Dealing with affective needs in e-learning: Contrasting two cases in two cultures.

This chapter presents and contrasts descriptions of two cases of online affective support provided to support students engaged in higher level learning tasks. The cases are set in different cultures, centre upon different intended learning outcomes, and follow different tutorial styles. One (Eastern) tutor acted as a “shepherd leader” in response to needs arising in the Confucian Heritage Culture as the teacher promoted critical thinking, according to the Western model. The other (Western) tutor provided Rogerian facilitation of reflective learning journals, kept by students seeking to develop personal and professional capabilities. In both styles, affective support features strongly. The cultural and pedagogical comparisons between the cases have proved useful to the writers. These distinctions together with the similarities between the two online styles emerge in the comparisons. Keywords: affective needs, asynchronous discussion, Confucian Heritage Culture, constructivism, critical thinking, facilitation, reflection, reflective learning journals, Rogerian, shepherd leadership, social-constructivist, student-centred, support.

Rainbow World: Poems from many cultures.

This work is an authoritative collection of poems from other cultures for the 21st century. Poets included range from Valerie Bloom, Jackie Kay, Benjamin Zephaniah, Lemn Sissay, Meiling Jin, Tao Lang Pee and Bekleen Leong to Rabrindranath Tagore, Monica Alvi and Chuang Tzu. Comprising over 100 contributions, there is a balance of poets in ethnicity and gender, and of poems in content, form and style. Themes covered include: Food, festivals and festivities; Race, culture and identity; Families, friends and enemies; Travel and landscape; Language and nonsense; The animal world; and, School and playground and Mystery, myth and magic.