Category Archives: ESL/Cultural Communications

English as a second language and cultural challenges and differences in communication

Acronyms for Crime and Policing

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To continue from a previous blog entry, here are some popular acronyms that you may hear on cop shows or cop films. Plus, if you apply to become a police officer, you should be aware of these acronyms. Our company proudly helps YRP – York Regional Police – with communication skills assessments and training of their recruits and officers.  Some are immigrants and we believe that having English as a second language should not stop you from enjoying dramatic shows or applying to serve your community!  Feel free to share this with those you know are applying to become a police officer in their community too.

E.T.A. – Estimated Time of Arrival
D.O.A. – Dead On Arrival
M.O. – Modus Operandi – Latin for mode or style of operation or the way a ‘perp’ performs crimes. The pattern s/he follows.
C.O.P. – Citizen or Constable On Patrol – “cop” is the common nickname for a police officer.
D.U.I. – Driving Under the Influence (of drugs or alcohol)
B & E – Break and Enter – burglary
P.I. – Private Investigator
C.I. – Confidential Informer/Informant – someone the police use to get inside info from the streets or criminal gangs.
B.O.L.O. – Be On the LookOut for – notice to all officers to search for or be aware of a particular person.
A.P.B. – All Points Bulletin – also known as a citywide – same as BOLO.
C.Y.A. – Cover Your Ass – Do the job right, by the book, and document everything to prove that you did everything correctly.
S.W.A.T. – Special Weapons And Tactics team/squad – highly trained paramilitary officers, used in hostage situations and other dangerous events. On TV and in film, they are always dressed completely in black.

That should be enough to give you a better English base for policing.
Memorize them and then incorporate them, and stay safe.

Cop Talk – Learning the Idioms and Slang of the Police

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Do you enjoy watching police TV shows like COPS, CSI, Law & Order etc. and police films in English? There are lots to choose from for sure. Or perhaps you want to apply to become a police officer? I have the pleasure of working directly with a local police service (YRP – York Regional Police) to offer English communication assessments for new recruits and also to train current officers in communication skills required by the job.  You NEED to learn a lot of idioms and slang, whether English is your second language or first.  You need to know a lot of ‘everyday idioms’ like “It’s pouring rain” (raining really hard – do not use the old idiom ‘raining cats and dogs’), it came from “out of the blue” (surprising, unexpected) and “The real McCoy” (genuine, the real deal, not a fake) but you also need to learn more industry-specific slang and idioms to do with policing and crime. For example:

There’s a “wino” in the alley – Wino means stereotypical alcoholic homeless person.

“Reefer. Blunt. Chronic. Mary J. Grass. Weed” – These all refer to Marijuana. There are many more too!

“Cuff him and stuff him” – handcuff the perp (perpetrator or suspect) and put him in the back of the squad car.

“Something’s going down right now!” – means some illegal action like a drug trade is happening right now.

“Hooker, Pro, Lady of the night, Streetwalker” – all refer to a woman who is a prostitute.

“I smell bacon” – bad guys say this when cops are around – refers to old nickname of calling the police ‘Pigs’.

There are literally hundreds more, and I will add a few acronyms for you next entry.

If you want to improve your English in police slang in order to apply to be a constable or just to further enjoy your favourite TV shows and movies, take a little time to improve your Cop Talk first!

Coach Ric

Hire an Immigrant

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Here is an excellent resource for immigrants who are job-hunting and also for companies, large or small, who want to take advantage of overseas training but are not quite familiar how to do it professionally. This website has excellent free training videos, with actors going over scenarios on the resume, interview and hiring process. The Canadian employees review and discuss the immigrant’s CV and communication skills. They show you two videos – the wrong way and the right way!

Anyway I thought that these videos were well done and the website has a lot more information on how human resources can successfully screen and hire immigrants. Enjoy!

http://www.hireimmigrants.ca/

Here is a ‘blurb’ from their own website that I have copied here, introducing their free online videos:

Cultural Competence Videos

These cultural competence videos are intended to increase your company’s capacity for recruiting, selecting and integrating skilled immigrants. There are currently videos on screening and interviewing, with more to come in the future. Each video contains several sub-topic chapters to highlight specific issues. The chapter shows a questionable episode, then preferred, followed by a few suggested discussion questions.

The videos have been posted online to support anyone with human resources responsibilities who would like to build on their own level of cultural competence and create an inclusive work environment. Organizations can also use the videos for internal training purposes.

For more go here: http://www.hireimmigrants.ca/tools/4

Coach Ric

Develop HR, Management and Entrepreneur Skills

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As a member of HRPA (Human Resources Professionals Association – http://www.hrpa.ca/hrpa )
I receive regular emails and mailings with information about new services, service providers and detailed Human Resource articles.

Here is something that looks interesting and apparently is free.

http://www.essentialskillsthatwork.com

I am not affiliated with them – I just thought I would pass on their website as it looks good.
Here is a little bit I have copied from their ‘About Us’ page:

The Essential Skills for the Changing Workplace Project

In January, 2008, the Centre for Education and Training received funding from HRSDC for a project called Essential Skills for the Changing Workplace. The project is designed to assist employers in small and mid-size organizations with the integration of Essential Skills into their workplace and human resources practices.

Free Seminars

To increase awareness and understanding of Essential Skills, the Centre is offering free 2-hour seminars for human resources managers, training managers, line managers, operations managers, supervisors, team leaders, coordinators with people management responsibilities and small business owners. During this interactive seminar, managers will gain a thorough understanding of the Essential Skills framework and a variety of Essential Skills tools to assist in:

conducting Essential Skills needs assessments
writing job descriptions that show how workers use Essential Skills on-the-job
integrating Essential Skills into hiring and selection processes
aligning performance goals with the employee’s use of Essential Skills
developing succession plans to ensure employees are ready for new roles as the need for new skills arises
promoting health and safety in the workplace
Free Consulting Services

Besides attending an informative seminar, participants will have access to an Essential Skills Workplace Consultant, free of charge, to guide them in determining their skill needs, identifying resources and local services that provide assessment and training and identifying Essential Skills tools to best suit their requirements.

If this looks interesting to you, please check them out, or pass it on to someone who might want to take advantage of free HR training. I might sign up for a free seminar myself!

Coach Ric

GG Ate Some Seal – So What??? Connect with Cultures

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There has been a lot of talk about Canadian Governor-General Michaelle Jean partaking of some seal’s heart on her trip to the North Inuit culture. Some people feel that she is great, for honoring the unique and important Inuit culture. Others think it is animal cruelty, or that this act is clearly not an accident, in that it was a political stunt to show solidarity with the Inuits and the rest of Canada in the face of the European Union ban on seal products recently.

I am not a politician, just a small-town Canadian man who has travelled a fair bit and who works with immigrants here in Toronto everyday. What do I think, dare you ask?

I say good for her. Whether it was political or not, she honored her guests with a very old tradition. To not partake of the meat would be offensive, unless you are a vegetarian.

When I lived in China for 2 years, I ate dog meat. More than once.

Will I do it again? Probably not. I love dogs and grew up with them as pets. But when in Rome, do as the Romans do. I had been ‘in-country’ for at least 6 months, and I lived in a really small community (Tongren city, Guizhou province). I tried my best to fit in. I spoke Chinese, ate their food and followed their customs where possible. In turn, they learned about Canada from me. I was an unofficial ambassador!

When I was in Thailand I ate a flash-fried cockroach to win a bet. I got a free ‘Leo’ beer!

When I was in Japan I ate horse sashimi. Yup. Raw horse! Even though I love Japanese food, I think that will be the last time I eat horse sashimi. Not my cup of tea. The point is, I try. I follow my hosts and I learn about the culture. As Canadians we expect our visitors and immigrants to do the same for us, so why not do the same for them, especially when the culture is right inside Canada!

Here is an article about our brave GG. http://www.vancouversun.com/Technology/Canada+Governor+General+criticized+eating+seal+heart/1633528/story.html

At the bottom there lists some other ‘politically-charged meals’ for others.
Bon Appetit!

So, what are the qualities of a good speaker?

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Here are a list of the qualities and characteristics of a good public speaker/presenter.

Make sure you include these points when you have to speak in public.

1. They talk to us as though we are having a conversation
2. They speak our language
3. They look as though they are enjoying themselves.
4. They inspire us to find out more about the subject
5. They tell stories/use the human-interest angle
6. Someone who conjures up pictures in our mind
7. They don’t talk for hours
8. They let us know where we are going
9. They look at us – not their notes
10. They stress important points and pause to allow ideas to sink in
11. The talk appears well prepared but has an air of spontaneity

By Sean McPheat – included in his ‘ConfidenceWorld’ program.

Comparing Communication and English Conversations Skills

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What are the English Language Conversation Skills?

English Language Conversation Skills include language abilities, conversation skills, social skills, culture knowledge and non-verbal communication skills.

Non-verbal communication skills are classified as posture, body movements, gestures, facial expressions, proximity and eye contact.

In English speaking countries the non-verbal messages can represent from 50-93% of the meaning.

Social skills and culture knowledge can be generalized as “what to say, when to say it, where and why to say it, and most important how to say it”.

When learning English Language Conversation Skills ESL students must learn: language abilities, conversation skills, social skills, culture knowledge and non-verbal communication skills. ESL Students need everything if they actually want to converse with native English speakers.

ESL Students can not just learn English vocabulary or English pronunciation as it represents less than 50% of most conversations.

What are some of the Professional Communication Skills?

The ability to add charisma to your speaking and interpersonal communications.

The ability to create initial rapport even on first phone calls or meetings.

The ability to build rapport easily in meetings, networking functions, or conversations.

The ability to use specialized industry or business English using industry-specific vocabulary for accuracy.

The ability to emote the appropriate emotion at the correct level.

The ability to create and deliver persuasive and dynamic presentations and speeches.

The ability to display confident leadership and competent management or knowledge.

Other specialized skills include customer service, handling complaints, conflict management.

There are many similarities between conversation and communication skills. Both are very important. One could generalize that communication skills add extra dimensions to conversation skills. One example: Conversations can transmit information where communication skills can transmit trust.
(original post by Ross McBride – ESL in Canada. Reprinted with permission)

Idioms from Snow

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Well it is the season for this topic, at least here in Canada and the northern U.S.
(I have modified these from http://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/snow)

To be (as) pure as the driven snow:

Pure and chaste (Often used ironically.)
E.g. Jill: Sue must have gone to bed with every man in town. Jane: And I always thought she was as pure as the driven snow!

A snow bunny:
1. Someone learning to ski.
E.g. This little slope is for snow bunnies. They call it the ‘bunny hill’.
2. A young, attractive female at a skiing lodge.
E.g. Some cute little snow bunny came over and sat beside me. This place is swarming with snow bunnies that have never even seen a ski.

Snowed in:
Trapped (somewhere) because of too much snow, most likely due to a recent snow storm.
E.g. The snow was so deep that we were snowed in for three days. Luckily we had enough food to last us a while.

Snowed under:
Overworked; exceptionally busy.
E.g. Look, I’m really snowed under at the moment. Can this wait?

A snow job:

An attempt to persuade or deceive someone by praising them or not telling the truth.
E.g. Dane will need to do a snow job on his Dad if he’s ever going to borrow the car again, after getting into so many fender-benders (minor car accidents).

Enjoy and stay warm!

Are You Over-Sharing Personal Info at Work?

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Today I was asked to give an interview for Sarah Boesveld, a newspaper reporter with The Globe and Mail’s Life section. She wanted to write an article about over-sharing in the workplace – that is, people offering a little bit too much personal information and how that can affect working performance and working relationships. Great topic!

That article comes out most likely this Monday the 23rd and I’ll post a link to the online article then.

UPDATE FYI – I am a contributor of articles on the Entrepreneur-focused site Evan Carmichael.  Here is the link to that article on the same topic – 7 negative results of oversharing personal info at work:

http://www.evancarmichael.com/Business-Coach/2493/7-Negative-Results-of-OverSharing-Personal-Info-at-Work.html

To Sing or Not to Sing O Canada at School

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Hi folks,

This is a great cultural question: Should this country’s national anthem, O Canada, be sung each morning at school, or just once in a while at school ceremonies? Here is an article:

N.B. parents force school to reinstate O Canada, call for others to follow

By Michael Tutton, The Canadian Press

Susan Boyd wants O Canada to be mandatory at the start of the day in elementary schools across the country after she successfully fought for the anthem’s return at her daughter’s tiny school in New Brunswick.

Belleisle Elementary in Springfield, about 40 kilometres northeast of Saint John, played the national anthem Monday morning.

“It’s one step forward, but our job isn’t done yet,” Boyd said in a telephone interview.

“We have to continue and have it legislated that it’s mandatory. Otherwise it could be overturned in another few weeks or even a year or two from now if it’s not written in stone.”

School principal Erik Millett incurred Boyd’s wrath and a torrent of angry calls and emails in recent weeks after a group of parents complained that O Canada wasn’t being played before classes.

Millett, who couldn’t be reached for comment Monday, moved the anthem to monthly assemblies in September 2007, saying it was a more “inclusive” option.

The principal has told the New Brunswick Telegraph-Journal that using the anthem at the monthly assemblies would give it “more prominence, more importance.”

Before his decision, one child had been sitting outside class when the anthem was played at the request of the child’s parents, and for reasons that haven’t been publicly released.

A school board spokesman said the child’s situation played a role in Millett’s decision to drop the anthem.

When Boyd’s daughter told her recently that she was forgetting the words to O Canada, the 43-year-old mother of two started a campaign to bring it back.
(to read the rest of this article, please visit this link:
http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/capress/090202/national/no_o_canada )