Reading &
Speaking Assessment
Read the following passage to yourself once or twice to
understand the meaning. Then, read it aloud and record it using the Voice
Record App.
Steps to record your voice using the Voice Record App:
1.
Open
the application called Voice Record on the mobile device.
2.
Press
the red “REC” button two times.
3.
Begin
reading slowly and clearly once you see the volume unit meter.
4.
When
you finish reading the entire passage, press the square button (STOP).
Have you observed the ways people from different cultures use silence? Have
you noticed that some people interrupt conversations more than other people?
All cultures do not have the same rules governing these areas of communication.
Many Americans interpret silence in conversations to mean disapproval,
disagreement, or unsuccessful communication. They often try to fill silence by
saying something even if they have nothing to say! On the other hand, Americans
don’t appreciate a person who dominates a conversation. Knowing when to take
turns in a conversation in another language can sometimes cause difficulty.
Should you wait until someone has finished a sentence before contributing to a
discussion, or can you break into the middle of someone’s sentence?
Interrupting someone who is speaking is considered rude in the United States.
Even children are taught explicitly not to interrupt.
*From
Deena R. Levine and Mara B. Adelman, Beyond Language: Intercultural
Communication for English as a Second Language (Englewood Cliffs, N.J.:
Prentice Hall, 1982), p.23.
