In my everyday conversations, I do use slang, especially when communicating with my friends.
I use slang to emphasize some things that I say or to shorten long words. For example, I may shorten "what happened to you" into "wham to you" or to emphasize how slow someone is, I may call them a "bep". I also use slang to be less formal in my conversations with my peers.
I think I use slang appropriately because whenever I have conversations with my peers and I use slang, they understand exactly what I am trying to say. However, when addressing persons older than myself, I minimize or even eliminate slang entirely out of the conversation as a sign of respect. I talk in proper English and make the conversations as formal as possible.
Wednesday, 12 October 2011
Assignment #9: Myself as a Verbal Communicator
In my opinion, I am not an effective verbal communicator.
I often mumble words and talk very softly, especially if I am speaking in class and I am unsure of what I'm saying (eg. answering a question in class). My mother and friends constantly have to ask me to speak up so that they can hear what I'm saying. Sometimes if I am nervous, I usually speak quickly and say everything that I have to say in one breath.
The few times that I do have clarity in my speech are when I am confident in what I am saying or I am very familiar with the persons with whom I am having a conversation with.
By definition, linguistic sensitivity refers to embracing and understanding the spirit of the communication process rather than simply translating word-for-word what a person is saying. I think I do demonstrate linguistic sensitivity as I pay attention to not only the words being said by another person, but their tone of voice, facial expression and body language to fully understand the message that they are trying to communicate to me.
I often mumble words and talk very softly, especially if I am speaking in class and I am unsure of what I'm saying (eg. answering a question in class). My mother and friends constantly have to ask me to speak up so that they can hear what I'm saying. Sometimes if I am nervous, I usually speak quickly and say everything that I have to say in one breath.
The few times that I do have clarity in my speech are when I am confident in what I am saying or I am very familiar with the persons with whom I am having a conversation with.
By definition, linguistic sensitivity refers to embracing and understanding the spirit of the communication process rather than simply translating word-for-word what a person is saying. I think I do demonstrate linguistic sensitivity as I pay attention to not only the words being said by another person, but their tone of voice, facial expression and body language to fully understand the message that they are trying to communicate to me.
Tuesday, 11 October 2011
Assignment #8: Newspaper Article
For this assignment, I chose to read "Free Transportation, Schools for Disabled" in the Guardian newspaper, dated Oct 11th, 2011.
This article was about the Government allocating part of the budget to fund transportation and scholarships for the disabled so that they may have a better state of living. It was noted that poverty levels had increased since last year, especially among families with a disabled member. Because of this, the Government is supporting them by providing not only education, but additional grants to single mothers of children with a disability and food support via Food Card Programmes for families with a child who is disabled.
From this, I perceive that the Government is trying to make equal opportunity for the disabled to better their lives and be educated like persons who are not disabled. The Government is also trying to make their lives easier and this changes my perception slightly about the Government of Trinidad. Although many opinions may be thrown around about controversy, levels of crime, inflation and unemployment and other politically related issues, my perception is that the Government is actually making an attempt to make disabled persons feel less alienated and ostracized by giving them this opportunity for education and providing support for them.
This article was about the Government allocating part of the budget to fund transportation and scholarships for the disabled so that they may have a better state of living. It was noted that poverty levels had increased since last year, especially among families with a disabled member. Because of this, the Government is supporting them by providing not only education, but additional grants to single mothers of children with a disability and food support via Food Card Programmes for families with a child who is disabled.
From this, I perceive that the Government is trying to make equal opportunity for the disabled to better their lives and be educated like persons who are not disabled. The Government is also trying to make their lives easier and this changes my perception slightly about the Government of Trinidad. Although many opinions may be thrown around about controversy, levels of crime, inflation and unemployment and other politically related issues, my perception is that the Government is actually making an attempt to make disabled persons feel less alienated and ostracized by giving them this opportunity for education and providing support for them.
Assignment #7: Class Presentations [Part II].
For our Communication Skills presentation on culture and communication, we chose to do our project on Japan.
The Japanese culture was very weird for us. They do things very differently in their country when compared to the more Western countries.
They appreciate distance between themselves and hate personal contact of any form. Gestures such as a pat on the back or a high five is not present at all in Japan because of this. They also view silence as valuable as words expressed. They prefer to talk to little than too much. Shouting and talking loudly, especially on a phone in a very small, enclosed area is also seen as rude. Compared to our culture, this is all very weird because most of these things are normal to us; their culture is basically the opposite to ours.
A great form of respect is to take off shoes when entering a building (house, restaurant etc.) as a sign of respect. When I was growing up, and even today in modern times, persons still take off their shoes when entering a house as a sign of respect. In a sense, Trinidad may have adapted this tradition from Japanese culture. Another sign of respect, however, is to slurp noodles when eating them. In our Western culture, this is seen as very rude and we usually try to avoid slurping noises by all means necessary.
Unfortunately, I didn't really learn anything new in this project because I already had a hands-on experience of Japan last year when I visited my aunt. The only new thing that I learnt was that persons in Japan usually use the same bath water to bathe all members of the family (to be economic). As a communicator with this knowledge, this will encourage me to communicate to my mother how grateful I am that I don't have to use second-hand water when bathing.
The Japanese culture was very weird for us. They do things very differently in their country when compared to the more Western countries.
They appreciate distance between themselves and hate personal contact of any form. Gestures such as a pat on the back or a high five is not present at all in Japan because of this. They also view silence as valuable as words expressed. They prefer to talk to little than too much. Shouting and talking loudly, especially on a phone in a very small, enclosed area is also seen as rude. Compared to our culture, this is all very weird because most of these things are normal to us; their culture is basically the opposite to ours.
A great form of respect is to take off shoes when entering a building (house, restaurant etc.) as a sign of respect. When I was growing up, and even today in modern times, persons still take off their shoes when entering a house as a sign of respect. In a sense, Trinidad may have adapted this tradition from Japanese culture. Another sign of respect, however, is to slurp noodles when eating them. In our Western culture, this is seen as very rude and we usually try to avoid slurping noises by all means necessary.
Unfortunately, I didn't really learn anything new in this project because I already had a hands-on experience of Japan last year when I visited my aunt. The only new thing that I learnt was that persons in Japan usually use the same bath water to bathe all members of the family (to be economic). As a communicator with this knowledge, this will encourage me to communicate to my mother how grateful I am that I don't have to use second-hand water when bathing.
Assignment #6: Class Presentations [Part I].
In the Communication Skills class, there were various presentations on the cultures of many countries.
Some cultures that were presented in class were: Nigerian, Hindu, Arabic, Muslim, Hebrew and Japanese.
A variety of things were presented, ranging from spicy rice from the Nigerian culture, to the history of the various cultures and their beliefs, and way of life. Their dress codes were also discussed, but many of the groups failed to present the way in which the culture that they researched actually communicated with each other within that culture.
Some cultures that were presented in class were: Nigerian, Hindu, Arabic, Muslim, Hebrew and Japanese.
A variety of things were presented, ranging from spicy rice from the Nigerian culture, to the history of the various cultures and their beliefs, and way of life. Their dress codes were also discussed, but many of the groups failed to present the way in which the culture that they researched actually communicated with each other within that culture.
Assignment #5: Cultural Impact on Communication.
The culture of Trinidad is very diverse. As a Trinidadian, the culture has a great impact on the way that I communicate, both verbally and non-verbally.
Although Trinidad is a "boiling pot" where many different cultures, religions and people come together as one, citizens of this country tend to be very rude & judgmental and form stereotypes & prejudices. Most of the time we don't like adapting to new things and form cliques with persons of similar religions, ethnicity and so on. Because of this learnt behaviour, I sometimes watch other persons "cuteye" (of different cultures, religions, ethnicity etc.) or even utter a "steups" if their accent sounds funny to me. I do this subconsciously and I really should break this habit.
Trinidadians are also very verbal and usually say what is on their minds. Persons have a habit of voicing their unasked opinions under their breath and I have picked up this terrible trait. In addition, it is not uncommon to hear someone yell obscenities about someone's mother out of their car windows, followed by a certain hand gesture after receiving a "bad drive". I am currently a learning driver and I am trying to stay clear of this horrendous trait.
Trinidadians are also renowned for the phrase "bonx meh nah". This phrase is uttered when a pedestrian is crossing the road slowly and an oncoming car is waiting to pass. As I have recently started to travel to school, on a bad day I would pick up this attitude, but on other days I would ne'er dare to intimidate taxi drivers in Curepe junction.
Lastly, Trinidadians are known for their late arrival. Usually if a person has to be at a place for a certain time, they would start to get ready at the time that they were supposed to arrive. Similarly, usually if I have to meet a friend somewhere, when they call to ask where I am, I would tell them that I am about fifteen minutes away, when in actuality I have just finished getting out of the shower. Even when I was in high school, I was late for classes probably about eighty percent of the time. Thankfully, I don't reach that late to classes in University because I have picked up a better sense of responsibility and punctuality.
Although Trinidad is a "boiling pot" where many different cultures, religions and people come together as one, citizens of this country tend to be very rude & judgmental and form stereotypes & prejudices. Most of the time we don't like adapting to new things and form cliques with persons of similar religions, ethnicity and so on. Because of this learnt behaviour, I sometimes watch other persons "cuteye" (of different cultures, religions, ethnicity etc.) or even utter a "steups" if their accent sounds funny to me. I do this subconsciously and I really should break this habit.
Trinidadians are also very verbal and usually say what is on their minds. Persons have a habit of voicing their unasked opinions under their breath and I have picked up this terrible trait. In addition, it is not uncommon to hear someone yell obscenities about someone's mother out of their car windows, followed by a certain hand gesture after receiving a "bad drive". I am currently a learning driver and I am trying to stay clear of this horrendous trait.
Trinidadians are also renowned for the phrase "bonx meh nah". This phrase is uttered when a pedestrian is crossing the road slowly and an oncoming car is waiting to pass. As I have recently started to travel to school, on a bad day I would pick up this attitude, but on other days I would ne'er dare to intimidate taxi drivers in Curepe junction.
Lastly, Trinidadians are known for their late arrival. Usually if a person has to be at a place for a certain time, they would start to get ready at the time that they were supposed to arrive. Similarly, usually if I have to meet a friend somewhere, when they call to ask where I am, I would tell them that I am about fifteen minutes away, when in actuality I have just finished getting out of the shower. Even when I was in high school, I was late for classes probably about eighty percent of the time. Thankfully, I don't reach that late to classes in University because I have picked up a better sense of responsibility and punctuality.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)