Each student is required to research, write, and present a well-documented report that provides the foundation to create a better understanding of one racial, ethnic, or religious group from the United States. These groups include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Native Americans (note: the U.S. Census bureau uses the term American Indian)
- African Americans
- Jewish Americans
- Muslim Americans
- Latino/Hispanic Americans (please select one: Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, Guatemalan American, etc.)
- Asian Americans (please select one: Japanese, Chinese, Filipino, Korean, Vietnamese, Indian, etc.)
- Arab Americans (please select one: Lebanese, Chaldean, Syrian, Palestinian, Iraqi, etc.)
- Pacific Islander Americans (please select one: Samoan, Tongans, Polynesians, etc.)
The student must choose a group of which he/she is not a member. The instructor must approve all cultural group selections. *This was completed in week 1 of this course. If you do not have an approved topic which corresponds with the person you will interview, please contact Dr. Bryant immediately!
This report must be relevant to the student’s specific chosen career field.
Report
The report will contain three elements: Foundation, Application, and Recommendations.
Foundation
- A clear description of the group’s most relevant aspects of the culture and why they exist. Frame this in terms of life in the United States, mainly. This is not a history of the country of origin.
- Economic, political, and social history (which should also include the current social status of the group).
- Educational information (education levels, educational system, the role of education).
- A discussion of family and religion (some considerations: the role of religion in family life, the roles of women and men, multi-generational household or not, care of elderly family members).
- Popular culture (fashion, art, music, dancing, traditions, etc.) and cuisine.
Application
- You want to conduct an interview to become more familiar with the group’s background, lifestyles, problems, and issues from the perspective of a member of the culture.
- Discussion of how the cultural factors play a part in their profession and potential profession (what program you are in at Baker College).
- Provide a description of possible real-world situations that would raise awareness to potential conflicts between cultures and how to promote tolerance or a solution that is relevant to the chosen profession. For example, in a hospital, the dietitians and nurses must be aware that Muslims do not eat pork. Therefore, they should be aware that serving a Muslim patient a meal containing pork is culturally insensitive.
Recommendation
- Provide recommendations that suggest actions that can be taken in your chosen profession to make individuals more culturally competent by promoting tolerance. You can regard recommendations as a prompt to action for individuals in your profession. Your report structure should lead up to the recommendations and provide justification for them.
- What makes effective recommendations:
- describe a suggested course of action to be taken to solve a particular problem;
- written as action statements with justification;
- stated clearly;
- based on the case built up in the body of the report; and
- stated logically, are relevant and practical.
Format
- Write a formal, well-structured, researched, narrative, and qualitative report. The report must contain an APA-style cover page. No abstract is required for this report. The report should be 8-10 pages with 1-inch margins, typed, double-spaced, 12-point Times New Roman font. The cover page and references page are not counted as part of the 8-10 page minimum requirement. Remember, this report needs to be balanced between the three sections. The report must include all of the points mentioned above. The report requires a minimum of five scholarly resources (journal articles, books, etc.) in addition to the textbook. Any outside material used in the report must be cited in-text and included in the references page (using APA-style guidelines). Grammar and composition are a part of the grade. Please refer to the rubric for specific assessment guidelines.