Cultural Reflection

I think that I really learned a lot in my Cultural Issues and Diversity class this semester. There were a lot of assignments, guest speakers, presentations and discussions that really helped me out. I think that all of the guest speakers were great but the ones that really caught my attention the most were
Andy Leggett, Colleen and the people from the "Say Out Loud" group. They answered questions very carefully and seemed as though they were very passionate about their work. The whole class showed great interest in all of them and learned quite a bit. I think that the blogs were also a great assignment because it got us to reflect on our learning of what was going on in the class which helped it stick to my memory a little bit more. I also thought it was a little interesting and different to be able to place a journal online and then send it to the teacher through e-mail. I also really enjoyed watching the presentations on the different cultures nand ethnicity because the handouts can be useful for us to look at and it gave us a better understanding of some different cultures around the globe. We may be working with these children in the future and it is important to understand their backgrounds.
I think that I struggled a little bit with the toolkit because I wasn`t exactly sure what to put in it. I thought that there were a wide variety of ideas that we had but then we weren`t sure what it was supposed to really look like in the end and neither did a lot of other people in the class. I think next year it would be great to have some examples shown of certain assignments before they are handed out because it gives the students a way better understanding of what the final product should look like. I also had a little bit of trouble with the group presentations. I found that they were beneficial to my learning as I was watching them but we got the group of "New Canadians" and I found it a little bit harder to research than other cultures would have been. I think they should have all had the equal amount of research put in them. In the end, I was very happy with my mark!.. And I think it was well deserved :)!
In the future, I plan to continue my learning by going out of my comfort zone whenever I get the chance. I am not scared to take a risk and do something that is out of the norm. I think that these kinds of ideas turn into great experiences and there is always a great story attached. I think that it is beneficial for my learning as well. If I end up working with a child in my career with a culture or religion that I am not familiar with, I definitely plan to do some researching to get a better understanding of them just do I know a little more about them.
Altogether, I think this class was very good for my learning and I think it is very useful for child and youth work. I learned a lot and plan on pushing myself more and more in continuing my role as a Child and Youth Worker!

Exploring The Mind Of A DSW

In last weeks class, we got the opportunity to have a guest speaker that works in the field as a DSW. She works with disabled individuals and she talked to us about many different topics and also got us to interact with one another for an activity that deals with stigmatism. We learned about labelling and what kind of vocabulary to use when it comes to talking to a disabled person as well as how to explain them. She told us that it is not proper to call a person a midget or a dwarf and that it is better to recognize them as a person with short statue. Some of us already had an idea of what to say and what not to say when it comes to mentioning a disabled person. Sometimes we have to remember that the person is not the disability but that they have a disability. When someone is diagnosed with a mental health disorder or disability, it is not who they are, it is just a part of their life and what they may be dealing with. 
Colleen told us that it is important to treat people who may have a disability like they are humans. She talked about how it may be easier said than done and that it is easy to forget sometimes. It is natural for us to feel some kind of empathy or sadness towards a person who may be disabled and it is important to treat them just like you would treat anyone else. It is also important to respect the childs parents and their families decisions for anything because they are the main surrounding in this persons life.
I think that this guest speaker was very valuable to the class because she reminded us how important it is to treat these children like they are any other and how much they may struggle with stigma. These people may need a little more support than others but it doesn`t mean that they are any different in how they should be treated. I think it would be very important to be as positive and energetic as possible when working with a disabled person because they deserve to have as much inspiration and joy as possible.