Here is a final example of an experience in another culture that led to the acquisition of a shared value:

Growing up, I did not enjoy team sports, especially soccer. While living in Spain, I was invited to play soccer with friends in a neighboring park on various occasions, and had habituated myself to refusing the offer. One afternoon however, some of my particularly persuasive Spanish girlfriends encouraged me to join a a friendly match.  In spite of being an inferior player, I thoroughly enjoyed the fresh air, endorphins, and felt my fear of jokes about my poor skills fade away as I discovered that all participants, from the most skilled athlete to the novice player, were subject to friendly gibes and occasional ribbing from teammates and opposing team members. Through the experience, I learned that with practice, I could train my body to control the ball and that by paying attention to how others played, I could rely on my intuition to anticipate their moves and effectively engage in my team’s strategies and help them score goals. This refreshing new experience led to the acquisition of a value and a framework for relating to others in play.  The rules of soccer were the same; the experience, on the other hand, was markedly different.  As a child, the violently competitive attitudes of my peers on the soccer field made it impossible for me to progress as a player, resulting in my complete and total rejection of its value as a recreational activity.  However, as an adult in Spain, the playful and friendly attitude of my teammates encouraged me to learn to improve my athletic and intuitive capacities by playing soccer and enjoy the game. 

Here is an example of an experience that allowed me to see cultural similarities and led me to identifying a value I shared with my host family from a trip I took to Colombia:

Growing up, my family made time on Sunday evening to prepare and eat a special meal together. After, we would watch a movie, sing songs, or play a card game.  This is a tradition that is commonplace in many family households in Colombia.  When I spent a summer there recently as a guest in a friend’s family home, I was delighted to learn that they hosted a weekly family gathering on Sunday afternoons. Every week, a large and varied group of extended family and friends would arrive from all over the city to eat, talk, play dominoes, sing, dance, and/or watch a soccer game together.  In addition to enjoying the company of their guests, (I have an extroverted nature and delight in the opportunity to meet and talk to new people,) the weekly event brought back fond memories of warm family moments from my childhood.  I was thus able to identify and articulate a value that I shared with the host family: the refreshing and enjoyable nature of setting aside time every Sunday afternoon/ evening to relax, eat a special meal, and converse with others before returning to work the following week.

Here is an example of an experience/ strategy that allowed me to respect my Spanish friends’ appreciation of bullfighting as a different and equally valid perspective:

While living in Spain, I was invited to Pamplona during the yearly San Fermínes festival. Horrified by the amount of blood shed during the first bullfight I saw, I felt a judgement arise within me about the barbaric nature of the ritual. Rather than accepting this one-sided point of view as fact, I asked my friends questions about the culture of bullfighting, which has a long history as tradition and identity in Spanish culture.  As I learned about how the fighting bulls (toros de lidia) are raised in very humane conditions and the precision and skill necessary to be a bullfighter, I was reminded of a similar experience being raised in the South by Yankee parents unfamiliar with the rules and restrictions placed on deer-hunting practices. Learning about these rules from experienced hunters helped me understand the practice in a context of tradition and ecology and respect it as a sport and art in spite of my parent’s rejection of its value. This comparison helped me understand why bullfighting is celebrated in Spain and valued by my friends in spite of my initial skepticism.

at the midterm of the semester. Students will also be responsible for 2 in-class cultural presentations of information related to the health care systems of assigned Latin American countries and the use of herbal remedies as alternative medicine in Latin America. Daily homework assignments will review information learned in class and prepare students for their mock interview, cultural presentations and a final semster project, to build a Profesisonal Portfolio. Students are expected to attend class regularly and should not exceed 4 absences.

FINAL GRADE (Please refer to links for project description and student instructions)

MOCK INTERVIEW 20%

PRESENTATIONS (NO. 1, NO.2) 30%

DAILY PARTICIPATION/ QUIZZES 10%

DAILY HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENTS (20) 10%

FINAL PROJECT-PROFESSIONAL PORTFOLIO 30%

LESSONS BY CHAPTER

Return to Medical Spanish