Collaboration Appreciation

This has truly been a great 8 weeks! I have enjoyed reading the posts and personal experience of each of my classmates. I am very appreciative of the feedback that I have gotten on my blog and in the discussions. I have learned so much about communication and the need for effective communication.

 I hope that I have said something that will inspire each of my classmates to continue of the this journey of education. I know that I have learned things about myself that will help me as I aspire to be a educator in this field.

I hope that your journey here continues to be successful and that we get the opportunity to EFFECTIVELY communicate again in the future.

Adjourning

Sometimes we become members of groups that are effective and efficient. These groups are often hard to say goodbye and are very rare in life. I have had the privilege of being parts of groups that I wish I did not have to say goodbye to. The adjourning part of team development was emotional. I was a volunteer at a soup kitchen. During this time I worked with a team to provide meals to less fortunate people. I enjoyed every minute of it. We faced some difficult times during the summer but the team I was working with made it worth while. At the close of the program, I was recognized as a shining star. This made me feel so special and made it even harder to say goodbye.
Leaving a team can be just as hard as being part of a team. I think as I finish my courses here at Walden leaving my team will not be as hard but will always be apart of me as I continue my career and education and as professional educator.

Resolving Conflict

I recently had a conflict with a close friend of mine. I asked her to help with a church program that I was unable to attend. I did all the behind the scene work and communicated with her throughout the process. She never said that she had a problem with helping but when it was time for to print the programs she came up with every excuse. This really made me mad and I have not really talked to her since. After this week's lesson I hope that the skills I have learned in conflict resolution will help me mend my friendship. The skills taught in the Third Side article may be effective her because I may need to look at it in a different way and hope to find a resolution so that our friendship can be saved.

Who Am I as a Communicator?

I took three different surveys to evaluate who I am as a communicator. The results did not surprise me, in fact, I knew exactly what things I need to change in order to improve my communication skills. The three surveys indicated that I was a good listener (too good sometimes), too aggressive at time, and show little levels of anxiety. I also let two other people evaluate my communication style and their results were very close to mine. The fact that the survey showed that i had a level of aggression was surprising because I only show aggression toward people are know on a personal level. I have never become aggressive in my professional job settings. These surveys showed that there are more elements to communication other than simply talking. 

After taking the surveys I plan to improve my style by being more aware of my aggression towards others and not becoming emotionally involved to quick. I think that this will overall improve my professional abilities as a future early childhood teacher. 

Communication and Culture Diversity

Do you find yourself communicating differently with people from different groups and cultures?

Yes, I often find myself communicating different with people depending on the group and culture. When I communicate with my family and friends I use informal language and different voice tones. My family is very loud and opinionated and to some looking in you would think that we just argue and holler. It is quite funny if you did not know us but that is the way we communicate. We crack jokes, laugh, and sometimes get mad! My communication, of course, changes when I am at work. My tone changes and the words I use change. I become the active listener that was discussed in earlier lessons. I take in consideration of all people involved and do my best to relate to their feelings and ideas.  Communication with my friends is also very informal. We have known each other since elementary and we usually crack jokes and sometimes say inappropriate things that would not be acceptable any place else. 

In this week's lesson I have learned more things about communication. To improve my communication with others I will strive to be more empathetic toward others and how they feel about things. I learned that it is not always important to get my message across but to understand the message that others are trying to get across. After reading the article about nonverbal communication, I have become more conscious of my body and facial movements. Many of my friends have said that they could tell what I was thinking by the look on my face. When working with families, this is something that I need to be more aware of in the future. 

Communication Assignment

       For this assignment I watched Grey's Anatomy. I have never really watched the show and had no idea of what was going on. When the sound was off , I interpreted that the doctors were have a city wide crisis. Patients were being brought to the ER but there was not enough room for them. The doctors looked worried and unsure of what to do. They examined the patients as they came in and tried to give them the best care. Eventually the frustration of the doctors affected their communication with each other and the medical performance.
      After watching the episode with the volume down for ten minutes, I turn the volume on and realized that the doctors were in a city wide crisis. A college had been attacked by a shooter and the shooter was in the hospital. The frustration between the doctors occurred because some felt that the shooter should not have been saved and that the victims should be seen first.
      This was a fun activity. It made me realize the importance of nonverbal communication and also how it effects acting! The actors in the show did a great job with their facial expressions in the show. Nonverbal communication and plays a vital role in effective communication.

Communication

Some one who exhibits competent communication is my friend Chanelle. She is a well educated young woman who is very knowledgeable in her field of Special Education. She speaks well in public and especially at church. She is effective because of her eye contact and her tone of voice when she communicates. She is very receptive to what others have to say and does a great job of expressing herself. She knows what to say and how to say it. She can communicate with children and adults. She has encouraged me many times on my own public speaking and I wish to one day communicate as she does.