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CQ Journal: Cultural Experience Assignment Instructions

Overview

Throughout the course, you will submit 4 journal entries which will guide you to reflect on your cultural intelligence (CQ) scores, set measurable goals and action steps for improving your CQ, and participate in activities and experiences which will help to practice effective intercultural communication. With CQ, there is always more to learn and room to grow, and this course is an opportunity to practice exercising each of the CQ capabilities. You can use your journal entries to track your progress through the journey of this course, but hopefully you will feel inspired to continue to develop your CQ beyond this course.

Instructions

Your journal entry should meet the following requirements.

Length: 400-800 words 

Your journal entry should be written in paragraph form with proper grammar and spelling. Thoughts should be well-organized and cohesive. 

Your journal entry should be submitted on the template provided. 

For this journal, each student will need to seek to have a cross-cultural experience and engage with people from a different ethno-linguistic background than your own. The purpose of this assignment is to have a new experience with a culture that is unfamiliar, practice developing their CQ capabilities, and take note of similarities and differences in cultural values. 

Here are a few suggestions of experiences to have (note: students should choose one option from this list):

Visit the home of a friend from another country. Ask them to teach you how to make food from that country, or how to play a sport which is unique to that country. Talk together about the differences in your two cultures and challenges of interacting with people who are different. (Note: It’s important that students seek out a new experience. This option is not meant for students to visit a home of a close friend where they have been often or have been around the culture or family for a long time. Perhaps an acquaintance that you’d like to get to know better would provide a new experience). 

• Attend a cultural celebration or festival sponsored by a local cultural association. Learn about the various traditions. (Look for Greek Festivals, Indian Cultural Festivals, Chinese New Year celebrations, etc.)
• Visit a local non-Christian place of worship (Mosque, Hindu temple, Buddhist temple, etc.). Respectfully ask for a tour and ask for someone to share a little about their religion, the meanings of certain artifacts or statues you see, and the purpose of the practices you witness.
• Attend a Christian worship gathering where most of the attendees have an ethno-linguistic background that is different than your own. (Many communities have churches who worship in a foreign language.)

Visit a local ethnic restaurant (note: Taco Bell, Panda Express, Chipotle, Chuy’s, and other American chain restaurants that serve “international food” do not count as ethnic restaurants. Find a place where the chef and most of the staff are from the country from where the food originates, and other people of that same ethnicity go there to get food from home). Talk with the staff about where they are from and ask them about how they make their most iconic dishes. Ask about the role food plays in their culture. **This only counts if you actually engage in conversations other than ordering food!**

After you have completed your cultural experience, use the writing prompt below to complete your journal. Your journal entry should be at least 400 words and should include an answer to each of the major sections/headings of this prompt (in bold). The bullet points under each heading are suggestions for topics to consider. 

Describe your cultural experience. 

Where did you go?

• Who did you talk to? 

What do you see, hear, smell, taste, feel? 

• Did anything surprise you? 
• What did you most enjoy about the experience? 
• What was the most difficult part?
• Discuss what you learned about the culture represented through the experience. 

What was similar to your own culture? 

What was different? 

What cultural values did you notice?

How can your CQ help you in cross-cultural experiences such as these (be specific)?

How has your awareness of cultures in general or the specific culture represented changed because of your experience? 

• Alternative Assignment Option for Journal 3

We know that some students live in places and situations which may prevent them from having such a cross-cultural experience. While we encourage you to do some more research in your community because many students are surprised to find that there is more diversity than they expect, we do understand that there are limitations. If you cannot find a cross-cultural experience like the ones listed above, you may, with the prior permission of your instructor, use a digital experience as a substitute. You may watch a movie that was produced in a foreign country (think Bollywood, Chinese film, French Film, etc.), or watch a movie about a person who crosses cultures. Please contact your professor if you would like to use a digital option for this journal. For your journal entry, you should write a 400-800 word review of the movie. You will discuss the elements of culture you found to be unique in the media (especially focus on cultural value orientations, the cross-cultural challenges experienced by the character, and the ways you would apply cultural intelligence to be able to engage that culture effectively).