Understanding Different Cultures
ENGL510 Foundations of Professional Communication
Week 1 Discussion
Introductions; Understanding Different Cultures
Class, welcome to our first online discussion topic of the session. The purpose of online discussions is to share perspectives on a variety of topics and to practice and improve writing skills. To make the most of these online discussions, be sure to do the following.
Make your initial post in response to the topic by Wednesday or earlier. Post follow-ups to your fellow students after making your initial post.
Make each post a thoughtful, well-written paragraph of several sentences.
Write as though you were at work. Spelling and capitalization count. Avoid text message abbreviations, such as “lol.”
Be courteous, kind, and constructive in your feedback posts.
Let’s get started by getting to know one another a little better, and then we’ll get into the main topic for the week—cultural differences, which is discussed in Chapter 2 of our textbook. In your initial post, begin by telling us a little bit about yourself, particularly with regard to career and educational goals. Then tell us about an experience you have had in which cultural differences were important. This could be a situation in which your understanding of different cultures helped you to succeed, or it could be an occasion in which a misunderstanding based on cultural differences occurred.
ENGL510 Foundations of Professional Communication
Week 2 Discussion
Listening Styles
When we think of communication, we often focus on what we are saying or writing to others. Listening, however, is an important and often undervalued communication skill. Chapter 4 of our textbook is entitled Listening and Learning. In it, the authors point out that “anyone can listen, but the ability to listen well is less common.” In addition, they identify four major types of listeners.
People oriented
Action oriented
Content oriented
Time oriented
Based on the description of these styles in our textbook, what is your listening style? What are the strengths and weaknesses of this style? How might understanding your listening style make you into a more effective listener?
In your initial post, reflect on your listening style. In your follow-up posts, provide helpful and constructive feedback to your fellow students. As a reminder, remember to make your initial post by Wednesday and to make it thoughtful and well-developed.
ENGL510 Foundations of Professional Communication
Week 3 Discussion
Perspectives and Perceptions
In Chapter 5 of our textbook, the authors discuss the concept of attribution, which they define as “an explanation of an observed behavior.” According to the authors, we often use heuristics, or mental shortcuts, to help explain the behavior of others. The problem is that these shortcuts often lead us to make mistakes. The two most common attribution errors are
the self-serving bias; and
the fundamental attribution error.
The self-serving bias is our tendency to attribute our successes to internal causes and our failures to external causes. An example of the self-serving bias is to take credit for a good grade in one class while blaming the instructor for a poor grade in another class. The fundamental attribution error refers to the way people tend to attribute other people’s actions to internal rather than external factors. For instance, when a friend or colleague is unusually abrupt or curt with us, we might assume that he or she is upset or annoyed at us, but the real reason might be a tight deadline at work or an unexpected problem at home.
For your initial post, think of a time in your own life when you may have been guilty of either the self-serving bias or the fundamental attribution error. Looking back at it, what did you learn? In your follow-up posts, provide helpful feedback to your fellow students.
ENGL510 Foundations of Professional Communication
Week 4 Discussion
Your Online Self
In Chapter 8 of our textbook, the importance of using social media to enhance your visibility online for professional purposes is discussed in detail. In your initial post, consider the following questions.
Search for yourself online. What did you find? How might this look to a potential employer?
Do you have a LinkedIn profile? If so, how active are you on the site?
What else can you do to make sure your online professional persona is one that you can feel proud of?
In your follow-up posts, provide helpful feedback to your fellow students.
ENGL510 Foundations of Professional Communication
Week 5 Discussion
The Ethics of Interviewing
Job interviews can be very stressful. No matter how hard we may try to prepare, we may be faced with difficult or uncomfortable questions that we didn’t see coming. On the other hand, there are some questions that are not merely difficult, but illegal. As noted in Chapter 9 of our textbook, employers are typically prohibited from asking questions related to any of the following.
Sex
Age
Ethnicity
Sexual orientation
Religion
Marital status
Political views
Disability status
Although there are exceptions where such questions may be allowed, these are quite rare. However, employers are not always aware of these rules. Imagine that in the course of a job interview you have been asked an illegal question, such as one of the following.
Are you married?
What church do you attend?
How many children do you have?
Who did you vote for in the most recent election?
Where were you born?
You have a few possible options: responding to the question directly (“Yes, I am married”), refusing to answer (“That is an illegal question and I refuse to answer”), or responding indirectly (“My marital status will not affect my ability to do the job”). In your initial post, pick one of the questions and tell us how you would respond, and why. After your initial post, provide helpful feedback in responses to your fellow students.
ENGL510 Foundations of Professional Communication
Week 6 Discussion
Using Surveys to Craft Presentations
This week you will begin working on a persuasive presentation that will be due in Week 8. The scenario is as follows. You have been asked to make a presentation at work on a topic you are knowledgeable and passionate about. In Chapter 11 of our textbook on page 265, there is a list of over 50 topics you may wish to choose from. In addition to that list, here are a few more possibilities.
Ethical views on employee monitoring
Pros and cons of working from home
Challenges and opportunities in doing business overseas
Adopting “green” policies and technology at work
Predicting the future of work
Improving employee satisfaction
Increasing customer loyalty
Before making your presentation, you want to get a better understanding of what your colleagues already know about the topic, what they don’t know yet, and what they’d like to learn, so you decide to make a short survey and distribute it ahead of time to those colleagues who are planning to attend.
In your initial post, tell us which presentation topic you have chosen. In addition, provide a list of at least three questions to ask on your survey. Indicate the type of response sought for each question; for example, multiple choice, true/false, number scale, or written reply.
Suggestion: If you are familiar with Google Forms, use it to create your survey and then provide a link to it in your initial post so that we can take it ourselves.
ENGL510 Foundations of Professional Communication
Week 7 Discussion
Sharing a Slide (or Two)
In Chapter 13 of our textbook, the authors include examples of several types of presentation slides, including the following.
Text slides
Table slides
Pie charts
Line charts
Bar charts
In your initial post for this week, please create and share one or two of these types of slides that you will be using for your persuasive presentation. You do not need to share the audio accompaniment, just the slide or slides themselves. So that your fellow students and I can provide you with helpful feedback, remind us of the topic of your presentation. Finally, explain the purpose of each slide and why you believe each slide achieves that purpose.
Then provide helpful feedback to at least two of your fellow students. Each feedback post should consist of a solid paragraph and contain specific feedback and suggestions as needed.
ENGL510 Foundations of Professional Communication
Week 1 Assignment
Exploring Cultural Differences
Based on the assignment in Chapter 2 (page 46) of our textbook Analyze the Cultural Dimensions of a Country, you will create a brief report on a country of your choosing. Assume that you work for an organization that will be doing business in this country and your associates need to have a broad understanding of its culture. Your analysis will include a discussion of each of these points.
Individualism and collectivism
Power distance
Cultural masculinity and femininity
Uncertainty avoidance
Note: Each of the concepts above is discussed in Chapter 2 of our textbook (pages 32–34).
Requirements:
Length: One and a half to two pages (assume one paragraph for each of the four main points, plus an introduction and conclusion)
Format: Submit the assignment in standard APA document format.
Source use: Web-based sources are acceptable, but be sure to cite them appropriately and provide the full reference for each source. Use at least two different sources.
ENGL510 Foundations of Professional Communication
Week 2 Assignment
Nonverbal Communication
Chapter 3 of our textbook discusses nonverbal communication. For this assignment, you will analyze nonverbal communication in a TED Talk of your choosing. In your analysis, focus on at least three of the following elements.
Facial displays
Oculesics
Kinesics
Gesticulation
Vocalics
Proxemics
Halo effect
Chronemics
Note: These nonverbal communication elements are defined and discussed in Chapter 3 (pages 61–65).
Requirements:
Length: One and a half to two pages (400–500 words): one paragraph for the introduction, one paragraph for each element discussed, and a conclusion
Format: Submit it as a Word document using APA style.
Sources: Choose a TED Talk. Provide the reference in correct APA format. Here is an example of a reference for a TED Talk.
Levitin, D. (2015). How to stay calm when you know you’ll be stressed. https://www.ted.com/talks/daniel_levitin_how_to_stay_calm_when_you_know_you_ll_be_stressed?language=en
ENGL510 Foundations of Professional Communication
Week 3 Assignment
Team Assessment
Assume you are the team leader on a project at work. You are not the direct supervisor of any of your fellow team members, but their supervisors have asked you to provide them with an assessment of their contributions to the project. You are asked to rate your fellow team members based on the following criteria.
Focus on results
Communication
Accountability
Commitment
Trust
An additional criterion of your own choosing
Create an assessment form that includes space for both a rating and comment for each criterion. Your rating system may be either quantitative or qualitative, as long as it is clear and fair. For an example of a team assessment as well as an excellent discussion about how to evaluate team performance, please read Chapter 6, especially pages 130–136.
Length: No more than one page long
Format: You may create this assessment in a variety of ways, such as Word, Excel, or even Google Forms. Check with your instructor if you have questions about the appropriate format.
ENGL510 Foundations of Professional Communication
Week 4 Assignment
What’s on the Agenda?
This week we are learning about holding effective and productive meetings. One of the key elements of an effective meeting is a well-organized and thoughtful agenda. Assume that you have been tasked with holding a 1-hour meeting on a topic of your choosing. Create an agenda for a 1-hour meeting, including the following elements.
Date, start time, end time
Purpose(s)
Desired outcome(s)
At least three agenda items with estimated time for each item
Participant list
Chapter 7 of our textbook features a sample agenda, as well as an excellent discussion of how to make meetings more effective.
Length Requirement: It should be one page. It is best for the meeting attendees to be able to see all of the agenda items on a single page.
ENGL510 Foundations of Professional Communication
Week 5 Assignment
De-Escalation
Conflict is inevitable, but how we deal with conflict is up to us. In this assignment, you will imagine a conflict at work and then decide the best way to use your communication skills in order de-escalate, or defuse, the conflict. Here is what you need to do.
1. Imagine that you have received an angry e-mail at work from either a colleague or a client. Write that e-mail in the style of an e-mail message including To, From, and Subject. If you have received an angry e-mail at work, you may choose to create a similar message to the one you received, but the message must be written in your own words. For examples of angry e-mails, as well as an excellent discussion of online incivility, see Chapter 10 of our textbook.
2. Decide on the best way to de-escalate the conflict, and then create the appropriate message. For example, you may choose to respond to the e-mail with another e-mail, or you may choose to respond in a different communication channel. If you decide to “change the channel,” so to speak, you might choose to respond with a phone call, a video conference, or a personal meeting. You will then create that message. For good ideas on how to respond effectively to a rude or inappropriate e-mail, Chapter 10 of our textbook is a must read.
Requirements:
This should include the angry e-mail, written in the style of an e-mail. The length should be no longer than one page.
It should include the de-escalating response written in the appropriate format. If you choose an e-mail, write it in the style of an e-mail. If you choose a phone call, personal meeting, or video conference, you’ll create a brief, imaginary dialogue between you and the angry colleague or client in which you de-escalate the conflict.
Conclude with a one-paragraph discussion of your communication channel choice. In other words, explain why you decided to respond in the way you did.
ENGL510 Foundations of Professional Communication
Week 6 Assignment
Outlining Your Presentation
A great first step when approaching a longer communication task is to create an outline. A well-written outline provides a clear organizational template and structure for a presentation, such as the one you are working on. Ultimately, the presentation you complete in Week 8 will draw upon and follow the outline you create here. Use the sample outline in Chapter 12 of our textbook as a guide. Before starting work on this assignment, be sure to read the opening section of Chapter 12, pages 279–288.
Requirements
Purpose statement: A declaration of the goal of your presentation
Thesis statement: A one-sentence summation of the central idea of your presentation
Three main points: Specific ideas related to the presentation topic
At least two subpoints for each main point: Subpoints help to explain main points
Sub-subpoints, as needed: Sub-subpoints help to explain subpoints
ENGL510 Foundations of Professional Communication
Week 7 Assignment
Annotated Bibliography
As Chapter 13 of our textbook notes, an effective presentation must have solid support in the form of research. Toward that end, this week you will create an annotated bibliography consisting of at least four high-quality sources in support of your presentation topic. At least two of these sources must come from a library database, such as Ebscohost or ProQuest.
The annotations should be listed in alphabetical order (by lead author’s last name or first word of the title if no author) and include the following elements.
The reference in APA format
A summary of the article written in your own words
(Warning: Do not copy the abstract.)
One quotation from the article, incorporated into a sentence, written in APA style, including author, date, and page number
An overall assessment of the article and how you feel it will fit into your presentation
A sample annotation is shown below.
Reference: Austermuehle, E. (2018). Monitoring employees through GPS technology: What is legal and what are best practices? Employee Relations Law Journal, 44(1), 10-14.
Summary: Austermuehle’s article shows that there are a number of benefits to employee monitoring, as well as some risks that need to be accounted for. Among the benefits are making sure that employees are adhering to laws and company policies, improving employee productivity, and increasing employee safety. On the other hand, risks include invading employee privacy, which may result in litigation or lower employee morale. Austermuehle believes that employee monitoring can be beneficial, but argues that it must comply with the law, be used only for legitimate reasons, and not be used outside of work hours. In addition, a clear written policy on monitoring should be provided to employees.
Quotation: Austermuehle (2018) states that “employers should monitor employees only to the extent that it is justified by a business need” (p. 13).
Overall Assessment: Austermuehle’s article is well written, well researched, and presents a balanced approach to a controversial topic. It will prove useful in my presentation on employee monitoring.
ENGL510 Foundations of Professional Communication
Week 8 Assignment
Persuasive Presentation
Your presentation is due this week. Review the instructions from Week 6, draw from the outline from Week 6, the annotated bibliography from Week 7, and the grading rubric below as you complete your assignment. Remember that classes end on Saturday at midnight, so you must submit your presentation by that deadline.
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