Global Experience Project Presentation

GEP - B

Remember – the student is required to interact with their GEP partner during an off campus event and an on campus event to gain this information (total of two events for this assignment). Some questions to get you started on your interview. Not all questions may be appropriate. Choose at your own discretion and add your own. Feel free to substitute U.S for the applicable country:

1. What is your definition of “culture?”

My partner: Culture is a set of beliefs, values, attitude ands concepts which guides a group of people who is most cases have common ancestry (Hall, 1989). Culture is a broad concept according to my understanding as it directs the people subscribed to it on how to interact with each other, how and what to dress and when, how and what to eat.

Me : how we drese , eat , drink , how we great each other

1. How do you define “family?”

My partner: Family is a smallest social unit of any given community. In most cases family comprises father, mother and the children who may occupy the same location like the living structure (Astone and McLanahan, 1991). But in some cases they may not live together. We have different types of family, for instance single parent family and the extended family which includes the grandparents and other members related by the essence of blood.

Me: Family is my mom and father my family that’s all I know about family

1. Who holds the most “status” in your family? Why?

My partner: According to our culture which gives more focus on the boy child this goes way up to the family settings where father holds the most status in the family.

ME: sharing between my mother and father

1. How do you define success?

My partner: Success is absolete attainment of the set objective when carrying out certain task. When you are in a position to attain the goals set prior to undertaking certain task then that is a well defination of success.

Me: Success is when you reach your goals.

1. Do you consider your parents to be successful?

My partner: Yes. Because the fundamental goal of my parents was to take care of the family which involves provision of social security, provision of education and raising the children in an upright manner so as to become responsible adults of whom I am.

Me: yes

1. How important is education in your family?

My partner: Education has assisted our family in understanding of different concepts which are important in life. Such concepts include healthy living, how to use technology at the household level and other concept which were culture blindly mandated as to follow without knowing the reason behind it.

Me: very important because my parents didn’t finish education and I’m the only child

1. Is punctuality important to you? Why or why not?

My partner: Yes. Punctuality is important to me, as when you are punctual then it will mean that your planned programs at any given time will be successful because you have observe the essence of time. Contrary to not being punctual where you work under pressure to deliver within a limited time frame.

Me: yes , punctuality mean the respectiful for me.

1. What is the most important meal of the day?

My partner: Breakfast

Me: Breakfast.

1. Do you eat foods that are indigenous to your culture? Why or why not? If you answered yes, name some of the foods that you eat. If you answered no, what types of foods do you eat?

My partner: Yes. I do eat Ugali and Beef.

Me: Yes. I do eat Rice and Meat.

1. Did you ever live with your grandparents or extended family?

My partner: Yes. I lived with my extended family way back when I was a kid but lately no because most of them are in different places either advancing in their education as well as working, so hardly we put up together.

Me: Yes I lived in with my parents and grandparents in same house.

1. Do you actively participate in an organized religion?

My partner: Yes. Am borned and raised Catholic believer with a good foundation in the religion and I still take part actively in the matters of the church both in school and back at home.

Me: Yes I’m Muslim and I go to pray every Friday.

1. How important is religion in your family? Why ?

My partner: My family believes that in the church is where you find utmost peace and solution to spiritual tribulation and because of that my family value church and the clergies very much.

Me: yes very important because it’s something spiritual and cultural .

1. If religion is important in your family, do you plan to pass this on to your children? Why or why not?

My partner: Yes religion is important in my family as it shapes a person morally by instilling good virtues and condemning undesirable vices in the family. I consider it as my fundamental task to pass it to my children so that it can shape them up.

Me: yes it is and I will pass this on to my children because it’s cultural.

1. Are the roles of men and women specifically defined in your family? If so, what are they?

My partner: As much as girl child empowerment has been on the raise in my community and the awareness that both genders should be given that freedom to carry out the roles that best suit their interest. Our culture which dictates my family still is ragid over that. For instance, in my family when you are a male child then my father will start training you of being a ‘man’ which means going out to look for a living for the family where the girl child is taught on how to take care of the household.

Me: in my family the rules for both male and female are the same.

1. Do you have any eating habits/rituals that are specific to your culture?

My partner: Yes. We have got some food that certain gender cannot feed on them as dictated by our culture. For example, expectant women as per our cultured are not suppose to eat fatty meat and eggs.

Me: yes eating and greeting are specific to our culture.

1. Define and describe the most important (or most celebrated) holiday of your culture.

My partner: Every year 26th December there is cultural day which is celebrated in my culture, where the elderly people in my community come out and teach the young general about the ancient culture and traditions. The elders educate the young generation on the essence of safeguarding our culture so as it can be passed to the future generations.

Me: Eid UDHA is celebrated by Muslims all over the world as a tribute to those who are completing their pilgrimage to Mecca on that day. Muslims sacrifice sheep, and They eat the meat and share it with neighbors, and the poor people. It is celebrated take place after the 10th annual pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia.

1. If you are from a culture that speaks English as a second language, do you speak your native language? If not, why? If so, will you teach your native language to any children you have?

My partner: Yes I do speak my native language but not frequently because most of my time I hang up with my friends and my college mates which come from different cultures which makes it hard for me to speak. But in case I bump into any of my people I do enjoy speaking my native language. Yes I will teach my children my native language because failure to do that sometime in life they might experience identity crisis.

Me: Yes I speak my native language but not always and yes I will teach my cildren our native culture because that’s our culture.

1. How is physical contact viewed in your culture?

Me and My partner : Our culture is so strict when it comes to physical contact and this is address to the children at their infancy stage. That is awful for different genders to have any close form of physical contact unless for the case of spouses. The different gender should maintain some social distance when interacting and should avoid erotic touches at any cost.

1. What is considered most disrespectful in your culture?

My partner: Having a sexual affair with a family member this applies up to the extended family members.

Me: if you are not taking care of your parents when they got old.

1. What is considered most respectful in your culture?

My partner: Taking care of the elderly people. For instance, fetching for them water and also assisting them at the homes.

Me: taking care of your parents when they got old.

1. What would you say is, from your perspective, the most commonly held misconception about people of your culture?

Me and My partner: When an owl cries during the night at a certain homestead then that is the assurance of a misfortune befalling that specific home, and the misfortune is likely to be death. But it has been the misconception that has been on for long span of time.

1. Have you ever experienced racism? In what form?

My partner: Not yet because I havent had much of the interaction with people from different race from mine in many cases.

Me: Not yet.

1. What can be done about racism and prejudice, in your opinion?

Me and My partner: People should be taught basing on the religious teachings on the essence of all are equal and therefore we should observe natural law, because as much as campaign can be staged to advocate for fight against racism and prejudice, but the change starts from change in the individual perception of other races.

1. Do young people today have a sense of culture?

Me and My partner: Few of them, because majority as a result of globalization they interact with other young people and as a result some of them lose their cultures and they may invent a new culture which is a cocktail of some cultures, or they might be absorbed with what is perceived as a superior culture.

1. What is the best thing about living in the USA?

Me and My partner: U.S have matured democracy which listens to its citizen and is concerned with the welfare of any people living in the U.S. The government has made sure that social system are in good shape to address the citizen concerns.

1. What is the worst thing about living in the USA?

My partner: There is some form of racial discrimination in some states in the U.S, which have made some of the immigrants feel excluded in some aspects.

Me: the homesick.

1. Have you ever felt excluded based on your gender or culture?

My partner: Yes. When I was asking for my meals in one of the restaurants in New York I thought I could be served with my local food upon asking the waiter. He bursted into a loud laughter saying they don’t serve such pathetic meals.

Me: no.

1. Do you remember excluding others based on Culture or Gender?

My partner: Yes. I excluded one lady who wanted to be our group leader in our class, and this was because of what my culture had already planted in my mind set that women are suppose to led men at any cost.

Me: no.

1. Share which one campus event you attended and which off campus event you attended. How did attending the events assist in your ability to gain information? Was it help? Why or why not? Which event was favored and why?

My partner: On campus I was priviledged one day to attend a talk that was conducted in our campus library in attendance were several student from different universities within U.S. Attending the talk, which important as I was in a position to learn on effective communication on which information gaining is an element that most of the speakers talked about in detail.

During the holidays I created some time to meet my friends at the playing grounds, when we were playing we could communicate to each other, being from different cultures and when you communicate you consider that. In the long run it improved my ability to gsin informstion. For my case, I prefer the ability gained off the campus because it breaks the monotomy of learning in the class environment plus many other knowledge and skills can be identified outside the class because of that off campus event was favored.

References.

Astone, N. M., & McLanahan, S. S. (1991). Family structure, parental practices and high school completion. American sociological review, 309-320.

Hall, E. T., & Hall, M. R. (1989). Understanding cultural differences. Intercultural press.

www.sjsu.edu/.../Cultural_Intervxw_Questions.d...