Reflecting on General Education and Career [WLOs: 2, 3, 4] [CLOs: 2, 3, 4]        Prepare: Start by reviewing General Education Curriculum found in General Academic Information and Policies 

GEN499 Week 5 Guidance

Introduction

Week Four was dedicated to critical thinking skills. We looked at the definition of critical thinking, understanding what the skills and process are, and how and why critical thinking skills are important for everyone in their personal, professional, and political lives. We noted that critical thinking skills are going to become an increasingly important part of our lives due to the rapid changes caused by the development of modern technologies.

During Week Five, we will tie together everything that we have covered thus far in class and put as much of our knowledge and skills into the Capstone Discussion and the Final Research Project. This week we will continue to focus on the principles of general education and continue applying what we have learned through the course on research techniques used when finishing the Final Research Project.

Putting it all together: Learning, Thinking, Speaking

Knowing how to collect information from the Internet and communicate in a networked world is critical. In order to find our ways in the world, to make important decisions, to improve job performance and career opportunities, and to participate in our society as citizens to the best of our ability, we need to know where to turn for the latest, most current, and best information.

The popular, mass media are not a good source of information. It may be one of the worst sources for information. Basing decisions on the opinions of those who are ill-informed, uneducated, or biased (socially, culturally, or politically) is not a good idea. As educated, reasonable adults, we need to use the best sources of information and apply the principles of logic and critical thinking to the information from the best sources of information.

Having researched and done some careful thinking, we must also consider alternatives, and before reaching a decision, we need to check ourselves for possible bias or for having reached a foregone conclusion based on our personal perceptions of life, the universe and everything.

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Worldview (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.

Personal perception involves how we look at others and the world around us. It is natural to perceive situations from our own, possibly limited, viewpoints. However, in order to function and be successful in a global society and/or economy, overcoming perceptual barriers is difficult but essential if you are to craft messages and communicate with others of different cultures.

The sum total of your perceptions, thoughts, feelings, and attitudes make up your worldview. When worldviews are too different, then communication becomes difficult (if not impossible). Although it may seem intuitively obvious to even the most casual observer, different people from different cultures have different worldviews. The average person in Xinjiang has a very different worldview from yours. The embattled Yazidi (in northern Iraq) have a very different worldview from the people in their region. (That is the major reason why they are being persecuted and executed in mass numbers.)

If people come from different backgrounds or cultures or have different life experiences, then their perceptions are likely to be quite different from the perceptions of the people they are communicating with. Differences can lead to serious consequences. Being unable to appreciate differences can lead to serious consequences. Being unable (or unwilling) to try to communicate across, over, under, around, or through those differences can lead to serious consequences.

Failing to understand and appreciate differences can lead to very serious consequences. Thinking that everyone must be just the same as we are shows a lack of respect for the possibility that we just might be wrong (and may be wrong in some serious ways, too). Being able to value difference and to learn from those who are different increases the value, depth, and joy of life.

To communicate effectively and efficiently, we have to be clear and specific about what we say and write, how we communicate, and what we communicate. Sometimes what we think we are saying may not be what others think we are saying. Just as each of us has our own, particular worldviews and our own, particular understanding of things, others have their worldviews and understanding and so listen through their filters. Thus, they may hear what you are saying but hear it in a different way than you intend. For that reason (and many more), we have to be sure that we use language correctly, use words and terms correctly and appropriately, speak at a common level, and check to make sure that others understand what we have said. Getting feedback is an important step in the communication process.

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References

Brown parcel isolated white [Image]. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.istockphoto.com/photo/brown-parcel-isolated-white-gm529249699-53831622?st=9956bc8

Challenging limits: Greatest human achievements [Video file]. (2012). In Films on Demand. Retrieved from http://fod.infobase.com/PortalPlaylists.aspx?wID=100753&xtid=56765

Epic fail red round grunge stamp on white [Image]. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.istockphoto.com/vector/epic-fail-red-round-grunge-stamp-on-white-gm489492540-74702791

7 steps to improving communication [Video file]. (2001). In Films on Demand. Retrieved from http://fod.infobase.com/PortalPlaylists.aspx?wID=100753&xtid=49882