What is cultural identity and cultural hybridity? And how are these concepts important for professional pedagogical work?
Our first task in the session with Lillian was it to think thoroughly about our own identity. Therefore, we had to take the following aspects into consideration:
- familiy, friends, study/work, ethnic group (local)
- nationality (national)
- religion, diaspora, cosmopolitan, multi-level (transnational)
The second task was a group work. It should show how we understood the text which we had to read as homework and also how we understood Lilians presentation.
Our first concept map
The picture in the middle shows the roots of identity. A person would never know his/her own identity without the interaction to other people. That means that the contact to other people is the basis of forming an identity. People form communities which influence the identity of every person within that community. That can happen differnetly depending on the community you belong to.
While the picture on the left shows local and national influence, the picture on the right focuses on transnational and hybrid influence on the identity.
At the end of the lesson, we started to write a CV which shows a relevance to the global market:
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PERSONAL DETAILS
Surname: | Enke | Gender: | Female |
First Names: | Kathrin | Nationality: | German |
Date of Birth: | 22 January 1987 | ||
KEY SKILLS/COMPETENCIES
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EDUCATION
Feb 11 – Apr 11 Oct 08 – Sep 11 | Educational Institution (Blaagaard/KDAS Copenhagen, Denmark)Erasmus-program: international module with attended courses: Globalisation and professional change, Visual culture, Danish language and culture, Educational (comparing European education systems), Teaching English Educational Institution (University of Potsdam/Germany)Bachelor of Arts (Teacher education in English, German and Social Studies), Including expert conferences of “Philosophise with children” and courses concerning Pedagogic, Psychology, Didactics, English language, Social competences, Conflict resolution, Inclusion and special needs pedagogy Topic of the Bachelor Paper: Inclusion in Denmark | |
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
Aug 10 – Sep 10 Mar 08 – July 08 | Open Holiday-Activity “Robin Hood in Heidelberg Forest”- Supervisor for children aged 6-13 (Part-time) - leading a team of 2 interns and a group of 35 children - planning the holiday-activities (time, team, games, organise materials, create a homepage for information on the holiday-activities, promote the holiday-activities) - preparing and accomplish games for children - supervising the kids - evaluate the holiday-activity - giving training in resolving conflicts The gap between the two jobs is due to my study which I started in October 2008 “GILDS” Work Association in Leeds/England Various part-time jobs - be in charge of food-selling at the football stadium in Leeds - working at Music-Festival - work at the Royal Welsh Show/Wales (catering-assistant, care for foreign guests) - customer liaison and support of sales stalls |
Oct 07 – Mar 08 | Ludwig-Leichhardt-Gymnasium Cottbus/GermanyForeign language teaching assistant (Full-time) - preparing students from 10th grade for the oral exam - teaching English grammar in grade 7 - teaching the British school system in grade 9 - informing students about opportunities for studying/working abroad |
Sep 06 – Sep 07 | “GILDS” Work Association in Leeds/England Various part-time jobs - be in charge of food-selling at the football stadium in Leeds - working at Music-Festival - work at the Royal Welsh Show/Wales (catering-assistant, care for foreign guests) - customer liaison and support of sales stalls |
OTHER RELEVANT SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE
- Voluntary work at a school for children with special needs
- Expert conference “Philosophise with children”
- Workshop “How to develop intercultural competences?”
- English (fluently)
- Russian (basic knowledge)
- Danish (Basic knowledge
- Training in conflict resolution
- Driving licence
- EDV-Knowledge (Microsoft Office, Excel, PPT)
INTERESTS
- travelling and getting to know unfamiliar cultures
- professional choreography dancing
- English language
- psychology
(21 January 2011)
My reflection:
Before the session with Lilian, I’ve never heard of the term ‘hybridity’ in connection with cultural identity.
My idea regarding cultural identity in times of globalization was that people grow apart due to the variety of cultures which are getting connected more and more. This mixture of cultures is called ‘hybridity’.
But the text ‘Identity and Belonging’ showed that my idea was wrong. The identity of people is growing together within a culture. People need a place where they belong to and a network they can identify with.
The first task (creating a pie chart) was very helpful for me to think of about my own identity. So far, I’ve lived in England, worked in Switzerland and I’ve been attending an Erasmus-program in Denmark. That’s why I’ve considered myself being cosmopolitan because it is very easy for me to integrate to unfamiliar cultures. Somehow, I feel home everywhere. But the pie chart made me think about my own background and I had to admit that I’m more a local person who needs family and friends around. I also see myself being connected to the eastern part of Germany than belonging to Germany in general. The discussion in our group about our cultural identity was very interesting because everyone had a totally different background. It helped me to be more aware of people’s identification with the country/culture they live in at that time.
The concepts of cultural identity and cultural hybridity are, for that reason, very important for me because I will have to take this into consideration while working as a global teacher. A lot of children immigrate to an unfamiliar culture and it is absolutely important that we understand how the children feel under their new circumstances. Many immigrated children might also have a local identity and therefore, it is harder for them to integrate. Others, however, are more cosmopolitan and won’t have serious problems include themselves into that new culture. But as a future teacher I have to be aware of these facts, so, that I can understand their emotional condition and to integrate them effectively in class.
