GU 299 week 3 assignment 2 Reflection Journal

Reflection Journal

Name

Institution

Tutor

Course

Date

What, if anything, did you find surprising, particularly challenging, or interesting? (10 pts)

It was interesting how groups can be formed either because they are good or bad. Good groups are dubbed fun where as bad ones are dubbed not fun. Groups usually have the same goals towards their work but becomes difficult when it comes to participation. Some of the group members make it challenging when they tend to not be interested in it. It is also hard and challenging to manage large big groups with so many members. The responsibilities of the group can be challenging at times when it has so many members who want to be leaders. It can also get challenging when work given to a group is neglected by some of its members and done by the few who are serious.

It was interesting to learn about the developmental model and it’s stages. I got to identify the stage I was in currently which among those five stages I evaluated myself and found the actual stage I was in. As shared by (Cushner, 2014), the evaluation is usually based on my current situation and how I feel towards people who are from different cultures. I also learnt how I would improve to achieve intercultural sensitivity in future. It was an interesting topic because it helped the students learn a lot about achieving bio diversity.

From what you know about this course so far, what connections can you make to previous learning experiences, and how do you think this course will help you as you move forward in your college and professional life? (10pts)

The connections I have made from this course with the previous learning experiences is that groups require communication skills without good communication skills between its members then the purpose of the group will no longer be important. Through critical thinking we are able to evaluate our actions based on ethics and how we can treat the different members in. The group who are from different cultures equally with the rest. This has helped us achieve the stages of the developmental model in intercultural sensitivity. Through that we are able to gain lifelong lessons about those different cultures and also gain some lessons from groups through group work projects given in class.

The course is very important in my education because like any other course, I am able to draw out some conclusions that are of good interests in my ethics, social and professional life. This course mound me on how to interact with people in groups thus prepares me socially and professionally on what is expected of me. It also emphasizes on team work and its importance because it prepares me psychologically when it comes to those school projects that require groups in order to be fulfilled. This can also form permanent groups that are fun and good for me especially when it comes to education because we can always agree on having discussions essential for learning (Malekoff, 2015).

How do course outcomes (listed above) for this week apply to your experiences so far? (10pts)

The course outcomes have applied to my experience so far in that I have been able to work in groups and achieve a good team work because of an understanding. This understanding was successful because of communication skills. I have also been able to work on projects with people who have different cultures well because of respecting their diversity and also the need to achieving professionalism. Mingling with them also helped me achieve socialism. I have been able to make good decisions especially concerning groups and projects we have been allocated to do because of being a critical thinker.

I have been able to maintain an environment that has been good for me and the people who have different cultures from mine. I have been able to take a step and learn about them more, why they do somethings in order. I am still working on adapting to their changes but I can admit to achieving intercultural sensitivity. Interacting with them has also been a success due to communication skills, where technology has been helpful (Yurtseven & Altun, 2015).

What specific ideas did you learn from the Starbucks book this week that you could use in your every life or future career? (10pts)

From the Starbucks book I learnt that it is very essential to build trust either in school between students or students with their teachers or from work between colleagues and management. This is because it enlightens individuals into feeling more special and needed, it gives them a purpose and becomes a driving force for any company organizations or school. In chapter seven of the book, Schultz was able to achieve this by sharing his ideas and goals with his employees and he gave the employees the confidence to have trust in the management.

In chapter eight of the book, it talks about how Schultz made his imagination and future plans for his company achievable. He was able to identify the missing piece to his company and make it better and more successful. Thus I learnt that we should be able to work on our ideas and also brainstorm and identify the missing plots towards the success of a company.

In chapter nine, Schultz shows the importance of having a good support system. The people behind the success of business. He talks about the people who were passionate enough and believed that his company could become a success, he was able to work with people who were hopeful that his company would grow. He also gave credit to the good customer service his employees gave to the customers. He was also good at rewarding his employees for doing their work well, which was good motivation. Thus from this chapter I learnt that being passionate, determined and hopeful can help someone achieve greatness. Also, I learnt the importance of giving good customer service as well as motivating employees.

What questions do you still need answered? (10pts)

According to (Malekoff, 2015), working with bad groups can be very hectic at times so I would like to know how I can impact a bad group and the things I should do in order to change the group to become manageable. Dealing with many members in a group with a work load can be difficult, work load that is little can have some members make a decision to not participate in the group whereas a large work load can have some members doing it individually. I would like to know how I can achieve a great team work under those circumstances and how to maintain them.

According to (Perry & Southwell, 2011), achieving intercultural sensitivity is a very hard step but very essential. I would like to know the reasons behind the importance of learning about the different cultures and other ways in which schools can assist students can do in order to help achieve that. It is also essential that we use critical thinking while making important decisions that involve intercultural sensitivity, thus I would like to know how schools aid in achieving critical thinking among its students.

Reference

K Cushner. (2014), Human diversity in education

A Malekoff. (2015), Group work with adolescents, Principles and practice

LB Perry, L Southwell. (2011), Developing intercultural understanding and skills, Models and approaches

N Yurtseven, S Altun. (2015), Intercultural sensitivity in today’s global classes, Teacher candidates’ perceptions