A COURSE ON INTERCULTURAL COMPETENCE AND COMMUNICATION.
How shall I talk of the sea to the frog,
if it has never left its pond?
How shall I talk of the frost to the bird of the summerland,
if it has never left the land of its birth?
How shall I talk of life with the sage,
if he is prisoner of his doctrine?
Chung Tsu, 4th Century B.C.
We share this planet with over 7 billion other people who belong to thousands of cultural groups and speak thousands of different languages. With the rise of global mobility and communication, almost every person on the earth, regardless of his or her location, language, or culture, is or can be interconnected with everyone else. Now, more than at any other time in history, what happens in one part of the world touches all parts of the world. This course is about our adapting, adjusting, reflecting, and taking part in this “new world.”
The course explores the interaction between culture and communication in interpersonal and intercultural environments, and introduces students to the knowledge and skills necessary to attain global competence. Along with the study of the concept of culture and communication, this course provides the necessary tools to analyze communication behaviors in an interpersonal or intercultural context. In addition, this course introduces the construct of global competence; creates the opportunity to analyze and evaluate how our own cultural identity influences communication with others; engages interaction with the host culture; explores the challenges; and prepares the students with knowledge and skills to be effective and ethical intercultural communicators.
The course will include class discussions, simulations, interactive examples, case studies, media presentations, and field experiences. It will also include meetings with international students on their study abroad experience at Smith and Skype sessions with Smith students who are studying abroad for the semester.