Crash

Yesterday I had one of my first true clashes of culture since I left home nearly a year ago. During my weekly staff meeting, a problem regarding a student arose and it was decided unspokenly that our time – normally reserved to give updates on class progress and announcements – would be dedicated essentially to this one topic. A dilemma it was, as this particular student’s mother had arrived to complain about how her daughter was being treated at the institution. Having this young woman as a student, and having had mainly positive experiences, I listened patiently to what my co-workers had to say and began to hear a trend. Behavioral and attitude problems topped the laundry list of complaints; a lack of respect for authority, and a rebellious temper were also offered on more than one occasion. My experience? All somewhat similar. But for me – unlike my co-workers and the Maya people in general – this is general adolescent behavior for a 16 year-old living at home, let alone away from home as is this girl.
As always in such meetings, I have to be careful knowing that for one, each of the individuals whom I am with carries much more time at Ak’Tenamit than I do and therefore, I often lack some very important background information; and two, I do not come from this culture, and therefore do not always understand some of the differences that exist, be them minor or grave. I did my best to share my experience with the student when my time was given, but it seemed that this sort of adolescent behavior has little or no place at Ak’Tenamit. They surprisingly – as I have heard has happened in the past – did not try to expel the student, but essentially decided they had had enough. In part, it is understandable. A sixteen year-old, away from home, calls back to complain about anything as a cry for help or attention, or maybe out of true desperation, what parent wouldn’t want to believe their child and come to the rescue? That said, everything with a grain of salt, no? My boss and friend would later tell me that the mother would listen to nothing she had to say, was dismissive and rude. All in all, it was a bit of a mess. But for me, a difference in the expression and stages of adolescence was only the beginning.
The topic turned quickly to students’ dress and style. What is appropriate and inappropriate? What aligns with the Maya culture and what does not? Again, I sat listening to my co-workers explain their position as to why they felt it inappropriate for our males students to wear their hair in Mohawks, or with a little tail hanging to the side. After a rant in which the majority felt that barring these fashion statements from the classroom made the most sense, I pulled my boss aside. She - as she had already indicated during the meeting with the support of the teachers – reiterated her belief that these trends didn’t align with the Maya culture as they new it and had no place – due to that fact – in our organization. I asked her if she felt that cultures were a static being or whether they were evolutionary. I asked her whether the internet or Pepsi was a part of the Maya culture, or just another thing brought in from the outside world. My feeling was that this was an arbitrary statement on their part; one that erred on the side of conservatism. This was very foreign for my experience with Ak’Tenamit – a normally more progressive and inclusive organization.
With a bit more back and forth, I realized progress would not be made in this setting and I let the conversation go. With only one month left teaching here, I will plant my seeds, maintain my convictions, but also not let them be the obstacle to working with the students positively for the time that I still have. Surprising that 10 months into this experience, I just had my first true cultural clash, but I hope to use it more as a “teachable moment” for both me and my co-workers.