Exploring 'Cultures of Learning': A case of Japanese and Australian classrooms

Abstract

This paper explores how 'a culture' in classroom may differ from one context to another, and how such differences may affect teaching and learning, using a case study that examined differences between Japanese and Australian classrooms. The characteristics of the two 'cultures' were examined through the perspective of Japanese and Australian high school exchange students who spent extended periods of time studying in their host country. Discussions are then made on the implications of the findings for teachers beginning to teach in a new culture, and the importance of 'cultural compatibility' in teacher effectiveness is addressed. This study is the first part of a three-stage research into the classroom difficulties experienced by native-speaker Japanese language teachers, and how cultural differences actually related to the teachers' difficulties is reported elsewhere.