The Cultural Baggage of Second Language Reading: An Approach to Understanding the Practices and Perspectives of a Nonnative Product

Abstract

The role of background knowledge in second language (***L2) reading has received much attention in pedagogical research through theoretical paradigms such as schema theory, mental models, scripts, and expectations. The recent culture goals of the National Standards (1999) have provided new direction for research in interactive reading models, as sufficient background knowledge can help students comprehend the relationship between the practices and perspectives of a nonnative text or product. This article presents a 3R model of reading strategies (Recognize, Research, Relate) that focuses on developing background knowledge about a target culture while applying this schema to appropriate clues in a foreign text. Samples of data from a qualitative study testing the effectiveness of the 3R model accompany the discussion of this approach designed for a wide‐ranging instructional audience.

Home Culture Attachment and Comprehending L2 Written Texts: A Study on EFL learners in Iran

“…Anderson, Sapiro and Montague (1977), suggest that the cultural background of a reader affects her ability to understand a text. Cultural schema is an extension of content schema (Ketchum, 2006) and is developed ".... in the context of our basic experience" (Yule, 1996, p.87). Peirce (1868), states that "no cognition not determined by a previous cognition then can be known" in other words, we must use our inner, pre-existing cognition to make sense of the outer world, to detect and expand meaning.…”

The Functions Of Cultural Schemata In The Chinese Reading Comprehension And Reading Time Of College Students In Taiwan

“…In order to understand the impact of cultural schema, one type of background knowledge or schema, on reading comprehension, a definition of this term is found in Ketchum (2006) and Yule (1996). Ketchum defined cultural schema as a culturespecific extension of content schema because it refers to the crucial role that a reader needs to fully comprehend a writer"s intended meaning.…”

The Role Of Schematic Knowledge In Developing EFL Students’ Written Discourse

“…In addition, Yule (1996) presents another type of schema, namely cultural schemata (abstract schemata). It refers to the role of cultural membership that is needed to fully comprehend the meaning intended by the writer (as cited in, Ketchum, 2006).…”