Interpretive, Interpersonal, and Presentational Modes of Communication
Exploring Culture
There are many cultural practices and customs that I investigated and learned about throughout the course. Watching videos about celebrations in different Hispanic countries and cultures and researching customs of different Hispanic countries helped me gain a better understanding of cultural perspectives. Learning about how one Hispanic country chooses to display a tradition compared to another culture helped me understand the diversity within Hispanic culture.
This discussion board assignment offered me the opportunity to look deeper into how Spaniards celebrate in their country every month. I was able to see how the celebrations took place and the preparations included in these celebrations. I was also able to make connections between how Spanish cultural norms and celebrations compare or influence Hispanic cultures as well as how Spanish celebrations and cultural norms are widely different from those in the United States. Many Spanish celebrations, I realized, are days long and include a number of festivals and activities that commemorate a specific time period, holiday, religion or individual. From this discussion board activity, I gained a better understanding of how important celebrations are in Spain and Hispanic communities across the world. It made me think about how my culture does not have many customs or traditions that are as celebrated to the extent that Spanish or Hispanic cultures do. This activity also allowed me to see how other countries in the world value the significance of togetherness and enjoying living in the present.
https://canvas.odu.edu/courses/126587/discussion_topics/417647?module_item_id=3395096
Engaging in Communities
It is crucial for me to engage in matters in my immediate community and the global community around me. This is a way for me to gain an understanding of what is going on around me and to better asses myself and how I am being effected by my community. It is valuable for me to communicate with those in my community because it contributes to my growth and how I interact with society. Engaging in the global community broadens my perspective and overall perception, awareness, understanding and appreciation for the world around me and how people choose to live.
Outside of my immediate family and close friends, I have many friends and acquaintances that are of different cultural backgrounds and experience different things. My experiences with outside community engagement has been rewarding. I have gained more respect and admiration for others and what they experience, I have been able to evaluate my own experiences in contrast to those in my immediate community as well as my global community. Through participation and communication with outside communities, I have learned how others connect, what they value and how they respond to one another.
Interpersonal Communication
I have engaged in numerous interpersonal forms of communication during this semester. Discussion boards and oral communication activities between myself, my instructor and other peers have assisted me in my Spanish speaking. I have obtained knowledge about appropriate communication styles represented in the Spanish language and through non-verbal expressions.
For the first assignment I included, the YouTube link, I was having a conversation in Spanish using my instructor’s video and responding to her questions and statements. This activity is one of a few like it that taught me how to have a conversation in Spanish that can be easily followed and understood, although Spanish is not my first language. I was able to converse, understand the questions and appropriately respond to the questions. What I found to be difficult with this assignment is dissecting the questions that were being asked. Sometimes I would have to think deeply about the questions in order to respond to them correctly. I overcame this difficulty with the assignments that followed by focusing in more on key words that I could easily identify in order to gain the overall main point of the questions. I exceled at articulating my responses to the questions, I did this by thinking about my response while listening to the question, making sure that my responses made sense to myself first then responding to my instructor. Next time, I would make my responses more intricate and detailed.
The discussion board assignment embedded above was a part of a discussion about greetings in Spanish speaking cultures. We were told to discuss the pros and cons of the greeting that is widely used in Spanish speaking countries and cultures, being two kisses on the cheek, and we were asked if we would feel comfortable using that same greeting within our culture. From this assignment, I was able to further realize how diverse and different other parts of the world are. I may not feel comfortable doing something because of the culture I was raised in, culture has a heavy influence on how people act and how they interact with those around them. Something that I do not see or experience every day may not be normal in my life but it is normal to many others and this assignment expanded my thoughts on this fact. I was also able to identify with my peers who share the same cultural backgrounds as myself as well as those who share different cultural backgrounds. I made connections with my peers through our communication based on how we felt about the topic being discussed. I did not find this assignment difficult because the communication was respectful and easy to understand. I exceled at communicating my own experiences and connecting those with the experiences of my peers. I would not do anything differently.
https://canvas.odu.edu/courses/126587/discussion_topics/417649?module_item_id=3395045
Presentational Speaking
One presentational speaking activity that I completed this semester was when I was describing someone who I admire. I chose to describe my mom as my admired person.
What challenged me during this presentational speaking activity was finding ways to describe why the person I chose was my admired person. I overcame this challenge by describing my person in English first and then identifying how to translate those descriptions into Spanish. I exceled at appropriately forming my sentences so that those listening could understand who I was describing and how I was describing her/him. Next time, I would add more specific characteristics about the person I was describing so that I others could gain a deeper understanding of why I chose the person that I did.
Presentational Writing
I completed a written presentation about my mother this semester. I wrote a short description about why she is my favorite person.
This assignment was easier to complete because I was able to describe someone whom I have been around my entire life. Finding words to describe my mom was not a difficult task to complete. I used correct subject + adjective agreement when describing her. This assignment displayed a slight window into my growth because I composed my description using the correct Spanish format.
Interpretive Listening
For one assignment, I was tasked with listening to a video and paying attention to what was done in the video. The video was in Spanish and I had to share my thoughts on what was displayed in the video.
I had activities this semester that required me to listen and comprehend what I was listening to. I listened to videos where Spanish was being spoken and I had to think about what was being communicated through those videos. When going to Hispanic restaurants and listening to the communication between the employees, I tried to break down what they were saying to each other and their personal communication styles. What was challenging for me was how fast Spanish speaking people can talk, at times I would have to replay videos and break down sentences into sections or slow down the audio. Also at times I would have to ask Spanish speakers to restate what they said so that I made sure I was responding correctly according to what they were saying. I overcame this difficulty by using Spanish sentences when I studied and rehearsing Spanish words so that when I did hear them in a sentence presented to me, I would be able to quickly acknowledge them without long pauses and asking someone to restate what they said. What I found to be most interesting is how Spanish communication is simplistic, you do not have to say much to get a through or idea across to someone else as you may have to in English or other languages. My takeaway from this listening experience is that comprehending Spanish communication can be effortless if you are aware of the vocabulary and grammatical rules that are incorporated. With each activity, I have grown by developing my interpretations of Spanish communication.
Interpretive Reading
During this semester, I had an assignment that required me to research universities in Spain. When doing this, I had to locate the websites for these universities and list some characteristics about the universities that were presented on the university websites.
https://canvas.odu.edu/courses/126587/assignments/547689/submissions/35935
What I found most challenging during this activity was navigating the website and trying to understand how the university operated. I overcame this challenge by first, identifying Spanish words that were familiar to me or that sounded similar to the English translation and then navigating each topic and subtopic featured on the website in order to get the information that I needed about the university and its history. What I found most interesting were the contributions and history that I learned were a big part of how the particular Spanish university that I researched had achieved so much over the years. From the reading, I realized the significance of education within the Spanish community and the various opportunities they offered their students. From this assignment, I was able to connect my experiences with the American university that I attend with opportunities that Spanish universities offer and see how they differ. This assignment helped me gain perspective on how other countries have the same goals and expectations that I see within my country.