Interpretive, Interpersonal, and Presentational Modes of Communication

Exploring Culture

Learning about Reyes Magos enlightened me about the similarity between my Egyptian culture and Spanish culture. When I learned about it, I was immediately drawn to the fact that it really resembled Orthodox Christmas Eve which we also celebrate in Egypt on January 6th. We have a big feast and exchange gifts while they have gifts waiting for children from the three kings when they wake up. They also have a delicious cake called “The Roscon de Reyes” filled with custard and a small figurine inside resembling the king or queen.

Engaging in a community

Contributing to my global community is hard because I think the best one person can do is to contribute locally. If we all contribute locally I think it can radiate outwards and do good for everyone. My experience contributing locally involves my volunteering at Sentara. At Sentara, I was working in the nursing unit giving water to patients and responding to their phone calls. I think I learned a lot and I was happy to meet new people and brighten their days too. I like helping others as much as I can. Here is a picture of me included from when I worked at Sentara:

Interpersonal communication

For this semester we used an app called Flip to post videos practicing questions our professor asked us. We also had something called CONTRASEÑA and discussion boards this semester. There were oral and written exams too. I think all together they helped me better understand and practice my Spanish speaking and writing skills. 

Exams for me this semester were the hardest due to the fact that there was one chance and I always stress over exams. I get bad anxiety and I just do not handle the pressure of it well. CONTRASEÑA went well for me during assignments because I was able to do it multiple times and learn from previous mistakes. CONTRASEÑA also gave me grammar and vocabulary videos which were informative and helpful for me to learn. I really enjoyed the Flip app because I was able to communicate with my classmates and teacher in Spanish and I could retake a video as many times as I needed to. I love being able to talk to other people and it always helps me to practice a language I am learning. 

Presentational speaking

Flip was how we communicated with classmates and teachers through video. We would answer the professor’s questions and also reply to other classmates. Most questions related to our daily lives such as age, where we live, our classes, our favorite person etcetera. Here is an example video here: 

https://flip.com/groups/14219245/topics/36039040/responses/420461776/comments

Flip for me was my favorite part of the entire class. I love talking and I love making new friends so it was fun to be able to interact with my classmates. The questions were very simple and easy and ones which I had no problem with because they related to me and my life personally! It was always fun to answer them and never difficult for me at all. 

Presentational writing

Discussion boards were one of the most common writing activities we had. It helped me with vocabulary and helped me to practice it and stick it in my head better. Here I will include an example of one of the writings I did for the discussion board: 

The discussion board as I said was always helpful for me when it came to practicing. It was especially fun to learn about Spanish festivals and how to speak about my favorite person, my mom, in Spanish. I really enjoyed being able to learn about Spain I remember one assignment centered around Spanish universities which I was really into and did so much research for. Overall, I enjoyed the discussion boards a lot for learning Spanish.

Interpretive listening

The interpretive listening activities we participated in this semester included videos speaking about numbers, vocabulary, and grammar. These videos were all on Blackboard and helped me to replay and understand different parts of Spanish. We also have our video lectures on CONTRASEÑA.

Different things I listened to this semester included mostly in class through recordings we were shown. These recordings varied in what they taught us but it helped to replay them and helped me practice my listening skills for Spanish.

I ended up learning numbers, school supplies, and school buildings. I especially loved learning about affectionate terms for people I love like bondandosa and cariñosa which are caring and affectionate terms I can call my loved ones. I really enjoyed being able to learn how to speak about my favorite person, my mother.

Interpretive Reading

We learned a lot of things through discussion boards including reading and researching various things related to Spain. I loved learning about their various festivals and traditions. One of these things which stuck out to me was researching Spanish Universities. Here is a link to that: 

I didn’t find this activity challenging I actually found it fun. I learned one Spanish University the University of Granada was established by an emperor and that it is still one of the most significant universities in Europe today! I think that it was fun comparing ODU to that university and reflecting on how different learning and education were in Spain, in the USA, and back home in Egypt.