Some students think that they do not have much of a cultural background because they were not born outside of the United States or because they do not speak another language. The truth is that everyone has a culture!

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Prepare: As you prepare to write your discussion for this topic, take time to do the following:

• Read the writing prompt below in its entirety. Note that there are three tasks to complete:
  • Define culture and explain its importance in communication.
  • Describe your own culture.
  • Explain how culture impacts how you communicate with others, including those from different cultures.
• Review Chapter 3 of your text and identify at least one point about culture and communication to discuss in your post.
• Drawing on what you’ve learned in Bevan and Sole (2014), start formulating a definition of culture and its important in communication.
• Review the grading rubric and note that 30% of your grade is based on your application of course material (General Content/Subject Knowledge) and 30% is based on your ability to demonstrate you are thinking critically and presenting original ideas.

Reflect: Based on what you have learned in Chapter 3, think about key elements of your own culture and how they influence both the style and content of your communication. Think about how your culture shapes how you communicate with others, especially those who are from other cultures. Why is culture important in understanding effective communication? How can knowing about your own culture help you build bonds and/or bridge cultural divides? If you are struggling, think about where you live and the consumer goods that surround you. How do these reflect your values and beliefs? How has communication shaped those choices and ideas?

Write: Based on what you have learned in class this week,

• Define culture and explain why it is important to understanding communication.
• Explain how understanding and assessing culture can improve your own communication. Describe your own culture and share with us what makes you who you are. Your culture can be related to your race, ethnicity, gender, age, nationality, religion, sexual orientation, media preferences, hobbies, religion, etc. Try not to focus on just one of these aspects of yourself, but instead utilize as many cultural elements as possible. Think about both style (how you speak) and content (what interests you).
• How does your culture affect your communication with those in your own culture and those from other cultures?

Thoroughly respond to the discussion elements by writing at least one to two sentences on your definition and then two to three sentences on each of the remaining two elements. Use the course readings, with full APA citations, at least once to help you make your points. Consider copying and pasting all three tasks into a word file and addressing each of them separately.