New Insights Into Communication

Knowing how to communicate will help us in the workplace and in the classroom. After doing the assessments and evaluating how others saw me, I was fascinated because we never know how people view us while we are having a conversation. I never knew that I was as aggressive as I was when dealing with people through conversation. Now that I know, I will try to be more understanding. Some other insights that I have gained this week is to try to match my body language with my mode of speaking. Sometimes your body language says one thing and your words are saying something different. They are contradictory of one another. I also need to show that I am interested in the conversation because I have a tendency to drift off. People can tell if you are bored just by looking at how you conduct yourself while speaking. One way of showing that you are interested in conversation is to nod and smile. Overall, I believe that through conversation, we can build bridges to other worlds, but without knowing how to conversate, you can alienate many people.

Communicating Among Different Groups of People

The question is whether or not I find myself communicating differently with different groups of people. For the most part, I do communicate differently with different groups. The truth of the matter is, I believe that everyone does. When with friends or people who have a few commonalities, the conversations are more relaxed. It is not tense and it doesn't feel as if you are walking on egg shells the whole time the conversation is going on. Not only that, there are certain topics that you can discuss with friends, relatives, or people that you have something in common with. People of different cultures or nationalities might not share in some of the things that you think is funny. There is also a chance that you might offend someone without even trying to. If I am dealing with my boss or co-workers, my whole attitude and personality is different because these are people whom I work with. As a teacher, I have to present myself in a more professional and dignified manner. When I am dealing with parents, it too, is a situation where professionalism is a must because after all, the parents expect us to exhibit the right type of behavior, have respect for them and their children and make the right decisions for all people involved. In order to be sure that no one is offended by your nonverbal cues or conversaitons, I would suggest using a few strategies such as respecting all parties involved (their opinions matter, keeping an open-mind when dealing with those that you come in contact with and last but not least, be sure that you do not have any preconceived notions about people before coming in contact with them.

Television Show Activity

The show that I chose to watch was "House of Payne." This is a show that I don't normally watch because of the time which conflicts with the day to day running of my household and night time schedule. When I turned the sound off, the character (Curtis) seemed to be this type of guy who was always yelling and trying to exert his male domination or energy onto the people that he came in contact with. Basically, he waved his hand a lot, and he pointed his fingers at everyone as if to delegate the jobs or tasks within the household. His nonverbal cues suggested that those around him knew that when he pointed and waved those hands, that whatever he wanted them to do had to get done. When I turned the volume up and I was able to hear Curtis's voice, I realized that my assumptions had been wrong. Curtis does yell, but the yelling is actually humorous to those around him because they appear to be used to him doing this. Also, I found out that Curtis is one of those animated characters who uses his hands to express his feelings, whether it is to demonstrate happiness or sadness. Overall, after turning the volume up, I realized that Curtis's sense of humor and animated gestures were the basis of the show. My assumptions would have been correct had I been watching a show that I normally watch because I would have known what to expect and who to expect it from. I also would have had background knowledge of the characters involved. I think that this activity opened my eyes to a lot of things. For the most part, it is preparing me to be more objective within the classroom because there are a lot that is going on within the classroom that is based on my perceptions. Perceptions can be wrong which is why we should investigate the matter before going on what we perceive to be true.

Competent Communicator

After carefully thinking about the characteristics of a good communicator, I chose my friend, Tarneca. I think that Tarneca is a great communicator because the type of person who listens to the person that she is speaking with, whether she agrees with them or not. She also maintains eye contact in the middle of a conversation to show the other person that she is being attentive to what is going on or what is said. Another thing that she does is she doesn't entertain any negativity. There are some people who try to invite her to conversations that are not productive to anyone involved (gossip); she is very subtle and polite when she maneuvers around the negative conversation. I think that these are things that I need to learn to become a great communicator because unfortunately, I find myself being very snippy when people try to invite me into negative talk about something or somebody else. I don't have a poker face. I am very animated when I am bored out of my mind of listening to someone else. It would be nice to pretend that I am a great communicator but I am not. I know that there are things that I have to and need to work on in order to be successful in and outside of the classroom.

Farewell to my classmates...

It is always exciting when entering into a new class and making new friends--some that you are sure to stay in contact with for a period of time. Teaching is the exact same way. We meet new people all the time as teachers and through this meeting, we learn to respect them and value them as human beings. The one hope that I have for teachers, when dealing with diverse children is to remember to always respect them. They may not be like you or I but they have been placed in your care; therefore, you must respect them and handle them with care. My goal is to practice the same thing that I have been preaching to others and that goal is to maintain some type of culture responsiveness to my students who are different. As I end this particular class, I would like to say Thank you to my professor and classmates because you all have truly made this a wonderful experience.

"El Salvador"

For week 7's assignment, I was to select a country that I was unfamiliar with and prepare a fictional place for an emigrated child's arrival. I chose to place myself in the position of a teacher in a middle school setting. The child who is in my care comes to me from El Salvador. The country of El Salvador is rich in history and I was amazed at some of the facts that I found out. While reading the history of El Salvador, I thought of ways that I could become more culturally responsive to the student who has been placed in my care. Listed below are ways that I plan to become culturally responsive:

1. Design an instructional method whereas I am incorporating some type of background knowledge of the student in questioning. I think that by doing this the student will feel more comfortable being in the classroom setting.

2. Incorporate books and other activities for that particular student's enjoyment. Again, this will allow the student to see that my getting to know him/her is imporant and this will build a repor with teacher and student.

3. Implement cooperative learning groups so that the other students may become involved in the "getting to know" the new student process. It is intimidating being in a classroom where everyone knows everyone there except you.

4. Incorporate show and tell in the classroom will allow that particular student in the classroom to bring in a piece of himself so that we can all partake in the sharing of ideas and culture.

5. Collaborating with the family is a great way to find out more about the student's customs and traditions so that some of these can be celebrated rather than denied with the classroom.

I chose to put the main focus on the child in the classroom because it is here that I will more than likely have the most contact with the student. Also, I think that these things will help the student to become successful within the classroom. There has been a time where the students have become so enthralled in a lesson that they have gone home to share it with the parent. The parent is need for academic achievement and student success.

Response to Questions For Week 6

What memory do you have of an incident when you experienced bias, prejudice, and/or oppression, or witnessed someone else as the target of bias, prejudice, and/or oppression? Keep in mind that one can encounter such incidents in real contexts, including online environments, as well as in fictional ones, such as movies, books, television shows, and the like?

I was in a situation where I was teaching a summer course and this particular parent thought that I shouldn't be allowed to teach her daughter due to some lies that her daughter told to get out of that particular class, because she stuck out like a sore thumb. Instead of the parent telling her daughter that she could drop the class or following through with the class because she committed herself to it, the parent chose to make problems for me. Before this happened, I and the parent were friends which made this a sad event. I told my dear friend that we would never be as we were and we are not.

One fictional character was Perfect. The character was from a book called Perfect Peace. The book was wonderful. Perfect was born a boy but his mother wanted a girl so she sought to transform this boy into a girl. When he was eight, she finally told him the truth and tried to force this child into being a boy. They even tried to beat some male tendencies into this child. He grew up finding other boys attractive and not being able to share his feelings with anyone, he kep his feelings hidden which caused him the greatest pain. I love the character, Perfect, because here we gave fiction imitating life. Society has made it hard for people who love the same sex to explore and be themselves. It is truly a sad occasion. Here it is 2012, and we haven't progressed in this particular area of discrimination.

In what way(s) did the specific bias, prejudice and/or oppression in that incident diminish equity?

Each of the situations described above shows a lack of equity, because we weren't treated fairly. We were judged based on someone else's opinion of what we were/are. No one took the time out to try to accept us for what we were nor did they try to find out if the rumors that circulate about us were true or not. We were tried and convicted because we were different and that is the bottom line.

What feelings did this incident bring up for you?

I was hurt that the parent, who I had been friends with for twenty years, believed her daught, who was a known liar. I understand the need to believe your children, but teaching has taught me to be patient and look at things from every angle.

What and/or who would have to change in order to turn this incident into an opportunity for greater equity?

For the character in the book, some of the people in the community did finally change after this young man grew up and became successful. He didn't change who he was; he prayed for acceptance and the Lord granted him acceptance but not from others, but from himself. The young man learned to accept himself, because there wasn't anything wrong with him--people made it appear to be that way because there was something wrong with them. The incident afforded him an opportunity to live out his dream and prove others wrong.

Had the parent changed or treated the incident differently, the situation would be one that could have been fair to all parties involved. She could have been fair to myself and her daughter had she investigated before accusing. Had this happened, the child would have known that lying wouldn't be tolerated and the parent and I could have kept out friendship.