Reviewing Communication Styles on a Television Episode

Reviewing Communication Styles on a Television Episode

            I observed an episode of “Bones”.  After watching the episode, I reviewed the premise of this program on the internet.  It stated that this was a crime comedy-drama that involves a forensic anthropologist, Dr. “Bones” Brennan (female character) and a FBI Special Agent Booth (male character) solving Federal legal cases by examining human remains of possible murder victims.

            While watching the episode without sound, these characters appeared to professional associates.   It was obviously a crime drama that dealt with skeletal remains. The female character (Dr. Brennan) showed very little emotion through her facial expressions.  She seemed serious most of the time.  Her demeanor appeared focused on the task at hand and a bit unsocial.  On the other hand, the male character (Agent Booth) had happy or funny facial expressions at times and very serious other times.  His demeanor seemed much more relaxed and engaged with those around him.  At times, I thought that maybe these characters did not necessarily like working together.  She would look at him as if he did not know what he was talking about.  He did not seemed bothered by her straight forward attitude.

            Reviewing the episode with sound was very interesting.  I was basically correct about their personalities.  However, these two characters were actually a couple and co-workers.  They were even expecting a baby.  I did not see that coming from watching their communication behaviors for most of the episode.  This show characterized that opposite personalities obviously attract.  It also had some funny moments within this serious topic.

            In conclusion, this experience expressed that one should not judge a person by their actions alone.  My “aha” moment reminds me that I need to use the appropriate verbal, non-verbal, and listening skills when communicating with others.

Competent Communicator!

Competent Communicator

     I selected the Superintendent of my school district as a person that demonstrates competent communication skills within a situational context.  This will be his third year in this position.  He is very articulate and has a wealth of knowledge of the educational system.  He makes himself available and present at each school as much as possible.  As educational or political issues arise in connection to teachers, he meets with each school personally.  He has the ability to give very intensive information in a user-friendly manner.  His outlook is always positive.  Even when the message may not be positive or helpful for teachers, he understands and allows us to share our opinions.  His responses are informative and heartfelt.  He appreciates our feelings and reassures us that he has confidence in our abilities.  In stressful situations, he reminds us that we are not alone – we are a team.  He supports and fights for the rights of children and teachers.  He receives respect in his position; however, he makes himself very accessible to the children, teachers, staff, and the community.  Our school district has been very blessed!

Competent Communicator

Competent Communicator

     I selected the Superintendent of my school district as a person that demonstrates competent communication skills within a situational context.  This will be his third year in this position.  He is very articulate and has a wealth of knowledge of the educational system.  He makes himself available and present at each school as much as possible.  As educational or political issues arise in connection to teachers, he meets with each school personally.  He has the ability to give very intensive information in a user-friendly manner.  His outlook is always positive.  Even when the message may not be positive or helpful for teachers, he understands and allows us to share our opinions.  His responses are informative and heartfelt.  He appreciates our feelings and reassures us that he has confidence in our abilities.  In stressful situations, he reminds us that we are not alone – we are a team.  He supports and fights for the rights of children and teachers.  He receives respect in his position; however, he makes himself very accessible to the children, teachers, staff, and the community.  Our school district has been very blessed!

Professional Hopes and Goals

Professional Hopes and Goals

     This has been an amazing course and a great time for reflection!  I hope that I have been empowered with a deeper knowledge of diversity, equity, and social justice.  My awareness and knowledge have expanded from a surface way of thinking to a much deeper thought process.  With this information and newly acquired ideals, I believe that I will be a much better advocate for my children and their families.  I believe my collaborations with parents will increase.  I feel more prepared to work with children of varying backgrounds.

     My goal would be to create a more diverse atmosphere in my classroom.  I hope to include additional books, decor, celebrations, and lessons dedicated to diversity, equity, and social justice.  In addition, I will work with my co-workers to discuss these issues and prepare activities together.

     I am so grateful and blessed to my fellow Walden students and Dr. Snider.  I have been so impressed with the insights, thoughtfulness, love, and dedication to students and their families.  Our discussions and assignments have helped me realize we are all in this together.  So many wonderful stories, hopes, concerns, and resources have been shared.  I have gained new knowledge and admiration for the field of early childhood education.  In addition, I have formed bonds with an extraordinary group of educators.  Many thanks and blessings to everyone!  Cindy Rube

Welcoming Families From Around the World

Welcoming Families From Around the World

     For this assignment scenario, I have chosen a child of a family that as recently emigrated

from the country of China.  The setting would be a kindergarten classroom.  My community has recently seen a rise in families of Chinese origin relocating to our area.  The following ways will help me prepare me to be culturally responsive towards this new child and her family.  First, I would research the cultural background of this child’s community in China using the internet and community partners.  As an anti-bias teacher, the goals should easily adapt to the needs of the children of immigrant families (Derman-Sparks & Edwards, 2010).  I would need to work closely with the family.  Building a personal relationship with the family helps everyone involved.  Learning about the child’s home culture will help me provide activities to enrich all of the students.  We could learn vocabulary, observe specific holidays, create craft ideas, play specific games, or share authentic foods.  I would work with our bilingual teacher or community partners to promote her home language and bilingual development.  I would pay close attention to child’s specific developmental issues and ensure the necessary services were provided.  In addition, it would be necessary to build awareness and sensitivity to families’ immigration experiences and to the conditions of their life in the United States.  If necessary, collaborate with community organizations that serve immigrant families to access local resources and services (Derman-Sparks & Edwards).     

     In conclusion, the above strategies would also enhance my knowledge, as well as, my other students.  This new information would enrich all of our cultural backgrounds.  This awareness of diversity would also help with new students in the future.

           

References

Derman-Sparks, L., & Edwards, J. O. (2010).  Anti-bias education for young children and

ourselves.  Pages 73-76.  Washington, DC: National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).

The Personal Side of Bias, Prejudice, and Oppression

The Personal Side of Bias, Prejudice, and Oppression

           

I would like to share a memory of an incident where I observed institutional inequities           

and oppressions during a teaching assignment.  I wrote about this for a previous assignment.  I would like to share this experience with each of you.  I spent four years working in a 2^nd grade elementary school with a male principal.  He was very structured, very driven, and had very definite opinions.  He had a group of teachers he liked and treated with respect.  I was fortunate to be in that group; however, I don’t really know why.  With other teachers, he was very rigid, unfriendly, and treated them with minimal respect.  It was a very unusual and uncomfortable situation that diminished equity for everyone involved.  The variety of ways teachers were treated did not seem to be due to race, color, gender, physical attributes, or experience levels.  However, I believe I learned more about how people should be treated in the workplace.  The working environment could have been even more difficult, if as teachers, we had acted according to the administrator’s feelings.  For example, this group of educators could have turned on each other.  Fortunately, we worked very well together as a staff and supported those that seemed to have issues with the principal.  Our first priority was to love, educate, and support our children and one another.     

            In conclusion, I am becoming much more aware of the varieties and implications of diversity including privilege, institutional inequities, oppression, and new forms of “-isms”.  I never realized how many ways I have been affected by others or how much influence I have with my children.  This knowledge will hopefully enhance and support the way I handle my classroom.