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Dear classmates,

For today's discussion, we have written the objectives as follows:



After the discussion forum, the class will be able to:

1. Assimilate the suggestions and findings from the study into their own values and practices.

2. Learn the correct use of different teaching strategies on a given group/population with diverse cultural background.

3. Develop teaching/training plans systematically.

4. Have self-awareness and reflect how the socio-cultural aspect of instructors affects pedagogical method.

5. Create a pedagogical strategy for particular learners.

6. Relate the concepts emphasized in the article to the vision and mission of UERM.



The following are the guide questions we have created. Answer at least 6 questions. Also, we are to comment on each other's answers.

a. Identify the objectives of the study.

b. What are the assumptions of the study?

c. Define pedagogy. What is your role in this concept?

d. In the context of learning Instructional Design, what are the strong and weak points of the study?

e. Why do you think the title of the study was named as such?

f. Is the strategy used by instructor effective in increasing the interns’ socio-cultural awareness? In what way?

g. How did the socio-cultural backgrounds of the prospective instructors affect their method of instruction design?

h. Relate the situation in the study to the situation in the Philippines. What can you say about the need to implement the study’s findings and recommendations to the education system in the Philippines?

i. Describe your own values/organization briefly and relate it to the concept of multicultural foundations in terms of "What; So, What; and Now, What?” How do you implement the concept of pedagogy of multicultural foundations to your own values/organization in order to achieve commitment, compassion, learning, and excellence in education and training?


We are looking forward to a fruitful discussion with you!

Your classmates,

Kriselda Manzano
Joshua Maquiling
Patrick Marban

These are additional guide questions:

j. How should cultural diversity affect teaching strategy?

k. What is the implication of systematically developing an instructional plan to the concept of equity, as discussed in the study?


Again, you may answer at least 6 questions from the list for our discussion. Thank you!

a. as i understood it, the objectives of the study was geared towards increasing the cultural sensitivity of prospective teachers using intra- as well as interpersonal means. learning in a multicultural environment is difficult for both the teacher and the student. another objective was how to get passed these cultural differences and make learning more meaningful for both parties.

c. Pedagogy, as far as i can understad is all about learning. acquiring knowledge thru a structured student-teacher relationship. in this early stage of my nursing career, my initial role is to understand the deeper implcations of the learning process as i will invovle my self in a teaching career in the future. i am a product of the traditional classroom setup and i am inclined to go that way as well had i not learned about pedagogy. it is therefore my responsibility as a would be teacher to enhance my understanding of the delicate process of education so that i won't come short with my future students.

d. i still have to understand instructional desgin deeper to answer this one...

e. its quite a catchy title, it implies the lack of understanding of such a difficult topic such as culture. it also implies an invitation for both students and teachers to sit down and try to understand each other in a way that will benefit both of them. I think that the title was written this way because it is the reality, we know little about the different cultures that surround us. and we know even less about the way it affects the learning process.

f. i would say yes. their reflections alone reflect a new understanding and appreciation of a reality that is not theirs. it was clear that they were able to identify the "what?; so, what?; now, what?" in the study. im expecting that there will be great difficulty in the implementation of their program on their end as well as with their students. the reason being, it is a different approach. this consttitues a change in the existing system not just for them but for eveybody in general. And change is always hard.

g. the prospective teacher's socio-cultural backgrounds is a big influence in the way the approach things. i have this theory that as we grow up, we believe that the world is how we saw it growing up. i used to think that because i slept in the night meant that everybody in the world slept also. but then ideas like this change. as we grow older we realize that our realities are only perceptions. the respondents of the study seemed to have their own perceptions about how life is for them and for others at the beginning but were only basing their realities on the own perspectives. had they not seen what their students and their parents were going thru, there is a good chance that they mayhave continued to believe in their own reality.

h. On my way to school, i was actually contemplating on the implications this study may have in the Phil. setting. Eventhough we consdir ourselves as one people (one race), let us not forget that the Filipino blood is not pure in the sense that over the years with the different countries that have gained access, we have been impregnated with the different cultures of these countries. spanish, japanese and american just to name a few. not only in our blood do we see the differences within our culture, the way of life during these times have also influenced much of who we are now as a people. Many foreign nationals have also chosen to call the Phil. their home, Chinese, Indians, Koreans... so in the long run the children of these foreigners will grow up to be part of our society. as time passes, the need to address the diverse cultures within our society grows.

i. i need more time to think about this item...

j. there are many things to consider when teaching, culture is just one of them. "you can't please everyone," i think that is the basis of this discussion. what is the best way to please (teach and make them learn) the most number of students (utilitarian)? how can we deal with those who we're not pleased (culturally different from the norm)? this second question is what is being answered. Teaching strategies therefore, should not only address the first question

patmarban wrote:

These are additional guide questions: j. How should cultural diversity affect teaching strategy?

1. Identify the objectives of the study.

The objectives of the study was to assess teaching methods, including the aims of education and the ways in which such goals may be achieved. The field relies heavily on educational psychology, or theories about the way in which learning takes place.

To also provide a channel through which this individual through which this individual teacher educator could explore, innovate, and improve her practice.

2. Define Pedagogy? What is your role in this concept?

Pedagogy is the study of teaching methods, including the aims of education and the ways in which such goals may be achieved. The field relies heavily on educational psychology, or theories about the way in which learning takes place. (Britannica, 2008)

My role in this concept is that I can be both a teacher and learner. Continuously interacting applying the principle of reciprocity.

3. Why do you think the title of the study was named as such?

I think the study was named like that because in the study, the prospective teachers where expose to the community where their K-12 students were in. in which in such a way them being as educators must learn the multicultural foundations of the students including their parents. With this understanding they will be able to learn things that they will not be able to assess in an ordinary classroom setting.

3. How could cultural diversity affect teaching strategy?

Cultural diversity greatly affect teaching strategy because The traditional college classroom has a distinct culture that often constrains the success of students from other cultural backgrounds. Traditional culture has remained unnoticed becau se the mismatch with student's culture is never identified. A college teacher's explicit and ongoing attention to the cultural assumptions behind many aspects of classroom teaching will facilitate the learning process for students from all cultural traditions. This does not necessarily mean dismantling of traditional teaching; rather, teachers could incorporate flexible, alternative teaching modes in order to engage the broad range of diverse, cultural derived orientations to learning.

4. What are the assumptions of the study?
The assumptions of the study is that the k – 12 class has an increasing cultural diversity, Teacher education programs employ various strategies aimed at providing teachers with the knowledge, habits of mind, and practices necessary to work with increasingly racially and ethnically diverse students. and they have issues in such as the socio-political contexts of schooling; race and ethnicity; the culture of power; and equitable teaching practices.

a. Identify the objectives of the study.

The objective of the study is to assess the pedagogy and how the instructional triangle consisting of the students, the instructor, and the content develops a dynamic interaction with one another. Also, the reviewed study aims to provide means by which the teacher educator could “explore, innovate, and improve” his or her practice.

c. Define pedagogy. What is your role in this concept?

Merriam-Webster (2008) defines pedagogy as the art and science of being a teacher. My personal understanding of pedagogy based from the article is that pedagogy encompasses all the strategies or styles of instruction which an instructor educator uses in his or her practice. As a student, my role in the concept of pedagogy is to participate and interact in the learning process initiated by my instructor for it is through these interactions where pedagogy takes place.


Pedagogy. (2008). Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. Retrieved August 13, 2008, from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pedagogy

f. Is the strategy used by instructor effective in increasing the interns’ socio-cultural awareness? In what way?

Although the strategies used by the instructor such as the community investigation, the use of video based discussions, readings and writing their reflections enabled the interns to raise questions about their personal beliefs and assumptions these strategies however lead the interns only to sympathize with the families instead of really empathizing with them. As said in the article, the interns only offered solutions that still maintained their own status. They were not able to really understand how the society such as the role of the school and education in general (including their own role) could eradicate the inequity in today’s world.

g. How did the socio-cultural backgrounds of the prospective instructors affect their method of instruction design?

The socio-cultural background of a prospective background greatly affects his method of instruction design. A prospective instructor’s background will affect his pedagogy as an educator in the future such as the teaching methods and approaches as well as the way he will assess and evaluate his students.

j. How should cultural diversity affect teaching strategy?

Multicultural education recognizes that schools are essential to laying the foundation for the transformation of society and the elimination of oppression and injustice (Gorski, n.d.). Gorski points out that schools must be active participants in ending oppression of all types, first by ending oppression within their own walls, then by producing socially and critically active and aware students. Teachers on the other hand must be prepared to facilitate learning for every individual student, no matter how culturally similar or different from himself or herself. Therefore, the strategy that will be used by the teacher is really vital in opening the minds and awareness of his or her students about cultural diversity. Awareness now of cultural diversity should then lead to promoting equal opportunities for each student to achieve his or her maximum potential.

Gorski. (n.d.). The Challenge of Defining "Multicultural Education". Retrieved August 13, 2008, from http://www.edchange.org/multicultural/initial.html

k. What is the implication of systematically developing an instructional plan to the concept of equity, as discussed in the study?

Developing an instructional plan should serve as an approach for transforming education that should holistically critique and address the current shortcomings, failings, and discriminatory practices in education. For this reason, the role of the teacher and the school is really vital.

The title was named “Learning Together What We Do Not Know: The Pedagogy of Multicultural Foundations” because learning in this example goes both ways, on the educator and the student as the interns were placed in a position or in a situation were they have been able to emulate the environment of their students. Additionally, the researcher also learned from the interns,

The objectives of the study were to assess the pedagogy and how it develops in interaction between students, the instructor, and the content ; and to provide an avenue through which this individual teacher educator could explore, innovate, and improve her practice.

Pedagogy is the art or science of being a teacher. The term generally refers to strategies of instruction, or a style of instruction. My role in the concept is as a learner as both the educator and the students learn from each other.

The strong points of the study in the community investigation of the study conducted simply shows that an educator must not simply assume a situation as being a fact nor be judgmental on another. Experience will definitely open one’s eyes and perspectives by emulating or putting one’s self in the other’s shoes.

However the weak points of the community investigation are that it had changed the attitude of the interns from empathy to sympathy and had shifted the roles of a learner to a helper.

It raises the awareness levels of the educator in accessing the situation of the family but it supports sympathy and compromises the objectivity of being an educator and transforms one’s role into that of a helper or charitable worker.

As the prospective instructors were of diverse culture, their methods of instruction design had been influenced by their socio cultural backgrounds.

The interns themselves and the experiences they bring to the course shape the pedagogy, in particular the types of conversations and analysis of socio-political contexts that can occur.

The perspective of one instructor being a lesbian mom in this culture and her willingness to share her experiences with her classmates became a part of the content of the course.

The assumptions of the study were that the interns in this cohort shared similar knowledge (schema) about race and racism given that the majority of the interns are white, middle-class women but their individual experiences and their ways of making sense of those experiences varied.

Cultural diversity will definitely have an affect on teaching startegy as each educator as well as each student has his or her own culture. As with the learner centered approach, a thorough assessment of the learner must first be pursued but it has to go both ways in the sense that the educator must also have some self awareness on his values and beliefs. It would be significant to note that there should also be a mutual respect to each and everyone’s culture before an effective learning process may be implemented. As it is we sometimes subliminally have certain biases on another’s culture and if this is present or becomes dominant, no effective learning can be achieved.

Yes Sir Luther I certainly agree that you can never please everybody. Same as with teaching, an educator cannot please all of his students. It is impossible and absurd to make use of a single teaching method. The concept of schema use (assimilation) and schema change (accomodation) is an interesting topic to study further.

luder wrote:

j. there are many things to consider when teaching, culture is just one of them. "you can't please everyone," i think that is the basis of this discussion. what is the best way to please (teach and make them learn) the most number of students (utilitarian)? how can we deal with those who we're not pleased (culturally different from the norm)? this second question is what is being answered. Teaching strategies therefore, should not only address the first question

a. the objective of the study is to assess the effectiveness of the pedagogical method and as well it’s effect on the interaction the students, the instructor and the content.

c. The term pedagogy as I understood it from the article says that it is the result of the iteraction that took place between the instructors, the teachers and the content itself which is greatly affected by the the each instructor’s knowledge, experiences as well as results that each derived from their practice. Since the world is multi-cultural in reality, difference of each one involved in the interaction may differ from experience and also beliefs.

d. Since the outcome of the study gave them a very unexpected outcome, the main weakness would be that there are many factors that could differentiate the outcome and they fail to anticipate such.

e. “Learning Together What We Do Not Know: The Pedagogy of Multicultural Foundations” I guess the main reason that they entitled it as such is because the situation shows that each of them have learned from the study of the underlying effect of culture to learnings of an individual. In reality all of us are unaware that learning process is how we inculcate varieties of things around us. It shapes our thinking in a way that we grow with all these things and affects our manner of learning.

f. I think the strategy was not that effective. Not only that they yield a sympathetic than empatic interns in the process, it is always a nature in any given situation to anticipate undersired outcomes. At the end, the instructor came up to realizing that there is an increased need to explore and dig more and that they were not able to answer more questions they need to find out. Their study will encourage new discoveries in the area of research. Interests to the issue of complexity of cultural influence in education will need more time to be answered but yet results will definately be of great help in the near future, where everything is almost linked by cultural diversity issues.

Define pedadogy. What is your role in this concept?
Defined by MoodleDocs on the internet, Pedagogy is the profession of teaching. From the article, Pedagogy is an instructional strategy. It may be inferred that it pertains to either formal or informal education. It needs to have an interaction between a teacher, students/partipants and subject matter in order to have an effective outcome.
As an individual, I think my role in education is for professional development. Today, being part of the UERM graduate school is an initial step in achieving this role. I need to continuously learn so I can share my philosophies, gained knowledge and experiences to others. I need to have a deep sense of determination and devotion. I need to be updated with the growing technology so I can always be ahead of my students. I need to understand more and live with pedagogy.

Why do you think the title of the study was named as such?
The title of the study implies that the equity and diversity in education is yet to be learned. It includes concepts on social justice, socioeconomic situation, health practices, education equity and learners achieving their full potential.

Is the strategy used by instructor effective in increasing the intern’s socio-cultural awareness? In what way?
In my own opinion, the strategy utilized in the study was effective. The purpose of the study was met. Though the researchers weren’t able to better the lives of the community people,but that is apart from the scope, they were able to articulate their interaction with them leading to awareness and realizations.

How should cultural diversity affect teaching strategy?
I think the teaching strategy must be in accordance with cultural diversity. The instructional design must be in accordance with the culture of the community. Similar with the concept on multiple intelligence by howard gardner whereby the teaching style is coordinated with the learning personality of the individual.

a. Identify the objectives of the study
- As I read through the article, I feel that the objective of the study is the cultural differences in the both the students and teacher’s. How would the teachers respond to the increasing part of culture sensitivity by, as a teacher, using the inter – personal and intra – personal means of communicating to their students. Another one is to develop beginning teachers to commit to an equitable outcome and high achievements for the students.

c. Define pedagogy. What is your role in this concept?
- Pedagogy is the art or science of being a teacher. It is the use of strategies to further enhance one’s teaching style and therefore create a stimulating learning experience for the students. Taking into consideration the instructor’s philosophical beliefs and the students background knowledge as well as the environment.

- My role would be to enhance my teaching strategy for the mere fact of achieving higher learning knowledge for me and of my students. We should think of a thing as a whole not staying inside the box. We can expand our world and therefore gaining new strategies and insights to further gain maturity and teach our students new things.

e. Why do you think the title of the study was named as such?
- I believed it’s because to clearly see and understand the cultural diversity and improving the instructor’s practice. To further enhanced communication process to the students by assessing their capabilities and experiences before and their behavior. To show what we can do to achieve a higher level of knowledge and further educate our students taking into consideration different aspect such as their culture sensitivity and background knowledge.

f. . Is the strategy used by instructor effective in increasing the interns’ socio-cultural awareness? In what way?
- Although the strategies used by the instructor such as the community investigation, the use of video based discussions, readings and writing their reflections enable them to see their personal belief and assumptions on the study and further enhanced their awareness on issues on family that led the interns sympathize and empathize with them. The pedagological approach changed the strategies that lead to a learning development from a social context of view.

j. How should cultural diversity affect teaching strategy?
- Cultural diversity affects greatly an instructors teaching style. Each student has his/her own perception on a given concept. Each culture teach us different ways of interpreting things. Using the multicultural education, an instructor can teach information and knowledge that each student who belong to different race can understand.

k. What is the implication of systematically developing an instructional plan to the concept of equity, as discussed in the study?
- By developing an instructional design for the curriculum, it will be the backbone for transforming education into a more positive leaning experience for the student and teacher’s. Being able to achieve the outcome in a way the needs are met and able to gain maturity in the individual.