Interpretive, Interpersonal, and Presentational Modes of Communication

Exploring Culture:

Through taking a trip to Mexico I gained a better understanding of Mexican values.

One of the first things that i noticed about Hispanic culture is that family is a very important, and families are typically large. One thing that I also learned on this trip is how important the dead are. When we drove past many cemeteries, they were nothing like cemeteries in the United States. Instead of rows of headstones I saw what looked to be almost like little houses and painted bright colors. This drastically changed my view on how the Hispanic culture view the dead and how it shows that they have a firm belief that there is an afterlife.

Engaging in Communities

Luckily my wife is Hispanic so I have been able to immerse myself in her culture.

By simply just talking to my in-laws as well as my wife’s grandmother, I have been able to pick up on many Spanish words, both good and bad. Through engaging with our family I have gained a unique perspective and learned alot about their cultural values. From what I have seen, family always comes first, and their culture will do whatever is necessary to help their family.

Interpersonal Communication

Through having small conversations with my wife I have gained a better understanding of the Spanish language. Through these conversations I have heard many words that I haven’t heard before and learned the meaning of them.

The most spontaneous conversations in Spanish that I have had were in Mexico last week. While I only know basic Spanish, the little that I can speak greatly helped out while being over there. I was able to understand a few different words and read the speakers body language and hand gestures to come to a conclusion about what they were talking about. This was challenging at first, but as I learned and memorized new words, it became easier to understand more than just a word or two in a conversation.

Presentational Speaking

Throughout this class there were many assignments that we submitted that involved us saying words or making full sentences in Spanish. Most of the presentational speaking was done on lingo learning and with flip grid,at first it was challenging.  

As the semester went on I became better with my pronunciation of Spanish words. Every time I would do presentational speaking I would be recording for the assignments and if I pronounced a word wrong, I would hear my wife yell that I pronounced it wrong. At first I got a lot of the pronunciations wrong and she would have me record them until I got it right. This was challenging in itself but through a lot of patients and pronunciation exercises, I was able to get it right. 

Presentational Writing

As we progressed throughout the short semester, we began to write more in Spanish. While at first this was a challenge, like anything else it became easier with practice. There were many modules in lingo learning that required us to write either short sentences, or a paragraph in Spanish.

Although these assignments were difficult, I have definitely learned a lot as well as grown a lot. At first it was very intimidating to look at an article in a foreign language and try to decipher what the text meant. However, by being able to pick out key words and constantly learning new words, I am now able to better understand text in Spanish.

Interpretive Listening

Throughout the semester I was able to complete listening activities both in lingo learning and in my everyday life. Although lingo learning had good listening exercises, there is nothing like listening to two Spanish speakers talk.

Through the exercises that we have done in class and the ones that I have done in Mexico, I have come a long way. Through learning new words and the correct forms of verbs, I am now able to identify more words in Spanish. Since I am now able to understand the proper use of the verbs, and understand more words in Spanish, I am now able to form a general idea of what someone is saying in Spanish. There is one song called Ella Baila Sola which I liked it at first for the instruments on the songs, but now I am also able to now listen to the song and understand what they are saying. Through learning new words both in class I can now interpret the song in English and somewhat sing it in Spanish.

Interpretive Reading

Most of the interpretive reading exercises that I have done have been on lingo learning. We read things from what its like going to school in Spanish speaking countries, to what the most popular form of social media is in that Spanish speaking country.

Just like learning anything else, reading in Spanish was very difficult at first. As we progressed through the semester and learned more words and the context of those words, it became easier to read in Spanish. This experience was very frustrating at first, but with dedication and practice, I am now able to somewhat read in Spanish.

Citation:

YouTube. (2023b, April 7). Ella Baila Sola – (video oficial) – eslabon armado y peso Pluma – Del Records 2023. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZiaYpD9ZrI