Nowadays, with the introduction of multilingual crews and the loss of universal forms of communication, the importance of English as the 'lingua franca' of the sea has become paramount. In the aftermath of Intermar (a European Cooperation Programme under Key Action 2 of the Transversal Programme), this paper showcases part of the project's final result - online custom-designed courses for Intercomprehension (a 'natural' form of communication based on mutual understanding) and Maritime English. The ultimate goal of this project was to create of consortium of 18 institutions including European maritime colleges, both merchant marine and naval, as well as universities with a language training component; among which Mircea cel Batran Naval Academy of Constanta where the Intermar course was piloted during December 2012 and March 2013 with positive feedback from students. The course modules contain task-based learning materials, many set in a maritime context, with Teachers' guidelines that are also available as well as assessment tools (tests) that are provided to evaluate the learner during the entire process and at the end of each language module. Several activities within the learning/teaching modules focus on the identification of communication problems resulting from the pronunciation/production of English words/sounds by non-native speakers or other obstacles to communication such as volume, speed, rhythm, intonation, different accents, etc. in an effort to minimize misunderstanding both at sea and ashore. This paper will actually revolve around the presentation of the above-mentioned activities based on IC and oral reception strategies, and their relevance for a successful communication.
Practicing Intercultural Communicative Competences through Blended Learning Lecturer PhD Laura D.Cizer Associate Professor PhD Delia Natalia Alexandra Lungu Mircea cel Batran Naval Academy of Constanta Romania This aim of this paper is to present a module for practicing intercultural communicative competences that was devised within the Intermar project - a European Cooperation Project funded by the EU Commission's Lifelong Learning Programme, under Key Action 2 of the Transversal Programme - that ended in 2013 and whose major outcome was the creation of an effective "toolbox" available online on a learning platform (managed by the University of Sorbonne 3 in Paris). In this respect, 18 partners - mostly maritime and naval institutions (among which Mircea cel Batran Naval Academy of Constanta) - produced custom-designed courses in separate modules containing learning materials and collaborative tasks set in maritime contexts to be performed both by synchronous and asynchronous distance learning working groups. The principle lying at the core of this project was intercomprehension (a natural form of communication, based on mutual comprehension) which encourages the development of plurilingual comprehension skills, and since seafarers come into contact with so many languages when onboard this innovative approach is more than welcome and useful to resort to; however, understanding and speaking languages alone are not sufficient. In addition, seafarers are required to live and work with colleagues that have diverse cultural backgrounds; therefore, the cultural component was introduced and dealt with in a separate module: Intercultural Awareness Module. After pointing out the importance of both blended learning and cross-cultural communication skills, this paper will give the outline of the course module and focus particularly on activities that include face-to-face contact, self-directed tasks and e-learning on a par with pair work and role play, aiming to foster better relationships and enhance future seafarers' wellbeing in the cultural melting pot that ships have become nowadays.
This paper revolves around the development of an online visual dictionary with a view to improving lexical acquisitions in maritime contexts. Undoubtedly, technological advances in computer technology have led to increased speed in accessing information and processed data; therefore, we deem it appropriate to consider first what online dictionaries may bring to the study of the English vocabulary, that is to facilitate both access to and use of the information contained therein. Indeed, the possibility of automatic processing and research of a term in an index is one of the greatest advantages of electronic dictionaries as compared to their paper format counterparts. Furthermore, the visual support - pictures or illustrations - is essential to language learners since it compensates for the definition alone when purely linguistic means are insufficient to explain a particular word or when they produce too difficult a definition. Taking this context into account, the Maritime English Visual Dictionary was conceived within the Sectorial Plan of Research and Development (PSCD) and its importance is backed up by the lack of such a teaching/learning material on the specialized book markets; therefore, the benefits brought about by the project outcome involve supplementing the traditional methods of teaching/learning maritime English through the production of e-learning teaching aids as well as developing learners' capacity for long-term storage of maritime terminology. The project is based on an html format program and contains the following fields: the English word, its explanation, its translation and the corresponding picture. It is hosted on the Naval Academy platform since it is intended as a useful resource for both classroom use and self study.
This paper attempts to showcase the potential of an in-house textbook for practicing Intercomprehension (IC) in a purely maritime context. It encompasses most of the research work conducted by the authors within EU funded grants as well as beyond them. First, reference will be made to the theoretical framework scaffolding this endeavor, namely the definition of such concepts as IC, textbooks, and IC didactics, then the newly devised textbook will be assessed according to several criteria: description of the teaching material, targeted audience, book structure, duration and pace of the teaching/learning process, objectives, types of tasks and internal dynamics. Thus, learners are led to demonstrate comprehension of foreign languages which is facilitated by the presence of different communication channels (written texts, sounds, images, etc). Consequently, in the authors’ vision, this exposure to the concept of IC will certainly facilitate the overcoming of communication and socializing problems that nowadays occur frequently on-board ships manned by multilingual and multicultural crews.
The European Union is multilingual in its daily reality as well as in its legislation. The use of only one language as a communicative means among different peoples in Europe would greatly impact upon Europe’s capacity to federate diverse cultures and languages, not to mention the economic and cultural benefits enjoyed by the country whose language would become an inter-European language. With Intercomprehension (IC), the European citizens could overcome the risk of diminishing communicative exchanges: it promotes a direct, multilingual dialog tailoring the mindset and language specificity of each and every interlocutor. As such, IC bears the sign of a concrete action in favor of the cultural and language diversity. Two French movies – Euro-Mix (“L’auberge espagnole”) and its sequel Russian Dolls (“Les poupées russes”) – have been precisely selected as proof of this communication skill that avoids using a third language between two people speaking related languages.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.