10/26/2021; Week 7: Response to "Cross-Cultural Students in the Classroom"

     This study of cultural differences is so helpful in understanding differences in students from different parts of the world or even in different regions of a specific country. Understanding concepts such as differences in expressivity, whether a society is polychronic or monochronic, or differences in hierarchal tiers within cultures, is so helpful because it changes our attitudes towards others. It changes our perspectives to one of perhaps annoyance to one of acceptance and even an ability to appreciate the differences in culture. 

     Here in Mexico, different forms of the word "you" are used. One uses "usted" when speaking to someone on a higher social scale than oneself, but uses "tu" when speaking to someone on a lower social scale. An example would be when an employee speaks to his or her employer. In this case, he or she would use "usted". However, if this same employee were speaking to a child, he or she would use "tu". Once, when I was the pianist for a high school choir, one young man felt like he and I were very comfortable and he asked me if he could "tutiar" me. This meant that he wanted to start using the informal form of you, "tu", with me. Another student told me that I should not allow that, as it might be considered somewhat inappropriate. 

     Studying and learning about different cultures never ceases to fascinate me!

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