Who am I as a communicator?

This week we continued to explore communication and focused on evaluating our own communication styles.  We used three online assessment tools that evaluated listening, communication anxiety, and verbal aggressiveness.  We were asked to have two people in our lives complete the assessments on us as well.  After completing the assessments and looking at the results from two others, I noticed that there were some differences, surprises, and some results that aligned with the way I see myself as a communicator.

The insights that I have gained about communication this week are that I seem to change my persona based on the audience or context and that I seem to be more confident in my professional communication than my personal interactions.  This may be the result of the amount of time I have spent on refining my presentation, supervisory, and leadership skills in recent years.  I also know that I do have a lower self-esteem in social settings and become more reserved with people I do not know.

The second part of our assignment this week asked us to create some communication goals.  I think this will help in all areas of my work and personal life as I look to increase my ability to work with a diverse population of children, families, staff, and community agencies.

Communication and Culture

This week we have been studying the intricate nature of communication across cultures and the role we have as professionals of ensuring that we are communicating effectively with the various groups with whom we work.  We have looked within ourselves to identify the biases and ideas we have about other groups and how that affects the ways in which we interact with them.  We have studied the definitions of various culture groups again to remind us of the characteristics they hold.
I think that there are many strategies that we use to communicate effectively with others.  The first is to reflect on and have a genuine understanding of our own culture and the groups with whom we identify.  These ideals, traditions, and beliefs have an impact on the way we view the world and other individuals and groups and "it is critical that we reflect on the various aspects of our own cultural identity and examine their positive and negative impacts on our personal and professional development" (Vukovic, 2008, p. 49).  The second is to identify your own biases and understandings of the communication partner's or group's culture.  We need to understand our own ideas about the other person before we can truly listen to their ideas and share information.  There may be ideals and beliefs that we do not fundamentally agree with or that do not align with our own ideals, but in a professional (and often personal) settings, we need to set those aside in order to reach the common goal.  Finally, we need to understand our own communication style as it relates to others. Some of us are observers and take in other people's opinions before we offer our own.  Others are initiators and lead the conversation.  It is important that we understand how we choose to communicate and how others choose to communicate so that we can interpret the subtle behaviors correctly.

References:
 Vuckovic, A. (2008). Inter-cultural communication: A foundation of communicative action. Multicultural Education and Technology Journal, 2(1), 47–59.

Language, Listening, and Nonverbal Communication

This week we were asked to watch a television show, once with the sound off and once with it on, to observe the use of nonverbal expressions.  I chose an episode of "The Big Bang Theory".  In this episode, the four male friends are gathered in the living room talking.  One character, "Raj", is talking excitedly, smiling and gesturing with his hands.  The others are leaning in listening to him.  At one point one of the characters, "Sheldon", gets up and walks tot he kitchen.  When he turns back to the group, his face is stoic and he is talking quickly and shaking his head.  As the camera shows Raj again, his posture has changed and he is no longer smiling.  Given the little I know about the show, I assumed that Sheldon had made a comment about what Raj was talking about that proved him wrong about some scientific fact.  The other two characters, in looking on at the exchange, go from intently engaged with eye contact, smiles, and raised eyebrows, to looking down and no longer smiling.  Raj gets up and leaves.  The other characters look at Sheldon and begin speak emphatically, with furrowed eyebrows.  Sheldon remains expressionless and shrugs his shoulders.

In watching it again, Raj was given recognition for discovering a new star and Sheldon downplayed the event as minor when there are other facets of science that are "more important".  I was correct in my assumption about Sheldon's act of commenting on Raj's idea.

This exercise proved difficult because you could interpret the expressions in so many ways based on the knowledge you have of the individuals.  Knowing that Sheldon often expresses such comments in his peer group, one watching might have been able to predict that this would happen.  It shows that it is important to have an understanding of individual personalities in order to effectively interpret their communication styles.

Effective Communication

This week, we begin a new course on communicating and collaborating in the early childhood field.  We all know that it is important to be able to communicate ideas and information to our staff, families, community partners, and colleagues.  However, there is so much to communication that is subtle and intricate and it is our ability to identify those behaviors and characteristics that will determine the effectiveness of the exchange. 

When I think of good communicators in my personal and professional life, there is one person that stands out.  She is the facilitator of a work group I have recently joined in the community to discuss and plan for increased and improved social and emotional learning opportunities for children and families in our area.  The group consists of professionals from school districts, private organizations, and community partners, such as the local health nurse.  Rachel is organized in her approach to each meeting, where we have limited time to discuss all of the important information we have.  She actively listens to each member of the group, invites participation in engaging ways (like writing ideas on post its and having us post them on her larger easel paper on the wall), and summarizes each meeting with immense detail.  She has a way of interpreting what we are trying to say when we often have trouble saying it.  She asks questions in ways that allow for meaningful discussion and is very thoughtful about the process.  And did I mentioned the detailed summary!  It is generally a four page document with tables and charts that outline the work that we have done and the goals for the next meeting.  I am in awe of the ways she can extract information and interpret it in ways that I often don't see until I read the summary!  I would very much like to adopt her ability to take in large amounts of feedback and information and process it, then communicate it back to the group in an organized fashion.

Professional Hopes and Goals

After eight weeks of study, we come to the end of Perspectives on Diversity and Equity.  We have learned about the definitions of culture, diversity, and microaggressions.  I have been surprised at my own revelations and have learned from the perspectives of my colleagues.  My hope is that I take what I have learned here and apply to my work with children, families, and staff.  As we see the demographics in our community change with the influx of new immigrants from numerous different countries, we need to be prepared to support them in navigating the waters of education.  My role as a professional is to lead and coach others in ways to work with all families and children and I hope that some of the information I have gathered in this course will transfer to my daily interactions and training with staff.

One goal for our early childhood field is to incorporate more diversity training and education in the higher education institutions.  It is so important that new professionals coming in to teach in our classrooms know how to interact with families from all backgrounds and cultures.  I think in my undergraduate program there was one class on diversity.  If we start with the "front line", we can begin to ensure that children and families are well supported.  Once they enter the workforce, it is more difficult to find time for those trainings because they are focused on planning environments and curriculum.

I would like to say thank you to all of my colleagues.  I think this course provided all of us with great insight and discussions about difficult topics and issues.  I appreciate all of your candid responses and posts and I look forward to learning more from you in future courses.  Have a wonderful holiday season and happy new year!

Sincerely,
Katherine

P.S.  Here is the "covenant" by Raffi that the last video referenced.  I think it is beautiful!
We find these joys to be self evident: That all children are created whole, endowed with innate intelligence, with dignity and wonder, worthy of respect. The embodiment of life, liberty and happiness, children are original blessings, here to learn their own song. Every girl and boy is entitled to love, to dream and belong to a loving “village.” And to pursue a life of purpose.
We affirm our duty to nourish and nurture the young, to honour their caring ideals as the heart of being human. To recognize the early years as the foundation of life, and to cherish the contribution of young children to human evolution.
We commit ourselves to peaceful ways and vow to keep from harm or neglect these, our most vulnerable citizens. As guardians of their prosperity we honour the bountiful Earth whose diversity sustains us. Thus we pledge our love for generations to come.
From http://www.raffinews.com/child-honouring/covenant-principles

Welcoming Families From Around the World

This week, I have been asked to imagine that I will be working with a family that has recently emigrated from a country I know nothing about. As the demographics in our community changes, this is becoming more common.  As educators and advocates for children and families, we need to plan for working with these families and prepare for their arrival in our programs. 

The country I chose is India. Best Buy is a local company that employs several professionals from India at its headquarters.  As a result, we have enrolled several of these families in our program.  In order to better prepare myself and my team, these are some things that I would do.  India is rich with culture and history.  I would spend time reviewing the basic background of the culture, including religions, traditions, and customs.  I would use websites like Wikipedia, the U.S. Department of State, and Lonely Planet.  Next, I would explore local organizations and resources like the India Association of Minnesota to connect the new family with support services if needed.  I would secure an interpreter if the family did not speak English so that we could communicate effectively before the child starts in the program and after to ensure a smooth transition.  I would have a meeting with the teaching staff to talk about the culture and traditions of the family.  Finally, I would support the classroom in creating an environment that is respectful and engaging for the child and the family.  This includes providing images, books, activities, and learning experiences that reflect the child's home culture.

Through all of this preparation, I would hope that it would increase our confidence in interacting with the family and make the transition of the family into the program smooth and seamless.  In addition, I would hope that it would create an environment that would encourage the family to be involved in the program, adding a richness to the classroom that will benefit the children and the staff.

The Personal Side of Bias, Prejudice, and Oppression

     As we have explored these ideas of bias, prejudice, discrimination, and oppression, I have become more sensitive to the subtle ways the media often expresses some form of discrimination toward an individual or group.  In television shows, mostly crime shows, there continues to be a theme of black males playing the role of the criminal.  In the last blog posting, I shared an incident on a comedy where a white male professional calls his assistant who is from India "Mogli".  As a society we have become immune to the subtle, and often blatant nature of such biases.  It is frightening to think of the impact it is having on the children of today that grow up in homes where the television is on both for active watching and as "background noise".  I do not envy parents of today that must compete with media for the attention of their children.
      In each incident, there is diminished equity for the individual. As roles of criminals are played by black males, the idea becomes that it must be true in greater society.  It does not seek to dispel the myth that black males are criminals and, as I said earlier, the impact of that image on young children can only be harmful.  If it were up to me, shows like that simply would not exist.  As for the comedy program that pokes fun at the ethnic origin of its characters, it diminishes the equity that is portrayed in professional settings.  The fact that the character played by the white male holds a sense of power over the other and is representative of the dominant culture, the interpretation of such a scenario is dangerous.  It conveys the idea that people of color cannot hold a position in leadership and that, as an assistant, comments about them are condoned.  I could not believe it when I heard it, and yet, the live audience or the laugh track reinforced how funny it was supposed to be as a joke.
     I think that in order for these kinds of images to change and make a difference, media should begin casting characters that reflect greater society.  People should begin to recognize these subtle attacks on individuals and groups and start talking about it.  Since they are so subtle, or are simply "how it has always been", the more we bring it to light, the better possibility of it changing.