Intercultural Communication Institute

27 | Facilitating Intercultural Discovery

This is an experiential workshop that focuses on learning how to learn about culture in more creative ways.

Designed for
Educators, trainers, counselors, and all who wish to enhance their own observational skills and to lead others toward intercultural discoveries. This workshop would be particularly useful for advisors and administrators of international or multicultural education programs.

Reflect on their individual learning preferences
Explore others' ways of learning to expand their own abilities
Sharpen their skills of observation of the things and events of everyday life
Be more mindful of how they make meaning and increase their cultural self-awareness
Acquire skills and methods to facilitate intercultural learning
Process the affective and cognitive components of learning

Learning Activities
These will include:

Interpretation of the cultural significance of familiar objects
Discussion of the uses of photography across cultures and in intercultural discovery
Exercises in the intercultural significance of naming
Analysis of television and other forms of popular culture
Explorations of culture through a variety of media and genres, including folklore, music, and film
Practice with different interview methods to facilitate intercultural learning
Practice in asking the right questions: case studies and presentations on designing effective intercultural projects
Discussion of the consequences of cultural exchange

Faculty: John Condon and Nagesh Rao

Dr. John Condon, part of SIIC since its founding, is a professor emeritus of communication at the University of New Mexico, and holds a lifetime title of Regents ’ Professor, the university’s highest honor. He has published more than two dozen books, with translations in seven languages. Jack has lived and worked for half his professional life outside of the U.S., and values experience outside the library and classroom. Last year he initiated the Cultural Confluence Press, dedicated to share “good ideas with a modesty of words.” Jack lives in rural New Mexico with his faithful dog, Prozac.

Dr. Nagesh Rao is an associate professor in the School of Communication Studies, Ohio University, where he teaches and conducts research in the areas of health communication and intercultural communication. He has worked on several family planning and HIV prevention research projects in the U.S., Thailand, Tanzania, and India. For the past eight years, he has analyzed the role of culture in physician-patient interactions in Brazil, Argentina, India, and the U.S. His research has been funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the National Science Foundation (NSF), the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research (AHCPR), and the National Institute for Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA). He has trained or served as a consultant for Johns Hopkins University Medical School, Kaiser Permanente, PriceWaterhouseCoopers (England), American Academy for Physician and Patient, and Health Resources Services Administration (HRSA). In 2002, Nagesh was named University Professor at Ohio University.