1. 7/25/2016 ESL069 - International Communications Syllabus Page 1 of 4
Saint Martin’s University
Office of International Programs—English as a Second Language
Syllabus ESL069
Intercultural Communication
Spring Semester 2016
Class Location: OM440 Teacher: Blaine A. Snow
Class Time: T/Th 4:00 –5:20p Office: Old Main, 433
Class Dates: Jan. 12 – April 28, 2016 Office Hours: MWF 12-1pm, or by appointment
Welcome to Intercultural Communication, ESL069
ESL069 is intercultural studies designed specifically for international students living in a study abroad, im-
mersion situation.
Your generation is the global generation. Because of technology and e-everything, you and your peers are
more than ever before participants in and creators of a global community. As international students you feel and
deal with inter-cultural communication every day. You know that learning a new language also means learning a
new culture. You know that as you learn about another culture, you also learn about your own culture and your-
self. In this class, you will learn about cultures and worldviews; you will talk about and explore culture, describe
culture, share culture, learn the many ways cultures are similar and different. You will explore your own cultural
identities. You will learn about perception, values, expectations, context, and much more that will give you a bet-
ter understanding of the unconscious nature of culture.
Class Text
 Figuring Foreigners Out: A Practical Guide.
 Author: Craig Storti; Intercultural Press, Yarmouth, ME., 1999.
 ISBN-13: 978-1877864704, ISBN-10: 1877864706
Class Objectives
Students completing this class will:
1. Understand the differences between international diversity and domestic diversity;
2. Understand the differences between cultural values and behaviors;
3. Understand the many kinds of diversity: gender, sexual-orientation, racial, ethnic, linguistic, religious, so-
cial class, political, generational, geographic-regional, education-profession, and how these overlap and in-
fluence each other;
4. Be able to identify some major features of world cultures that pertain to effective international communi-
cation, features such as individualism/collectivism, ethical orientations universalism/particularism, di-
rect/indirect communication styles, mono/polychronic time orientations, cultural orientations towards free will
–vs. determinism;
5. Understand the developmental aspects of cultural value and ethical orientations: egocentric, ethnocentric,
worldcentric; premodern, modern, postmodern; agricultural, industrial, informational; archaic, magic, mythic,
rational, pluralist, integral
6. Be able to identify various types of nonverbal communication and identify how they appear differently in
different cultures; personal space and proximity factors, face and hand gesturing, body positioning and pos-
ture, meta-language such as volume, intonation, stress, and rhythm;
7. Become aware of social privilege and its unequal distribution and be able to empathize more fully with rep-
resentatives of minority cultures and will understand the various types of disadvantages they live with;
8. Acquire an in-depth knowledge of a culture/country (other than their own) based on research report and
presentation;

2. 7/25/2016 ESL069 - International Communications Syllabus Page 2 of 4
9. Understand more about the particular United States’ perspective on cultural diversity and more about the
internal picture of diversity in the USA.
Grading System
Good attendance required for the following grading:
 40% Homework (reading assignments, papers, other writing assignments)
 40% Class Participation, (Discussions and Presentations)
 20% Tests and quizzes
Papers and Plagiarism
All papers are required to have the following elements:
1. 12-point font
2. Double-space all lines
3. Indent the first line of each paragraph by .5 inches.
4. Page numbers
5. One-inch margins on all sides, top, bottom, right, and left
6. A title
7. In the top right-hand corner of the first page, type your name, the course name (ESL088–College Skills),
and the assignment due date.
8. Use MLA format to cite all sources
9. Attach a Works Cited page
10. Stapled in the top left corner
Papers that do not meet these formatting requirements will lose points. If you need help with any of the above
requirements, please let me know. Papers are due at the start of class on their respective due dates; late pa-
pers will be lowered by one letter grade per calendar day late.
There are two kinds of plagiarism: intentional (the deliberate representation of the ideas or words of another as
your own), and accidental (an error in citing a source properly). Both are inappropriate. Accidental plagiarism
will affect your grade severely; intentional plagiarism will result in a grade of zero on the essay and possible fail-
ure of the course. If you have any questions about how to properly cite a source, please see me before you turn
in an assignment. This class abides by the University’s policy on plagiarism as detailed in the University’s Stu-
dent Handbook.
Class Rules
 Attendance: be sure you understand the OIPD-ESL class attendance rules
 Late: please come 5 minutes before class begins. If you are too late or too many times late = one absence.
 Sickness: Please email me if you are sick.
 Food/Drink: No food in class; drinks OK.
 Bathroom: No bathroom during class (except emergency).
 CELL PHONE RULES
 No cellphone sounds at all.
 Please use a little, not a lot in class.
 No using cellphone to read homework assignments in class.
Disability Note
If you need course adaptations or accommodations because of a disability, if you have a medical and/or safety
concern to share with me, or if you need special arrangements in case the building must be evacuated, please
make an appointment with me as–soon-as possible.

3. 7/25/2016 ESL069 - International Communications Syllabus Page 3 of 4
Weekly Syllabus
Week 1 - 2
READING: FFO Chapter 1: What is culture? (pp. 5-18)
What is intercultural communication?
What is culture?
 National cultures; domestic cultures
 Visible and invisible culture: values and behaviors
 Internal Values, External Behavior
 Features of culture: gender, race, language, ethnicity, religion, nationality, political beliefs, social
class, education, profession; group “membership”
 Universal, Cultural, Personal: What culture is not
Quadrants: Basic features of culture
 Internal - External; Singular - Plural
 Me, We, It, Its
Project 1: Essay: What is culture?
Week 3 - 4
READING: FFO Chapter 2: The Concept of Self (pp. 20-35)
 American –vs. Japanese proverbs; Squeaky wheel and Standing up nail
 Individualism and Collectivism
 Premodern, Modern, Postmodern
o Individualism and modernity: liberalism, humanism
o Personal identity; individuals, groups
 Harmony and Saving face: Culture Shock: Japan
Project 2: Films: My Big Fat Greek Wedding (contrasting family-cultural styles)
Week 5 - 6
READING: FFO Chapter 2: Locus of Control (pp. 66-86)
Choice and Control: How much choice do we have? How much control do we have?
 Internal –vs. External Control
 Determination and strong will: individualists
 Free Will –vs. Determinism; Karma and Fate; The Serenity Prayer
 Social Privilege: what is it and who has it? (Save for next week w/ Alan Johnson)
 American activism – can we really change the world?
READING: FFO Chapter 3: Verbal Communication (pp. 91-112)
 Direct and Indirect Communication
 Low–vs. high context cultures
 Truth, honesty, loyalty, expressing feelings
 Yes means yes, and no means no. Do you say what you mean and mean what you say?
Project 3: Writing Dialogues: Indirect and Direct
Project 4: Essay: Social activism – Does it work?
Week 7 - 8
READING: FFO Chapter 2: Concept of Time (pp. 53-65)
What is time? Cultures and time
 Monochronic –vs. Polychronic
 Measuring time: sun/moon, day/night, stars, calendars, seasons;
 Clocks and time: mechanical clocks; digital time
 Linear and nonlinear cultures
 Time vocabulary and expressions in English: due date, deadline, in time, on time, time out, over-
time, wasting time, time is money, etc.

4. 7/25/2016 ESL069 - International Communications Syllabus Page 4 of 4
Project 5: pp. 50-51, Survey of SMU people
READING: FFO Chapter 3: Nonverbal Communication (pp.113-126)
 Realms of nonverbal communication; space, body, gesture, posture, voice, volume, frequency,
speed, contact, etc.
 Nonverbal patterns across cultures
Project 6: (TBA)
MIDTERM TEST
Week 9 - 10
READING: Spiral Dynamics and Value Systems
 VALUE SYSTEMS 1
 Universalism and Particularism
 Absolute and Relative
 Hierarchical development of value systems
 Different views of “fairness”; treating people equally; treating people unequally according to their
relation to others, age, rank, status, position, etc.
 Kohlberg/Gilligan: Ego-, Ethno-, and Worldcentric Orientations
 Clare Graves and values development
Week 11 - 12
READING: “Value Systems and Development”
 VALUE SYSTEMS 2
 Value Systems – Red, Blue, Orange, Green
 Examples in history and contemporary society
 Clare Graves and values development
Week 13 - 14
READING: Cultural Value Systems
 VALUE SYSTEMS 3
 Religion’s role in value systems
 Sacred and secular values
 Other developmental aspects of culture: economic systems, technology’s role in value systems,
political and legal systems’ role in value systems
Project 3: Presentation on cultures and value systems
Week 15
FINAL TEST
 Final Projects due