Intercultural Communication

Going to a few different cultures in my lifetime, I’ve realized that intercultural communication is highly important when being in other countries.  While in Panama, I found it was incredibly difficult to communicate with other people from the cultures we visited and it showed me just how important it is to learn how to speak different languages, even if it is only a few words.  This encounter changed me in a way that I want to be more proactive and learn other languages to be able to better communicate with other languages.  There are a few movies that portray the ideal of intercultural communication, but the one that sticks out the most is the Disney movie “The Color of Friendship”.  This movie is based during the time the apartheid was going on in South Africa.  A student (white) participating in an exchange program comes to America to experience a different culture.  She is quickly startled when she sees that she has been placed with a black family, as is the family that she is placed with.  Soon after though, the two girls in the family slowly become friends when they realize that they have a lot more in common than they think when they see past each other’s skin color.  This movie allowed us to make intercultural concepts visible, as well as expose and undo stereotypes.  Although we have a lot of bridges we must get over to communicate with other cultures, having just a small amount of intercultural communication can benefit us dramatically.

21st Century Skills

In the career I would like to pursue, I am going to deal with a variety of people of different ages and different cultures.  With physical therapy, I will be interacting with these people on a daily basis and will have to take into account their background, and their cultures.  In way of doing this, I must be able to get along and communicate with others through different cultures.  For instance, if I had a patient from a different culture outside of America, and if I had an acquaintance, or even if I didn’t, I could research that patient’s culture to build a deeper connection and make them feel more comfortable within the clinic. Also, being in an environment like in a physical therapy clinic, there could be some confrontation between coworkers, or even an employee and patient.   Having a skill like being about to solve “complex, multidisciplinary, open-ended problems”, I can benefit the workplace and benefit both parties involved in the confrontation by coming up with a solution to the problem that makes everyone happy.  By doing so, coworkers will get along better or employees and patients can get along better by switching the patient to a different physical therapist assistant.  By possessing traits such as these in the 21^st century, it is very crucial since a lot of our economy is still in “uncertainty”.  These traits help ensure the business owner, physical therapist and physical therapist assistants and the patients that come in for physical therapy.  

Shelby Bryant

Cultural Lenses

The world is such a large, beautiful but scary place.  If you think about how big this Earth is compared to the tiny state of Arkansas, its just mind blowing on how big it is, how many people there are, and especially how many cultures there are out there that are so much more different than our culture.  I was fortunate to grow up in a house hold that promoted traveling across the United States, as well as venturing outside our homelands borders.  Ever since I was born, I've traveled so much in my life do to my father's time in the military and my parent's passion for traveling.  With all the traveling I've done, I've discussed my adventures with peers and the question I always get when I say I've traveled outside the US is "why would you want to go anywhere else to vacation? America is the best!"  I obviously agree with this statement, but I find some ignorance behind it like the article "Why Americans Don't Travel Overseas" had mention.  Although America is a beautiful and a wonderful country, there are many other beautiful countries, cultures and people in this world.  I've taken off my cultural blindfold and made it see through to other cultures.  I love to travel and an opportunity I get to take to travel, I'm on it.  Traveling brings so much more to a person than little souvenirs and pretty pictures.  It gives you a sense that its ok to travel and to experience new things instead of being sheltered in the Natural State.  Personally, when a person travels outside of their country and experiences new cultures and places, your putting yourself above the rest and making it easier for you to relate with more people than just the few that live here in America.  So take those cultural lenses off and soak up the opportunity to learn new things about different cultures!

I thought the last picture was kind of comical, but shows how not only American's are subjected to cultural lenses!

 

Globalization

Globalization is a wonderful aspect in connecting countries together.  It is also very beneficial to the entire human race.  Because of globalization, we are able to make more jobs for the people of our countries and other countries.  Sometimes it’s the way to go in the job market is to outsource.  Outsourcing wouldn’t be possible if it were for globalization.  Globalization affected me greatly last summer while visiting the country Panama.  While down there we indulged (and sometimes were forced) in foods that are native to Panama.  But after 3 days of octopus, French fries and chicken nuggets sound like a 5 star dinner.  Because of globalization and the fact that McDonald’s is located virtually across in country, our group got to stray away from the native foods and indulge in our “home” foods.  Globalization is the ideal mind set to have when traveling other places, as well as in every day life.  We come in contact with people from different cultures every day and we enforce globalization without even realizing it.  I’m excited to broaden my view on globalization.  

Being Culturally Aware

  I've learned in my past experiences with traveling that being culturally aware and understanding of others cultures and customs is a huge key when visiting different countries.  When I went to Panama, my first mind set of the people were that they all hated Americans, or "Gringos" as they call us, and that they wouldn't be helpful or nice to us at all.  But when I got there, I saw that they are possibly the nicest people I've ever met.  I tend to go across the pond to Ireland and Scotland with a different, more open mindset of their culture, seeing as I didn't do such in my previous trip.  Being aware of a culture is also key to not disrespect the people.  Here in America, we think everything we do is right and that everyone in the world should follow and abide by the "American" way.  But what works for us, doesn't necessarily work for them.  With a different background and culture, no way is the right way for two sets of cultures and we should all see that, and also be able to understand and influence others around us of this knowledge that we are going to come and acquire!

Shelby Bryant

Hey guys!

Well, I'm Shelby Bryant, from Bryant, AR. I've lived in a few places throughout my life.  I was born in Washington State in 1991 where my dad was in the military.  Once he finished his time of duty we moved back to my parent's homestate, Indiana, and stayed there a few years while my dad tried to establish himself.  When things didn't work there, he called his uncle here in Arkansas, and my uncle got my dad hooked up with a engineer job at Falcon Jet. We've lived here most of my life.  I've done some extensive traveling growing up.  I've traveled to multiple places across the United States, I've visited Mexico on more than on occasion, multiple cruises where the destinations included Jamaica, Grand Cayman Island, and Cozumel.  My most memorable trip I've taken so far, is the one I took last July.  I went to the country Panama for a month with Dr. Engman and 12 other classmates and it was one of the most amazing experiences I've had.  So I am really looking forward to taking another trip with the school! 

I'm a biology major here at Henderson.  I'm not too sure what I want to do when I graduate but I have to options that I'm deciding between.  I would like to go to either grad school and pursue a PhD in pharmacology OR go to UCA after my time here at Henderson and get my PhD in physical therapy. But anything that will give me that Dr. in front of my name will make me happy though.

I enjoy doing a lot of things, but the one thing that has always just made me "lose" myself when I'm having a bad day, or even a good one, is soccer.  I've played it all my life up until college, but I still play on summer leagues and try my hardest to stay involved in intramurals here at college. 

I hope this trip is another big learning experience for me, like Panama was.  I grew tremendously as a person while I was there, and I would continue with that when we visit Ireland and Scotland.  I wasn't going to go on this trip, but my best friend, Abby Clark, signed up to go and I thought to myself there is no way she is going across the pond without me! So the next day, I signed up and paid my deposit.  So I'm so excited to be going with my best friend and to have a fun trip with her before she starts her teaching career in the fall!