10/16/2021; Week 5: Response to "Cultural Paradigms"

     This week's study in cultural paradigms was fascinating, and something I think about on a nearly daily basis. The reason for this is that I am an American born and raised in the United States now living in Mexico. Although I have lived here for fourteen years, I am still in turns amazed, puzzled, impressed, and confused by the differences in the way that many Mexican people think as opposed to how people raised in the United States think. One example I can think of in particular is the paradigm of body size and shape that somewhat goes along with the Ted Talk entitled "Cultural Clashes in Defining Beauty". Growing up in the United States, my sister and myself often felt rejected because as teenagers we didn't fit the "American" paradigm of beauty. We were full-figured, fun-loving girls, but didn't attract too many boys because we weren't the "Twiggy" model type. However, when we would travel to the beaches of Mexico with our parents and brothers and sisters, we were the hit of the hotels. My sister, who was bigger than I was, was especially sought-after. This might be why I love Mexico to this day!

 

     Another example of different paradigms are the differences between social interactions here in Mexico and those in the United States. Because of the example of my husband, who was raised in Mexico, I noticed that when one enters into a doctor's office waiting room, one greets everyone there, saying good morning, or good afternoon. After living in Mexico for many years, I had to travel back to the United States for a doctor's appointment. Upon entering the waiting room, I said, "Good morning!" Everyone looked at me like I was an alien and responded with not a word. 

     Understanding the paradigms of those of other cultures, or even those of one's own culture, and lastly, even those of one's own family, can greatly assist in managing expectations, practicing effective communication, and in the world of teaching English to speakers of the languages, having compassion, removing affective filters, and instilling confidence in our students because we better understand where they are coming from.