Programme

The course begins with an exploration of the students’ own past and present exposure to a variety of cultures, followed by an new examinaon of students’ own cultures that such experiences uniquely permit. Cultural patterns will be introduced to allow students to better interpret culturally diverse behaviors and communication styles and learn to make well-grounded generalizations when comparing cultures. Finally, the course will offer theoretical tools to interpret current cultural issues in the Italian, European and Mediterranean region such as migration and refugees, religion and the resurgence of exclusive and xenophobic conceptions of culture. At the end of the course, students will evaluate their growth and areas of challenge through an assessment of intercultural competence.

Core Documentation

Required Texts:

Marn, J.N. & Nakayama, T.K. (2010). Intercultural Communication in Contexts (5th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw Hill Humanies/Social Sciences/Languages. ISBN-13: 978-0073385129; Cost: To Be Determined.
Samovar, L.A., Porter, R.E., McDaniel, E.R. & Roy, C.S. (2012). Chapter 6: Cultural Values: Guidelines for Behavior. In Communication Between Cultures (8th ed.) (172-212). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Publishing. ISBN-13: 978-1111349103; Cost: To
Be Determined.

Additional Readings and Resources:

Arcles and powerpoint lecture slides are available from the instructor on the course "Canvas site through Arcadia University".

Type of delivery of the course

Attendance/Participation Prompt attendance, full preparation, and active participation in class discussions are expected from every student in every class session.

Attendance

ATTENDANCE POLICY: Attendance is mandatory for all classes, including field studies. If a student misses more than three classes in this course, two percentage points will be deducted from the final grade for every additional absence. Any exams, tests,presentations, or other work missed due to student absences can only be rescheduled in cases of documented medical emergencies or family emergencies. The Faculty Committee will only consider extreme emergency cases and will strictly adhere to this policy.

Type of evaluation

The exam will test a student’s ability to analyze material and theories presented during the course by asking them to demonstrate the breadth and depth of their understanding of the materials covered in class, in field visits and readings.