A Cultural-Historical Study of the Development of Culturally Diverse Online Learners in Higher Education

Higher education has embraced online teaching for nearly two decades, enabling students to engage with peers and instructors from diverse cultural backgrounds. However, students and educators may not share the cultural values and assumptions used to develop online courses. The assumption that online education offers equal learning opportunities for all students overlooks cultural nuances, often presuming that students from varied cultural backgrounds rapidly adapt to the online learning environment. This study explored culturally responsive online learning environments to support students. Rather than focusing solely on knowledge transfer, this study proposed strategies to nurture the intellectual growth of culturally diverse students.