Intercultural Communication in ELT

elective courses

The aim of the course is to equip the students in the basic knowledge about intercultural communication, its importance in everyday life as well as in education. The course allows the students to explore and deepen their own intercultural awareness and prepares them to help their future pupils become intercultural communicators.

The course discusses the place and role Intercultural Communication should take in English Language Teaching. How and why do we include intercultural awareness raising activities and how can we aid learners develop their intercultural communicative competence? These are just two of the questions the course helps students find answers to. The course consists of three parts. During the first part, focus is on the theoretical background. During this phase of the course students learn about the relationship between language and culture, the role of English and the ways in which English is used, as well as about identity, otherization and representation. Finally, students learn about an intercultural speaker and his/her competences. The aim of the second part of the course is for the learners to undergo intercultural training, raise their intercultural awareness and develop critical thinking abilities with respect to cultural representations. The second part of the course is the time for the students to reflect on their own culture and experience, their assumptions and beliefs. Finally, in the third part of the course the knowledge and experience gained in the first two parts of the course are brought together and focus is on teaching practice.

The materials used are book excerpts, video and audio sources as well as lesson and course plans.

The theoretical background taken into consideration includes:

- different views of language (e.g. as social/cultural practice),

communication (e.g. semiotic, sociocultural,

phenomenological) and culture (epidemiological);

- the relationship between language and the way we think, as

well as the relationship between language, culture, nation,

and identity

- Agar’s concept of “languaculture”;

- English as a Lingua Franca, Euro-English, International English.

Class activities and home assignments include reading, discussion, activity participation, as well as individual and group project work.

The potential conclusions pertain to the role of intercultural communication in ELT and the role of the teacher in intercultural communication education.

Alred G., Byram M. and Fleming M. (Eds.). (2006). Education for intercultural citizenship : Concepts and comparisons. Clevedon, GBR: Multilingual Matters Limited.

Alred G., Byram M. and Fleming M. (Eds.). (2003). Languages for intercultural communication and education, 2 : Intercultural experience and education. Clevedon, GBR: Multilingual Matters Limited.

Byram M., Grundy P. (Eds.). (2002). Languages for intercultural communication and education, 6 : Context and culture in language teaching and learning. Clevedon, GBR: Multilingual Matters Limited.

Corbett, J. (2003). Languages for intercultural communication and education, 7 : Intercultural approach to English language teaching. Clevedon, GBR: Multilingual Matters Limited.

FitzGerald, H. G. (2003). Languages for intercultural communication and education, 4 : How different are we? spoken discourse in intercultural communication: The significance of the situational context. Clevedon, GBR: Multilingual Matters Limited.

Gagliardi C., Maley A. (Eds.). (2010). Linguistic insights, volume 96 : EIL, ELF, global english : Teaching and learning issues. Berne, IN, USA: Peter Lang AG.

Guilherme, M. (2002). Languages for intercultural communication and education, 3 : Critical citizens for an intercultural world foreign language education as cultural politics. Clevedon, GBR: Multilingual Matters.

Novinger, T. (2001). Intercultural communication : A practical guide. Austin, TX, USA: University of Texas Press.

Risager, K. (2007). Language and culture pedagogy : From a national to a transnational paradigm. Clevedon, GBR: Multilingual Matters Limited.

Sercu, L. (2005). Foreign language teachers and intercultural competence : An international investigation. Clevedon, GBR: Multilingual Matters Limited.

Sharifian F., Palmer G. B. (Eds.). (2007). Applied cultural linguistics : Implications for second language learning and intercultural communication. Amsterdam, NLD: John Benjamins Publishing Company.

After the course, students have a basic knowledge from the field of intercultural communication; their intercultural awareness and competence is deepened and they know how to prepare their own future pupils for intercultural communicative encounters (both in theory and in practice).

The students will be assessed on the basis of the results of their project work (50%) as well as their written tasks (50%).