Abstract:
The research objective of this study was to explore the cultural differences and challenges encountered by the Chinese Immersion Teacher (CIT) and how the CIT deal with the cultural differences in the immersion classroom. A qualitative case study approach was chosen for this research. The participant was a novice kindergarten immersion teacher who was born and educated in a Chinese-speaking country. There were 13 children with diverse ethnic backgrounds in the teacher’s classroom. Interviews and observations were the primary sources of data. The data collection and analysis stages were undertaken concurrently. The researcher used thematic analysis to analyze the data. The findings of this study show that a novice CIT typically faces several challenges owing to the differences between Chinese culture and American culture, including the differences in the expectations regarding learning, teacher status, teacher authority, teaching methods, and learning styles. Moreover, the study found that the CIT struggled with these differences and did not know how to do her job without considerable support and training. The research led to suggestions to improve cultural awareness, management of cultural differences, and CIT training.
Machine summary:
The findings of this study show that a novice CIT typically faces several challenges owing to the differences between Chinese culture and American culture, including the differences in the expectations regarding learning, teacher status, teacher authority, teaching methods, and learning styles.
An increasing number of Chinese language teachers are recruited to teach in the USA; it is critical to obtain a deeper understanding of these teachers’ teaching and classroom management practices in cross-cultural contexts.
Many of CITs have no experience in teaching Chinese as a second or foreign language and have no knowledge of American culture and society (Stewart & Livaccari, 2010).
Zhou and Austin (2017) indicated that Chinese language teachers often encounter challenges rising from the cultural differences regarding teaching, pedagogy, classroom management, and assessment in classroom settings.
Numerous untrained, unprepared Chinese language teachers are being recruited by American schools to work as CITs. It is imperative to have a deep understanding of these novice teachers’ cultural expectations regarding their classrooms.
In addition to the difference in the status and authority of the teacher, Lily attributed the difficulty she faced in managing the classroom to the “positive discipline” of American culture: “American education emphasizes positive discipline.
For example, kindergarten immersion teachers should have adequate training for early childhood education, including age- appropriate language teaching strategy, curriculum design, and classroom management for young children.
Chinese language teachers' expectations and perceptions of American students' behavior: Exploring the nexus of cultural differences and classroom management.