Role of culture in knowing

Culture gives information that can serve to explain why people behave in a certain way. Culture will help us to understand the reasons behind people’s behaviours. The culture into which a child is born acts in more fundamental ways as the means of knowing. As knowing is a meaning making process the meanings to the concepts are provided by the language of the society and the cultural context. Language is a good indicator of how a culture is.

1. Role of Culture in Knowing By. Dr. Kshetrimayum Sajina Devi

2. Role of Culture in Knowing Culture gives information that can serve to explain why people behave in a certain way. Culture will help us to understand the reasons behind people’s behaviours. The culture into which a child is born acts in more fundamental ways as the means of knowing. As knowing is a meaning making process the meanings to the concepts are provided by the language of the society and the cultural context. Language is a good indicator of how a culture is. There is relationship between language and the mind in creating meaning. Culture significantly contributes to meaning. Daniel Everett says there is relationship between culture and language. Language itself appears to be a cultural invention. Language is a tool moulded by culture. An account of meaning ultimately needs to include all three points together like language, mind, and culture.

3. It is the language in its cultural context that creates meaning. Creating and interpreting is done within a cultural framework. Without it, we are in effect a linguistic dunce. In language learning classrooms, learners need to engage with the ways in which context affects and what is communicated and how. Both the learners’ culture and the culture in which meaning is created or communicated have an influence on the ways in which possible meanings are understood. Living in culture and acquiring cultural knowledge enables us to gain meaning from the world around us and from each other.

4. You must have experienced that the meaning of one object or thought varies from one cultural context to another. For example, a person considered to be intelligent in the cultural context may not be considered so in another culture. Thus, the very process of experiencing reality is facilitated by the cultural tools. In a distinct way from internal sources, culture acts as a means of knowing and knowledge. This is true in case of school knowledge, which is textual knowledge. Culture has often been understood as a body of knowledge that people have about a particular society. This body of knowledge can be seen in various ways as knowledge about cultural artefacts, and as knowledge about places, symbols, and ways of living. It is possible to teach this aspect of culture in terms of information, which can be mastered by students. It can also be instrumental in influencing and shaping both thought and language. Culture is not however simply a body of knowledge, but rather a framework in which people live their lives and communicate shared meanings with each other.

5. Culture and Education Culture and education relate to each other. Culture plays its role in developing good attitudes, social qualities, critical thinking, and ethnic and cultural literacy among children, and promotes effective relationship between home and school. One of the fundamental goals of education is to preserve culture and to impart cultural heritage from one generation to another. Knowing the cultural background of student education can frame the structure of classroom to provide effective instruction. The school has to shape individuals through shaping culture. The school imparts values such as co-operation, team-spirit, discipline, and skills. Later, these skills and values are incorporated within the culture of society. In celebrating national or international festivals, the cultural approach is used. Culture in these contexts influences the various norms and ideas of the society and of the country.

6. School Culture - A school has its own culture. It is characterised by the presence of a set of norms and values that focus everyone’s attention on what is important and motivates them to work hard toward a common purpose. It fosters effort and productivity. Improving collaborative activities promotes better communication and problem solving. Schools approach curriculum building with culture in mind. A curriculum that builds on a student’s cultural understanding proves to be more effective because students can relate it to their own lives.

7. Teachers’ Role in Cultural Context Teacher, before teaching, should understand the country culture, value problem and see that taught values are transferred in student’s life. Teachers should teach on scientific basis and honestly. Nowadays culture conscious education is becoming common. The very function of culture is to foster values, and the task of education is to make this process more conscious and practically defensible, and the role of curriculum is making it effective. As culture changes, so also our educational system’s major factors such as educational objectives, curriculum, teaching method, evaluation techniques, school activities, teacher attitudes, and school environment change. Culture gives holistic learning and connects to other disciplines and determines the usage of education in society.

8. The role and influence of education in culture leads to the following changes- The traditional classroom is replaced by communication and technology. Child centred education comes in to existence. Adult education takes place in the field of education through the scheme of educating the illiterate. Girls who had no opportunity of education, now achieve higher levels of education. Diffusion of good culture by quality education makes it possible for culture to maintain its place in society. Culture strongly influences how an individual approaches education, and a society’s culture determines how that society educates its citizens. Thus, we see how culture plays its role in knowing and knowledge.