Differences in Emotional Expressivity.

02/10/2022 - Week 06 – Differences in Emotional Expressivity

        If I had to define culture before this week, I would never define emotional expressivity as a part of it because I thought it was very individual. Thinking deeply about my new knowledge about it, I can remember when people said Brazilians like to express emotions in public verbally, hugging or kissing each other. When we say goodbye on the phone, we usually say, “kisses, hugs, and bye,” or when we send messages by someone else, we say, “send a hug to your mom,” for example. Maybe, this is a way to express our emotions with people far away.

        I love expressing my emotions, I kiss people on the cheek as a greeting, and I hug them, but as a teacher, expressing my feelings in this way can be misunderstood and it is not appropriate, especially if I have students from other countries. I have to shape myself. My culture is still part of me, learning the culture of others can guide me to shape my attitudes in public to express my feelings without offending others, and be open to understand that people have different ways to express their feelings, it doesn’t mean they are angry or aggressive.


       So far, I have explored situations where people express their feelings a lot. What about those who don’t show their feelings in public? Can this affect the process of learning a new language? As a teacher, if I try to make students express their feelings, will I be disrespecting their cultural limits? I need to find a way to balance it. Emotions can help me to understand if students like my classes, a specific activity, or even if students like me, but their expressions of feelings cannot be the only method of assessment if the class is interesting or not because not all students will express their feelings in the same way. What can I do to understand their emotions? I would like to know more about it. If you have some advice for me, I am open to learn from you.

         My conclusion about teaching a TESOL class is; I am not only preparing myself to teach the language, but I am also preparing myself to connect students with cultures and who they are. Their language and culture are part of who they are, even though they are learning a new language.  

Lilian Perez

This video helps us to understand how emotions differ across cultures: