Every society and culture has its own subtle nuances and unspoken rules or things that shape behaviours and expectations, influencing our lived experiences. Similarly, these fluid aspects can emerge in our learning experiences at higher education institutions, such as universities.
For those working in higher education, it's important to be aware of these aspects and how they can shape the curriculum and learning experiences – often referred to as the hidden curriculum. Being aware of to these intangible norms is crucial to foster a learning community that values and celebrates the diverse backgrounds and experiences that students and faculty bring to the university and the workplace.
In this article, Professor Duncan Cross, Director of the Centre of Excellence in Learning and Teaching, and Professor Brian Smith, Deputy Provost, at Arden University, explore the hidden curriculum – including the often-overlooked elements we need to take the time to teach students, or those new to industry, so they can reach their full potential. They also share the influence of unspoken rules and norms in the hidden curriculum, and how they can impact students' inclusive learning experiences.
The unspoken rules
Cultural norms and values, while providing a sense of identity and shared understanding within a community, can sometimes create a barrier for some. For instance, differing expectations, behaviours and values in one culture may carry entirely different meanings in another, leading to potential misunderstandings.
As a result, when people are unaware of these unspoken expectations, they can end up feeling excluded, judged or marginalised, as their actions or interpretations may unintentionally diverge from the norm.In an employment context, this can hinder an employee's performance, overall understanding of their job role and their wellbeing at work.
Higher education plays a critical role in supporting students through their studies and into the world of work. Ensuring students are aware of societal and cultural norms will help them in navigating the range of diverse life scenarios they may encounter, both at university and in the workplace. And this will increase graduate opportunities, social mobility and social capital.
Beyond technical skills or job-specific knowledge, we also need to take the time to teach the 'soft skills' and professional behaviours that aren't always intuitive. These may include understanding workplace etiquette, effective communication styles, time management strategies and the importance of networking and relationship-building.
What's equally crucial, though, is helping students to handle feedback constructively, ask for help without hesitation and advocate for their own growth. This may also include cultural and societal nuances, too – for example, healthcare professionals know that in some cultures men are much less likely to talk about their mental health and therefore may need to work around that to appropriately diagnose them.
So, how do we go about teaching these quiet, hidden rules?
The hidden curriculum
Education professionals are familiar with the concept of the hidden curriculum – the idea that students often learn more from the educational setting than from the specific subject matter. This encompasses values, norms and beliefs that are not officially documented, or part of the formal teaching, but are nonetheless experienced by students in the classroom. In essence, the hidden curriculum has the potential to teach students about the unspoken rules and nuances of society.
The hidden curriculum significantly impacts a student's sense of belonging and their understanding of what is needed for success, both before and after graduation. To effectively harness the hidden curriculum for building shared values or resources that enable groups to collaborate towards common goals, it's essential to make these hidden elements more explicit within the educational framework.
Historically, some academics have argued that the hidden curriculum can mirror the interests of dominant groups, thereby reinforcing privilege and disadvantaging others. This often occurs because members of these dominant communities are immersed in their own culture, making it difficult for them to recognise barriers that exist for others.
Educators may not be aware of the barriers their students face. Which is why it's crucial for them to take the time to understand these challenges and make the curriculum more explicit, thereby supporting students to thrive and succeed in their chosen fields of study.
There are some key considerations and challenges to overcome to unlock the hidden curriculum and allow students to reach their full potential. The top five are:
- Removing unfair advantages: While every discipline and working environment may have local practices, they need to be shared with everyone. In an assessment context, this includes developing assessment literacy for all learners, for all assessments they'll undertake. For example, if you set an assessment that students haven't undertaken before, without providing sufficient knowledge and practice for that assessment type, they can't be expected to reach their full potential. Scaffolding assessments at an early stage gives learners the opportunity to familiarise themselves with the scale, scope and criteria that can be developed for success.
- Map for success: Students are navigating a host of new environments, staff, knowledge, customs and cultures. Not everyone has been provided with a 'map' to navigate their way through the university experience. Hiding academic or professional expectations and knowledge can take a student off the path and create an unfair advantage for others. Explicit instruction on reading the 'map' provides a critical starting point for students to understand the culture or custom and practice, and helps them to integrate that into their educational gains toolkit.
- Working together: Educators need to think deeply and meaningfully about how to design their curriculum and learning experiences to ensure they build a sense of belonging for all students. Discussing society's unspoken and unwritten rules will encourage healthy debates on what social inequalities exist and how to eradicate them.
- Placement needs: Placements are an important aspect of students' learning journeys. Where students are on placement, those work environments need to consider how they meet the needs of all. For example, students from low-income households may face challenges when a work culture expects the whole team (including students) to have morning coffee together. Employers and educators have a joint responsibility to ensure students feel part of the team, by providing them with a way to attend the team event.
- Integrating learners through explicit action: Transforming the hidden curriculum and bringing knowledge to the surface as an explicit curriculum can help students from all backgrounds to assimilate to university and work culture. For example, students new to a discipline may struggle with the vernacular, this may be because they're first generation learners, or English may be their second, third or fourth language, or they may just be new to the subject. Co-creating a wiki or dictionary with learners that has clear expectations removes barriers to saying 'I don't know' and provides a safe space for everyone to come to a shared understanding and encourages engagement.
There's a crucial issue at hand: the responsibility lies with us as educators. We must be prepared for change and engage in critical reflection on our practices and curriculum development. While we often incorporate placements or travel experiences into our curricula, the ongoing cost-of-living crisis excludes many students, places financial burdens on others and creates a visible barrier underpinned by a hidden curriculum.
We need to teach students about hidden cultural norms and foster a critical awareness of them, encouraging both educators and students to adapt while remaining true to their own identities. This approach will also open doors for students from diverse backgrounds, accommodating various learning needs, expectations and aspirations.
Educators should not only recognise the hidden curriculum; we must actively work to ensure that the explicit curriculum promotes positive values and equitable opportunities.
Placement providers offering work experience also have a responsibility to remove any barriers. By raising awareness of the organisation's culture, professional values, expectations and behaviours, we can create an enriching learning experience that celebrates the diverse backgrounds and experiences of those in the workplace.
By doing so, we support students in navigating societal norms and values, helping them align their compass for success within a fair and inclusive education system for all.