Reflection
No.1
I remember the day I was
asked to do apply for the course, I was not given a lot
of information, I also remember feeling confused and
asking myself what is Cultural Diversity? I still went
ahead and applied thinking “oh well” if
it’s me learning something new it can’t be bad.
In the interim I did some research on the internet
regarding Cultural Diversity. The information I came
across was limited however by this stage I wanted to
learn more about the course. I really wanted to go on the
journey! I waited for Barbel’s email on Monday and
felt horrible when I had not received a response. Tuesday
came and I was so happy when I received the email of
acceptance, I knew this was going to be an exciting but
scary journey. I was going to be in a class surrounded by
people who have so much knowledge and experience in the
Welfare field. In previous employment, I have not been
exposed to such informative agencies nor interacted with
other people from other organisations; therefore this
limits my knowledge.
The day 1st day in class
was nerve wrecking but exciting, I was more excited! I
felt a lot at ease when I heard my colleague express
their feelings about the course. I instantly discovered
an awareness about my self I discovered I can be racist
and very judgmental towards individuals and cultures. I
walked away thinking, what I’m going to do about my
awareness? This is not the way I want to be and this
behaviour was impacting on my personal life as well as my
role at work.
I have learnt how to be
nonjudgmental and less racist; I believe racism is
destructive and can destroy a community. This course has
taught me so far that we all are different in so many
ways and that’s ok. We should treat people with
respect and fairly. I’m learning how to deal with
certain situations which arise in my work place regarding
my work colleagues and my clients. Previously if I was
required to deal with a certain situation I would make a
judgment and put it in the hard basket, I now look at it
from a professional perspective and ask myself how can we
assist this family or we need to look at it from the
other persons point of view, why do we have to judge the
situation? What strategies need to be put in place to
assist with the situation? I am hoping to learn to
different types of strategies to assist my organisation
to grow by making it more culturally
competent.
I find time to be a
challenge in juggling my work and the course; I also can
find the material to be a challenge to understand. I have
set a time at work to overcome the time barrier no one is
allowed to disturbed me I have allocated two hours every
Tuesday. When reading material, I have learnt to write
small brief summaries next to paragraphs so this will
help me to memorize and understand what I’m
reading.
I’m starting to feel
more confident in the course and I feel comfortable in
the group I have been allocated too. We interact
constantly via email we are aware of each others
abilities and challenges regarding this course, we all
support each other and keep each other
motivated.
I hope to achieve a great
deal from this course; I want to learn to develop
strategies on how to make the organisation more
culturally competent also implement policies and
procedures to support the change, interact with
interagency, and learn of ways to make the organisation
be more diverse friendly. I would like to do a different
role in the future regarding cultural
diversity.
Annette Mifsud
Reflection
No.2
When I put my hand up for
the Diversity Leadership Management Program in 2007, it
was with the expectation that I would emerge from the
course nine months later as a “culturally
competent” manager/leader. I’m still not sure
whether I really knew what that would look like or how
the course leader was going to get me there!
In reality the Diversity
Leadership Management Program has proven to be a journey
into the complex and often challenging terrains of
Diversity and Leadership, coupled with the right mix of
practical strategy to cover the Management strand. This
is a program that gives space in our busy work lives to
put the spotlight on our own values, and those of the
organisations in which we work; to examine how those
values are reflected in our practice; and to challenge
the relevance and effectiveness of this practice in the
context of a diverse community.
The Diversity Leadership
Management Program encompasses a wide range of readings
and research; activities which in turn are stimulating
and often confronting; along with input from and access
to leaders in the field of diversity. The program has
certainly exceeded my expectations and I anticipate that
all participants will bring a new focus to their
organisations and to the sector as a result of their
involvement.
Jo-Anne Hewitt; Regional
Manager; The Spastic Centre
