Global Citizenship Competency Synthesis 

Global citizenship demands self-awareness as a member of a community and individual, develops respect for other individuals, and shows critical thinking from a magnitude of perspectives. These guidelines inspired my educational journey as a member of a community rather than an individual student. The Honors Program pushed me to explore my personal beliefs as well as identify and build meaningful connections with individuals who hold different beliefs and perspectives. This program helped me define my personal perspectives and biases, engage with others from multiple perspectives, and communicate with a culture outside of my own.

 

Growing up, my culture seemed to be defined for me, but once I arrived at college, I learned that there is endless freedom pertaining to personal beliefs. The awareness of my story and how I fit into the world came about during a Reflection for my Introduction to Honors course. We completed exercises that helped us determine our values and find the roots of our personalities. I moved my cultural observation from the classroom to a practical setting during my CNA Practicum. I worried that most of my residents would not remember anything about their early lives, but I was wrong because it turns out that the residents love to talk about their culture and family traditions. Being able to understand independent culture allows the creativity of the care team to support residents by recreating culture for independent resident benefits. I was able to share some of my personal perspectives during my CNA Practicum in exchange for personal stories from individuals of different cultures. From these explorations into cultural self-awareness, I also found a desire to have people ask questions about me and have been more interested in learning about their cultural differences in return.  Being able to understand my culture better allowed me to connect with others on a more personal level.

 

My educational involvement taught me that communication is not the only link between different global perspectives. Exposure to other cultural practices, or traditions, are helpful in understanding the different perspectives of community members. Through my studies of American Sign Language, I was restricted from my usual communication patterns and forced to observe other norms for members of the deaf cultures. I examined the significance of facial expressions in Deaf Culture through a Presentation on Expression. I learned that physical language, such as body language and facial expressions, can be universal; it exceeds the boundaries of cultural perspectives and unites all people as equal.

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Although culture far exceeds verbal communication, it is language that connects global citizens to their personal culture. Learning a different language gave me the opportunity to immerse myself into the lives of individuals who belong to different cultures. Biases are expressed through communication as well as desires, beliefs, and community. My Hard of Hearing Professors taught me about Deaf Culture values and how individuals like to be approached and treated. These ASL courses taught me how to communicate in both a classroom setting and prepared me for real-world exposure. I used this knowledge to practice communicating with one of my Hard of Hearing Residents. This forced me to reevaluate how I would do my job since I could not communicate and perform actions simultaneously. This experience in a different culture than mine was challenging and eye-opening to the biases I did not know I had. Furthermore, I completed a virtual Children’s Book Reading in ASL that forced me to alter the way I would normally read for entertainment. These experiences gave me the awareness of being a member of a separate culture which allowed me to widen my own perspective.

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This program has taught me that Global citizenship is multifaceted regarding involvement in more than just the culture of your choice. Being in the shoes of other individuals teaches about biases, respect, communication, and tradition. I plan to encourage more cultural exposure in my personal and professional career to continue to broaden my awareness of myself, my culture, and the culture of those I encounter.

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