D1.0: Introduction - Welcome to our Cultural Immersion experience

COMM 3301 SUM III Day 1: Introduction: Welcome to your Cultural Immersion Experience

Welcome to the Netherlands and to our exciting learning journey about Intercultural Communication and Leadership. Today we are embarking on a four-week unique journey to our destination: enabling us to communicate effectively across and within cultures.

We will immerse ourselves in practical, everyday dilemmas. We will practice methods of communication across a broad range of contexts while enjoying the gradual process of enhancing our personal social skills. All aimed to prepare us to be able to address future interpersonal encounters between people from two distinguishably diverse cultural backgrounds or contexts.

Over the four weeks, we will expand our horizons, by looking at:

Week 1: Understanding our identity and contextualizing our cultural identity
Week 2: Understanding and applying cultural differences
Week 3: Exploring the landscape of leadership in the context of intercultural environment
Week 4: Reinforcing our theoretical knowledge in specific practical applications.

Are you ready? Let’s take our first step on this exciting journey and see what Day 1 has to offer us.

Today we will begin with an overview of the course. I will take you through my reasoning for setting the course the way it was set. I will highlight key features and share with my expectations. I will also provide you with an opportunity to share your priorities and expectations from this course. Such knowledge would enable me to tailor the course to your specific needs and learning styles, and hopefully make it a more relevant and rewarding learning experience for each student.

We will conclude Day 1 session with a Q&A session during which I will also reflect on the key learning points of today and address any concerns or suggestions related to your learning experience so far. I will also provide a brief overview of what to expect, especially in terms of time management and assignments.

I am looking forward to having an engaged and vibrant team of students are eager to explore the uncharted territories of the Intercultural communication and leadership course in the Netherlands.

I have posted some interesting, recommended readings to supplement our discussion and to provide you with a broader context about the concept we will discuss during our class.

And I would like to conclude with an inspiring quote by Albert Einstein: “The true sign of intelligence is not knowledge but imagination."

Enjoy and have fun,

Evelina