Facilitation Considerations
Firstly, it is imperative to understand the meaning of Transcultural. According to the Oxford Reference website: (https://www.oxfordreference.com/display/10.1093/oi/authority.20110803105323291);
” Transcultural denotes the movement of ideas, influences, practices, and beliefs between cultures, and the fusions that result when the ideas, influences, practices, and beliefs of different cultures come together in a specific place, text, or contact zone.”
Taking this further, to define Transcultural Communications, we will reference the Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group website (https://www.routledge.com/blog/article/transcultural-communication-what-it-is-and-why-we-are-all-doing-it);
They highlight that, “the ‘inter’ of intercultural communication has become problematic since communication is no longer taking place ‘in-between’ cultures or languages. Instead, what we see in contemporary social spaces are multiple cultural levels or scales simultaneously present with participants moving through and across them, negotiating meaning ‘on the move’ as the interaction progresses. Such communication may be best characterised as transcultural communication, defined as “communication where interactants move through and across, rather than in-between, cultural and linguistic boundaries, thus, ‘named’ languages and cultures can no longer be taken for granted and, in the process, borders become blurred, transgressed and transcended” (Baker & Sangiamchit, 2019: 472).
It is recommended that the facilitators for this workshop be experienced with Transcultural Communication and connect this knowledge to specific facilitation skills to enhance the audience experience. Facilitators should also be familiar with the terminology and information provided in the pre-work material. If these are areas where facilitators need more knowledge, they should spend the time required reviewing and understanding the material.
Regardless of the audience, it is crucial that facilitators acquaint themselves with techniques utilized to create a safe space for adult participant engagement on the topic of Transcultural Communication.
It is also recommended that facilitators allocate at least 30 minutes before and 30 minutes after the training delivery for preparation and to be explicitly available to answer individual questions or inquiries from participants. After the training, facilitators are encouraged to debrief the positive takeaways and areas for growth from the experience, with the co-facilitator(s).
