Learning to Interpret Cultural Meaning through an Etic Description of a Familiar Culture

被引:2
作者
Miller, Elizabeth [1 ]
机构
[1] CUNY, Grad Ctr Sociol, New York, NY 10016 USA
关键词
classroom-based exercises; active learning; research methods; introduction to sociology; culture;
D O I
10.1177/0092055X14540584
中图分类号
G40 [教育学];
学科分类号
040101 ; 120403 ;
摘要
Undergraduate students often have trouble interpreting cultures other than that with which they are familiar in a way that takes into account the symbols and meanings that explain behaviors, objects, and ideologies. Instead, many fall into the trap of making ethnocentric assumptions and coming to conclusions that are informed by their own cultural perspectives. This in-class active learning exercise makes the familiar strange, using Horace Miner's well-known 1956 essay Body Ritual among the Nacirema to introduce students to an etic, cultural outsider-like description of American culture. Using short excerpts from Miner's article, students draw pictures of Miner's descriptions, producing a wide variety of interpretations. This activity demonstrates that when students overlook or misunderstand cultural meaning, they can come to myriad inaccurate depictions and conclusions about social life and behavior. It therefore reinforces the importance of developing an emic understanding of cultures, rather than accepting social phenomena at face value.
引用
收藏
页码:298 / 302
页数:5
相关论文
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