Culture and the Individual

1. Culture and the Individual Child Development II

2. Education: The Transmission of Knowledge and Skills Two general kinds of education: Informal Education (AKA traditional or parallel) Formal Education (AKA schooling)

3. Informal Vs Formal Education Embedded in daily life activities vs Set apart from daily life context Learner is responsible for vs Teacher is responsible for imparting obtaining knowledge and skill knowledge and skill Personal: relatives are okay vs Impersonal: teachers should not be teachers relatives Little or no explicit pedagogy vs Explicit pedagogy and curriculum or curriculum Maintenance of continuity and vs Change and discontinuity are valued traditional are valued Learning by observation and vs Learning by verbal exchange, imitation questioning Teaching by demonstration vs Teaching by verbal presentation of general principles Motivated by social contribution vs Less strong motivation and social participation

4. The French Marsh Sweepers Salt processing, shell fishing, coastal fishing Children accompany the mother to the shore while she works Children begin to do small tasks that are age appropriate As the children age, they take on more tasks By about 10 years of age, boys are working alongside their mothers No one speaks of teaching: eg. fathers give orders, prohibit certain activities and swear!?! If you don’t get scolded, everything is all right Children never do exactly the same things that adults are doing at that time, so mimicking is not applicable Learning requires observation and deferred imitation without verbal instruction or demonstration

5. Quranic Schooling Quranic schools are an example of non-Western, traditional formal education that is religion-based Organized to pursue religious and other values of the society Memorization and mastery of sacred texts (sometimes in languages not spoken) At early ages, memorization without understanding is acceptable Teaching often occurs in a one-on-one session with a single student and teacher Teacher’s role includes instruction and role modeling and advising about life in general Pupils are not grouped by age, but by what they already know. There is no concept of failure

6. Transition Rites Rituals that move an individual from one social status to another Three stages (Van Gennep 1960): Separation – individuals are removed from their old status and therefore from participation in the community in the old ways Liminality/Marginality – a period of suspension from participation in the community in any role Incorporation – the assumption of the new role and reentry into the community

7. Kinds of Transition Rites Birthing Rites Gender differences in rites Naming Rituals Sacred vs secular rites First Hair Cut Physical vs social rites Religious Confirmation Secret vs public rites Initiation or Puberty Rites Engagement Wedding Retirement Funeral

8. Functions of Initiation Rites Status change to adulthood Recognition of sexual maturity Creating ethnic identity and/or social solidarity Creating peer group solidarity Identifying with proper gender & preparing for gender roles Channeling aggressive/sexual tendencies into acceptable adult roles Inculcating basic cultural values of the society Teaching new skills, information and attitudes for adult roles

9. Cross Cultural Overview Incidence of Initiation in 180 Societies 30 Initiation only for girls 17 Initiation only for boys 46 Initiation for both sexes Individual vs Group Initiation 87% of girls’ initiations are individual 47% of boys initiations are individual Triggers for Initiation Age First menstruation Periodically initiating an age set Development of secondary sex characteristics

10. Extremes in Initiation Rites Father absent much of the time Patrilineal Polygynous Mother-son co-sleeping Lack of food that can be prepared for an infant Prolonged nursing of infant due to Mother as primary caregiver for child Extremes in painful initiation rites Circumcision Scarification

11. Poy Sang Long AKA "Festival [of the] Crystal Sons" Among the Shan peoples, in Burma (Myanmar) and now in Northern Thailand Undergone by boys between seven and fourteen years of age. Consists of taking novice monastic vows and participating in monastery life for a period of time that can vary from a week to many months or more. Usually, a large group of boys are ordained as novice monks at the same time.

12. Vision Quest among Native Americans Done before puberty to find oneself and the intended spiritual and life direction. A personal, spiritual quest alone in the wilderness. usually lasting for a number of days. Characterized by sensory deprivation, sleep deprivation and/or fasting and in some cases use of hallucinogenic substances. Usually, a guardian animal will come in a vision or dream, and the child's life direction will appear at some point. Return to the tribe to apprentice him/herself to an adult who has a similar life direction. If a child has not vision quested by puberty, the child is thought to be lazy. Examples of cultures : Inuit, Lakota, Ojibwa, Tlingit

13. Rumbspringa A traditional initiation rite in the Amish religious denomination, A period lasting months or years during which adolescents are released from the church and its rules. Part of the Amish belief that only informed adults can "accept Christ" and be baptized, along with the belief that the unbaptized cannot enter heaven.

14. The Sambia New Guinea Tribal Group Women are considered dangerous Men stay away from their wives except for sexual relations Boys spend all their time with mothers’ until 7 Initiation in six stages Stages 1-3 (7-10, 10-12, 14-16) involve oral homosexual relations with unrelated adult male Stages 4 & 5 (16-18, 18-20) involve bisexual relations Stage 6 (20-30 years) heterosexual relations only Women become adults naturally; men must be turned into adult males through initiation