Issues in Space

Culturally Sensitive Issues in Space

ESE380 : The Class : Commander Troy : Caring Kit : Issues in Space

To complete this assignment successfully, you should:

Read the assignment carefully
Open and study the links

Most of us want to believe that we are sensitive to others. We certainly do not want to think that we might be insensitive, yet it is more complex than not telling jokes about a group. In fact, sometimes telling jokes gives an indication that we are aware of differences and the distance between personal experiences and the discomfort of the misunderstandings we have about the actions or feelings of others.

How does it feel to be the parent of a youngster with disabilities? How do children feel if they cannot see or hear the things peers can hear or see? How does it feel to be sitting in a wheelchair during recess? What is it like to be Jewish during Christmas time in American public school? What does it feel like to be pulled out of the classroom to attend speech therapy? How does a child with autism really feel? How intelligent was Christy Brown, the young man with cerebral palsy?

Sometimes it is a good exercise to think about differences from a vast distance. We have some great examples of building screen pictures of people who are very different but self possessed and sure of their value. The Star Trek program often featured people who were different from the "humans" who visited. The features usually gave viewers a chance to develop a portrait of the Klingons or Vegans. Some of the early voyages showed humans unable to gain appreciation for the differences, unable to connect, to communicate. Later pieces sometimes suggested that those "aliens" could be more complex, more sophisticated. Some episodes showed the Star Trek folks to mistrust one another and failing to work to understand those they encountered.

Why not take a brief respite from your studies and see how you fare as an explorer who wants to value and understand those with distinctively different backgrounds from your own?

1. Open the link below to go to the Alien Culture Study Room of the Starfleet Command.

Because you are working with Commander Troy, you have the privilege of exploring cultural documents.

2. Choose one of the alien groups and read the synopsis of the people and culture. Then use the text box below to describe what might be culturally sensitive issues in that culture.

3. For that same culture you select, describe a major holiday and one ritual the people might use as part of celebration.

Alien Cultures

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E-mail J'Anne Ellsworth at Janne.Ellsworth@nau.edu

Course developed by J'Anne Ellsworth