Teaching English
7. Intercultural and transcultural
learning
Nancy Grimm – Michael Meyer – Laurenz Volkmann
1. From Landeskunde to intercultural learning
0. Table of contents
1.1 Culture and language
1.2 From Landeskunde to Cultural Studies and
intercultural competence
1.3 Concepts of intercultural competence
2. Toward transcultural competence
2.1 Global issues and global education
2.2 Assessing and evaluating inter- and
transcultural competence
3. Ten principles
4. Recommended reading
5. Acknowledgements
Chapter 7: Intercultural and transcultural learning
2
Discuss:
Consider the cartoon together
with the following statement: “If
you get the present perfect and
the simple past wrong you may
lose marks; if you get the culture
wrong you may lose face, money
or even life.” (Gibson 1994: 127)
Discuss why the intercultural
encounter depicted in the
cartoon goes wrong. Which
assumptions lead to particular
perspectives and problems?
How could one avoid the
blunders shown in the cartoon?
Chapter 7: Intercultural and transcultural learning
3
1.1 Culture and language – language creates mental images
Consider the following
two sentences:
‘It was at the end of
November. Grandpa
brought the bird to the
table.’
Imagine the scene and
discuss how the story
would continue.
1. From Landeskunde to intercultural learning
Oven-roasted
turkey
Domestic canary
‘Dirty old man’
Young lady
Senior citizen
4
1.1 Culture and
language
Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis:
formative power of words or
languages on how individuals
construct their environment
 nowadays, scholars favor
more complex models of
how reality is created by
and in languages
We [English speakers] have the same
word for falling snow, snow on the
ground, snow hard packed like ice, slushy
snow, wind-driven snow – whatever the
situation may be. To an Eskimo, this allinclusive word would be almost
unthinkable […].
Whorf in Carroll 1956: 216
1. From Landeskunde to intercultural learning
5
1.1 Culture and
language
Teaching language without
culture?
 We are all ‘the same under
the skin’!?
1. From Landeskunde to intercultural learning
Lingua franca-approach
general rules of politeness and
conversation strategies  list
of Do’s and Don’ts
More comprehensive
educational goals
language and communication
always inflected by national
identities + regions, ethnicities,
social classes, etc.
6
1.1 Culture and language
If a British student asks for a
‘rubber,’ why is his American fellow
student irritated?
“Imagine there’s no heaven, above
us only skies.” (John Lennon) Why
difficult to translate?
Is a ‘friend’ on Facebook really what
you would consider a ‘Freund’ in
Germany?
In Delhi, you see signs for a ‘hotel.’
Can you stay there overnight?
Why are Americans taken aback if
you ask for the ‘toilet’?
What is a ‘black eye’?
What do Americans and Europeans
associate with the term ‘capitalism’?
Can you use the expression ‘negro’
for an African American?
1. From Landeskunde to intercultural learning
7
1.2 From Landeskunde to Cultural Studies and intercultural competence
Landeskunde /
area, regional,
background
studies
(1950s-1980s)
Kulturkunde
(late 19th
century)
Wesenskunde
with a strong
nationalist bias
(1933-1945)
1. From Landeskunde to intercultural learning
Intercultural
Learning /
Cultural
Studies (1980snow)
8
1.2 From Landeskunde to
Cultural Studies and
intercultural competence
Area/background studies
(Landeskunde): a problematic
concept
Vague agenda:
‘Völkerverständigung’
‘Culture with a
capital C,’ facts
& figures
Target
cultures:
positive /
neutral
1. From Landeskunde to intercultural learning
‘Tourist kit’approach
Idealized social
images
9
1.2 From Landeskunde to
Cultural Studies and
intercultural competence
Area/background studies
(Landeskunde): a problematic
concept
Codes of
behavior
Uses of
language
History
Geography,
regionnalism
Minorities
Art
Topics
covered
Religion,
ideologies,
‘creeds’
Economics
Political
institutions
1. From Landeskunde to intercultural learning
Science
Social
structure
10
1.2 From Landeskunde to Cultural Studies and intercultural competence – a forceful shift
Notion of
culture
open
wide-ranging
shifting,
flexible
Culture
shapes the life
of humans
is shaped by
them
inclusive
concept
Target
cultures
Anglophone
countries,
areas
intercultural
exchanges
English as
lingua franca
1. From Landeskunde to intercultural learning
11
1.2 From Landeskunde to Cultural Studies and intercultural
competence
Cultural Studies as cultural
counter-discourse
Pragmatic intercultural learning
 Introduced in the 1960s and 1970s:
Raymond Williams, Richard Hoggart, E. P.
Thompson
 Originated in multicultural societies such
as the USA, first conceptualized in the
1960s as intracultural learning




empowerment of the working classes,
ethnic minority groups
developing a counter-hegemonic
perspective
from literature to films and products of
popular culture
attention to the production,
composition, reception, circulation of
cultural practices
1. From Landeskunde to intercultural learning

learning to live together in multicultural
and multiethnic communities

learning about habits, norms, values,
taboos, etc.

international business communication:
‘cultural norms’  more effective and
friction-free, avoid social blunders and
detrimental faux pas; Do’s and Don’ts
12
1.2 From Landeskunde to
Cultural Studies and
intercultural competence
Intercultural learning in the
EFL classroom
Integral part
1. From Landeskunde to intercultural learning
Various
contexts
Tolerance,
understanding,
solidarity
13
1.2 From Landeskunde to
Cultural Studies and
intercultural competence
PI
Fremdverstehen (Bredella
2010)
Redefinition
of cultural
learning
‘Negotiation of
meaning’
(Bedeutungsaushandlung)
P-wechsel  Pübernahme 
P-koordination
intercultural
processes of
meaning creation
1. From Landeskunde to intercultural learning
students as selfreflective coconstructors of
cultural meanings
P II
comparison of
horizons rather
than blending of
such horizons
14
1.3 Concepts of intercultural competence
Critical awareness and reflexivity
Tolerance, openness, respect, willingness
Readiness to meet with others
 own cultural preconditioning &
the cultural
conditionings
of others
 to accept
members of
other cultures
on their own
terms
Action competence
 in the
interstices
between two
cultures: third
place, ‘culture
of a third kind’
(Kramsch 1998)
 to engage in
communicative
acts while being
aware of
unwritten rules
& norms which
shape
intercultural
encounters
Freese 2002: 15, slightly adapted
1. From Landeskunde to intercultural learning
15
1.3 Concepts of
intercultural
competence
The ‘iceberg model’ of
culture:
 national cultures
‘produce’ different
cultural icebergs, which
shape and form the
individual’s mind-set (cf.
Gibson 2000: 16)
pork
carp
Gibson 2000: 16, adapted
1. From Landeskunde to intercultural learning
16
1.3 Concepts of
intercultural
competence
Cultural phenomena
baseball cap
cross necklace
Gibson 2000: 16, adapted
1. From Landeskunde to intercultural learning
17
1.3 Concepts of intercultural competence
Power distance
Uncertainty avoidance
Individualism vs. collectivism
Masculinity vs. femininity
1. From Landeskunde to intercultural learning
Gibson 2000: 16, adapted
18
Ask students to search the Internet for a collection/list of Do’s
and Don’ts for Germany: ask them to compile a list of tips and
present them in class. Discuss if they are true and what they
tell you about the writer’s cultural background.
1. From Landeskunde to intercultural learning
19
1.3 Concepts of
intercultural
competence
Critical incidents
What went
wrong?
Analyze different
cultural beliefs
and attitudes
Discuss ways of
avoiding cultural
conflict
Simulation
Outsourced, 2006
1. From Landeskunde to intercultural learning
20
1.3 Concepts of
intercultural
competence
Critical incidents
What went
wrong?
Analyze different
cultural beliefs
and attitudes
Discuss ways of
avoiding cultural
conflict
Simulation
Outsourced, 2006
1. From Landeskunde to intercultural learning
A German manager working
in Thailand is unhappy that
his secretary arrives at work
at least 30 minutes, and
sometimes as much as one
hour, late for work. He knows
that the traffic in Bangkok is
bad but this is getting
ridiculous – one morning
when she arrives he explodes
in front of the others in the
busy office, and then takes
her aside and tells her that if
she can’t get to work on time
she may risk losing her job.
She hands in her resignation.
Gibson 2000: 43
21
1.3 Concepts of
intercultural
competence
National stereotypes:
 ‘images of the mind’
 “necessary overgeneralizations and
oversimplifications that
are rigid, resistant to
change, undependable in
their actual content,
produced without logical
reasoning” (Lippmann in
Hammer 2012: 23)
1. From Landeskunde to intercultural learning
Consider the following intercultural questions.
Discuss them with fellow students, also from
another cultural background. In addition, discuss
the attitudes behind cultural or communicative
practices.
In your culture or when in a certain country …
 Is it considered correct to interrupt someone who is
speaking and, if so, when is it permissible?
 How do you begin a conversation with someone you
have never met before?
 How long do you maintain eye contact when talking
with or listening to someone?
 What is the body distance you feel comfortable with
when talking to someone you do not know?
22
2.1 Global issues and
global education
Tolerance, intercultural
dialogue and respect for
diversity are more essential
than ever in a world where
peoples are becoming more
and more closely
interconnected.
– Kofi Annan
2. Toward transcultural competence
23
2.1 Global issues and global education
Violence,
exploitation,
suppression
Global
diseases
Acid rain
Population
growth
Global
warming
Genocide,
famines 
refugees
cf. Hammer 2012: 62
2. Toward transcultural competence
24
2.1 Global issues and global education
demographic
language
social
health
peace
Topics
Aspects
covered
media
rights
technical
political
socioeconomic
ecological
cultural
cf. Volkmann 2010: 195-96, Hammer 2012: 75
2. Toward transcultural competence
25
2.1 Global issues and global education – teaching goals
Be aware
of your responsibility to further international understanding
through your teaching.
Increase
language teaching effectiveness so as to enhance mutual
respect, peaceful coexistence, and cooperation among nations.
Exploit
Lay
extracurricular activities such as pen-pal programs, video
exchanges, and overseas excursions to develop international
understanding.
the basis for international cooperation through classroom
cooperation using language-teaching approaches responsive to
students’ interests and needs.
Hammer 2012: 63-64
2. Toward transcultural competence
26
2.1 Global issues and global education
Loss of clearly defined
target cultures and key
issues
Problems
Highlighting too many
topics without specific
national, regional, historical
foci  risk: superficiality
2. Toward transcultural competence
English might lose content
as a school subject  risk:
‘meta-subject’ without a
clear agenda
27
2.1 Global issues and global education – ecodidactics
interconnected
-ness
Creating
complexity /
fragility of
biosystems
Topics
covered
wholeness,
sustainability,
diversity
Furthering
Empowering
Changing
ecological knowledge
understanding of sustaining natural resources
and the environment
learners to deal with nature and natural
resources more responsibly
consumer habits
???Western
creed of
technology???
cf. Mayer & Wilson 2006
2. Toward transcultural competence
28
Discuss:
Try to describe the contradiction
presented here and why this is not a
single, isolated incident.
Think of how it could be exemplary
of similar double-bind situations we
all are faced with.
Consider possible ways of getting
out of this double-bind.
Julia Damassa: “Green” (1989)
Outside the supermarket
sign the petition
‘SAVE OUR EARTH’.
Feel a momentary
sense of achievement
as you turn the ignition.
How can you get students to write
similar poems – and how can they
discuss possible strategies of
escaping the double bind?
qtd. in Volkmann 2012: 405
2. Toward transcultural competence
29
2.2 Assessing and evaluating inter- and transcultural competence
Byram 1997: 49-55, as adapted by Coperías-Aguilar 2007: 64
2. Toward transcultural competence
30
2.2 Assessing and
evaluating inter- and
transcultural
competence
Knowledge  students know
of…
target cultures and their sub-cultures, their local and
global importance, see problems, challenges, and
opportunities
the historical and social background and possible
solutions of cultural phenomena; how they differ from
those known to them and how they relate to them
2. Toward transcultural competence
31
2.2 Assessing and
evaluating inter- and
transcultural
competence
Skills  students can…
identify and explain cultural phenomena, critically reflect on them, and apply
their skills to similar topics
relate to problems and challenges presented to them cognitively, tackle them
in a creative, cooperative way and weigh possibilities of solving problems or
crises; they can weigh issues considering several perspectives, and they can
assess culture-specific and transcultural elements
2. Toward transcultural competence
32
2.2 Assessing and
evaluating inter- and
transcultural
competence
motivated to find out more about the target culture(s) and the issues
presented
aware of the problems and chances inherent in the issue at hand
Attitudes  students are…
aware of their own and other approaches to defining the cultural
phenomenon under discussion and ready to compare them
more open toward the other culture, respect fairness, social justice,
diversity, complexity, ambiguity, and develop empathy
encouraged to act (verbally) according to the principle of ‘think globally,
act locally’
2. Toward transcultural competence
33
Have another look at the
cartoon.
Try to define the teaching
and learning objectives
according to Byram with
regard to the dialog
presented in the cartoon.
What knowledge, skills,
and attitudes can
students acquire? What
overall educational
objective would you aim
at?
1. From Landeskunde to intercultural learning
34
3. Ten principles
From knowledge transfer to acquiring cultural competence
From canonical knowledge to exemplary learning
From the outside perspective to a multiperspectival
approach
From the concept of a ‘neutral’ learner to a focus on
learner identity
From culture to cultures
cf. Nünning & Nünning 2000, Teske 2006, Volkmann 2010
3. Ten principles
35
3. Ten principles
Finding the right cultural mix
Toward a holistic approach: integrating culture and
language learning
Representing cultures via various texts and media
Considering balanced representations
Toward student-centeredness
cf. Nünning & Nünning 2000, Teske 2006, Volkmann 2010
3. Ten principles
36
Recommended reading
Byram, Michael (1997). Teaching and Assessing Intercultural Communicative Competence.
Clevedon et al.: Multilingual Matters.
Eisenmann, Maria; Nancy Grimm & Laurenz Volkmann, eds. (2010). Teaching the New
English Cultures and Literatures. Heidelberg: Winter.
Hammer, Julia (2012). Die Auswirkungen der Globalisierung auf den modernen
Fremdsprachenunterricht: Globale Herausforderungen als Lernziele und Inhalte des
fortgeschrittenen Englischunterrichts – Are We Facing the Future? Heidelberg: Winter.
Kramsch, Claire (1998). Language and Culture. Oxford et al.: Oxford University Press.
Teske, Doris (2006). Cultural Studies: Key Issues and Approaches. In: Werner Delanoy &
Laurenz Volkmann, eds. Cultural Studies in the EFL Classroom. Heidelberg: Winter, 23-33.
Volkmann, Laurenz (2010). Fachdidaktik Englisch: Kultur und Sprache. Tuebingen: Narr.
Volkmann, Laurenz (2014). Die Abkehr vom Differenzdenken: Transkulturelles Lernen und
global education. In: Frauke Matz; Michael Rogge & Philipp Siepmann, eds. Transkulturelles
Lernen im Fremdsprachenunterricht: Theorie und Praxis. Frankfurt a. M.: Lang: 37-51.
Chapter 7: Intercultural and transcultural learning
37
Acknowledgments
Bredella, Lothar (2010). Das Verstehen des Anderen: Kulturwissenschaftliche und
literaturdidaktische Studien. Tuebingen: Narr.
Byram, Michael (1997). Teaching and Assessing Intercultural Communicative Competence.
Clevedon et al.: Multilingual Matters.
Carroll, John B., ed. (1956). Language, Thought, and Reality: Selected Writings of Benjamin
Lee Whorf. Cambridge: M.I.T. Press, 207-219.
Coperías-Aguilar, Maria José (2007). Dealing with Intercultural Communicative Competence
in the Foreign Language Classroom. In: Eva Alcón Soler & Maria Pilar Safont Jorda, eds.
Intercultural Language Learning and Language Use. Dordrecht: Springer, 58-78.
Freese, Peter (2002). The Chances and Limits of ‘Intercultural Understanding’ in the
Advanced EFL-Classroom. In: Teaching ‘America’: Selected Essays. Munich: LangenscheidtLongman, 11-30.
Gibson, Robert (1994). The Intercultural Dimension: Hidden Differences between British
Culture and Other Cultures. In: Fremdsprachenunterricht 38.2, 127-29.
Gibson, Robert (2000). Intercultural Business Communication: Fachsprache Englisch. Berlin:
Cornelsen.
Chapter 7: Intercultural and transcultural learning
38
Acknowledgments
Hammer, Julia (2012). Die Auswirkungen der Globalisierung auf den modernen
Fremdsprachenunterricht: Globale Herausforderungen als Lernziele und Inhalte des
fortgeschrittenen Englischunterrichts – Are We Facing the Future? Heidelberg: Winter.
Mayer, Sylvia & Graham Wilson, eds. (2006). Ecodidactic Perspectives on English Language,
Literatures and Cultures. Trier: WVT.
Nünning, Vera & Ansgar Nünning (2000). British Cultural Studies konkret: 10 Leitkonzepte
für einen innovativen Kulturunterricht. In: Der fremdsprachliche Unterricht Englisch 43.1, 49.
Teske, Doris (2006). Cultural Studies: Key Issues and Approaches. In: Werner Delanoy &
Laurenz Volkmann, eds. Cultural Studies in the EFL Classroom. Heidelberg: Winter, 23-33.
Volkmann, Laurenz (2010). Fachdidaktik Englisch: Kultur und Sprache. Tuebingen: Narr.
Volkmann, Laurenz (2012). Ecodidactics als Antwort auf die planetare Bedrohung? Zum
Einsatz von ecopoetry im Englischunterricht. In: Rüdiger Ahrens; Maria Eisenmann & Julia
Hammer, eds. Literatur im Interkulturellen Kontext – Zukunftsperspektiven für den
Englischunterricht. Heidelberg: Winter, 393-408.
Chapter 7: Intercultural and transcultural learning
39
Acknowledgments
The cartoons at the beginning of each ppt were designed by Frollein Motte, 2014. If not otherwise
indicated, the copyright of the figures lies with the authors. The complete titles of the sources can
be found in the references to the units unless given below. All of the websites were checked on 10
September 2014.
 Slide 4: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thanksgiving#/media/File:RoastTurkey.jpg,
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domestic_canary#/media/File:Canario_photo.jpg,
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Young_Girl.jpg?uselang=de#/media/File:Young_Girl.jpg
, https://pixabay.com/en/old-man-standing-senior-adult-23730,
https://pixabay.com/en/grandfather-bald-head-bald-patch-153659
 Slide 5: https://pixabay.com/en/cloud-snow-flakes-winter-weather-306404
 Slide 7: https://pixabay.com/en/eraser-rubber-red-undo-office-307519,
https://pixabay.com/en/trail-airplane-blue-sky-sky-109114, https://pixabay.com/en/thumbfacebook-hand-like-font-533233, https://pixabay.com/es/wc-de-papel-rosa-higiene-rodillo-30328,
https://pixabay.com/de/smiley-emoticon-smiles-emotion-150838,
https://pixabay.com/en/currencies-world-earth-map-cent-64275, https://pixabay.com/en/boykids-human-little-african-37001
 Slides 13 & 15: Schwebender Globus in einem Büro der Universität Jena, aufgenommen am
29.04.2013. Foto: Jan-Peter Kasper/FSU; Willkommen-Banner am 10.10.2012 an der Mensa auf
dem Campus der Universität Jena am Ernst-Abbe-Platz. Foto: Jan-Peter Kasper/FSU
Chapter 7: Intercultural and transcultural learning
40
Acknowledgments
 Slides 16 & 17: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hausschwein#/media/File:Sow_with_piglet.jpg,
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carp#/media/File:Cyprinus_carpio.jpeg,
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Baseball_caps#/media/File:Snapback_Hat.jpg,
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cross_necklace#/media/File:Krest_yuri_fedorov.jpg
 Slides 20 & 21: http://www.impawards.com/2007/outsourced_ver4.html,
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/India#/media/File:Flag_of_India.svg,
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States#/media/File:Flag_of_the_United_States.svg
 Slides 23 & 25: https://pixabay.com/en/group-person-alltogether-157476
 Slide 24: https://pixabay.com/en/ice-cubes-ice-cold-melting-blue-48867,
https://pixabay.com/en/heavy-rain-rain-foggy-cloudy-rainy-98539,
https://pixabay.com/en/person-silhouettes-human-540257, https://pixabay.com/en/biohazardinfected-infection-549303, https://pixabay.com/de/team-menschen-teamarbeit-gruppe-23885,
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Child_labour#/media/File:Diamond_miners-1-.jpg
 Slide 28: https://pixabay.com/en/earth-world-globe-eco-ecology-159132
 Slide 29: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erde#/media/File:The_Earth_seen_from_Apollo_17.jpg
 Slide 36:
https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eichh%C3%B6rnchen#/media/File:Eichh%C3%B6rnchen_im_Herbst
.jpg
Chapter 7: Intercultural and transcultural learning
41