Personal Blogs

I have been meaning to get thoughts onto a page for a while regarding schedule. I think it's mainly just as a way of getting it off my chest, even if noone reads it! 

This year I have chosen to complete my degree by taking on 2 level 3 modules in the same year: L310 and L314. I feel like I've made a good start by getting stuck in as soon as everything opened and arrived in the post, but already, only 3 days in to the calendar I feel like I'm way behind! 

That could be for a number of reasons. The first one is that I'm sitting here writing a blog post instead of actually focusing on my studying. I need a break though... Surely?

I have a 4-day a week job which eats into quite a lot of my time. I cant even get away with a cheeky hour of OU here and there on the quiet, such are the demands of my timetabled role. At the same time, I run a business. This means I go straight from work to business and usually arrive home between 8 and 9pm on weekdays. By that point, brain cells are frazzled and all I want is to loaf. And I do, because otherwise illness arises (see previous post..!)

I have Tuesdays off. This is classed in my diary as "uni day", and is the main day for getting on with the studying and generally being quite productive. This however, is also hampered with things like cleaning, appointments, food shopping, or sorting out business-related issues such as getting to the bank or sending "quick" emails. I work most of Saturdays, but every other week, I hire a private tutor just to keep me steering towards my degree. Without him, I don't know where I would be already! Sunday is planning day and I tend to do what I can to switch off, but there's always something. All in all, I spend, on average, about 6 hours a week doing these modules. A fraction of the 40 I was told I would need, and can see that I would definitely benefit from. 

To top it off, I've just applied for a new job, which could see my Tuesdays off disappearing, which terrifies me, but also encourages me to be better organised. 

Just typing this out helps with my mental state, and so I thank... my laptop? Odd. Anyway.

Signing out.

1. Ich koche gern.

2. Ich koche gern spanisch Gerichte, aber ich koche nicht so gern französisch Gerichte. 

3. Ich kauffe die Zutaten aus der Markt, zum beispiel der Kase und der Schinken.

4. Wir essen manchmal im Restaurant. Normalerweiser wir suchen einen gut Speiserkarte.

5. Ich könne ein Café empfelen. Das ist in den Staat und "Dish and Spoon" ist der Name.

My brain is officially friend. 

Please feel free to correct, comment, suggest better alternatives etc. I'm a beginner so be kind! 

Danke schön!

http://geert-hofstede.com/geert-hofstede.html
Book 3 L161 (Exploring Languages and Cultures)

Geert Hofstede's Cultural Dimensions

Let's keep this simple: Geert Hofstede is a respected academic who has done massive research into how countries fare in terms of equality, individualism, competitiveness/caring nature, how much of a tangent day to day activity can go off on, how important the past is and how much money is spent on having fun.

1.   Power Distance Index
How much equality exists between individuals of a society? A LOW Power Distance Index suggests more equality, whereas a HIGH Power Distance Index suggests less equality. China has 80%; the UK has 35%.

2.   The Uncertainty Avoidance Index
Many live by the saying "Que sera", but many definitely don't! Well, in China, 30%, and in the UK, 35%. Similar! This could well suggest that both don't mind waking up to a bit of uncertainty. Who knows what the day will bring?! 

3.   The Masculinity Dimension
What a load of archaic tosh. If your country's masculine, it is one of competitiveness and desire for success and control. If you're of the feminine variety, you like to make sure everything is looked after, including the Earth. China comes in at 66%, and... wait for it... the UK also comes in at 66%. Does this mean that the UK and China have equal amounts of respect for the Earth and those in it? Possibly not always...

4.   The Individualism Dimension
How possible is it be to 'be yourself', and do whatever makes you feel free and happy? This is also all about sticking to the rules, and in a country like China, this is what happens. In higher-scoring countries, tolerance and open-mindedness wallows. Is it 'every man for himself', or 'I work better within a team'? In China, the stats show 20% feel individual, whereas a whopping 89% of Brits say the same thing. Huge differences between the cultures, as you may expect. 

5.   Long Term Orientation
What is the past actually worth? Do we need to keep the memory of an old country alive? According to the Chinese, no. 87% said that China needs to move with the times, whilst a more reserved 51% of Brits said otherwise. With such a middling score, it is not possible, apparently, to tell whether Long Term Orientation is a key facet of a state. 

6.   Indulgence
My favourite. The easiest one to 'get'... How much money does a country like to spend on having a good time?! China scores a measly 24 here, suggesting that they like to save whatever money they have, possibly indicating the importance and potential lack of money in the everyday household. Brits, on the other hand, clocked up a score of 69. You can't take it with you!

"Without the land there is no nation" - Sero Khanzadyan 

To an extent, I agree. I don't think 'nation' can be defined as people sharing beliefs, customs, etc, as there are multicultural societies which one would often class as a 'nation'. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5pOFKmk7ytU - This Animaniacs cartoon shows the "nations of the world" as countries. So what's the difference between a country and a nation?

According to Google:

So, within 'countries', there are several 'nations' due to multiculturalism? Is North Korea a nation?  

When we say nationwide, we refer to the whole country, so demonstrating how these words are blurred. They become more fused together the longer we wait - concepts like immigration have a huge effect on whether these two words can mean the same thing or not, in my opinion. Thoughts?

Looking at Unit 6 of the L161 Module, I have been made to consider what it was that made me want to learn Spanish. 

I grew up with my mother for some of my childhood, but she didn't speak any foreign languages, nor did she have any friends who spoke a foreign language. Similarly, my Grandparents with whom I lived for all of my secondary schooling onwards had no foreign language skills, and I didn't know anybody from another country. I was completely monocultural, and had no idea what the world had to offer.

When I was in Year 5 (9 years old), we had a teacher from the local secondary school come in to start a Spanish course with us, once a week. I remember the very first lesson to this day. My first word was "levántate". 

I had the fortune of carrying on with Spanish when I moved to secondary school. Many had the misfortune of changing to French, or vice versa. Having this continuity helped me to succeed in a subject I enjoyed.

This was the main reason for my wanting to do it: I enjoyed it. As learning went on, I came to realise it was quite a mature skill, and learning to communicate with what I understood to be an alien world enthralled me. I was encouraged by my Grandparents to order a burger and chips in Spanish when we went on our first holiday. I did it, and the immediate effect of understanding combined with a nice smile really encouraged me to continue. I think being a young child helped: the waitress had a nice, slow response of "Sí señor". As an adult, I find many respond in English, which isn't discouraging, in my opinion. 

Now I can't imagine not speaking Spanish!

How do I Define my Cultural Identity?

Within my network of friends and acquaintances, there are lots of people with whom I have at least one thing in common: I know many people who speak Spanish; I know many people who are teachers. One thing which isn’t clear though, is how I, just like everyone else, am unique, and this is something I’ve come to consider as a part of this course.

The idea of culture forming ideas of right and wrong is, for me, ludicrous. There are so many factors which one must take into account in order to consider right and wrong, that to just to such a quick conclusion would be presumptuous. The way I’ve been raised and my experiences in life have taught me the difference between the two, as well as observing what other people of other cultural make-ups do well and fail at. The fact that I am British, for example, doesn’t mean I know I shouldn’t steal from a shop, or key a car. This is something we observe and something we are taught. And even then, some Brits still see this as acceptable. I do not see this as a cultural influence.

Despite the fact I was baptised as a baby, I am an atheist.

I think it’s true that to some degree, cultural traits make you different from others, but there will always be someone who shares your views and opinions, who may not necessarily be from the same town, city or country.

Using the ‘T’ form is becoming more and more acceptable across certain countries. In others, however, the T form is considered unacceptable. Nowadays, some critics believe that using the T form is actually causing more social divide than using the V form. Some have even gone as far to describe the T form as a “form of violence”.

Although opinion is divided, there are many sub-categories which should be considered. In online social media, for example, using the T form has various uses. The ‘handier’ reason being that ‘tú’, ‘tu’ etc. takes up less characters, and is, as a result, less time-consuming. As a result, many believe that an egalitarian political discourse has been established, which is an important, as the platform allows for an element of freedom of speech. Countries such as Russia, however, consider an informal online tone as completely unacceptable, and Japan has even gone as far as to evolve its own formal online lingo. At the other end of the spectrum, Italy was using a T form way before the Net’s interference.

With family and friends, the T form seems like an obvious choice, showing intimacy and familiarity. In France, it is apparently more ‘normal’ to refer to grandma as ‘vous’, which stereotypically, may suggest a direct correlation with those more likely to use Twitter and other social media platforms. One may argue that the older generations are “stuck in their ways”. This is something that we would traditionally relate to a public relations setting, whereby the V form is used to show respect – as we are taught at secondary school. This, however, may not be the case, as those who are of the same ilk also seem to create an alliance, which many consider to be going against the desired changes that came about in France, for example, as a result of the social upheavals of Mai 1968. This, though, seems exclusive to the inner-dealings of these groups, and for you and I to ‘tutoyer’ them would be a mistake.

The idea of ‘showing respect’ via the V form is something of an outdated practice, it may seem. In certain settings, though, it would be useless. Many see the T form as insulting, suggesting that we would only require it when we want to show our anger towards someone, or to address someone in a condescending manner. An argument after a car accident may be a good example of this, whereas in English, we may just shout “learn to fucking drive”. No T nor V needed.

The most common ‘V occasion’ which still exists in today’s society, I would say, is that of client / server relationships. It would be uncommon to hear a T form when being served in a restaurant or greeted at a hotel, and this is arguably a muted form of gratitude. This is something that also has a presence in the world of social media. A rare occasion when there is some form of accord between the real world and cyberspace.

Activity 2.5 – Comparing physical greetings: China vs. England

Greeting a person in both the UK and China is sometimes like taking a leap of faith. As a result of huge cultural difference, our English ways of saying hello are somewhat useless in China. I, personally, wouldn’t hesitate to greet someone I know with a hug, and may even go as far as a kiss, regardless of gender. Doing this in China would undoubtedly attract some odd looks, from both the ‘hugee’ and any surrounding audience. In China, a subtle bow to an acquaintance, or a more formal handshake would be expected. Even ‘ni hao’ may be shrugged off depending on the situation in which you find yourself. Shopkeepers may not even look at you. It’s true: in England, we welcome a vast array of cultures, and so this creates a degree of confusion and uncertainty. 

Unlike fifty years ago, when a mere British handshake would be omnipotent, the 21^st Century presents us with a challenge.

Well, I've just received my results for Assignment two in Spanish and French. I scored 95% and 93% respectively, which was exactly the same as Assignment one. Of course I'm over the moon with the results; I'd be an idiot not to be! The feedback given by my tutors was excellent. Clear and concise, and actually things I didn't know before. (Thankfully, they weren't flagging stupid errors!).

Aiming to maintain this.

I am a part of a Facebook group in which everyone is fine to share results. It's good to see how you're doing in comparison to others, although I really struggle to post my stuff. There are some OU students who really struggle, and willing them on often sounds patronising and unnecessary. 

For TMA3, I'm hoping to maintain the positivity and by the end of this first year of study, have scored good marks overall. 

A la prochaine fois.

It has been a long time coming... But here I am. Studying Spanish and French with the Open University.

At the minute, I have very little idea of what to expect. I am, however, excited to find out. Hopefully with this blog, I will be able to share thoughts and feelings about studying as well as interacting with as many people as possible. 

Roll on the 18th September when more is available to look at, and then the real journey will begin on 4th October!

Over and out... for now!