When learning a cross-culture, it is important to reflect on what is going on developmentally in context form. The students were mixed from different courses, creative arts, journalism, and media. They all worked with aboriginal people in urban and rural areas; the aim was engagement reflection. The learning focused on reflection and reflexivity on Indigenous cultural awareness in higher education. The framework of the context showed how students learned to self-monitor themselves. Reflection, in contrast, is the learning between formal theories and practice theories are used. As we work and learn, we are mindful of reflective practice theory, which is adopted by practised-based education that oral and auditory practices can be triggered (Zubrick, 2010).
This kind of learning, where experiences form the basis of reflection, is a different approach to learning. Many times, when one learns and forgets, each time he or she goes back to what was learned that time back. Reflection enables that kind of flashback to be a practice. In this case, one does not always need to go there. The intention of learning to remember is common to many students, while this is not the case in a real sense. This kind of reflection learning, both formal and informal, relies on experiences. If one were to peruse a course, the learning environment has to be what he or she has experienced in the past to enable the student to be motivated in that way (Behrendt, 2012). This kind of learning flashbacks is consistent with improving the learning skills in the rural-urban setting. Students need only to view their experiences to peruse what they want. Lack of reflection in this learning style can expose students to a misleading type of career. Reflection type of learning initiates transformative cultural experiences in a particular practitioner. This type of practitioner is equipped with skills of a particular occupation and is fit in the field or that job. This mode of learning makes students understand that intended careers and professions influence different career transitions.
Positive aspects of reflection learning are more negative aspects. One reflection learning includes formal and non-formal experiences in a student operation. The learning is made closer home to students since other experiences are reflected in the course the students are perusing. This kind of learning promotes unity among the communities, different members of the community meet in different courses thus exchanging cultural experiences. Leadership and coexistence aspects emerge when all these communities come together to learn in different courses. Students in this learning environment come to exchange their cultural backgrounds and where they come from.
Culture is preserved in this set of learning since teaching involves different aspects of their culture. Finally, the type of learning approach is made easier in terms of curriculum setting and teaching services in the learning institutions. The negative aspect of this reflective approach is that culture is part of learning (Kildea, 2010). This is made complex for urban students since learning is always formal to them. Second, to stimulate this change in the curriculum is difficult, the steps needed for improvising a culturally related curriculum involves a lot of research and funds. For that curriculum to be implemented, evaluation and testing must be performed. In this reflection learning style, students seem to depreciate this kind of learning. They look at culture as a non-belief of transformation and excellence. Culture is viewed as an old-age kind of belief; the twenty-first century is viewed as technological and far from culture by many students. This kind of belief in students shadows down reflection learning in conjunction with related cultural learning.
Evaluation of this kind of learning has impacted my knowledge of three key aspects. One is that culturally related learning influences diversity in many ways, as well as unity, peace, and love among different communities. This eliminates tribal lines and the thirst for community leadership along political lines. Two, reflection cultural learning is a perfect model of teaching for the better part of preserving cultural traditions. In culture, tradition should be taught to people of all ages in communities. Culture should be preserved for showcasing where certain communities emerged and settled in the universe. This culture employs the learned students who deny their culture and traditions in learning platforms. Third, reflection learning improves coexistence among different countries; if one nation is united by this kind of learning, other nations would like to be associated with this type of education (Veitch, 2011). This education platform creates more jobs in other countries since these students are taught how to exist harmoniously with other kinds of people.
In this type of learning, several things are missing. Proper cultural experiences involve learning of other community’s cultures. Different people from different communities live together and coexist at the same time. Although they stay together, one should learn what the other believes and does in their community. Events should take place for different communities to experience the culture and traditions of other communities. In the curriculum, a cultural subject or unit should be set. This will involve the history of communities in different regions of a country. This type of curriculum enhances the growth of culture among students in institutions; if students never had an opportunity to learn their culture, this would be a new experience. Lastly, the government should have stakeholders on this issue of culture in students for the growth of the nation. Proper steps should be taken by the government to involve other stakeholders and make sure that the curriculum, including culture-reflection learning, is positive and enhances education levels (Elliot, 2010).
If given an opportunity to improve on cultural reflection learning, I would first set a paragraph on this critical issue. Culture is the heritage of a certain community or nation. Without culture, living in the universe would be strange of where we all originated. Culture should be preserved in all manners. Lastly, I would set a culture day in institutions; this would act as a reminder of where each student originated from. Culture would be appreciated on this occasion in institutions (Heffernan, 2012).
References
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Behrendt, L. Y., Larkin, S., Griew, R., & Kelly, P. (2012). Review of higher education access and outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
Hunt, J. (2013). Engaging with Indigenous Australia-exploring the conditions for effective relationships with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.
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Heffernan, E. B., Andersen, K. C., Dev, A., & Kinner, S. (2012). Prevalence of mental illness among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Queensland prisons. Medical Journal of Australia, 197(1), 37.
Elliott, G., Smith, A. C., Bensink, M. E., Brown, C., Stewart, C., Perry, C., & Scuffham, P. (2010). The feasibility of a community-based mobile telehealth screening service for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in Australia. Telemedicine and e-Health, 16(9), 950-956.
McBain‐Rigg, K. E., & Veitch, C. (2011). Cultural barriers to health care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders in Mount Isa. Australian Journal of Rural Health, 19(2), 70-74.
