With partners:
Questions for Reflection
While reading the following excerpts, consider the following questions:
1. What is the stereotypical “Australian”? Does your view differ from that of the students’ point of view? How do your own students understand what it is to be Australian?
2. Some of the student vignettes in this section reveal that they are attuned to media bias and the use of stereotypes, particularly in the reporting of crimes. During the Cronulla riots it was often difficult to discover the facts amid the media frenzy. Using the Cronulla riots as an example, how real are cultural stereotypes and how do they influence, or get in the way of, being Australian? Is “Australianness” itself a stereotype?
3. Do you think there is a stereotypical Arabic-speaking background person? What do your students think? Do these stereotypes change according to gender?
4. One Year 9 girl is horrified that her neighbour, who is the same age as her, has a baby and is not married. How would you open a class discussion to help her better understand the cultural differences which are at play here?
5. Another student insists that Asians are smarter than Middle Eastern kids, and uses this as a reason why they have not done very well with written work. How can such a stereotype be addressed in the classroom?
To explore these questions work through the four steps.