The two business educators that I have contacted are Devendra Dixit and Kati Teer. These both are Emerson employees. Devendra is an HR director with responsibilities of overseeing HR in India. Kati is responsible for the oversight of all Emerson training in Europe.
Both of these individuals can help as I develop a course for own employees called, "Global Cultures." Our company has locations in the United States, Mexico, Europe, China, Canada, and India. We see a need to instruct our employees on the cultures of these other countries. We want them to understand how to interact with other cultures and to understand the US way is not the only way.
We will have Devendra and Kati prepare videos in which they describe their own cultures and suggestions for Americans to be better received and understand how others view the world. Their email addresses are Kati.teer@emerson.com and Devendra.dixit@emerson.com.
These videos can be incorporated in the training and played at appropriate times in the instruction.
The book I am reading is The Skilled Teacher. The author, Stephen Brookfield (2006), reminds of the importance of making learning relevant for the learner by saying, "People will generally resist activities for which they see no justification" (p. 219). By using "instructors" from specific parts of the world, our learners will be able to connect the need for the presentation with their work.
I would look in your community for a speaker from another country that Emerson ins located. They could provide some hands on examples of cultural differences.
ReplyDeleteIn the book I'm reading, 21st Century Skills: Rethinking How Students Learn, it says, "The 21st century is characterized by increasing technological, economic, ecological, and political interdependence among individuals, communities, countries, and regions of the world (Johnson and Johnson, pg 206). I think you are encouraging this with your project and collaboration. There are so many benefits to your project with the interaction with other countries! They can learn so much about the US and develop other ideas from their collaboration with the doors you have opened for them!
ReplyDeleteThis summer I am taking another class called Leadership in a Diverse Society. In this class we discuss how important it is to have our students learn about different cultures. I think that your project will be very beneficial to your students since they will interact with other cultures.
ReplyDeleteI am reading the book, Active Lessons for Active Brains: Teaching Boys and Other Experiential Learners Grades 3-10, by Abigail Norfleet James, Sandra Boyd Allison, and Caitlin Zimmerman Mckenzie. I think the authors would view your project as being very beneficial as well for your students. The authors encourage teachers to get our students to interact with others in multiple ways. (James, Allison & Mckenzie, 2011)
James, A., Allison, S., & Mckenzie, C. (2011). Active lessons for active brains: Teaching boys and other experiential learners grades 3-10. (1 ed., Vol. 1, pp. 1-230). Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin
Merle,
ReplyDeleteI have been reading the book 21st Century Skills: Rethinking how students learn. In the book, it talks about the five kinds of minds we should cultivate in people. These five minds are the disciplined mind, the synthesizing mind, the creating mind, the respectful mind, and the ethical mind. What you are doing with this particular lesson plan is developing the respectful mind. "A person possessed of a respectful mind welcomes this exposure to diverse persons and groups" (p. 20). Good luck. It sounds wonderful.