SPCH 115 Intercultural Communication

This course is an overview of the theories and practices of using messages to generate meaning in intercultural contexts. Using directed readings, stories, media, and activities, this course is designed to increase students’ sensitivity to other cultures, and just as importantly, increase awareness of their own cultural backgrounds and the contexts (social, cultural, and historical) in which we live and communicate. This course is designed for students to explore communication differences and similarities when living and working with people of different ethnicity, race, sex, and/or nationality. Through increased awareness and sensitivity, students will be able to articulate intercultural influences on communication.

Credits

3

Prerequisite

Eligible to enroll in ENGL 121

Hours Weekly

3

Course Objectives

1. 1. Organize and articulate ideas on intercultural contexts, including social, cultural, and
   historical, for a range of audiences and purposes.
2. 2. Communicate an ethno-relative state of understanding and acceptance of cultural differences
   rather than one of ethnocentricity, demonstrating and reflecting on the use of communication
   skills, using spoken and symbolic forms of communication to convey concepts creatively
   through collaborative critique and revision.
3. 3. Identify the beliefs, values, and norms of one’s own culture, and recognize and articulate
   differences and commonalities in dominant cultural patterns, analyzing one’s own
   communication style and choices, and those of others, through collaborative critique and
   revision.
4. 4. Communicate in group contexts, utilizing formal presentations and gaining an understanding
   of the impact and influence of media used throughout the world on shaping of cultures and
   perceptions of culture.

Course Objectives

1. 1. Organize and articulate ideas on intercultural contexts, including social, cultural, and
   historical, for a range of audiences and purposes.
2. 2. Communicate an ethno-relative state of understanding and acceptance of cultural differences
   rather than one of ethnocentricity, demonstrating and reflecting on the use of communication
   skills, using spoken and symbolic forms of communication to convey concepts creatively
   through collaborative critique and revision.
3. 3. Identify the beliefs, values, and norms of one’s own culture, and recognize and articulate
   differences and commonalities in dominant cultural patterns, analyzing one’s own
   communication style and choices, and those of others, through collaborative critique and
   revision.
4. 4. Communicate in group contexts, utilizing formal presentations and gaining an understanding
   of the impact and influence of media used throughout the world on shaping of cultures and
   perceptions of culture.