Cultural literacy why is it important

Journal of Teaching and Learning for Graduate Employability. Cultural literacy helps to develop a range of skills like communication and self-reflection Flavell, H.

Cultural literacy positively affects society. It: Reduces prejudice and inequality based on culture Increases the value placed on diversity and difference Increases participation in social and community practices, like visiting museums, attending performances and accessing community programming Anning, B.

The Australian Journal of Indigenous Education. Participating in cultural activities, such as visiting museums, can help improve cultural literacy. Museums tend to pull in visitors with higher literacy levels. For example, when culturally literate people have influence in institutions like universities or government agencies, they can ensure that people from all cultural backgrounds are able to participate equitably in education and services.

Anning, B. Flavell, H. Developing Indigenous Australian cultural competence: A model for implementing Indigenous content into curricula. Journal of Teaching and Learning for Graduate Employability, 4 1 , Be sensitive to hot-button issues and avoid any phrases or words that could suggest you look down on the culture or that you consider the person you're dealing with to be a second-class citizen in his own culture.

This kind of cultural literacy is of utmost importance when you communicate so you can avoid unintentional negative cultural messages when conducting business. Using internationally accepted word choices and phrases ensures your business dealings won't be misunderstood.

Some American phrases do not translate well. For example, "We shall see" means "No" in China. Other phrases such as, "Flying by the seat of our pants" or "Ballpark figure" may not have any meaning at all in other cultures.

Scrutinize your written communications for figurative language that may not translate. In addition, cut your verbal communications to the basics. It's important for a company doing global business to remember that the language at its home office may not be universal. By Kevin Johnston.