feel this class. Although people feel that the caste/class system should be put to an end, having a higher status makes an individual unable to put an end to this since the privileges one enjoys goes to an end. The only people who can put an end to this system are those in the higher class; therefore, this is difficult to accomplish.

Now that I am residing here, I belong to a minority class and being a single parent makes it even worse. I now feel that I have less power and privileges compared to what I had in India. This has made me realize that power does not last forever and we have to accommodate ourselves according to the situation. There is a common saying “When in Rome, do as the Romans do”.

There is a lack of cultural understanding in the world and the culture which is dominant controls everything in the society. This makes the lower class even weaker and no matter how hard they work, they are bound to remain lower compared to those in the higher class. Therefore, people always wish to belong to the upper class and they feel isolated or neglected when this does not happen. Since I am in a new society now, I am often hesitant to sway something or to discuss anything with my neighbors since I am afraid of saying something wrong that may make the society laugh at me or think negatively about me.

When I look back at my past when I began my teaching career, I was not provided any training as to how to manage a diverse population of students. However, my previous experience with different cultures has helped me to manage this problem effectively and respect the differences in culture.

My reflection of the handling of cultures has given me an insight that there are several barriers individuals and institutions face regarding culture:

Lack of sharing of knowledge in the classroom.

Lack of understanding the background of students.

Lack of professional and formal training.

Lack of Understanding the culture.

Teachers do not have any support from the district or administration and their duties are based on what is mentioned in the curriculum without consideration of several other factors that can help to improve the education being provided to students. We have been asked to follow everything that comes without any questioning or giving any input. We are not even given an opportunity to connect with the students and explore betters ways of teaching ...