Cultural Contrast: Insights from Saima Akrams Educational Journey

Common Assessment: Interview of Saima Akram Diane Meske National Louis University, Illinois Resource Center CIL 531: Cross-Cultural Education Professor Dana Piraino Fall 2023 For this assignment I had the pleasure of interviewing my teaching colleague, Saima Akram. Saima is the full time Urdu teacher at Devonshire Elementary in Skokie, Illinois. She has been with the district for some time now, but has been in her current position for the last two school years. She serves our Urdu-speaking population K-5 in small groups throughout her day. She recently moved “next door” to my classroom and based on our discussions as we’ve gotten to know one another, I was thrilled when she agreed to speak with me about her experience for the purpose of this assignment. Demographics and Reflections on Educational Experiences Saima’s country of origin is Pakistan, the world’s 5th largest populous country with the world’s largest Muslim population. She spent her first 25 years of life in Pakistan, experiencing all of her earliest educational experiences through college there. As an educator in the United States now attending university level courses, Saima has had the opportunity to reflect upon the similarities and differences about schooling in both settings. In Pakistan, a British educational system is used which she explained is quite different from what we experience in the United States. The two types of schooling systems in the educational sector are offered, government-based and private. In the more affordable government system, the educational standard is low. She added that this type of educational experience is not appropriate in terms of 21st century learning. The curriculum in government schools is provided in Urdu, except for one English course that begins in 6th grade. In high school, students have two choices – science and the arts. Students go down the science track if they want to be a doctor, engineer, or science teacher. Arts subjects are offered if someone wants to complete education without majors. Private schools, she continued, offer all types of English language, including science, from elementary school through high school. This experience is very expensive, however, so only middle and upper-class families can afford it. The cultural differ