Cultural Humility

Week 6: Committing to Continued Growth

Cultural humility has no end point. You won’t ever get a certificate that says you have done it or be able to cross it off a to-do list. Rather than something to achieve, cultural humility is a way of existing in the world. So, while this course has an end, your work does not.

A personal pursuit to diversify your relationships and surroundings, and remain open to and curious about others, may seem daunting or even uncomfortable at first. But it also broadens your understanding and exposes you to new experiences and perspectives that will only enrich your life and work.

This week, you commit to cultural humility and consider how you will continue your growth after the course.

Learning Objectives

Students will:

· Explain shifts in perspective and/or thinking based on the course and course resources

· Prepare plans for continued development of cultural humility

· Explain methods for addressing internal and external barriers to continued growth in cultural humility

Learning Resources

Cultural Humility

Chávez, V. [Vivian Chavez]. (2012, August 9). Cultural humility (complete) [Video]. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SaSHLbS1V4w

Note: The approximate length of this media piece is 30 minutes.

Gallardo, M. (Host). (2020, February 26). What does it mean to be culturally humble? (No. 14) [Audio podcast episode]. In Cultural humility podcast. https://drgallardo.com/uncategorized/what-does-it-mean-to-be-culturally-humble/

Note: The approximate length of this media piece is 66 minutes.

Document: Podcast Transcript (PDF)

Note: Review this written transcript as an alternative to listening to the “What Does It Mean to Be Culturally Humble?” podcast episode.

Document: Recommended Books, Films, and Podcasts (PDF)

Discussion: Course Resource Reflection

Across history, books and films have led to both personal and societal change. Books like Uncle Tom’s Cabin made slavery’s horrors real and immediate to its readers, and The Jungle raised the public’s awareness of working conditions in the nation’s slaughterhouses. Over the length of this course, you have explored many different readings, talks, videos, and worksheets. Which ones raised awareness and stirred change in you?

In this Discussion, you describe resources from the course that presented new ideas or concepts and affected you in a lasting way.

To Prepare

· Review your course announcements for possible information related to this week’s Discussion and Assignment.

· Revisit all the Learning Resources provided throughout the course. If you did not previously have time to read or view a resource, do so now.

By Day 4

Select at least two required course resources that had the most impact on your thinking and explain why and in what way they affected you. What 1–2 quotes or concepts from these resources really resonated, challenged you, and/or shifted your perspective?

By Day 6

Respond to at least one colleague by explaining how the same resource(s) they mentioned in their post affected you. You may also recommend added resources found in this week’s “Recommended Books, Films, and Podcasts” or elsewhere, explaining how they might be helpful.

Submission and Grading Information

Grading Criteria

Reflective Assignment: Your Culturally Humble Path

This course has largely been focused on self-reflection and self-analysis—a “pause” button in the movie of your life where you have stopped and then rewound to revisit your earliest days. This pause has been intentional in helping to clarify your understanding of your own culture—including the values and beliefs you were socialized into—and how that culture colors and shapes your interactions with others, even now. The course has also been foundational in nature, with the expectation that you will continue to pursue self-awareness and humility in your cross-cultural relationships long after.

Before you hit “play” again, you have an opportunity to fast-forward to the future. In this Assignment, you envision your “culturally humble path” and what barriers you may face.

To Prepare

· Review the Learning Resources on cultural humility.

· Reflect on the strides that you have made in this course in understanding and applying the tenets of cultural humility.

· Consider more strides that you would like to make in your professional life related to working with and advocating for diverse populations. What external and internal barriers might you face in this work?

By Day 7

Submit a 1- to 2-page critical reflection in which you describe how you envision yourself working with and advocating for diverse populations using cultural humility. Be specific. Please include:

· The external barriers to continuing to develop your cultural humility (e.g., institutional policies or procedures, funding, language differences, skeptical attitudes from others concerning your motives) and how you might address them.

· The internal/personal barriers to continuing to develop your cultural humility (e.g., fear, lack of confidence, time pressures) and how you might address them.

Please make liberal use of the Learning Resources to enrich your reflection.

Note: When formulating your plans for continued development, consider that the history of dominant/nondominant interactions is full of examples where dominant group members seek firsthand contact and information from nondominant members, only to use that information to co-opt and/or exploit them. This being the case, please do not assume that your presence will be automatically welcomed within nondominant circles.