Course Moodle Discussion Learning Space / Course Discussion Notes
This course explores the nature of communication within and between cultures. If we are shaped by our communication, we are also shaped by the culture in which we do that communication. Our culture shapes our expectations of others, the things we assume are normal and reasonable, the way we think, the ways in which we communicate, and the things we teach our children. This class will challenge students to thing about their own cultural assumptions while exploring the ways in which these assumptions differ from those held by people in other cultures. We will do this by exploring contemporary theory of intercultural communicaiton, applying qualitative communication research methodologies to both the observation of communication in other cultures and interrogation of our own cultural experience.
Judith Martin & Thomas Nakayama. (2008). Experiencing Intercultural Communication: An Introduction (3rd Edition). New York: McGraw Hill. ISBN 9780073406688
We will use an online class discussion/learning space called a "Moodle" to manage the class schedule and submit most or all assignments. Instructions for accessing the Moodle can be found below. Pointers to this syllabus (http://davis.foulger.net/brooklyn/winter2009/intecultural) and the course discussion Notes (http://evolutionarymedia.com/student.htm?InterculturalWinter2009) can be found there. This will be taught as a hybrid course, with Internet based activities mixed with class discussions. It is my usual practice to make my discussion notes directly available via the Internet during the class discussion. You can print them out later if you'd like. Any assignments that are due for a particular class should be submitted BEFORE the class discussion begins.
The class has been planned around having 10 class discussions and a series of online assignments. Scheduling of sessions will happen during the trip, and the number of sessions may change based on class discussions and other factors. This is the general sequence of sessions. Readings should be completed BEFORE the class discussion
| Session | Reading | Session Title |
| 1 | Chapters 1 and 10 | Being Ethnographically Strange as a Tourist: A Pragmatic Introduction to Intercultural Communication |
| 2 | Chapter 2 | Intercultural Communication: Building Blocks and Barriers |
| 3 | Chapters 3 and 7 | Structuration and the Evolution of Cultural Differences |
| 4 | Chapter 5 | Meaning, Language, and Culture |
| 5 | Chapter 6 | Expressing Cultural Identity Nonverbally |
| 6 | Chapter 4 | How Culture Shapes Us as Individuals |
| 7 | Chapter 8 | Conflict and the Structuration of Relationships and Culture |
| 8 | Chapter 9 | Maintaining Intercultural Relationships |
| 9 | Chapter 11 | The Global Village and Cultural Expectations: Living in an Intercultural World |
| 10 | Chapter 12 and 13 | How Strange was this anyway? Your Intercultural Education |
I have caught a number of students attempting to pass off other people's work as their own. Such behavior is unacceptable in any classroom, and I won't accept it in mine. My usual practice will be to zero any assignment on which a student has been found to be cheating and consult with the department chair on what other actions may be appropriate. Examples of cheating include duplicate test answers (test answers should always be in your own words) and presenting someone elses words or ideas as if they were your own. There should be an indication of who the original author any time you use someone elses words or ideas). Any time you use their words directly the quote should be set apart with quotation marks or a block quote indicator. Where, in the course of writing a term paper, you present the ideas of others, you must indicate where they came from with a reference. This is true even when you have stated the ideas in your own words or if the ideas or their sources seem obvious. I encourage you to look at and cite content from a wide variety of sources, but the content of your term paper should be in your own words.