Communication Assumptions
I do not own a television so I asked to borrowed a DVD from my son. He gave me Quantum Leap to watch and now I am hooked on this show!
Watching with the sound off was more difficult then I though it would be. The relationship of the two main charterers, Sam and Al, showed that they seemed to be good friends at some points, and yet they seemed to have a difference of opinion on some issues. Al's facial expressions were animated and he used his hands a lot when talking. It seemed like his body was always in motion whether he was singing, dancing, or pretending to swing a golf club. Al was always holding on to a small computer that he would type in something and then his whole body became agitated with it as he would start pounding on it with his fists. At this time his facial expressions would show anger. Sam always looked confused when someone other than Al was talking to him, but he did smile a lot. I did not understand why Al could act goofy and not have the other people around him say anything. When Sam looked at himself in a mirror, it was a different person looking back at him. Apparently Sam was the only one who could actually see Al and Al would appear and disappear at will which startled Sam.
Watching this show was definitely more fun with the sound on. With the sound on, I could see that Sam and Al were good friends and my interpretation of this was right. Al was Sam's sidekick but Sam was the only one who could see him and that is why Al could act goofy and get away with it. When Al could not get the information from his hand held computer, he was upset and would usually disappear. I now understand why Sam appeared to almost always have a confused look on his face as he "leaped" back into time and had no clue where he was or who the people around him were. I just thought he looked confused because of the things Al would tell him from his computer.
I believe my assumptions would be spot on if I actually watched a show that I was familiar with. It has always been said that one should not make assumptions. The nonverbal cues in this program gave me the message that Al was a happy go lucky guy and Sam seemed uptight until toward the end of the show. When I re watched with the sound on, I noticed that some of the nonverbal cues that Al was making did not match his words.
Saturday, July 12, 2014
Saturday, July 5, 2014
Competent Communication Skills
My thirty-five year old son is very competent when it comes to communication as his skills began at an early age. He is very articulate when he communicates to anyone both verbally and non verbally. He maintains eye contact, keeps his tone of voice even, and is an active perceiver when he listens. If he does not understand the point or goal of the conversation, he will restate what he feels that the point or goal is. Because of his intelligence, he will strive to distinguish fact from inferences and communicates with knowledge.
He is also aware of cultural context when communicating with others as he comes in contact with other cultures frequently. I have been modeling my own communication skills after my sons for several years. What I must work on is my listening skills. When I become lost with what someone is trying to tell me, I tune out. I need to become a more active listener.
My thirty-five year old son is very competent when it comes to communication as his skills began at an early age. He is very articulate when he communicates to anyone both verbally and non verbally. He maintains eye contact, keeps his tone of voice even, and is an active perceiver when he listens. If he does not understand the point or goal of the conversation, he will restate what he feels that the point or goal is. Because of his intelligence, he will strive to distinguish fact from inferences and communicates with knowledge.
He is also aware of cultural context when communicating with others as he comes in contact with other cultures frequently. I have been modeling my own communication skills after my sons for several years. What I must work on is my listening skills. When I become lost with what someone is trying to tell me, I tune out. I need to become a more active listener.
Thursday, June 26, 2014
Professional Hopes and Goals
My hope for all children and their families who come from diverse backgrounds is for them to feel comfortable, safe, and welcomed in their environment. To become diverse, we must look at life values from a variety of perspectives. We also must take the time to understand why people do the things they do within their social identities; the purpose behind the action. We need to move beyond simple tolerance to embracing and celebrating diversity. People's values and beliefs affect their behaviors. In turn, diversity and lifestyle choices are the outcome of those values and beliefs.
A goal I would like to set for the early childhood field is for teachers to learn some different concepts and theories with diversity in order to adapt new strategies into the teaching curriculum. Teachers must examine themselves for any hidden biases they may have, or encounter on the job, and learn techniques that will counter the potential negative effects of these biases. Culture sensitivity also plays a required role in the designing of new teaching techniques that would have an emphasis on raising awareness of microaggressive thoughts or actions. Learning these types of techniques will be an ongoing process.
I would like to thank all my peers for their suggestions, personal thoughts, stories, and caring attitudes for the children to be working on their Master's Degree. You have inspired me to challenge myself even more. Good luck to all.
My hope for all children and their families who come from diverse backgrounds is for them to feel comfortable, safe, and welcomed in their environment. To become diverse, we must look at life values from a variety of perspectives. We also must take the time to understand why people do the things they do within their social identities; the purpose behind the action. We need to move beyond simple tolerance to embracing and celebrating diversity. People's values and beliefs affect their behaviors. In turn, diversity and lifestyle choices are the outcome of those values and beliefs.
A goal I would like to set for the early childhood field is for teachers to learn some different concepts and theories with diversity in order to adapt new strategies into the teaching curriculum. Teachers must examine themselves for any hidden biases they may have, or encounter on the job, and learn techniques that will counter the potential negative effects of these biases. Culture sensitivity also plays a required role in the designing of new teaching techniques that would have an emphasis on raising awareness of microaggressive thoughts or actions. Learning these types of techniques will be an ongoing process.
I would like to thank all my peers for their suggestions, personal thoughts, stories, and caring attitudes for the children to be working on their Master's Degree. You have inspired me to challenge myself even more. Good luck to all.
Saturday, June 21, 2014
Welcoming Families From Around the World
The country that "my family" came from is Germany.
Five ways that I would prepare myself to be culturally responsive towards this family would be:
1. I would learn the culture from the area where the family came from. I would also like to have a list of resources to help the family to assimilate to our country.
2. I would read books about Germany, learn important words or phrases in German and have a translator standing by to help out if needed.
3. I would, hopefully, receive information about the child and his family before they arrive so I would know the child's strengths, weakness, likes, and dislikes. I would also want to know what type of educational programs he has attended in Germany.
4. Having pictures that the child and family can relate to hanging up in the classroom, along with books both in English and in German would be beneficial for all the children. I would like to have toys, different activities, and music that are native to Germany in the classroom to make the child feel like he is important to the classroom.
5. I would like the learn about foods that the child likes and see if we could reproduce a recipe in the classroom so all the children could enjoy it.
These are just a few ways to make the child and their family feel comfortable. It will also make the other children feel comfortable knowing that a child who may not speak English or who eats different things then what we eat will be in their classroom. The children will be able to ask questions about their new friend that I may be able to answer, and if not, they will be find answers to their questions when he attends and not be afraid of what they do not understand.
The country that "my family" came from is Germany.
Five ways that I would prepare myself to be culturally responsive towards this family would be:
1. I would learn the culture from the area where the family came from. I would also like to have a list of resources to help the family to assimilate to our country.
2. I would read books about Germany, learn important words or phrases in German and have a translator standing by to help out if needed.
3. I would, hopefully, receive information about the child and his family before they arrive so I would know the child's strengths, weakness, likes, and dislikes. I would also want to know what type of educational programs he has attended in Germany.
4. Having pictures that the child and family can relate to hanging up in the classroom, along with books both in English and in German would be beneficial for all the children. I would like to have toys, different activities, and music that are native to Germany in the classroom to make the child feel like he is important to the classroom.
5. I would like the learn about foods that the child likes and see if we could reproduce a recipe in the classroom so all the children could enjoy it.
These are just a few ways to make the child and their family feel comfortable. It will also make the other children feel comfortable knowing that a child who may not speak English or who eats different things then what we eat will be in their classroom. The children will be able to ask questions about their new friend that I may be able to answer, and if not, they will be find answers to their questions when he attends and not be afraid of what they do not understand.
Thursday, June 12, 2014
The Personal Side of Bias, Prejudice, and Oppression
The experience I am writing about took place a couple of weeks ago, and I am still flabbergasted that my staff reacted like they did. My center accepts children from 12 months to 5 years of age. We have a two year old who is still breastfeeding as mom usually pumps and brings the breast milk in his sippy cup, but on occasion she has actually breast fed her son in the car after picking him up from the center. One day, she decided to breast feed in the classroom sitting in the rocking chair. She had a blanket covering herself and part of her son, so it looked like she was just cuddling and rocking him. My staff seemed shocked and embarrassed at the same time and I could not understand why. Children continued to play, parents came and went, and not one person noticed anything different or said a word except for my staff. I had an impromptu staff meeting to listen to their concerns about this situation. My first words were that she has every right to breast feed and this center supports breastfeeding. I asked my staff their feelings, and a few responded that it was awkward because she did not warn us what she was going to do. Another said that the child was too old and another staff member stated that there is a time and place for everything. All I could think was WOW, how could my staff that I have trained and nurtured be so biased? Upon further discussion, I found most of my staff agreed that breast milk was the best for children. Of course, I handed out information about the benefits of breastfeeding.
I felt this situation diminished equity because of the reaction from my staff. Did they think she was giving a bad example for other adults or the children? If my staff agree that breast milk was the best thing for a child, why were they so shocked when they saw this mom breast feed? My staff said that breast feeding was good, no doubt about that, but just not when they were around. I could say that my staff is just uneducated about the issue, but they are not; it is a biased situation. I asked the question "How would you feel if you saw a mother breastfeeding at the mall, restaurant, or park? What would your feeling be then?"
My feelings on this subject was that of surprise for my staff. I did not believe that they were so opinionated on this issue. Could it be since that they personally knew this mother that they might have been embarrassed? I personally sat in the room and talked to her and her son while she was breastfeeding. I did try breastfeeding my first born, but it did not work for me. I applaud breastfeeding moms!
The experience I am writing about took place a couple of weeks ago, and I am still flabbergasted that my staff reacted like they did. My center accepts children from 12 months to 5 years of age. We have a two year old who is still breastfeeding as mom usually pumps and brings the breast milk in his sippy cup, but on occasion she has actually breast fed her son in the car after picking him up from the center. One day, she decided to breast feed in the classroom sitting in the rocking chair. She had a blanket covering herself and part of her son, so it looked like she was just cuddling and rocking him. My staff seemed shocked and embarrassed at the same time and I could not understand why. Children continued to play, parents came and went, and not one person noticed anything different or said a word except for my staff. I had an impromptu staff meeting to listen to their concerns about this situation. My first words were that she has every right to breast feed and this center supports breastfeeding. I asked my staff their feelings, and a few responded that it was awkward because she did not warn us what she was going to do. Another said that the child was too old and another staff member stated that there is a time and place for everything. All I could think was WOW, how could my staff that I have trained and nurtured be so biased? Upon further discussion, I found most of my staff agreed that breast milk was the best for children. Of course, I handed out information about the benefits of breastfeeding.
I felt this situation diminished equity because of the reaction from my staff. Did they think she was giving a bad example for other adults or the children? If my staff agree that breast milk was the best thing for a child, why were they so shocked when they saw this mom breast feed? My staff said that breast feeding was good, no doubt about that, but just not when they were around. I could say that my staff is just uneducated about the issue, but they are not; it is a biased situation. I asked the question "How would you feel if you saw a mother breastfeeding at the mall, restaurant, or park? What would your feeling be then?"
My feelings on this subject was that of surprise for my staff. I did not believe that they were so opinionated on this issue. Could it be since that they personally knew this mother that they might have been embarrassed? I personally sat in the room and talked to her and her son while she was breastfeeding. I did try breastfeeding my first born, but it did not work for me. I applaud breastfeeding moms!
Saturday, May 31, 2014
Practicing Awareness of Microaggressions
Microaggressions occur on a daily basis and are usually brief slights, insults, or indignities of messages which can happen verbally or non verbally to people of different races, cultures, or genders. I feel that it can be a form of aversive racism. Microaggressions usually happen outside the level of awareness of people (Sue, 2011).
Unfortunately, I see and hear microaggressions everyday from both adults and children. The one I am going to write about happened several years ago when my daughter was about sixteen or seventeen years of age. We were traveling to a small county in Wichita and stopped at the only gas station we could find for gas and snacks. We are white, and the lady at the register was from Iran, as I overheard her tell a customer who just left the store. My daughter and I were the only customers left and we walked around the small store picking up junk food and pop. When we sat our snacks down on the counter, the lady coldly informed us that she does not take Vision cards. Vision cards in Kansas are cards that help people pay for food. I simply stated, before I could stop my mouth, "That's nice because I do not have a Vision card. Do you have a Vision card?" She simply said no and I paid her in cash. I was so angry because she pegged me as someone who did not have any money and that was not the case. Sure, my daughter and I were wearing "seen better days" shorts and tee shirts, but still, she did not have to say anything to me about a Vision card implying that I need help to pay for food. My daughter, on the other hand, played devil's advocate saying that maybe because we were dressed "down" and did not look like we had money, or maybe people had tried to use Vision cards there before us is the reason she made this statement up front. Regardless, I felt this was a microinsult and microinvalidation to me, and still have not forgotten about it.
In my center, I see microaggressions in the classrooms when African American children tell mixed children that they can not play with them because their skin is not dark enough. Hurt feelings are one of the hardest issues to overcome, as you can tell in my microaggression from above. The older I become, the more tolerant I am of most everything, including the "isms." Disregarding or downplaying the feelings, beliefs, or opinions of others is one of the main contributing factors to microaggressions. As long as people feel they are superior to others, and vice versa, they will have tendencies to react negatively to those they consider different from their own standpoint in the power structure of hierarchy.
Laureate education (Producer). (2011). Microaggressions in everyday life. [Video file].
Retrieved from http://class,walden.edu
Microaggressions occur on a daily basis and are usually brief slights, insults, or indignities of messages which can happen verbally or non verbally to people of different races, cultures, or genders. I feel that it can be a form of aversive racism. Microaggressions usually happen outside the level of awareness of people (Sue, 2011).
Unfortunately, I see and hear microaggressions everyday from both adults and children. The one I am going to write about happened several years ago when my daughter was about sixteen or seventeen years of age. We were traveling to a small county in Wichita and stopped at the only gas station we could find for gas and snacks. We are white, and the lady at the register was from Iran, as I overheard her tell a customer who just left the store. My daughter and I were the only customers left and we walked around the small store picking up junk food and pop. When we sat our snacks down on the counter, the lady coldly informed us that she does not take Vision cards. Vision cards in Kansas are cards that help people pay for food. I simply stated, before I could stop my mouth, "That's nice because I do not have a Vision card. Do you have a Vision card?" She simply said no and I paid her in cash. I was so angry because she pegged me as someone who did not have any money and that was not the case. Sure, my daughter and I were wearing "seen better days" shorts and tee shirts, but still, she did not have to say anything to me about a Vision card implying that I need help to pay for food. My daughter, on the other hand, played devil's advocate saying that maybe because we were dressed "down" and did not look like we had money, or maybe people had tried to use Vision cards there before us is the reason she made this statement up front. Regardless, I felt this was a microinsult and microinvalidation to me, and still have not forgotten about it.
In my center, I see microaggressions in the classrooms when African American children tell mixed children that they can not play with them because their skin is not dark enough. Hurt feelings are one of the hardest issues to overcome, as you can tell in my microaggression from above. The older I become, the more tolerant I am of most everything, including the "isms." Disregarding or downplaying the feelings, beliefs, or opinions of others is one of the main contributing factors to microaggressions. As long as people feel they are superior to others, and vice versa, they will have tendencies to react negatively to those they consider different from their own standpoint in the power structure of hierarchy.
Laureate education (Producer). (2011). Microaggressions in everyday life. [Video file].
Retrieved from http://class,walden.edu
Friday, May 23, 2014
Perspectives on Diversity and Culture
People's values and beliefs affect their behaviors. In turn, diversity and lifestyle choices are the outcome of those values and beliefs. I spoke with a Caucasian male in his sixties, a Hispanic female in her twenties, and an African-American female in her thirties. All three stated that they believed culture and diversity means people who are respectful of others that are different from themselves. They also were in agreement that respect is not only for the traditions and values, but also for gender, race, religion, and socioeconomic status.
My Hispanic friend also feels that her culture is a group of people having the same beliefs and they work together to make their culture better. This, to me, would be considered deep culture as having everyone working together to make their culture richer involves the thoughts, beliefs, personal values, and traditions that everyone expresses in actions and words everyday.
My Caucasian friend believes that culture is influenced by ones upbringing and environment. One issue that I do not remember reading about is how the environment influences ones culture if they have been removed from their own comfortable culture. Will they still hold onto to their values and beliefs, or embrace the culture they were placed in by adoption or another circumstance. It might depend on the age of the child.
Talking to different people and getting their opinion about culture and diversity made me realize that I really did not think much about culture years ago. Being in the dominate culture, I really did not have any clue of the issues and hardships some cultures went through. I also thought about the influence of power structures in our society and the impact they can have on cultural dynamics and values. To become diverse, we must look at life values from a variety of perspectives.
People's values and beliefs affect their behaviors. In turn, diversity and lifestyle choices are the outcome of those values and beliefs. I spoke with a Caucasian male in his sixties, a Hispanic female in her twenties, and an African-American female in her thirties. All three stated that they believed culture and diversity means people who are respectful of others that are different from themselves. They also were in agreement that respect is not only for the traditions and values, but also for gender, race, religion, and socioeconomic status.
My Hispanic friend also feels that her culture is a group of people having the same beliefs and they work together to make their culture better. This, to me, would be considered deep culture as having everyone working together to make their culture richer involves the thoughts, beliefs, personal values, and traditions that everyone expresses in actions and words everyday.
My Caucasian friend believes that culture is influenced by ones upbringing and environment. One issue that I do not remember reading about is how the environment influences ones culture if they have been removed from their own comfortable culture. Will they still hold onto to their values and beliefs, or embrace the culture they were placed in by adoption or another circumstance. It might depend on the age of the child.
Talking to different people and getting their opinion about culture and diversity made me realize that I really did not think much about culture years ago. Being in the dominate culture, I really did not have any clue of the issues and hardships some cultures went through. I also thought about the influence of power structures in our society and the impact they can have on cultural dynamics and values. To become diverse, we must look at life values from a variety of perspectives.
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