Page 261 - Keys To Community College Success

Differences within people. Another layer of diversity lies within
each person. Among the factors defining this layer are personality
traits, learning preferences, strengths and weaknesses, and talents
and interests. No one else has been or ever will be exactly like you.
In college, at work, and as you go about your daily life, you are
likely to meet people who reflect America’s growing diversity, including:
■ Biracial or multiracial individuals
■ People from families with more than one religious tradition
■ Non-native English speakers, like Gaile, who may have emi-
grated from outside the United States
■ Nontraditional students who are older than “traditional”
18- to 22-year-old students
■ People living with various kinds of disabilities
■ Gay, lesbian, bi, or transgender individuals
■ People practicing different lifestyles, which are often expressed
by the way they dress, their interests, their friends, or their
leisure activities
Interacting effectively with all kinds of people is crucial to your
school and life success and is the goal of cultural competence—the
ability to understand and appreciate differences among people and
adjust your behavior in ways that enhance, rather than detract from,
relationships and communication. Risking becoming culturally
competent carries significant rewards promoting both school and
life success. According to the National Center for Cultural Compe-
tence, developing cultural competence involves these five actions: 2
1. Value diversity.
2. Identify and evaluate personal perceptions and attitudes.
3. Be aware of what happens when different cultures interact. As you get to know people you collaborate with, you
4. Build knowledge about other cultures. will discover both visible and invisible characteristics
5. Use what you learn to adapt to diverse cultures as you encoun- and qualities.
ter them.
In developing cultural competence, you develop practical skills that help you
connect to others, bridging the gap between who you are and who they are. 3

Action #1: Value Diversity
Valuing diversity means having a basic respect for the differences among people and an
understanding of what is positive about those differences. You may not like everyone you
meet, but if you value diversity, you will tolerate and respect people whether you like them
or not, avoid assumptions, and grant them the right to think, feel, and believe without being
judged. This attitude helps you to take emotionally intelligent actions, as shown in Key 9.1.
Valuing diversity is about more than just passive tolerance of the world around you
(not causing conflict but not seeking harmony either). The reward of productive teamwork
and deep friendship demands a more significant risk than that. Valuing diversity is about
moving toward acceptance by actively celebrating differences as an enriching part of life.

Action #2: Identify and Evaluate
Personal Perceptions and Attitudes

Bringing emotional intelligence into play, you identify perceptions and attitudes by first Diversity and Communication
noticing your feelings about others, and then evaluating these attitudes by looking at

223