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INTRODUCTION:  I teach English as a Second Language to a linguistically and culturally diverse population of community college students in Silicon Valley. This semester I’ve introduced some of the On Course strategies to my high-intermediate reading class, with enthusiastic response. Most of the students in our program work in the high tech industry as well as attend classes in ESL and other disciplines. A regular assignment I give each semester is to journal about daily activities; this journaling allows the students to practice writing in English and to express their emotions within a context that is safe, and with no grade attached. From their journals, I learn quite a bit about students’ personal lives – their family life, their work life, and their successes and disappointments. I note the frustration many students experience when adapting to the cultural and academic expectations of this culture. When is it appropriate to speak up in class? At work? How is anger appropriately expressed? How is injustice addressed? What is the register (level of formality) used when expressing praise or appreciation to one’s classmates or one’s co-workers? How does one formulate coping strategies for difficult situations in this culture? I wanted to introduce my students to the concept of Emotional Intelligence, as formulated by Daniel Goleman, and as explored in the On Course Workshop, but with an approach that would allow the students to examine their emotional intelligence within both their own cultural framework and within this culture’s. This activity could be used in any culturally heterogeneous college-level class.

PURPOSE

SUPPLIES/SET UP

DIRECTIONS

1. Begin with the question, “What is Intelligence?” Give a short talk on the history of intelligence testing and the notion of IQ as developed by Binet and Simon.

2. Ask students to describe a person they know who is very intelligent; then asked them to describe his or her personality.

3. Ask students if they know someone who has difficulty controlling her/her temper, or who demonstrates inappropriate behavior at work or at school, and ask how successful these people have been in their jobs or in school. Suggest that intelligence as defined by IQ is not the only predictor of how successful someone becomes in life – there is also the factor of “emotional intelligence.”  In fact, according to Daniel Goleman, IQ plays much less of a part in success than does EQ.

4. Play about 20 minutes of the videotape of Daniel Goleman describing the five skill areas of EQ: self-awareness; self-control; self-motivation; empathy; people skills.

5. Following the videotape, put students in groups of 3-5 people and ask them to discuss the five questions on Handout 1 (below). Ask students to respond to each of these situations from the perspective of their own cultures, then how they might respond differently in this culture, based on their observations of American cultural expectations.

6. Discuss the five main skills of EQ on Handout 2 (below). Ask students to think of an example for each skill area.

7. Finally, present Handout 3 (below) with three role plays for the students to discuss and perform in front of the class. Have students perform first in small groups, with each student taking a part. Then, choose some students to act out each role play in front of the class. (My students clamor to perform in front of the class!)

OUTCOMES/EXPERIENCES

My students all agreed that the lesson was an awakening for them about cultural expectations as well as a very useful concept for developing strategies for success in life. Many students reported they would have behaved differently in their countries in regard to the five situations above. Students who had been in this country longer than others already knew some of the differences in cultural expectations. For example, when asked the question about the crying child (a son), a couple of students protested when one student exclaimed that boys shouldn’t cry. Some students expressed particular interest in the question about discrimination on the job, stating their belief that they had been denied career advancement due to their ethnicity. The students claimed this issue would never be addressed openly in their countries; they were relieved to hear that such a possibility exists in the United States. Many students had had the experience of being a passenger in a car with a raging driver. When I asked what they had done, some students replied, "nothing.” The ensuing discussion clearly offered them alternatives when facing such a situation in the future. The role play activity helped reinforce the principles that were introduced earlier. Students were able to articulate how they would have behaved differently in their own countries for each of the situations than they would have here. At the end of the class, a number of students claimed they would highly recommend these activities to their friends and other classmates; many of the students said the awareness of EQ would definitely help them on the job.

PERSONAL LESSONS:

Daniel Goleman’s book, Emotional Intelligence, has been a wonderful resource for me. My knowledge of emotional intelligence was further reinforced by the work we did in the On Course Workshop. I’ve learned a lot about my own EQ and have applied it in work and in personal situations. It’s given me an understanding of why certain people are more successful as leaders than others; why some people, despite their intelligence, are unable to cope in stressful work situations, and why others are able to rise above the same crisis with equanimity and are able to maintain balance in their lives. My students appreciated this opportunity for enhancing their cultural awareness as well as their own self-awareness; I appreciated the reinforcement of life-long principles that I wish I’d learned many years ago.

SOURCES:

SUPPORT MATERIALS:

HANDOUT 1: FIVE QUESTIONS

Your four-year-old son is crying because some other children won’t play with him. What do you do?

You’re a college student who had hoped to do well in a course, but you have just found out you failed the midterm exam. What do you do?

Your friend is driving. He is angry because a driver in another car almost hit him. You’re trying to calm him down. What do you do?

You are a manager in a company that has employees from different ethnic backgrounds. Your company is trying to encourage its employees to respect each other. You hear someone telling a joke about one ethnic group. What do you do?

You’ve been assigned to lead a team of workers from different departments to solve a problem at work. You’re having your first meeting to discuss the problem. What’s the first thing you do?

 HANDOUT 2: EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE

Self-Awareness

Understanding Yourself

Self-Control

Handling Emotions

Self-Motivation

Using Emotions Productively

Empathy

Understanding others’ emotions

People Skills

Relating Well to People

HANDOUT 3: THREE SITUATIONS*

Situation 1: A Twenty-Year-Old And  Parent

Student A: You are twenty years old, and you live with your parents. Your mother/father is strict with you. She/he always asks where you’re going, what you’re doing, and who you’re going out with. You feel that she/he is treating you like a child, and it’s driving you crazy.

Student B: Your child is only twenty but never wants to stay home. You can’t understand why she/he has to go out so often or why she/he resents your asking where she/he is going or what she/he is going to do there. [You feel very frustrated.]

Situation 2: A Boss and an Employee

Student A: You are extremely busy and have to give a report at an important meeting tomorrow. One of your employees just gave you information that you need for your report., but she/he didn’t give you all the details you need. There is very little time, so now you will both have to work late tonight. You are quite annoyed.

Student B: At work, you have just completed a big report. You worked hard on it and are really satisfied with the results. However, your boss hardly looked at it but told you that it wasn’t what she/he was expecting. You are very upset because you did exactly as you were told.

Situation 3: A Married Couple

Student A: You are tired. Your wife/husband begins to criticize you because you left your dirty dishes in the sink. You don’t think you’ve done anything wrong. You think she/he is not being fair to you. You are very annoyed.

Student B: Your husband/wife has left dirty dishes in the sink again. You are tired and don’t want to wash them. You think she/he is not being fair to you. You complain.*

*(Based on Unit 7, Northstar Focus on Listening and Speaking)

--Rachel Lowenberg, Faculty, ESL, Mission College (CA) <rachhaug49@attbi.com>

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