The development of intercultural competency through English Language Learning

Culture shows the life people live and as of this fact, we see that the term culture refers to beliefs, ideas, values, and knowledge of one nation. On the other side, we also can say that culture and language are bonded together and they cannot be separated when learning takes place as it develops standard communication skills. Otherwise, if languages are taught without their cultures, students are only the visitors of the language who aren’t familiar in detail about the origin of a particular language. Therefore, one of the strategies to learn English as a foreign language is if we see it through its culture and acquire this learning through the technique of competency base learning as it helps students develop their skills in their pace and provides students with useful models of authentic use of the language in the classroom and online. The purpose of this study is to discover the possibilities of learning English for the development of intercultural competence and to distinguish successful teaching methods for the development of this competence in higher education also to show that students need to acquire these competencies, so they can have the most effective communication with individuals from the cultures of English-speaking countries

Language, Thought and Culture: Links to Intercultural Communicative Competence

We live in a world where many countries are at war, where religious and ethnic conflicts tend to intensify in spite of sustained effort from governments and inter-governments, where solitudes and tensions between linguistic communities still prevail. In a context where geo-political interests predominate, how do we view cultural and intercultural issues? How can we promote values and attitudes that recognize experiences of diversity and openness to other cultures? Can institutions such as schools and universities promote social cohesion through education? These issues are essential to mankind but they have to be looked upon with logical coherence.This article reviews existing theories, definitions and a conceptual framework to the development of ICC which involves cognitive, affective and psychological factors, and intends to capture the interrelations that are embedded in language, thought and culture. It argues that language competence needs to address not only the linguistic, sociolinguistic and pragmatic/discourse elements of langue but should also integrate (inter)cultural interactions, the development of (inter)cultural representations and transactions between individuals in the learning process. Nous vivons dans un monde dans lequel plusieurs pays sont en guerre ; dans lequel les conflits religieux et ethniques tendent à s’intensifier en dépit des efforts constants des gouvernements et des agences intergouvernementales ; un monde dans lequel les isolements et tensions entre les communautés linguistiques persistent encore. Alors, dans un contexte où les intérêts géopolitiques dominent, comment voyons-nous les problèmes culturels et interculturels ? Comment pouvons-nous promouvoir des valeurs et attitudes qui reconnaissent l’expérience de la diversité et l’ouverture sur les autres cultures ? Des institutions telles que les écoles et les universités peuvent-elles exhorter à une cohésion sociale à travers l’éducation ? Ces questions sont essentielles à l’humanité ; cependant, elles doivent être considérées avec une cohérence logique. Cet article passe en revue des théories existantes, des définitions et un cadre conceptuel au développement des CIC qui implique des facteurs cognitifs, affectifs et psychologiques ; et projette de capter l’essence des interrelations qui sont incorporés au langage, à la pensée et à la culture. Cet article soutient que la compétence linguistique doit se pencher non seulement sur les éléments linguistiques, sociolinguistiques et pratiques/ discursives de la langue ; mais devrait également intégrer des interactions (inter)culturelles, le développement des représentations et transactions (inter)culturelles entre les individus en processus d’apprentissage

International education: a force for peace and cross-cultural understanding?

This paper discusses the notion that the international sojourn has the potential to transform sojourners into cultural mediators who carry the power to improve global relations. A year-long ethnographic study of the adjustment experiences of international postgraduate students in England revealed a universal early enthusiasm for cross-cultural contact that was matched by a widespread adoption of segregated patterns of interacting. The most common friendship networks were described by bonds with conationals, and yet all students attested to an increase in their cultural learning and mindfulness by the end of the sojourn. Nevertheless, intercultural competence was maximised only in those few students who pursued a multicultural strategy of interaction, leading the researcher to call on Higher Education Institutions to instigate policies to encourage lasting cross-cultural contact

The Transformative Power of the International Sojourn: an Ethnographic Study of the International Student Experience

The findings from an ethnographic study of international postgraduate students’ adjustment journey through life in England illustrates the transformative potential of the international student sojourn. It is shown that removal from the familiar home environment gave students freedom from cultural and familial expectations and the opportunity for self-discovery, whilst exposure to a new culture offered them the chance to improve their cross-cultural communication skills. The durability of change was questioned by students who were apprehensive about re-entry to the origin culture and the receptivity of those left behind to the changes they had made. By pointing to the possible similarities between the experiences of international students and long-stay tourists, this paper calls for research into the outcome of long-stay tourism, in order to measure the extent of change in tourists’ self-concept and cross-cultural awareness

Overcoming Barriers: Engaging younger students in an online intercultural exchange

This paper reports findings from a small-scale project involving an online school exchange between two classes of 11/13 year olds located in the North of England and the Ruhr area of Germany. The overarching aim of the project was to develop intercultural understanding (IU) in foreign language learning through communication in an online environment. Analysing data from website posts, lesson observations, student questionnaires and interviews, the study documented emergent practical and pedagogical issues

Building professional discourse in emerging markets: Language, context and the challenge of sensemaking

Using ethnographic evidence from the former Soviet republics, this article examines a relatively new and mainly unobserved in the International Business (IB) literature phenomenon of communication disengagement that manifests itself in many emerging markets. We link it to the deficiencies of the local professional business discourse rooted in language limitations reflecting lack of experience with the market economy. This hampers cognitive coherence between foreign and local business entities, adding to the liability of foreignness as certain instances of professional experience fail to find adequate linguistic expression, and complicates cross-cultural adjustments causing multi-national companies (MNCs) financial losses. We contribute to the IB literature by examining cross-border semantic sensemaking through a retrospectively constructed observational study. We argue that a relative inadequacy of the national professional idiom is likely to remain a feature of business environment in post-communist economies for some time and therefore should be factored into business strategies of MNCs. Consequently, we recommend including discursive hazards in the risk evaluation of international projects

Intercultural competencies of upper secondary learners of French

This thesis seeks to investigate the question of whether learners of French in the upper secondary sector acquire intercultural competencies which are commensurate with their linguistic competencies, during their two-year preparation for the examinations at 'Advanced' level which allow admission to university. The study has been undertaken in relation to existing literature in the disciplines of foreign language pedagogy, intercultural communication and motivation for foreign language learning. It examines the concept of culture within the teaching of upper secondary French, and recent developments which have led to the concept of the 'intercultural speaker'. In particular, it draws upon the work of Keesing and Gudykunst in the field of intercultural communication and theoretical foundations in the field of foreign language and culture pedagogy in the work of Kramsch, Zarate and Byram. Data were collected during a two-year longitudinal study among upper secondary students of French in the north-east of England. They consist of a questionnaire and three semi-structured interviews, together with a number of informal assessment activities. Their teachers were also interviewed. Data were subsequently analysed within the theoretical framework of savoirs proposed by Byram (1997b) in Teaching and Assessing Intercultural Communicative Competence. There was some evidence for the existence of certain of the savoirs and a disposition among the participants to develop others. It was clear from the data that experiences outside the classroom had been significant in this respect, but that certain pedagogical practices had probably also been helpful. The thesis concludes by recommending the inclusion of intercultural competencies in the specifications for foreign languages examinations in the upper secondary sector and offers some suggestions for a three stage development towards the status of intercultural speaker

Internationalizing Community Colleges to Inspire Globally Competent Leaders

All industries are becoming ever more intertwined with the global market, which means that the need for workers with a more globalized mental framework has become much more important. Unfortunately, in higher education institutions, there is a gap between students who have the ability to be in a school with comprehensive internationalized programs (internationalized curriculum, established international partnerships between schools, mission statement with internationalization emphasis, professor exchanges, and study abroad programs) and students who do not. Students who have limited access to internationalized programs are often low-income, first-generation, or returning community college students. This study proposes a comprehensive internationalized program at Portland Community College as a way to prepare these students to be globally competent leaders. Aspects of higher education such as curriculum, short-term study abroad programs, and buy-in from administration and faculty will be discussed. The desired outcome of this program is that students attending Portland Community College will graduate and be globally competent, and thus more work force ready. This study can be used as an outline for implementing a comprehensive internationalized program in many community colleges around the United States

The confluence of short-term immersion and intercultural competence: Positive impacts for Australian preservice teachers

Increasing global migration across geographical, linguistic and cultural borders has resulted in culturally and linguistically diverse classrooms in Australia. In response, teacher education programs are exploring ways to enhance preservice teachers’ ability to engage with cultural diversity appropriately and effectively. One way is through the provision of short-term immersion programs. As experiential learning, such programs allow opportunities for students to be embedded in the breadth and depth of human experience, to better understand themselves and the ‘cultural other’. These programs also enable an examination of personal beliefs, habits, and values, which may assist students in moving from a rigid dualist view of the world to a more relativist perspective. Increased awareness of the cultural realities of other people can lead to more tolerance, empathy and understanding. One immersion program offered in 2016 through the School of Education at the University of Notre Dame Australia involved 20 Australian preservice teachers for a three-week immersion in Kenya. The program was characterised by the principles of service-learning, including experiential learning, reciprocity, relationships and critical thinking. The program was designed as a pedagogical tool, was co-curricular (with no course credit awarded to students who participated) and was undertaken outside of the regular academic semester. This mini-ethnographic case study allowed for examination of the participants’ experiences and the perceived effects of short-term immersion on the development of intercultural competence. This research improves our understanding of international immersion programs in higher education and the perceived effect of these programs on participants’ development of intercultural competence. The findings are particularly relevant for institutions running such programs and for teachers and other professionals who, given ever-increasing globalisation, will be required to work with culturally diverse people

The Impact of Transformative Learning on the Development of Young Peoples’ Intercultural Competencies

This doctoral dissertation is a mixed-methods research study designed to investigate the effects of intercultural experiences and transformative learning opportunities on the development of intercultural competencies in young people between 18 and 23 years of age. The intervention was participation in language and culture seminars. The intervention group (N=47) actively participated in language and culture seminars at Shuya University, Russia, from spring 2015 through fall of 2019. The comparison group (N=51) was not involved in the intervention and acted as the control. The periods of data collection were spring of 2015 through winter of 2020. The descriptive study involved qualitative ethnographic data as an inductive process of organizing data from descriptive narration and analysis into themes that emerged from the data. The quantitative aspect was the use of a pretest and posttest for both the intervention and comparison groups. Inferential statistical analyses were used to determine effects of the intervention empirically. The subject population was student informants at Shuya Pedagogical University in provincial Russia, a unique cultural setting for the study. Participation in the seminars acted as the independent variable in the study with results on the construct-specific, posttest self-report questionnaire, as the dependent variable. Descriptive statistics provided the demographic profiles of the samples. Repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) and paired samples t-tests were used for comparison of mean scores and determination of statistical significance. The repeated measures were the pretest and posttest. Data analysis revealed statistically significant differences in mean scores for within and between-group comparisons. There was a positive main effect indicating increases in positive perceptions of others for the intervention group members themselves and compared to the comparison group as measured by a Cultural Assessment Survey Questionnaire (CASQ). Qualitative data was crucial, corroborated the qualitative findings, and vice-versa . The reader will notice that the terms informants, intervention group, participants, and students are sometimes used interchangeably depending on the intention of a particular statement or situation