‘Lunchtimes in New Zealand are cruel’: reflection as a tool for developing language learners’ intercultural competence

Conway, C.M.; Richards, Heather

doi:10.1080/09571736.2015.1130080

Cited by 11 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 24 publications

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“…Reasons for this limited attention to culture arose from contextual constraints such as heavy workload, lack of professional development, language proficiency-oriented curriculum, and students' English level of proficiency (as teachers reported). Many studies have reported similar constraints such as lack of time (Ho, 2011;Sercu et al, 2005;Vo, 2017), lack of cultural knowledge and skills (Conway & Richards, 2018;Nhem, 2020), language-oriented curriculum (Nguyen, 2013;Young & Sachdev, 2011), and teachers' lack of awareness about government policy (Nguyen, 2015).…”

Section: Overall Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For example, schoolteachers were found to focus on factual knowledge in the target culture (East, 2012), which demonstrates limitations in their understanding of intercultural language teaching. In another study, Conway and Richards (2018) investigated how teachers understood reflection as a learning tool and what they implemented to foster students' intercultural competence using this tool of reflection.…”

Section: Research On Teachers' Beliefs and Practices Of Teachingmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Fostering intercultural learning through project-based learning in Vietnamese tertiary EFL classes: A participatory action research study

Ta¹

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<p>Intercultural competence (IC) is increasingly recognized globally as a goal of education. In Vietnam, despite emphasis on intercultural competence in national language education, research has shown the peripheral role of addressing culture in EFL classes although research on the topic of how to cultivate intercultural language teaching and learning (ICLTL) is growing. This study investigated affordances for intercultural learning through project-based learning (PBL) in an EFL program at a Vietnamese university. It followed an interpretive research paradigm and qualitative research approach. It included two related studies. Study 1 was an ethnography-informed study, which involved 14 teachers, 265 students, 6 graduates and their employers. Data were collected from classroom observations, student focus group interviews, and interviews with teachers, graduates and employers. This preliminary research revealed few opportunities for intercultural learning in this program. Specifically, it found that culture was rarely addressed, and the main instructional method for culture was fact transmission. Moreover, teachers showed limited understanding of ICLTL and students expressed the need for further culture learning. Study 2 was a participatory action research study, in which a semester-long project was introduced to foster intercultural learning. Study 2 included two workshops, one at the beginning and one in the middle of the project. In these workshops, the researcher and three teachers collaboratively learned about ICLTL, and planned PBL lessons. Drawing on a thematic analysis of classroom data and teachers’ and students’ reports, the findings showed teachers’ improved practices and understanding of ICLTL and PBL, and indications of students’ IC development throughout the project. This research contributes to the growing scholarship on ICLTL by providing evidence for the efficacy of PBL for intercultural learning. Additionally, the study highlights the impact of teacher professional development on teaching practice and extends understanding of how to incorporate PBL in a textbook-based and exam-oriented EFL context.</p>

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Section: Overall Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Research On Teachers' Beliefs and Practices Of Teachingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fostering intercultural learning through project-based learning in Vietnamese tertiary EFL classes: A participatory action research study

Ta¹

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“…TPL plays an important role in enhancing teachers' implementation of intercultural dimension in their classroom practice. Many teachers are not well-prepared for intercultural language teaching and so the intercultural dimension is not sufficiently addressed in classrooms (Sercu, 2006;Garrido & Aslvarez, 2006;Young & Sachdev, 2011;Díaz, 2013;Conway & Richards, 2016;Oranje & Smith, 2018). Recognition of this gap has led to concerted efforts to equip language teachers with the necessary skills and dispositions to teach interculturally (e.g., RCLCE, 2007;Newton et al, 2010;Biebricher, East, Howard, and Tolosa, 2019).…”

Section: Teacher Professional Learning (Tpl) In Intercultural Language Teachingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In New Zealand, the strand of cultural knowledge in language learning is intended to support learners' effective communication in the nation's multicultural context . Recent research (East, 2012;Oranje & Feryok, 2013;Feryok & Oranje, 2015;Oranje & Smith, 2018;Conway & Richards, 2016;Howard et al, 2016;Tolosa, Biebricher, East, & Howard, 2018;Biebricher et al, 2019) has increasingly scrutinised teachers' perspectives (e.g., cognitions, perceptions and understandings) and teaching practices. For instance, school teachers in New Zealand have been shown to teach culture infrequently and non-purposefully (Oranje & Feryok, 2013) and to focus on cultural facts (East, 2012).…”

Section: Research On Teachers' Teaching Practices and Perspectivesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For instance, school teachers in New Zealand have been shown to teach culture infrequently and non-purposefully (Oranje & Feryok, 2013) and to focus on cultural facts (East, 2012). They have been observed to struggle with incorporating an intercultural dimension in practice (Feryok & Oranje, 2015); and demonstrate gaps in understanding an intercultural perspective against the theoretical scholarship on the topic (Conway & Richards, 2016;Oranje & Smith, 2018). target language culture).…”

Section: Research On Teachers' Teaching Practices and Perspectivesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Intercultural Language Teaching in Vietnamese Tertiary EFL Classes: A Participatory Action Research Study

Tran¹

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<p>In 2008, Vietnam introduced a new English language policy based on the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR), and subsequently in 2014 adopted a Vietnamese version of this, referred to as CEFR-V. In adopting the CEFR-V, English language education in Vietnam has taken on a conception of English language proficiency in which intercultural competence (IC) is thoroughly integrated. Nevertheless, despite the emphasis of IC in national language policy, little research has dealt with how teachers can adopt interculturally informed pedagogy in their daily classroom practice, and specifically professional development and learning can be harnessed to increase teachers’ capacity to adopt an intercultural stance in their teaching. This study aimed to redress this gap by investigating the process of adopting Intercultural Communicative Language Teaching (iCLT) practice in an English as a foreign language (EFL) course at a Vietnamese university. The research deployed an interpretive, qualitative, case study approach and Participatory Action Research (PAR) to explore the nature of the teaching of culture by three tertiary EFL teachers at a Vietnamese university, and by the students in their classes. The data were collected from classroom observations, teacher interviews, and pre-workshop-one and post-workshop-two focus groups with students. The research included two phases. The first phase of the study investigated the orientation to the teaching of culture in teaching materials and lessons taught by the teachers, and in their stated beliefs. Analysis of the three case study teachers showed that each of the teachers demonstrated both strengths and limitations regarding the teaching of culture in his/her stated perceptions and classroom practices. Cross-case analysis showed that the teaching of culture was intermittent and unplanned, and that the teachers held a static view of culture with little awareness of intercultural language teaching. Drawing on these findings, the second phase of the research sought to develop a more principled engagement with culture by involving the case study teachers in two workshop cycles in which the teachers were introduced to principles and practical examples of intercultural language teaching and then implemented the redesigned intercultural-oriented lessons in the classroom teaching. The results drawn from classroom observation and interview data showed a positive impact of the workshops on the teachers’ teaching practices, perceptions, and understanding of intercultural language teaching. The study contributes to the growing body of scholarship on intercultural language teaching by showing how Vietnamese EFL tertiary teachers shifted from a cultural to an intercultural orientation through participating in an action research project. Accordingly, this study confirms the value of in-situ professional development for teachers. The study also shows how teachers, working from a set of intercultural teaching principles, can adopt an intercultural stance in their teaching even while working with existing teaching materials that contain little in the way of intercultural teaching affordances.</p>

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The Conceptual Evolution of Culture Within Language and Culture Pedagogy

Liu,

Blachford

2024

Multilingual Education

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‘Lunchtimes in New Zealand are cruel’: reflection as a tool for developing language learners’ intercultural competence

Cited by 11 publications

References 24 publications

Fostering intercultural learning through project-based learning in Vietnamese tertiary EFL classes: A participatory action research study

Fostering intercultural learning through project-based learning in Vietnamese tertiary EFL classes: A participatory action research study

Intercultural Language Teaching in Vietnamese Tertiary EFL Classes: A Participatory Action Research Study

The Conceptual Evolution of Culture Within Language and Culture Pedagogy

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