Spiraling Back to America

It is December 16, 2014 and I will be leaving on December 18 to be back with my family and friends after nine months in Albania. I am sitting at a wonderful tea room here in Shkoder, sipping a Winter Blend crafted by a small Austrian producer, feeling an internal warmth as I watch the rain fall on the walking street,  notice the citizens with their muli-colored umbrellas and hear the soft sounds of people around me speaking their native language with a facility that I will never achieve.  There are tears of joy in my eyes in this season of love.  I am going home to those who hold my heart, bringing with me the touches of warmth given to me by my friends in this country where people value  the love of family above all else. 

 

In a fair declaration of balance, all has not always been so wonderful.  I have experienced culture conflict. I have lived more than forty years in a work culture that believes time is fixed and not something that you waste,  that to be successful you have to set material goals, demonstrate precision in execution, and use collaboration skills to reach high quality decisions (Spiral Dynamics –Orange).  Albanian students, much like American students, are mixed in their skill and acceptance of these values. Yesterday in class I lost my temper, and rudely expressed my disappointment and threatened to walk out.  One of my students, in perfect English, calmly suggested that I was over-reacting.   I awkwardly continued the class. Last night, knowing the situation was unresolved, I wrote a case study and presented it to the same class today.  We had a fruitful conversation, collaborated on solutions, all is well and I presently sit happy  in this tea shop!  The same student who soothed my emotions the day before, and faithfully reads my blog,  suggested that I put the case study in my next  blog posting.   And with appreciation to Arilda, I have included the rest of the story below.

Case Study

A Cultural Dilemma

The new American Professor stood in front of the of 35 Albanian university students filling the small class room from wall to wall.  The Professor came with the cultural values and behavioral expectations from his experience in American universities and his forty years working with adults in business.  The diverse group of students sitting in the class had their own behavior patterns that emerged from their lives in Albania. 

Soon after the professor began his presentation there was minor background noise as some of the students whispered among themselves.  The Professor noticed the noise immediately but chose to continue explaining the intended exercise.  More students began whispering among themselves.  Eventually, the professor could no longer ignore the increasing level of noise and after several polite but futile requests for attention, used common American vernacular to express his disappointment. (The young men in the room were delighted to learn the correct pronunciation – this sentence was not in the published case study.)

After the class the new professor went to other teachers and explained what had happened in the class.  He was told that this is normal in Albania, not only in high schools, but also in universities.  They told him that at some point you will just have to yell at the students and it will temporarily stop.  Then you will have to yell at them again. 

The American professor was caught in a cultural conflict.  He did not want to yell at the university students, but instead wanted collaborate with them in the manner that he did with his adult business students.

What are your suggestions for solving this cultural dilemma? What suggestion would you give to the American Professor?  What suggestions would you give to the students?

So this case study intervention worked well and warmth has returned to my life. I am excited to be going home, to be with my family and friends.  And likewise, I will be glad to return here and continue my spiral journey in Albania.