This document traces the history of and need for global education. The paper examines a crucial connection between global education and critical thinking. Students cannot acquire a global perspective without developing critical thinking skills. Similarly, they cannot be considered critical thinkers without a global perspective. With the end of the…

In the highly competitive, racist milieu of the academy, even feminist scholars, anxious to advance their own careers, can be lured into ethnocentric research practices that exploit, rather than honor or illumine, the communication of women of color. Before feminist scholars write about such communication, they should seek to answer questions that…

The English-only movement is about more than language; underlying it is bigotry against non-White, non-English-speaking immigrants. The term "Hispanic" is itself a Census Bureau creation which ignores the cultural and linguistic differences between such groups as the Mexican, Cuban, and Nicaraguan immigrants. The argument that a single…

Many linguists and sociolinguists are interested in the relationship between ethnocentrism and language and in how the desire of ethnic groups to maintain their cultural distinctiveness influences linguistic variation. This paper suggests diverse ways in which ethnocentrism and the desire to increase social distance may be realized on several…

Modern linguistic research shows that the language of America is that spoken by all residents of the Americas, with many varieties influenced by other national languages (e.g., Spanish, African, American Indian). In addition, linguistic research has resulted in two competing theories about teaching standard English: that teaching standard English…

Like Antarctica, the fields of cross- and intercultural communication are claimed by many, explored by not so many, and understood by perhaps rather few. The most popular references in this area reflect a "maximalist" perspective, generally cross-cultural, which advocates the view that culture is a monolithic and static entity and that…

When viewing the current status of psychology in terms of membership in international psychological associations, it appears that large parts of the world are grossly underrepresented, with only 4 psychologists per million in Asia and Africa compared to 424 per million in North America. Having originated in Western Europe and North America in the…

The Social Sciences have a conceptual framework that is outside of cultural pluralism and hence, beyond a respect for the dignity of all individuals. There is a continual need to balance the control function of science with its function as a potential agent of social change. However, the scientific method is a controlled inquiry based on a…

Rural health care can thrive if innovative tactics are used. Four principles can influence health care services: (1) an integrative approach is needed; (2) recognition that competition is a dominant mode; (3) cultural and professional ethnocentricity are counterproductive; and (4) the possibilities are limitless. (Author/MSE)

Noting that most basic communication textbooks do not include a cultural diversity component, this paper presents 14 experiential exercises aimed to integrate the multicultural issues related to interpersonal communication topics. The various experiential activities are adapted from intercultural communication textbooks, cross-cultural training…

Using multicultural readers for writing courses runs two risks--"pockmarks and pustules." Pockmarks refer to problems with the multicultural readers or books themselves, while pustules refers to characteristics associated with readers or the ones who read the books. Pockmark No. 1 is that readings may create negative opinions or…

A study measured student agreement or disagreement with statements related to G. Hofstede's dimensions of culture and compares those responses with various cultural characteristics of the respondents. A 40-item Likert-type questionnaire was administered to 535 university students (301 females, 234 males) enrolled in business and communication…

In teaching Asian American literature on the college level, the first consideration is to try to choose works that dispel the dominant stereotypes. One of these stereotypes is the "otherness" myth that Asian American culture is very exotic, distant, mysterious, as in "the mysterious and far East." In reality, Asian Americans…

The study of geography and culture are both essential to development of global awareness and multicultural perspective. The two can be integrated in secondary school instruction, with the result of enhancing each. Cross-disciplinary strategies and activities can be adapted to any course with a cultural component, including second language…

In composition studies, the most influential statement of what Brian Street calls the autonomous model of literacy is the work of Walter Ong. Ong bases the foundation of this model on the research on cognitive development done by Alexander Luria, a student of Lev Vygotsky. Ong finds in this research, carried out among the Islamic people of…