UK vs. China: Cultural Impact on Educational Platforms
Cultural preferences play an important role in users' responses to web design. As each country has different preferences and cultural values, Geert Hofstede divides culture into five dimensions and provides benchmarks for each dimension for some representative countries.
These five dimensions are:
1. Masculinity /Femininity Index——This dimension deals with gender roles in a culture. Masculine cultures value assertiveness and success, while feminine cultures prioritize beauty and nurturing.
2. Long Term / Short Term Orientation
3. Power Distance——Power distance refers to how societies handle social hierarchies and authority. High power distance cultures emphasize authority and status, while low power distance cultures promote equality and egalitarianism.
4. Uncertainty Avoidance——This dimension relates to a society's tolerance for risk and ambiguity. Cultures high in uncertainty avoidance prefer security and clear rules, while low uncertainty avoidance cultures are more open to ambiguity and change.
5. Individualistic / Collectivist societies——This dimension measures whether a society values group conformity (collectivism) or individual freedom (individualism). Collectivist societies emphasize group norms and achievements, while individualist societies prioritize personal freedom and individual decision-making.
China scores very highly on Masculinity, Uncertainty and Power Distance but very low on Individuality.
UK scores very highly on Individuality and Power Distance but very low on Masculinity.
Culture influences all aspects of society, including the cultural attitudes of the country's education industry, and these influences are also directly reflected in the presentation of educational platforms in different countries.
Example:
The above two pictures are online education websites in the UK and China respectively, and they both offer the same educational product - online courses.
As you can see, the British website emphasizes personalized learning, which is because Western culture emphasizes individualism, so they will emphasize the uniqueness and individuation of products on the website.
While Chinese culture is more collectivist, the website contains many elements of clubs, families, and learning groups.
Another point worth noting is that China, as a high-power-distance society, emphasizes hierarchical information, important tasks or institutional names. The website also lists elements of famous universities such as Harvard University and Oxford University to attract users.
In addition, the two websites also have significant differences in their advertising. Chinese websites use soft marketing methods and rich graphics to obfuscate the quality of their courses. This is because China's high-context culture is characterized by implication and modesty, and direct bragging and expression are not encouraged.
The low-context culture of the West, by contrast, is marketed in a direct, aggressive way, such as in a website that emphasizes: over 120 billion questions answered, more than 140 million students use IXL.
The next two images are pages on the site about course selection.
Chinese websites are more inclined to use experienced and authoritative male characters as covers, which is due to the strong emphasis on masculinity in Chinese culture. On the other hand, British websites use cartoon Settings that blur gender roles and suggest that British culture is less masculine.
The image in the last section is the first thing that pops up when a user clicks on the UK website and asks users to enter their email address to subscribe to the site. In contrast, Chinese websites only offer the option to log in at the top right corner.
These are the different attitudes of two different cultures in the face of risk and uncertainty. China, as a highly uncertain society, may be reluctant to become a registered user in the face of such a new and risky medium as the Internet. Because subscribing through the mailbox somehow means ceding power and information to the website owner, it makes them feel insecure.
In addition to the above content, evaluation methods and teaching strategies may also affect the products of different educational platforms. However, since the focus of this time is on the overall presentation of the website rather than the content of the product, I will only make a summary here rather than give specific examples.
Assessment and Evaluation: Cultural perspectives on assessment and evaluation can influence the types of quizzes, exams, and assignments used on the platform. Some cultures may emphasize high stakes testing, while others may value continuous assessment and feedback.
Teaching Strategies: Cultural influences can shape the underlying pedagogical philosophy of the platform. Some platforms may prioritize self-directed learning, while others may emphasize structured and guided instruction.
References:
https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/02651330510593241/full/html