This week we are asked to think about how we
communicate with different groups of people or different cultures. I like to think of this as speaking
in different voices as the situation requires.
I also recognize that to effectively communicate with people from cultural
groups different from mine I must become familiar with the language used. Now this doesn’t mean I must drag out the Rosetta
Stone curriculum but it does mean I must become aware of the vernacular. For instance when I joined Civil Air Patrol I
didn’t understand anything they talked about at meetings. The commanding officer used initials to
describe what activities we would be doing.
A SAR was a search and rescue exercise and we had to find an ELT –
electronic locator transmitter. I also
learned to use a certain voice and have a more military barring when I
interacted with other members of CAP and the Air Force.
Now
this is a much different voice than I use when I walk into my home health
patients home. I am there to help with
the ADL’s (Activities of Daily Living.)
But I do not say ADL, I ask them what kind of things they need me to do
that day. Cleaning, cooking, laundry and
helping to bath are all activities of daily living but I don’t refer to them as
such. I also observe to notice any changes. When I make my notes on the visit I can use
the abbreviations. If my client was noticeably short of breath I will put s.o.b. (short of breath). The nurse will know what I mean and pay them
a visit to check it out.
A
third voice I may use is one where I am interacting with children and their
families at the school. I will use a
different voice there. It will use a
slightly authoritative voice when directing children to line up for the fire
drill and a more friendly voice if we are going out to play. The tone of my voice can communicate the
seriousness of the situation in the first case and the directive in the
second. If the family of a student is
from a different culture I may ask the parent to tell me about their culture. What they do at home for meal time, bed time
and holidays. Then I can translate that
back into the classroom in the form work on the shelves to incorporate the
expression that child’s culture in to the culture of the classroom. This brings awareness to the other students
and families and also makes welcome the child who is not from the dominate
culture of the school.
Finding your voice in every situation you are in is not easy. it takes time and at times study and asking questions of people you may find intimidating. Do sweat it ask questions and most of all find your own authentic voice it is much more flexible then you think.
Thanks for dropping by
Peace and all good
Hi Linda,
ReplyDeleteI find that when I take the initiative to learn about the different cultures of the children and family that I serve, it helps to create a more open line of communication with the parents. I am still learning how to speak Spanish so that I can communicate with one of my parents. By doing so, I found that the parent has become more involved in the classroom and even helps me with pronouncing certain words in Spanish.