Evaluation Comparison

I really enjoyed this week’s assignments because it gave us the opportunity to not only evaluate ourselves on our communication but also to allow other perspective’s from a friend, family, or colleague.  The two people I chose to evaluate me seemed to know me very well.  I honestly believed they were going to be all over the place, especially pertaining to my communication skills.  What I perceived of myself and what they perceived through evaluation went hand in hand.  I am a much laid back person who would rather listen than speak.  Not to say that I do not speak well because my verbal communication is pretty good to my knowledge, I just listen well.  I think what surprised me the most is how accurate both evaluations came to be.  I figured they would be all over the place with their viewpoints of me but I was wrong.  My fiancé told me she knew me more than I know myself and I had to give her the thumbs up because she was accurate.

           This week I was able to understand how moderate my verbal aggressiveness is pertaining to my communication.  We are all different in our own unique ways, especially when communicating with others.  I found that I am very respectful and considerate of other people’s viewpoints.  After taking the listening profile assessment I fell in group 1 which makes me a people-oriented individual.  I definitely agree with this because I do love to listen and I am very concerned with the emotions of others. 

Colleagues Cultural Diversity

Communicating with people who are different from you is something you likely do every day (Beebe, Beebe, & Redmond, 2011, pg. 86).  Even our family and friends are dissimilar in things we may know nothing about.  There are things I talk about with my friends that I do not speak about with say a family member.  Things we share amongst each other come about differently depending on the setting or group of people we are with.  Being motivated to establish positive relationships with others who are different from us is a key aspect of communicating in interculturally competent ways (Beebe, Beebe, & Redmond, 2011, pg. 107).  There are always going to be communicating differences, even amongst our friends and families.  On settings when I am just hanging out with the fellows, we communicate about sports, our relationship with the girlfriend or wife, and just silly things that we can all sit back and laugh about.

Three good strategies to help us communicate more effectively with people would be for starts to create an atmosphere of openness.  When speaking with an individual or in a group setting, avoid objects that create barriers such as desks or cubicle walls.  Try to sit in an open area, and elude loud places.  We should also find places where the conversation is doubtful to be disturbed.  Another great strategy is to be an active listener.  A great communicator never tries to dominate the conversation.  As communicators we should allow our listener to provide their thoughts and listen courteously.  A third good strategy could be to actively engage in conversation.  When we are communicating with someone else they can tell when our minds are in another stratosphere.  We must express honest concern for the subject matter and show complete attention.  The person or people we are communicating with need to know that we are involved in the discussion.  There needs to be good eye contact shown and good non-verbal signals such as shacking your head as if agreeing with the person or just showing great posture.     

Reference

Beebe, S. A., Beebe, S. J., & Redmond, M. V. (2011).  Interpersonal communication: Relating to

            others (6^th ed.).  Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon.  Chapter 4, “Interpersonal Communication

and Diversity: Adapting to Others” (pp. 85-114)

Observing Communication through Television

The television show I chose to view was “Criminal Minds”.  I have had opportunities to watch this show but did not because I thought it was trying to be much like one of my favorite shows “Law & Order, Special Victims”.   From watching Criminal Minds with the sound turned off was very tough because having volume is important when it comes to really understanding things.  I listen very well so I can actually be doing something else without paying attention to the screen and understand what is going on.  The vibe I got from watching the characters on this episode pertaining to their relationship to communicating amongst on another was very good.  No one seemed snappy or rude or bigger than another person.  Based on the nonverbal behavior I observed, seems as if they have intense feelings on cracking the case.  Everyone seems to be about business, going off of the looks on their faces.       

In this episode, the assumptions I made about the characters and plot based on the ways in which I interpreted the communication I observed are they actually communicated very well.  Eye contact was always made and body languages seem to be at a respectful stage as far as the investigation team represented themselves.  In the FBI, communication is valuable and non-verbal communication has to be used a lot in order to get the job done correctly without getting anyone hurt.  In this episode I viewed one of the agents nodding his head to another agent pointing in a direction for him to go in and the communication was picked up well.  This communication was perfectly executed because the guy was able to sneak around the side to grab the young boy before he shot anyone.  I believe my assumptions would have definitely been more correct if I had been watching a show I know well.  I say this because from past episode I would know the characters and understand how they communicate and what would possibly happen before it even happens.  I actually do that a lot when it comes to “Law & Order”, a show I watch pretty much every day.

          What I learned from this experience about communication is that we have to learn how to pick up on people’s actions by understanding non-verbal signs.  In the early childhood field children are going to come to us with mixed emotions and we have to understand what they are feeling because most of the times children will not speak about it, especially if the child is shy or do not speak much at all.  

A Great Communicator

A person who comes to mind when talking about great communication skills is my Aunt who is a professional early childhood teacher.  She always presents herself in a great manner and prides herself on being respectful and knowledgeable to make herself a better communicator.  She possess great confidence when speaking, head always held high and speaks with no stutter as well as with a strong voice.  It always seems as if she knows everything because her words are never blank.  I love that she always looks a person in the eyes when speaking, making sure that person is grasping every knowledgeable detail she has to offer.  I personally model every communication skill I can from her because she goes about her business in a professional manner.  It seems as if everyone looks up to her and she does not shy away from the center of attention.  She is the epitome of a great leader and who I would love to be like in the means of being a great leader and communicator to others.

Professional Hopes and Goals

When I think about working with children and families who come from diverse backgrounds I hope to gain as much knowledge about their background as I can to ensure they feel comfortable in my setting.  When people are comfortable they are more prone to express themselves in positive ways.  I hope I have the necessary tools to help guide them toward success as well as an understanding that I care about their needs and want to see them grow strong not only in the new culture they are surrounded by but also where they come from as well.

One goal I would like to set for the early childhood field related to issues of diversity, equity, and social justice is to have patience, leadership qualities, and a positive attitude toward everyone I come into contact with professionally.  I expect to learn more about diversity, equity, and social justice and see within something that I have never seen to get a better understanding of the three.

           To everyone in the course, I wish you all the best of luck in your future journey.  Thanks to all the comments and posts as well as allowing me to gain knowledge of diversity, equity, social justice, and great scenarios.  This course has really opened my eyes to the world around and makes me look at how I present myself, making sure I show no signs of microaggressions.  You all have been such great support and guidance and I really appreciate the great comments.

Welcoming Families from around the world

The country of origin in which the child has come from is Nigeria.  One way I will be culturally responsive to the family is by committing to knowing the child well.  I am going to learn about the child’s culture, family, and what interest him or her.  A second way of being responsive is by building on the child’s life experiences.  I want to dig deep inside the child to see what he or she has been through so that I can understand what the child may like to do for fun or what may not be of any interest to the child.  A third way I will be culturally responsive to the child is by giving the child an opportunity to learn about my background.  A lot of times giving a person a chance to ask questions really opens that person up and makes them feel of importance.  A fourth way I would be responsive is by showing respect toward the child and their family origin.  A final way I will be culturally responsive is by understanding my own cultural identity, and its consequences.  I must rigorously examine my cultural behavior patterns and be myself, honest, caring, and my undivided attention.

I feel these preparations will benefit both me and the family because it will allow both parties to get in-depth with each other.  I love the saying “we learn something new every day” and this quote fits well in being culturally responsive with someone of a different country of origin.   We are all born, raised and surrounded in culture, and it is vital to learning.  Being culturally responsive notifies how we touch basis with one another, the way we obtain things from our source and lends a hand in outlining the thought development of families and individuals.

The Personal Side of Bias, Prejudice, and Oppression

   A good memory of an incident when bias or racism came into play was with my girlfriend.  She told me about a time when she was cheerleading back in high school and something that has never left her mind even until this day.  She explained it was only her and another girl the only African Americans on the squad, the rest of the girls were Caucasian.  After a cheerleading competition her team went out to eat at cracker barrel restaurant.  The restaurant was not all packed but she said they waited for about an hour before being seated with other big groups coming in around them.  No one thought anything of it so they waited patiently until finally being seated.  My girlfriend sat at the table with the other African American girl and two other Caucasian girls from the squad.  Everyone was waited except my girlfriend's table.  Again no one thought anything of it until one of the Caucasian girls from my girlfriend's table noticed everyone getting their food and their table has not even been seen.  New customers were coming in getting their order taken care of and it was getting ridiculous.  The girl who took notice went and told their coach who confronted the manager.  My girlfriend said she broke down in tears so frustrated at what was happening because she said she never encountered anything like this before.  The manager told them that he apologize and will take care of the waitress.
  This incident diminished equity by the waitress refusing to serve a table because of the color of two girl's skin.  Everyone should be treated the same no matter their race and it was just not right to pass on their table because of them being African American.  Every time I think of this incident I get a disgust feeling because I feel those days of being racist, prejudice and even bias should have never even began.  It is not right to treat people any kind of way.  I have a zero-tolerance of this kind of behavior and I am all for teaching our young generation the right ways of going about our society.  In order to change this incident into an opportunity for greater equity the world itself needs to be constructed upon.  It starts by properly educating the early childhood community to ensure they understand how to treat people with respect and value each other's culture and differences.