Communication Skills

In this week’s assignment we were ask to evaluate ourselves on our communication skills by taking three communications surveys, which were on verbal aggressiveness, listening styles and communication anxiety.  As directed once I completed the surveys I asked my sister and a very close friend to assess me as well, and I have to admit I discovered that I may not be as attentive in my listening skills as I thought and that because of my tendency to trust others, it interferes with my personal judgment of others.

My sister’s assessment of me was that if necessary I afford confrontation and I would presumably allow others to have their way for the sake of peace, rather than stand my ground, I was surprised about how accurate her evaluation of me was in this area.  She also noted that I love meeting new people and that I have a way of making others feel comfortable when talking with them.  My close friend told me that I respect others point of view by listening and even when I may not agree with the others person point of view that the tone of my voice and the way I present alternatives and/or other suggestions to be considered, that I do in such away, the other person does not feel as though they are being attacked or disrespected.

I’ve learned that if someone approaches me and too busy to listen, that it’s best if I let them know when it would be a good time for me to speak to them, rather than appear to impatient because I really did not have the time to listening attentively.

Communication and Culture

Communication and Culture

I work with families from several different cultures, and I make a point of getting to know each family as well as their cultures and family traditions.  By doing so, it allows the families to become both comfortable and to feel as though they belong.  However, I have a child whose parents are Muslims, and have been very adamant about not having their child participate in certain holiday festivities because of their religious beliefs.  Prior to this week’s assignment I had a different perspective on how I believed the parents were wrong in wanting their three year to participate in holiday festivities.  I felt it was wrong, a three year can’t even comprehend what it means to be a Muslim and doesn’t understand why they can’t dress up for Halloween, or participate in the Thanksgiving play or the exchange Christmas presents or go on a field trip to the mall to take pictures with Santa Claus.  I my opinion these are all harmful activities that are and should be a part of childhood memories.  After this week’s reading and assignments, I’ve realized that what I may view as being wrong or unfair because of my culture and the way I was raised as a child does not determine what is right or wrong when it comes to how different groups and cultures believe to be right for their child.  I’ve learned that you can’t judge a book by is cover; as well as how important it is to think before one speaks and the significance of the “Platinum Rule” and it’s impact when it comes to effective communication.

Verbal vs. Non-Verbal Communication

Verbal vs. Non-verbal Communication

The show that I decided to watch for this week’s assignment was South Beach Towing.  I am not a TV watcher, so selecting a show that I never watch was an easy task.  While viewing the show with the sound off for the first time I assumed the show was about a towing company filmed in South Beach, Florida.  The owner of the company was a woman, who appeared did not have much control or authority over her employees.  There was one African American female driver, three while male drivers and while male who stayed in the office along with the female owner.  The owner seemed a little frustrated while trying to reach one of the drivers on the radio.  She stood with one hand on her hips while holding the radio in her other hand with her face faced to toward the ceiling, shaking her head.  One of the other male drivers was opening a box that contained work boots with extended heels, in which he proceeded to put on to make him appear taller.  He tried walking in the extended heel boots and almost fell, got in the tow truck pulled up and was beginning to hook up a car, when a man came running out with both arms raised up in air while talking to the tow truck driver.  The tow truck driver stopped hooking the car, stood up walked toward the owner of the vehicle waved his finger turned around and got into the tow truck and drove off.

I assumed the man who approached the tow truck driver was the owner of the vehicle being towed and was probably yelling at the tow truck driver about his car and the tow truck driver probably told him that he was just doing his job and that he was going to have to tow the truck.

Viewing the show with sound.

First, this was the funniest show I ever watched.  It’s called South Beach Towing and it shows on TruTV on Wednesday nights.  I laughed until I cried.  I will probably end up watching this show again.  I laughed so much that my husband and son came into the family room and began watching the show with me and began laughing as much as I did.  Bernice is the name of the African American female tow truck driver, she and her mother just brought a food truck that is being inspected by the health department.  Bernice is very outspoken, while attempting to tow a young man’s car which was parked illegally, the young man pleads with Bernice not to tow his truck, and offers her a deal if she releases his car.  Bernice accepts the deals releases the young man’s car.  Bernice then picks up her mother and takes their food truck to the address given to her by the young man and haves the guys in the paint shop to do a make-over on the food truck.  The owner of the tow truck tries to reach Bernice several times on the radio while Bernice is getting the food truck painted.

Another driver picks up a young women who was stranded on the side of the highway, and the young women steals his cash pouch and jumps out of the moving truck.  He stops the truck, gets out and runs behind the women but is unable to catch her.  He goes back to the office and tries to explain to his boss how he lost the money.

You can tell a lot about a person’s behavior or mood just by observing their body language and other non-verbal communication.  Anger, frustration and even feeling of happiness can all be expressed non-verbally.

I believe President Obama is a competent communicator.  He’s confident and speaks with conviction.  His charisma gives him the ability to captivate a diverse audience.  He doesn’t focus on impressing people with big words or complex sentences he makes a point of simplifying his message and always states what he thinks or would do, by stating this is what I think or this is what I would do.  Communication is not just what you say, it’s about how you say it.  The key to President Obama being an effective communicator is simplicity.  Developing excellent communication skills is absolutely essential to effective leadership.  Napoleon Bonaparte use to tell his secretaries, “Be clear, be clear, be clear.”

 

 

Professional Hopes and Goals

Professional Hopes and Goals

One hope that I have when working with children and families who come from diverse backgrounds that I am too support the learning of all the children in my classroom regardless of their families cultural, language, race, social class and/or special needs and any other dimensions of diversity.

Due to the increasingly number of children with home language other than English in early childhood classrooms, the one goal that I would like to set for the early childhood field related to issues of diversity, equity and social justice is a required course in ESL for all early childhood educators in order to learn and/or gain a better perspective about ESL in which I believe will help when implementing classroom instructions as well help eliminate the ongoing academic achievement gaps between White and non-White students.

 I’d like to take this opportunity to thank my colleagues, through your shared knowledge and wisdom over the last several weeks, I’ve gained a new perspective on how to deal with specific microaggressions behaviors that I have encounter over the years. This has truly been in inspiring course.

Welcoming Families From Around the World

Welcoming Families From Around the World

The family’s country of origin, I decided to choose is Puerto Rico.  The five ways in which I will prepare myself to be culturally responsive towards this family is first I would commit myself to getting to know the student and as well as his family both academically, socially and emotionally.  I would learn about the family’s culture and interest and ask questions and talk with the parents.  I would also make home visits and create opportunities for the students to share and celebrate their family traditions and cultures; create a classroom learning community by encouraging the students to care for one another and be responsible for each other inside and outside the classroom; design lessons plans with the students in mind; and last but not least understand my own cultural identity by examining my own cultural behavior patterns, especially when it comes to classroom management and discipline.  And most importantly be myself with my students by being honest, caring and human.

 

The Personal Side of Bias, Prejudice, and Oppression

The Personal Side of Bias, Prejudice, and Oppression

As a child I can remember traveling from California to South Carolina by car with my family, my father was in the USAF, and my mother insisted that he wear his uniform while traveling.  It was late one night, and we were traveling on a dark dirt road in South Carolina on our way to my father’s home town, when my father had to stop in the middle of the road, because there was a truck with the headlights on parked in the middle of the road.  When my father stopped the car, I could see my mother clutching onto my father’s arms.  Three white men approached our car and told my father to get out of his car, when they saw that he was wearing a military uniform, they said “nigger that uniform just saved your life”, and walked off.  That’s been many years ago, and I still remember the fear my mother’s eyes and the way she held onto my dad.  She later told him, that’s why I told you to wear your uniform, just in case when ran into any kind of trouble.   Growing up in the South in the 1960’s it seemed as though prejudice and oppression was a way of life.