Diversity Concepts Worksheet

Concept

Application of Concept in your personal and/or professional life

Reference to Concept in Reading

Culture - the combination of symbols, their meaning, and the value placed on them by a particular group of people, which also designates the group as distinct.

I identify very strongly with my grandfather's Native American culture. Although I mark the box next to 'Caucasian' on demographic forms, I do not consider myself to be a Caucasian, but rather I consider myself to be a Seneca Indian, as my grandfather was. He taught me a great deal about the Old Ways when I was younger, ensuring that I did not hold a romanticized vision of Indian peoples, such as that shown in the environmentalist commercial that ended with the Indian shedding a tear as he looked out over unpopulated lands. My grandfather taught me much of what is not in books about my Indigenous heritage, I have passed it down to my children.

"The term culture refers to a way of life - traditions and customs - transmitted through learning, which play a vital role in molding the beliefs and behavior of the people exposed to them" (Kottak & Kozaitis, 2003, p. 14).

Enculturation - the method through which one learns about one's culture, i.e. through stories and traditions, such as Christmas or Hannukah celebrations.

I have enculturated my children in much the same way that my grandfather enculturated me, by teaching them about the Old Ways and by exploring much of the oral history that is not in the books provided by the majority of mainstream schools.

"Enculturation is the process by...