RA/AA Class 4-8-08

Ethical decision and Diversity awareness...
The discussion began with defining values and ethics. Before I walked into the class, I barely knew much about the definitions of these vocabularies, but having the opportunity to discuss with my fellow group members and get more ideas, totally enlightened my knowledge about the whole topic.
I realized that ethics is more personal than values. Some people believe that the certain things should be done in some situation while others don’t. This explains that although the value of something may be the same for most people, the ethical thinking changes from person to person.
For example, the sample question brought to this lecture explains this subject. The story about a man who escaped from prison, changed his name and lived far off from the prison, where he did good deeds. The question was “I would I report him back to the prison?” The answered defended from one person to another depending on their ethical believes about the situation.
Another concept discussed was diversity. Diversity is a broad aspect of a community. It explains the difference shared among different people living in an environment. Focusing on the diversity from the aspect of being an RA in the resident hall at University at Buffalo, a very diverse community of people, there are very vast cultural difference between so many groups of residents living together.
As a resident advisor (RA), the most concern I have about diversity is how to ensure that people understands each other’s culture through interaction. Getting to know every resident, I guess, is a good means of better understanding their cultures. Other factors like planning diversity programs, having empathy, being respectful of others, and so on may also impact on the community the RA is trying to build.


Question:
1. How do I get the residents to interact and bound with each other, understanding one another’s values and ethics other than planning diversity programs?
Depending on the concept or issue it can be done in different ways; through programming, through discussions, through events, etc. Work with your Hall Director if you see an issue of educational opportunity in way of diversity on your floor and he or she will help you figure out the best way to educate.