Would you rather (a) deliver an oral presentation to an external audience, (b) be interviewed for a news story that involves a serious accident at your company, or (c) make a presentation to a departmental meeting? Why? How do communication skills differ in those situations?
Be substantive/expansive when providing the replies.
One:
1: It can have an effect on your well being and sense of belonging if you are minoritized at school, home, and in society. This affected can be really damaging for kids and it can lead into feelings of marginalization. In school they can face bullying, unfair treatment. They can also be bullied at school because of their race, ethnicity and religion. This topic can negatively impact their academic performance and mental health it can lead into even more worse. At home they can be lonely and may experience cultural clashes and presses to conform to dominant norms. This can create a disconnection and internal conflict. In society individuals may face limited opportunities and unequal treatment. They can also encounter stereotypes this could lead into worsening situations. This can also lead into feelings like angry, frustrated, sad, and a constant need to prove them selves. These affects can really be bad for all of us and this why this topic is so important. Creating safe spaces, educating each can be better for all of us then just being minoritized in school, at your home, or in society. Justice can help to mitigate the negativity impacts that come to us at all times.
2: One of the most important factor is social support. Having social media can hurt us and we can get bullied and that’s why nowadays kids have really bad mental health. In my opinion social media can ruin us. Another factor is socioeconomic status. Economic inequality and limited access to resources and education. Also it can be limited to health care which can contribute to a higher level of stress. Stress is very important and if they don’t have access to health care it can get worse and worse every day for them. Additionally discrimination and stigma based on factors like our race, gender, and ethnicity can have a very deep detrimental impact on our mental health. This is why this topic is so important to us and everyone. The last factor is isolation. When individuals feel disconnected from each and they send out meaningful social connections. This can lead to no contact, no communication, and much more worse. You can feel lonely, depressed, and you can have a lot of anxiety all the time and you can help it. It’s important to nurture relationships and seek out our social connections with our friends and family to have a better life and connection with them.
Two:
Prompt 2: Discuss what Takaki means when he answers the question, “We will all be minorities?” (Ch 17).
From Chapter 17, Takaki, by using the phrase “We will all be minorities,” means that the American demography is changing in terms of what was originally the traditional racial/ethnic make-up to more diverse groups. This means the majority (Whites) will stop being the majority as people are increasingly becoming multiracial (White + Black + Mexican+ Asian). This means, in the future, our societies will be composed of minorities. This is seen in California, which Takaki (2008) says is a “multiethnic society” that represents “the America of the twenty-first century” (530). Other examples provided by Takaki relating to individuals include Tiger Woods and Barack Obama. When it comes to Tiger Woods, Takaki (2008) mentions that he is “a mixture of different races” since he is a “product of two great cultures, one African American and the other Asian” (530). On the other hand, Barack Obama has a “biracial identity” since “his father is black and his mother white,” not to mention he was raised by “his stepfather, Lolo Soetoro,” who was Indonesian (Takaki, 2008, 531). This demonstrates how individuals are made of different ‘pieces’ from various racial or ethnic backgrounds, a trend that continues to rise in the current American society. This explains why Bill Clinton, in his speech “One America in the Twenty-first Century: The President’s Initiative on Race,” declared that “A half century from now, when your own grandchildren are in college, there will be no majority race in America” (Takaki, 2008, 528). This is because we will all be minorities.
Prompt 3: Describe the effects of being minoritized at school, at home, or in society.
According to Dr. Fuentes, being minoritized means to “consider people as a minority” by looking at how different they are from others due to their race, political beliefs, and religion among others, or by making them “feel as though they are a minority, in a way that is harmful or unfair” (Unit 7: Introduction & Concepts, 2024). In short, being “minoritized means to be pushed to the margins often by means out of your own control” (Fuentes, Unit 7: Closing Remarks & Discussion, 2024). This can have profound effects on individuals at school, home, or in society, which include the following: discrimination and social exclusion, whereby teachers, for example, might fail to include the minoritized students due to their race, ethnicity, culture, religion, or political beliefs. This may not only cause academic challenges to the learners, thus impacting their participation and achievement, but also cause psychological effects, such as poor low self-esteem, anxiety, or depression. Moreover, in societies, the minoritized groups may experience systemic inequalities, which may cause social, economic, and political exclusion. Consequently, these groups may lose their voices when it comes to political representation, hence lacking influence in creating policies/laws that can help their communities in general. Economically, these groups can experience high unemployment rates, which affect their well-being at home or in the community in terms of accessing better healthcare and education or advancing their lives. Therefore, the effects facing minoritized individuals are deep-rooted, which become a hindrance to how they participate in society, hence affecting their quality of life.
Three:
I would rather make a presentation to a departmental meeting. While presenting to others I tend to stutter or forget important factors that should have been included, so I don’t feel I would preform best doing an oral presentation to an external audience. Being interviewed would be on the spot and I do not preform well answering questions if they were not known in advance. I would feel most comfortable creating a presentation to a departmental meeting as I would be aware of what I am supposed to be delivering and the questions that may follow with the presentation.
Communication skills differ in those situations as the oral presentation to an external audience, would be to a public audience. The interview for the news story would be a serious matter that would need personal opinions, which can be held against you or your company if there is any legal matters that come with the accident. Making a presentation for a departmental meeting is a small group who you work closely with so it is a much comfortable situation, and isn’t a public speech like an oral presentation.
Four:
Personally, I would choose to make a presentation to a departmental meeting rather than the other two options. It feels less intimidating than speaking to an external audience or being interviewed about a serious accident. This is because it feels more comfortable to speak in front of people I already know. It’s like sharing ideas with friends rather than a formal setting. Plus, it’s a great opportunity to showcase your knowledge and ideas to your colleagues.
In each of those situations, the communication skills required may vary slightly. When delivering an oral presentation to an external audience, you would need to focus on clarity, engaging storytelling, and effective use of visuals to captivate and inform the audience. While being interviewed for a news story about a serious accident at your company, you would need to demonstrate strong communication skills under pressure. It’s crucial to remain calm, provide accurate information, and convey empathy and concern. Lastly, when making a presentation to a departmental meeting, you can focus on fostering collaboration and conveying your ideas to a familiar audience. You can use a more informal tone and engage in interactive discussions to encourage participation and gather feedback.
