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Introduction

What is Cultural Awareness?

Why We Need to Develop CA?

How to Develop CA in EFL Classroom

Conclusion

Understanding a language involves not


only the knowledge of grammar,
phonology, and lexis but also a certain
features and characteristics of the
culture
To communicate internationally, it
involves communicating interculturally
as well.
Language is a part of culture and
culture is a part of a language.

Culture is an integral part of the


interaction between language and
thought.
Valdes claims that cultural patterns,
customs, and ways of life are expressed in
language; culture-specific world views are
reflected in language. (Valdes 1986:45)
Culture is inextricably and implicitly
related to language. (Thanasoulas
2001:6)

Cultural Awareness is a term used to


describe the sensitivity to the impact of
culturally induced behavior in language
use and communication
Developing the learners cultural
awareness in a language course, can
facilitate language acquisition too
(Tomlinson and Masuhara 2004) .

Cultural Awareness is the


foundation of communication
and it involves the ability of
standing back from ourselves
and becoming aware of our
cultural values, beliefs and
perceptions.
Why do we do things in that
way? How do we see the
world? Why do we react in that
particular way?
Cultural awareness becomes
central when we have to
interact with people from other
cultures.ByPeople
see, interpret
Stephanie Quappe and Giovanna
and evaluate
things in a
Cantatore
different ways.

Cultural awareness involves a


gradually developing inner sense of
the equality of cultures, an increased
understanding of your own and
other peoples cultures, and a
positive interest in how cultures
both connect and differ.
Such awareness can broaden the mind,
increase tolerance and facilitate
international communication.
(Tomlinson, 2001, p. 5)

Cultural awareness consists of perceptions of our own


and other peoples cultures. These perceptions are:
Internal: they develop in our minds
Dynamic: they are constantly being added to and
changed
Variable: they are modified from experience
Multi-dimensional: they are represented through
sensory images (mental pictures), mental
connections, and affective associations, as well as
through the inner voice
Interactive in that they connect with and inform
each other
Tomlinson and Masuhara (2004)

Cultural Awareness is consciousness


of one's personal cultural background.
Intercultural Awareness is the
consciousness of relating ones culture
with another culture or other cultures.

There are two very important reasons why


we need to develop cultural awareness.
First, we can acquire a much deeper self-

knowledge when we are able to understand the


basis for our own beliefs, actions, and responses
toward others.
Second, and even more important, we live in a
world in which there are myriad different cultures
that inform the beliefs and behavior of others.

Cultural awareness is the first step in


becoming proficient in working well with
people from a variety of cultures.

Cultural awareness is so important because


it has a huge impact on communications
and negotiations, especially within a
business environment.
When it is addressed properly it can
actively build great cross cultural relations
however when ignored or not thought of as
anything important the lack of cultural
awareness can lead to breakdowns in
communication and business relationships.

Incorporating CA into language instructional


materials or including cultural aspect in
textbooks
Using cultural materials and techniques in
teaching process.
Material helps the teacher create a
productive classroom environment. Authentic
material brings immediacy and relevance to
the proposed tasks. At the same time,
meaningful learning tasks engage students in
developing their own learning styles. Projects
are ideal scenarios for the class to promote
the Intercultural competence.

As Tomlinson and Masuhara(2004) stated


that, it is useful to include cultural
awareness activities in a language course.
Perhaps one solution for such problems is
to help language learners to learn the
target culture within the syllabus.
(Tomlinson and Masuhara 2004)

Professor Alvino Fantini


proposes four principles to
develop Intercultural
Awareness: awareness,
attitude, skill and knowledge.
Here is THE KASA
PARADIGM whose central
part is awareness of oneself,
awareness of ones culture,
and the target language. The
four dimensions are
interrelated and indispensable
for intercultural competence.

In order to apply CA Approach, Tomlinson and


Masuhara (2004) recommend the following
procedures:
1. Start and finish an activity in the minds of the
learners (e.g. by getting them to think about an
experience in their own culture before providing
them with a similar one in another culture; by
getting them to translate a new experience in
another culture into an equivalent experience in
their own culture)
2. Provide cultural encounters (e.g. through visits,
video, songs, literature, simulations)
3. Facilitate connections between the old and the new
(e.g. by encouraging the learners to constantly
think of comparable personal experiences)

4. Stimulate multi-dimensional representation


of cultural experiences (e.g. through
visualization and inner voice activities)
5. Provide focused discovery activities which
guide the learners to find out things for
themselves
6. Contribute your personal interpretations but
dont provide them as definitive answers
7. Contribute your personal experiences of
other cultures

Here are several activities proposed by Tomalin


and Stempleski (1994) for teacher who wants
to increase CA and to promote Cross Cultural
Interaction in the English classroom:
1. Recognizing cultural image and symbols
2. Working with cultural product
3. Examining Patterns of everyday life
4. Examining Cultural behavior
5. Examining Pattern of communication
6. Exploring values and attitudes
7. Exploring and extending cultural experiences

EXAMPLE

Work in teams
Look at the picture & pieces of information
Say the name of the place

The Statue of Liberty


1. It was designed by the
French sculptor Bartholdi, in
collaboration with the French
engineer Eiffel.
2. It is a gift of friendship
from the people of France
to the people of the United
States.
3. It is located in New York
Harbor.
4. It is a symbol of freedom
and of the US.

Work in pairs
Discussing the custom listed in the task sheet,
indicating whether each practice is the same or
different in your culture.
Report your answer to the class.

Cultural awareness recognizes that we are


all shaped by our cultural background,
which influences how we interpret the
world around us, perceive ourselves and
relate to other people.
You don't need to be an expert in every
culture or have all the answers to be
culturally aware; rather, cultural awareness
helps you to explore cultural issues with
your care recipients more sensitively.

Every language has its cultural norms, some of which


can be completely different and conflict with other
cultures norms.
Consequently, communication problems may arise
among language users who do not know or share the
norms of other cultures.
The acquisition of English as a Foreign Language or
second language is actually the acquisition of a second
culture, therefore Teachers should make the learners
learn about the cultures and why certain things happen
in other cultures.
They should not try to make their learners think or
become like people in the cultures presented. They
should not give the idea that one's own culture is better
than the target culture or vice versa. They should
point out that cultures differ.

3. The ESL Culture Issue Again by


Brenda Townsend Hall, PhD (www.esl-

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