Paul D. Coverdell World Wise Schools - Culture Matters

Settling In

In many ways, life after pre-service training is very different from what you adjusted to as a trainee, especially if your training follows the traditional as opposed to the community-based model.

To understand what these differences might be, complete this exercise by checking any of the following statements that are true of your pre-service training.

There is a large staff of people, as many as one for every three trainees, whose job it is to look after me.

Most of the host country people I deal with have spent a lot of time before with Americans and are used to how they think and act.

The host country people I deal with realize I don't understand very much about their culture and country and are quite forgiving of me.

Most of the host country people I interact with understand my special way of speaking their language and understand me.

Most of the host country people I interact with speak to me in a special version of their language used for people who are not very fluent.

I spend a lot of my day speaking English.
My day is full, well planned, and tightly scheduled.
I have very little free time.
Other people are taking care of me; I am expected to do very little for myself, so I can concentrate on all the things I have to learn as a trainee.

I spend a lot of my time with other Americans.

As these statements are not going to be true of your life after training, if you checked all or most of them, then consider the following:

1. What are the implications of the fact that the host country people you have been dealing with use a special language with you and understand your special use of their language?

2. What are the implications of the fact that other people have been looking after you-food shopping, cooking, doing your laundry-and you've gotten used to being looked after in this way?

3. What are the implications of the fact that you have gotten used to being around HCNs who already understand Americans?

4. What are the implications of the fact that you may have adjusted to the culture of pre-service training and not to the real culture?

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