Success with Cross-Cultural Presentations: Part II

1. Success with Cross-Cultural Presentations: Part II March 29, 2008 Colleen Meyers, Education Specialist, Center for Teaching & Learning University of Minnesota, meyer002@umn.edu

2. Nice to meet you! • Hun gao xing jian dao ni. • 3 1 4 4 4 3 • flat • rising • fall + short rise • fall

3. Review: Non-verbal Communication Approximately what percent of communication is non-verbal: • A. 7% • B. 38% • C. 55%

4. A. 7 % B. 38% C. 55% Spoken words Use of voice All non-verbals Review: Non-Verbal Communication

5. Cross-Cultural Communication

6. Agenda • Hour 1: Relevance • Hour 2: Handling Questions • Hour 3: Day-to-Day Work Challenges

7. Part I: Relevance: Assessing and Involving your Audience

8. Relevance: Objectives Objectives: By the end of this part, participants will be able to: • Identify strategies for assessing audience background and level. • Demonstrate the ability to make an abstract term clear by building in redundancy. • Use correct intonation patterns.

9. Relevance: Example • You will see a video of “Michael” teaching about “North American English Vowels.” • Watch the video and be prepared to comment on: • What techniques does Michael use to assess his audience’s background and level? • What techniques does he use to make his concept clear to his audience?

10. Relevance: Example Strategies used to make material relevant: • Asking questions to determine background. • Building in redundancy. • Checking for comprehension.

11. Relevance: Phrases Phrases for assessing background: • Let me start by asking you a question. • Are you (all) familiar with this chart? • Has anyone seen this before? • How many of you are familiar with X? Please raise your hand.

12. Relevance: Strategies • Personal/practical example • Analogy or comparison/contrast • Word origin • Visual (picture, model, diagram, chart)

13. Relevance: Phrases • Phrases for building in redundancy: • Let me give you an example. • I think this example will clarify. • In other words, ….. • In simple terms, this means…. • That is, …. • Here’s a chart to help you understand. • I brought a model to show you what I mean.

14. Relevance: Phrases • Phrases to check for comprehension: • Does this make sense? • Does everyone follow this? • Any questions about this? • Is this clear? • Before we move on, any questions up to this point?

15. Relevance: Practice Defining a Term • Work with a partner. Each of you will take turns making a concept or term from your field relevant to the other: • Assess your audience’s background. • Explain the concept. • Make it relevant through an example, analogy, word origin, or other strategy. • Check to make sure the concept is clear.

16. Relevance: Feedback • Comment on: • Use of questions to assess your level/background • Effectiveness of strategies to make materials relevant to you • Use of comprehension checks. • Suggestions for improvement.

17. Relevance: Summary Remember: • Use of questions for assessment • Use of voice (volume, emphasis, pausing, and voice variation) to make questions clear. • Use of redundancy to make material relevant. • Check to ensure clarity.

18. Break

19. Part 2: Handling Questions

20. Hour 2: Handling Questions Objectives By the end of this part, participants will be able to: • Identify cultural values for answering questions in the US. • Identify strategies for negotiating meaning & handling questions. • Practice handling questions appropriately

21. Handling Questions: Cultural Expectations Which of the following visuals best represents what is expected in the US: (Draw on whiteboard.)

22. Handling Questions: Cultural Differences

23. Handling Questions: Theory • US cultural expectations: • Answers are direct. • Answers are concise. • Consider audience’s background.

24. Handling Questions: Theory Compensatory strategies: • R = rephrase/repeat • (H) = hesitate • A = answer • G = go back

25. Handling Questions: ARAG Observe Amit (Unit 9, chapter 62) • Do you think his answer is clear? Why or why not? • What suggestions would you give him?

26. Handling Questions: Rephrasing/Repeating • Rationale: • Make sure you get the question. • Make sure others hear. • Thinking time. • Focus the question, if necessary. • Decide when to delay.

27. Handling Questions: Rephrasing/Repeating • Phrases: • Are you asking…? • I think what you’re asking me is …., right? • So, you want to know…. • Your question is ….. • Let me repeat the question for everyone.

28. Handling Questions:Hesitating Reasons: • Thinking time • Compensates for language • Builds rapport (names) • Shows respect

29. Handling Questions: Hesitating • Phrases: • Good/Interesting question! • John’s asking ….. • Let me see. • Let me think. • We…ll. • Hmm. Let me put it this way.

30. Handling Questions: Answering • Phrases: • Generally speaking, …. • Yes and no. Let me explain. • It depends. • The answer is “yes.” • It’s almost always “true.”

31. Handling Questions: Going Back • Rationale: • Questioner satisfaction. • Closure. • Indicates next question. • Additional questions.

32. Handling Questions: Going Back Behaviors to Observe: • Questioner nods • Questioner says, • I see. • OK. • Uh-huh. • Uh-hum.

33. Handling Questions: Going Back If the questioner seems satisfied, the speaker may say: • Anything else? • Any other questions? • Other questions?

34. Handling Questions: Going Back If the questioner does not seem satisfied, the speaker should say: • Did I answer your question? • Does that make sense? • Is that what you wanted to know?

35. Handling Questions: Practice using ARAG • Work in pairs. • Answer each question using R(H)AG. • Listener checks. • Feedback. • Switch roles.

36. Handling Questions: Delay Tactics • Phrases: • I’m not completely sure. Let me check & email you, OK? • Off the top of my head, I don’t know the exact figures. I’ll look them up & get back to you. • I don’t know the answer. Anyone here know the statistics? • I’m sorry. I’m an engineer—not a manager. • That’s a long, complicated question. Why don’t we talk later? • That’s a complex question. The short answer is ….

37. Handling Questions: Summary • Don’t answer immediately. • Make sure you truly understand intention of question. • Thinking time. • Delay, if necessary.

38. Break

39. Part III Everyday Work Challenges

40. Work Challenges: Objectives • By the end of this hour, participants will be able to: • Identify strategies for dealing with work challenges (with supervisors, subordinates, and/or peers) • Practice using appropriate language for dealing with these challenges. • Get feedback from peers on the effectiveness of strategies/language.

41. Brainstorming Challenges • Individually, take a few minutes to write down one or two of the challenges you have faced or might face at work. • Label each challenge as: • w/ a supervisor • w/ a subordinate • w/ a peer

42. Challenges: Group Work • Based on your type of challenge, get into 3 groups: • Challenges pertaining to subordinates • Challenges pertaining to supervisors • Challenges pertaining to peers

43. Challenges: Group Work • Now, take 5-10 minutes to discuss strategies for dealing with your group’s challenges. • Then, role-play one of the challenges using 2 (or more) of the group members. • Debrief the role-play by discussing whether the strategy worked and why (or why not).

44. Challenges: Large Group Debrief • As a large group, each small group will share 1 of their challenges: • What was the challenge? • What strategies did you come up with? • When you role-played, did the strategy work?

45. Success with Cross-Cultural Presentations • Reflection: • 1) What were 2-3 of the most important concepts or strategies you learned today? • 2) How will you implement them in your work? • 3) What additional questions, if any, do you have? (3 X 5 cards)

46. Follow Up • Email me at: meyer002@umn.edu • Contact me at: 612-625-3312 • Office: 315 Science Classroom Building, University of Minnesota (Mpls. Campus) • Success with Presentations (DVD + presentation skills materials used in workshop) can be ordered at: • www.eslvideos.com

47. Thank you! Xie xie!

48. Haibo’s Tips • Who’s Haibo? • Why am I quoting him?

49. Tip 1: Humor • Humor matters. I’m sorry if I didn’t pronounce your name correctly because I’m not a native English speaker.

50. Tip 2: Involvement • Keep the audience involved. The audience was happy to be involved.