What is Cultural Competence in early childhood education

Understanding and responding to the needs of diverse children by different educators and institutions is referred to as Cultural competence in Education. The mission of Cultural Competence in Education involves creating a respectful and comprehensive learning environment that enables younger to celebrate diversity and accept each other differences. With the rise of diversity, the need to understand the phenomena of cultural competence in education is becoming more important. National Quality Framework (NFQ) in 2013 introduced an Australian educational standard for early childhood education which is applicable in pre-schooling, kindergarten, and after-school hours leading to successful outcomes in children up to five for understanding different cultures. 

Cultural competency during childhood development is necessary as children learn from the beginning to prevent discriminatory behavior in the classroom and later in life. Parents and educators create an example for children from the start; to show empathy and develop a healthy personal identity. According to Assignment Writing Services in UAE Being culturally competent helps children to focus on the bigger things in life and avoid conflicts that may result in less productivity or an unpleasant environment. Cultural Competence in education is playing a wider role than ever today because overcome cultural differences that damage societies. 

What is Cultural Competence?

Cultural Competence refers to the set of attitudes, knowledge, and skills that allow organizations and individuals to interact and work with people of diverse nationalities. 

It is not only about awareness and tolerance of different cultures, it also involves the understanding of groups and individuals from diverse backgrounds to value their experiences and perspectives. The agenda of cultural competence is to show respect for other cultures' values and practices. Some of the key aspects of cultural competence include: 

• Sensitivity of culture: This involves being cautious about the action that would be perceived differently among people of different cultures. This matter can turn into disputes and severe conflicts. 
• Knowledge of Culture: The more a person learns about other culture, the more they understand the tradition and beliefs. 
• Communication: Maintaining effective communication and understanding the sensitivity of different cultures while communicating verbally or non-verbally. 

Some Cultural Competence Activities 

There are some activities through which children are taught cultural competence in institutions. A few Examples are: 

• Language Learning: Educators trying to use other languages and motivating students to learn other languages help understand the diversity factor effectively. 
• Multicultural Media: Showcasing people with different backgrounds and culture through media help young students to grasp knowledge about others' culture.
• Group Conversation: When students of different cultures interact with each other in informal ways, it makes things less stressful. They speak to each other which increases their understanding by observing different people's responses. 

These were only a few of the activities which enable institutions and organizations to enable children to embrace diversity successfully. 

Learn how to develop Cultural Competence

Many psychologists have presented different ways through which people can develop cultural competency. However, according to different psychologists, this requires a lot of patience and understanding. Psychologist Robert C. Weigl, Ph.D., discusses the method of “learning about yourself” as a first step for the development of cultural competency. His eight-step process enables people to go deeper into their roots and know what role culture plays in their lives.  It is true when a person grows and encounters different people no matter they have to work with a well-known organization or have to do home based jobs in UAE, developing cultural competence promotes their growth. 

Learning about different cultures is another way to comprehend diverse people. When you interact with people of other nationalities the first barrier is the language. So, people should try to learn the basics of different cultures' languages so they can interact with diverse nationalities.

Another way is to attend diversity-focused conferences, which help people meet potential collaborators and discover facts and figure out how things work in different cultures. 

To conclude, diversity is on the rise, so people should embrace cultural competency to make a difference in the world. 

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