Integrating Culture in the
Language Classroom
Trish Pashby
Leslie Opp-Beckman
University of Oregon
Topics, Session 08
• Announcements
• Overview
• Activity 1: Brainstorm
• Part I: What is Culture?
• Part II: Culture in the Class
• Activity 2: Network Tree
• Conclusion, Q & A
Announcements
•Introductions
•Continuing the series, starting
November 2005
http://thaiuo.uoregon.edu/
•Homework to share?
Activity #1
Brainstorm, Graphic Organizers,
Network Tree
Work in groups. Choose a unit or
theme from your text and
list as many matching cultural
topics as you can.
What is Culture?
Culture “is the shared beliefs, symbols,
and interpretations within a human
group...The essence of a culture is not
its artifacts, tools, or other tangible
cultural elements but how the
members of the group
interpret, use, and perceive
them.” (Banks, 2001)
Characteristics of
Culture
It is…
•Learned
•Transmissible
•Dynamic
•Selective
(Porter and Samovar, 1994)
Characteristics of
Culture
Culture “shifts in and outside our
reflective awareness.”
(Erikson, 2001)
4 Areas of Culture
1.
2.
3.
4.
Aesthetic
Sociological
Semantic
Pragmatic/Sociolinguistic
(Lessard-Clouston, 1997)
Bangkok: Islamic School, iEARN
Bangkok: Islamic School, iEARN
Bangkok: Islamic School, iEARN
International Education and
Resource Network (iEARN)
“Teddy Bear” and over 200 Other
Cross-Cultural Projects:
http://www.iearn.org/
Culture and
Communication
“…are inseparable because
culture…helps to determine how
people encode messages, the[ir]
meaning for messages, and the
conditions and circumstances under
which messages may or
may not be sent, noticed, or
interpreted.”
(Samovar, Porter, & Jain, 1981)
Intercultural
Understanding
“It is insufficient to promote the use of
English as a mere linguistic tool.
Rather, its function as a means for
intercultural understanding and
communication should be further
expanded…into one that
incorporates intercultural
awareness & understanding
as well.” (Kim, J., 2002)
Benefits to
Students
Students “benefit most when our
culture lessons and the cultural
aspects of our language teaching
are well planned and developed.”
(Lessard-Clouston, 1997)
Goals
We must help students:
• Gain knowledge of the target
language culture.
• Develop skills in communication
and behavior in the target
language.
• Become aware of dynamic
nature of all cultures.
Teacher
Challenges
• Limited preparation time.
• Access to practical activities.
(Omaggio in Cullen, 2000)
• Lack of cultural insight.
• Lack of sources of
information. (Kim, J., 2002)
Ethnographic
Approach
Teachers and students can become
ethnographers and explore their
own beliefs about the target
language and their native
language. This experience can
be used as the basis for crosscultural application and analysis.
Cultural Texture
Information Sources
• Video, CDs, TV…
• Readings, internet, stories,
songs, newspapers, realia…
• Fieldwork, interviews,
photos, anecdotes, guest
speakers, souvenirs…
Cultural Texture
Activity Types
• Quizzes
• Action logs
• Reformulation, noticing,
prediction…
• Research
Cultural Texture
Selling-points (contrasting views)
• Historical vs. modern, older vs.
younger generations
• City vs. country life
• Stated beliefs vs. actual
behavior; similarities vs.
differences
Activity #2
Cultural Texture (Cullen)
Match Content from Activity 1 to:
•Information sources
•Activity types
•Selling points (contrasting views)
What “Cultural Texture”
items did your group
choose, and why?
Practical Tips
•Personalize content.
•Vary activities.
•Use suitable level of difficulty.
•Choose high interest topics.
•Use group work.
•Don’t try to cover
everything. (Cullen, 2000)
Integrating Culture in the
Language Classroom
http://thaiuo.uoregon.edu
Trish Pashby
Leslie Opp-Beckman
University of Oregon