Thank you and Best Wishes

I would like to thank God for allowing our paths to cross. Through out this course I have learned so much from each of you. The blogs and discussion board is were all of our interactions take places. It is always a joyous feeling reading your responses. We all have come thus far and I wish you all the best of luck as we continue this journey. I know that each of us will continue to excel in the program and we must thank Dr. Darragh for her hard work and dedication to ensure that we are effective communicators to help us better serve children and families. She made the learning process worthwhile and helped me grow as an individual. I hope to have the same impact on my students when I become an educator.Most of the children within our classroom community will come from diverse backgrounds. In order to be effective communicators we must be optimistic and set aside our biases so that we can display equity and provide children with quality learning opportunities despite of their culture.  I will not say good bye. I rather say see you later because I look forward to running across you guys in another course. May God less all of you and good luck on your future endeavors!

Team Building

When I was a junior in college I was a part of the “Be a Star mentoring Program”. A group of my classmates and I would go to the local elementary school near our college to assist teachers with after school tutorial. We would volunteer to help out in any way(s) possible.  We all shared a common goal which was to help meet the needs of children who were not excelling in their learning. After several months of working with the students we were advised that the after school tutorials will end. There were some funding issues so all after school programs and extracurricular activities were being removed. 

Over the months the children had grown so much. Children who were not able to read begin to recognize words and put them together to form sentences. Seeing their growth brought so much joy. Knowing that we only had a couple of days left to work with the students, the staff put together a farewell luncheon. At the luncheon the children gave speeches and cards to show their appreciation for all the hard work that we had done to help them. With tears in my eyes I hugged the children one by one. This was the hardest adjourning for me because I could not understand how the education system could not see this as a much needed service.  The staff exchanged emails with us. On some occasions we would go up to the school to help grade papers, sit in and observe the teachers and help out in the classroom when needed.

It is going to be hard leaving my colleagues who I have grown with throughout this online journey. Logging into class and seeing familiar names make this course much smoother because I feel so comfortable with all of you. Discussion board and blogs were where all of our interactions took place. I am always looking forward to the posts week after week. At some point we will have to adjourn and aim toward our future endeavors. I hope to keep in contact with my colleagues so that we can offer each other advice that can help us become even better educators.

Adjourning is an essential part of team work because you get to talk about your growth. You get to share what you have accomplished or hoped to accomplish. Despite leaving the group you can still form friendships that could last a lifetime. Adjourning brings closure and new insight and ideas as we embark on new beginnings

Conflict

I recently had a conflict with my supervisor about my schedule change. I try my hardest not to be a confrontational person but when I feel that I am not being treated fairly I will speak up for myself.  

About two weeks ago I moved to a new area and the traffic is really bad which would cause me to be in traffic on my route home for work. A month prior to my move I asked my supervisor  if I could  change my work schedule so that I can get off at 3:30 pm instead of four so I could get a head of traffic. I was willing to take a thirty minute lunch instead of an hour so that I can still have a 40 day work week. The advantage about my job is that I scheduled client’s appointments at my discretion.  I see my last client at 2:30 pm which would not be an issue if I changed my work schedule. Instead of approving my schedule my supervisor sent back her suggested schedule for me in which I would come in later to work and get off work late in the evening after the workday traffic.

It made me very upset because being a fiancé’, student, and expecting mother, I really did not want to get off any later. I turned the schedule that my supervisor suggested for me down and continued with my normal work schedule. I generally made it home about 6:00 pm.

About a week after getting home late I went back to my supervisor and asked her why she did not approve my schedule change. She indicated that my caseload was extremely high and she was not sure if I can see all of my clients in a timely manner if I got off early. I then explained to her that I see my last client daily at 2:30 pm. I went on to explain to her how I got my calendar set to where I do not see client’s on Fridays which give me time to do paperwork. After Identifying to her that I was able to manage my caseload, without hesitation my supervisor approved my schedule change.

This experience has helped me understand that in order to resolve a conflict you have to come up with the best rationale to fix the problem. Because I went back to my supervisor to see what the problem was, I was able to resolve the matter. Being able to fix the problem allowed me and my supervisor to have a better understanding of one another. Now she come to my office and asked me things about my caseload instead of making assumptions. We now have a great working relationship which make the workday much smoother.

Who am I as a Communicator?

This application this week has set the tone for who I really am as a communicator.  Verbal and non-verbal communication can have either a negative or positive impact on one’s life. On many occasions I am forced to speak in front of group of people and it is my desire to leave a lasting impression.

The listening styles assessment revealed that I was a people oriented person who is empathetic and always concerned about others feeling. This is exactly who I am. My friends and family always tell me how compassionate I about wanting to meet the needs of others. It has always being my passion to help build people up. I had a very rough childhood so I think of my life experiences as millstones that I have overcome. Knowing that I am able to help others is a blessing within itself.

One thing that was a bit surprising for me was my results from the verbal aggressiveness assessment. My score was a 69. This means that “with little provocation I may cross the line from argumentativeness”. I guess it is those unintentional things that I say which can be harmful to those whom I am speaking with.  This assessment really stirs my curiosity as I never felt as if I came across offensive when speaking with others. It is never my desire to harm or degrade others.  Our choice of words when communicating should not be harmful to others.

One insight that I gained from this assignment was how other’s perception differ from mine. The communication anxiety assessment has helped me realize the importance of overcoming my fear of speaking in front of a crowd of people. I want to be effective communicator so I must be comfortable enough to speak in front of large group of people.

Cultural Diversity

Cultural Diversity

When communicating with other people it is the switch that comes on automatically when I am communicating with various cultures. For example: When I am communicating with my family members and friends who are African American I tend to abbreviate words or use slang. In a general statement I may ask my sister “Girl what is going down tonight “implying about her plans for the evening. If I was talking to someone from another culture I would generally ask “What do you have planned for the rest of the evening” which simply means the same thing. I try to use proper English when communicating with other cultures.  With my family I generally tend to say whatever because I feel comfortable in my own skin.

Most of this behavior is based upon the stereotype and prejudices of other people. If I went around talking to other people in the manner that I speak to my friends and family, I would be considered “ghetto” because of my broken English.  I know who I am and what I believe in so I am not offended by others assumptions of me. It always amaze me how individuals can lose their self identify because of the judgment of other people. In our classroom community we will have children who communicate as if they are talking to people in their home environment. It is not our duty to label, prejudge of place stereotypes because of our differences. As an educator we must embrace one another differences in order to provide children with quality learning experiences

Television Show

My Wife and Kids

I decided to watch the television show “My Wife and Kids”. With the sound turned off the family displayed a lot of non-verbal communication skills. The mother on the show raised her eyebrows when speaking with her younger daughter. Her facial expression displayed her anger as the little girl stood there in front of her.  As her mom spoke to her she lowered her head and folded her arms. The little girl appeared to be sad. When the dad came in the house you can tell by the way he threw his brief case down on the couch that he had a long day at work. Their gestures and facial expressions helped me convey what was going on in the household. They all gathered around the dinner table and grabbed hands as the father begin gracing the food. Once he was done he nodded his head and the family began eating. They appeared to be a very enmeshed family.

Once I watched the television show with the volume turned on most of my assumptions were right. It seemed so natural and I was excited that I was able to piece the picture together without hearing it.  Most of it comes from having a best friend who is deaf. Whenever I went to her house she always had the volume turned down on the television and I would never turn it up because I was use to it. I seemed to be drawn into the show when the volume was off because it made me feel more connected with the characters.  I would turn the caption on toward the end of the show to see if my assumptions were right. Majority of the time they were. On the show the mother was fussing at her daughter because she got some milk without asking and spilled it everywhere. The mother was in the kitchen while her other daughter sat at the table doing her homework. When her husband came in she asked him how his day went.  He threw his brief case and advised her that he had a very long day. They all washed their hands and begin to sit down at the table. They ate together like most enmeshed families do. This exercise had helped me understand that all communication is effective whether it is verbal or non-verbal. We may have children in our classroom community that may suffer from hearing loss. It is important that our gestures and facial expressions help them convey the subject matter so that they can excel in their learning.