While there are corps members who happen to be bilingual and so are able to work effectively with ELL students, this is by no means the rule, and many students are left in the lurch simply due to none of their City Year team’s corps members being able to speak their first language. Even in situations where there isn’t a language barrier, there can still be a cultural barrier; students who immigrate to the U.S. can have difficulty adjusting to the D.C. public school system, and this culture shock can manifest as antisocial or seemingly mean-spirited behavior. Corps members who are made aware of this—and are equipped with knowledge of other cultures’ educational systems—will be able to console and accommodate such students rather than simply scolding them for their actions. 

In order for City Year to let its members fully practice the “whole school, whole child” ethos, it is necessary that new corps members be educated on the different cultures that make up the schools in which they serve, and that they be provided resources which help them begin to cross the linguistic and cultural barriers between them and their students. 

Since culture influences how individuals view their education, knowing your students’ culture can help you consider their differences and provide quality education according to each students’ approach to life. 

Knowing everything about each culture is an unrealistic goal; the key is to be aware of basic assumptions, expectations, and behaviors associated with each cultural and ethnic group within your service area. For instance, it would be beneficial to understand how the groups you work with view education, their values, and their religious beliefs and family dynamics in regards to how they make decisions

Your experiences and cultural background play a major role for how and why you think and act. Essentially, your culture impacts your behavior. Since ingrained labels can impact your ability as an educator, it’s important to look at your own biases, stereotypes and prejudices. To do this, ask yourself questions such as: Why do I believe what I believe? Why do I react in a specific manner? Where do my biases come from? How can I move beyond them?

Acculturation - the process of becoming part of another culture, typically the dominant one.

Cultural knowledge means that you know about some cultural characteristics, history, values, beliefs, and behaviors of another ethnic or cultural group.

Cultural awareness is the next stage of understanding other groups -- being open to the idea of changing cultural attitudes.

Cultural sensitivity is knowing that differences exist between cultures, but not assigning values to the differences (better or worse, right or wrong). Clashes on this point can easily occur, especially if a custom or belief in question goes against the idea of multiculturalism. Internal conflict (intrapersonal, interpersonal, and organizational) is likely to occur at times over this issue. Conflict won't always be easy to manage, but it can be made easier if everyone is mindful of the organizational goals.

Cultural competence brings together the previous stages -- and adds operational effectiveness. A culturally competent organization has the capacity to bring into its system many different behaviors, attitudes, and policies and work effectively in cross-cultural settings to produce better outcomes. Cultural competence is non-threatening because it acknowledges and validates who people are. By focusing on the organization's culture, it removes the need to place blame and assume guilt. Since becoming culturally competent focuses on the "how-to" of aligning policies and practices with goals, everyone is involved in the process. This "inside-out" model relieves the outsiders (or excluded groups) from the responsibility of doing all the adapting.

 Ethnocentric Stage At the second stage, you are consciously aware there are other cultures, but you consider yours superior to others. Similarly, you recognize there are other ways of doing things, yet you still consider your way is best. In this stage, you realize differences exist, though you understand very little about what these differences are. You view cultural differences as a problem, yet you’re unsure of the significance of the problem and you tend to ignore the problem.

Synergistic Stage At the third stage, you have knowledge of cultural differences and practices and you believe these differences can be valuable. You are now able to choose the best way to do things, whether it is your way or others’ ways. Culturally-appropriate behavior does not come naturally yet, so you make a conscious effort to behave properly. You are aware of how your behavior is perceived by others and you are working on substituting old habits with new ones. 

Participatory Third Culture Stage: At the fourth stage, you unite with other cultures to create a culture of shared meanings and new rules to meet the needs of a situation. Since you’ve been transformed by a new culture, you instinctively do the right thing and it takes little effort for you to be culturally sensitive. 

Going through the 4 stages takes time. No one is going to go from stage 1 to stage 4 overnight or even in just a few weeks. It takes consistent self-check and reflection to move through the 4 stages; even an individual in stage 3 or 4 must consistently self check and self reflect in order to remain in those stages and move to the next stage. 

Cultural competence is an essential element to help eliminate inequality and close the gap in education.

Classrooms" e-Journal of Balanced Reading Instruction 2(1), article 5. Available at http://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/jblri/vol2/iss1

Valuing diversity means accepting and respecting differences between and within cultures. We often presume that a common culture is shared between members of racial, linguistic, and religious groups, but this may not be true. A group might share historical and geographical experiences, but individuals may share only physical appearance, language, or spiritual beliefs. Our cultural assumptions can lead us to wrong conclusions. As people move to new areas and meld with other cultures it creates a kaleidoscope of subcultures within racial groups. Gender, locale, and socioeconomic status can sometimes be more powerful than racial factors. For example, a Vietnamese couple may immigrate to America, and raise their children in a suburban area. As a result, the children may identify much more with European American popular culture than the Vietnamese culture of their parents. Understanding situations such as this can lead to a better understanding of the complexity of diversity.

The most important actions to be conscious of are usually the ones we take for granted. For instance, physical distance during social interactions varies by culture. If a staff member of an organization routinely touches the arm of whomever she is talking to, this might be misread in some cultures. Such miscommunication can be avoided if the organization does cultural self-assessment. Each organization has a culture. Surveys and discussion can help members become more aware of the organization's way of doing things and can help it adjust to other cultures. This assessment is a continuing process towards cultural competence.

Many factors can affect cross-cultural interactions. Bias due to historical cultural experiences can explain some current attitudes. For example, Native Americans and African Americans, among other groups, have experienced discrimination and unfair treatment from dominant cultures. Mistrust coming out of these experiences may be passed on to the next generations of these groups, but ignored within the dominant culture. An oppressed group may feel mistrust toward the dominant culture, but members of the dominant culture may be unaware of it or not understand it. Organizations planning to interact with varying cultures need awareness of such a dynamic if they want to be effective. Remember that organizations can be intergenerational. A group that worked with an ineffective, culturally incompetent organization 15 years ago, may not know that the group has the same name but is in a "second life" -- a new staff, a new board, and a new approach to working with the community. This means the organization has some work to do, and must be aware of this dynamic in order to be newly effective. Being proactive rather than reactive about change produces a synergistic organization. Anticipating change is a basic dynamic in the development of synergy. Synergy is more than just teamwork. It's the magic that happens when people are truly working together, understanding one another deeply, and in total agreement about their beliefs and goals, at least as far as their work goes. Synergy happens only if people treat each other with respect and effectively communicate with each other.

Cultural knowledge should be integrated into every facet of an organization. Staff must be trained and be able to effectively utilize knowledge gained. Policies should be responsive to cultural diversity. Program materials should reflect positive images of all cultures.

Values, behaviors, attitudes, practices, policies, and structures that make it possible for cross-cultural communication guide a culturally competent organization. When you recognize, respect, and value all cultures and integrate those values into the system, culturally competent organizations can meet the needs of diverse groups.