Practice Day 1

Last Thursday we had our first practice day. We had to only worry about the skills we had learned so far in the class. I thought it was going to be just like talking to someone like I do everyday but it wasn't. This first practice day was a real eye opener. I was paired with C. who is from China. I never took into consideration the differences we might have. One of the hardest things for me to overcome and get use to was the language barrier. Even though C. spoke English, her English was no as good as mine. I could tell she did not understand some of the things I was saying and I too, could not completely understand some of the things she was saying. Another thing I found to be very difficult was the culture differences. I, not knowing anything about China but knowing there are huge differences in the culture, didn't know what types of questions to ask or even where to begin when talking to her. I think it is very important to discuss things such as language and culture differences with your client before hand. Discussing these issues would make the session go smoother and allow me to not be so disorganized while talking to that person.