Pedagogical models for enhancing the cross-cultural online public health learning environment

Abstract

Background: Online distance learning (e-learning) is an established method for providing higher education on a global scale due to its potential to reduce inequalities particularly in the area of public health education. Simultaneously, multicultural education is a key component of health education and can be achieved by fostering cultural pluralism and mutual respect within the teaching and learning environment. Objective: Online learning in public health has the potential to bring together practitioners in various fields within a unified forum. Given that undergraduate and graduate education and student interest in the field of public health has grown worldwide over the past decade, exploring the unique features of distance learning becomes a priority area. Consequently, the need for cross-cultural collaborative learning has been on the rise. Methods: The Education Resources Information Center (ERIC), MEDLINE, PsycINFO and Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL) were searched using the keywords ‘e-learning’, ‘multicultural online education’, ‘cultural sensitivity’, ‘transcultural’, ‘cultural diversity’, ‘multicultural education theory’, ‘distance learning’, ‘public health’ and ‘cultural competence’. The quality of each study was rated against set inclusion and exclusion criteria. Results: Employing different sociological models, this paper (1) describes the historical development of the theories of cultural diversity, (2) describes a cohesive and novel theoretical framework for addressing a cross-cultural approach to public health education and (3) reviews the literature on online education as a means to suggesting different ways in which cross-cultural education can be more fully integrated. Conclusion: Implementation of this theoretical framework proposed here may lead to a better understanding of how best to enhance online public health education and how different forms of peer support can foster cross-cultural educational uptake.