Communicating with cultural diversity - Week 3

Culture is something that we are made up of and it defines our being and in some cases can define the way you would communicate and approach a person. I would always wonder why Muslim woman would always walk behind their husbands but I later found out that has cultural significance. I live in an area that is starting to develop more diversity and more varying cultures. This makes me feel comfortable and more freely to openly communicate with my neighbors. I have no problem approaching someone from a different culture or background and asking them questions that may help me to have a better understanding of behaviors because I always use different circumstances to help me to have a better understanding of the children and families I serve. We must realize that our culture is the reason that we act or behave the way we do and we have to be sensitive to parents and their parenting styles even if they are not comparable to our own because theirs are based on their cultural beliefs just as ours are based on our culture and beliefs.

I do find myself communicating differently with people from other groups and cultures. I talk to my colleagues different than I talk to my friends. I have different groups of friends and I talk to each group differently based on their culture or experiences. I have a group of friends that are more professional than the other group so I talk to the group that are more professional in a more intellectual tone. The other group of friends are from my old neighborhood and we can just laugh and be a little more laid back. I also have parents and colleagues that I can talk to openly and comfortably but I still have a certain level of professionalism that I must maintain when talking to both groups. I also talk to my children in my classroom differently. Some children are a little more sensitive and you must watch every word that you use because you can hurt their feelings. I also have some children in my class that you must teach them how to use certain words because they can hurt someone else feelings.

Three strategies that can be helpful when communicating with various groups would be:

1.)    Be open minded in communicating with others and do not stereotype groups or individuals, try to learn something new and positive about their culture this way you will not stereotype.

2.)    Try to withhold judgment long enough to gain a deeper understanding than first impressions allow. (Gonzalez-Mena, 2010, pg. 37)

3.)    Allow yourself to learn from each person and each circumstance by each person it is very important. Don’t judge and this will allow you to have a more willing attitude to be comfortable communicating with a particular person.