All cultures have similar life-cycle events that is; marriage, birth, the passage from childhood to adulthood and death. These transitions are generally influenced by culture. Culture can be divided into two; modernity and traditional culture. Modernity defines the type of culture in the Western counties in the developed world. Tradition culture on the other hand is the culture in the developing countries such as Africa. Unlike modernity, Africa for instance is pretty much rich in culture from birth to death, all these occasions are crowned with ceremonies to mark the event. Among Africans, every stage in life is crowned with a blissful occasion to mark that particular event in life.
As blacks become increasingly Westernized and urbanized, traditional culture still exists and the norms have to be taken into consideration. Cultures celebrate childbirth in different ways. In the African community when a child is born, the whole event is graced with an electrifying occasion from naming the new born child to adulthood, to marriage and finally their death. The child that is named eventually grows into adulthood. The African culture provides all the necessary facilities required by the child for its growth. The parents of the child have the responsibility of her/his socialization especially in the norms of the society at large. It is a series of events taking place in every individual’s life (Gardiner, 2011, p. 78). These cultures impact greatly on the kids’ interaction, growth and education. In the African setup for instance, the growth of a child is a communal thing, such that friends, neighbors, family and relatives of the kid all have a role to play the life of that child. This culture holds firm the whole meaning of life to this child, a sense of ownership is felt by the entire community. The Western culture on the other hand is right the opposite of the African culture. Americans for instance seemingly do not have a culture that unifies them. When a child is born, the immediate family of the child takes responsibility of everything and probably a few members of its extended family.
Among Africans, you find that certain aspects in life are emphasized making culture a part of everyone’s life. In Africa, education is taken as a special opportunity for boys. Boys are given the first priority leaving the girl child with no alternative but to remain at home and take all the responsibilities. This culture greatly affects how the male and the female gender interact and view life. In the 21st century, failing to take a child to school is a thing of the past. It suggests that only the male gender gives priority to have the best in life while the female is left to maneuver and maybe have a way sometimes in life, girls do not go to school and end up getting married at early ages while others bare children. The African culture on this issue plays a key role in determining the interaction, social life and future of children. Unlike the African culture, the West has embraced diversity in the biggest terms. Every child has the same rights as another. Equality is much emphasized and upheld (Gardiner, 2011, p. 65). The West has a diverse culture that has installed social, economic and religious aspects in all angles.
Marriage in the African setup is very interesting and diverse. Every African country is a mix of tribes. Every community has their own unique culture and language. The African culture however, has an immense impact upon various cultures in the world. The Sub-Saharan culture in Africa is among the cultures with rich histories in norms, beliefs and culture in general. Monogamy is allowed in this culture where a man is at liberty to marry more than one wife. This depicts that marriage is so much respected and viewed as a unifying symbol. It is normally a very thrilling occasion which is graced with an amazing event of joining the two communities to one. It is normally a celebration of life where the lady leaves her parents and siblings to live with a man (Gardiner, 2011, p. 83). On the wedding day, various activities take place; women prepare the girl as they cook special food while men slaughter an animal and prepare it for the ideal meal. Once everything is ready, the gentleman and the lady are pronounced husband and wife by village elders and the occasion continues with a jolly mood of celebration. The African culture particularly on marriage is found to infringe the rights of someone in a big way. For instance, young girls are literally given in marriage when their tender ages of their parents. Most of them are barely twenty years old. Though it is culture, it infringes the rights of the girl whose wish is probably to further their studies and may be married later in some stage in their life. Aside affecting them socially, African girls are affected psychologically especially when in school as they know that they could any time drop out to get married. That’s the reason the girl child in Africa is at risk of many predicaments (Matsumoto, 2012, p. 67).
Old age and death are the last stages of a man. In old age, a man receives care from his wife and family members in the African culture. Africans pray for lots of blessings though the most important are children wealth and immortality. After one dies, it is believed that ancestors watch over their descendants. The achievement of a good death in the African setup is an occasion for celebration of the life that was lived by the deceased. First, children celebrate the life of their parent who has left a good name and passed. All these activities in culture play a crucial role in the life of a child in a big way. They determine their lives in and out which to a great extent manifest in the classroom. A child is made to believe that they should follow a particular way of life in order to live straight failure to which consequences will have the better part of them.
Cultural tendencies greatly impact the manner in which children behave and participate in school particularly in education. Teachers too also reflect on and consider the relationship between learning and culture. It is the duty of teachers to understand fully what culturally responsive teachings entails. Everything we do tells children a lot especially about what we think of others and how we see the world therefore, traditional teaching methods are basically insensitive. Ideally, what is taught in class by a typical teacher is seemingly not the best approach since these practices can to a great extent hinder a student from learning relative aspects which may cause feelings of isolation, rejection and anxiety. It is therefore important for teachers to learn to embrace every student’s cultural characteristics in order to become flexible to alter teaching practices in their classrooms. Arguably, the influence of culture on beliefs and norms of the society cannot be overestimated (In Bråten, 2013, p. 114).
Ideally, these events and activities greatly affect how kids interact in their homes and in schools. Children attending these activities tend to have a sense of responsibility and they have to comply in order to live up to the standards of that particular culture. Cultures therefore play a key role in our lives that determines our livelihoods and the manner in which we should conform to it.
References
Gardiner, H. W., & Kosmitzki, C. (2011). Lives across cultures. Boston, Mass: Allyn and Bacon.
Murphy, T. E. (2010). Benefits and beyond: A comprehensive and strategic approach to retirement, health care, and more. Thousand Oaks, Calif: SAGE Publications.
In Bråten, E., & Rudie, I. (2013). Embedded entrepreneurship: Market, culture, and micro- business in insular Southeast Asia.
Matsumoto, D. R., & Juang, L. P. (2012). Culture and psychology. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning.
