Thesis - Teachers’ awareness of Interculturality at the School of Languages

By
Ana Rosa Aragón
García
Advisor
Enrique Vez López
Facultad de Idiomas
Lengua Inglesa
Teachers’ awareness of Interculturality at the
School of Languages

Abstract
This paper is the result of a research focus on teacher’s awareness of the
intercultural environment at the School of Languages. This study reveals the
opinions and thoughts of teachers and students regarding teaching EFL from an
intercultural perspective. Such perspective is a consequence of the changes that
Mexican society has undergone in the past years and the co-existence of a variety
of cultures in the same space, in this case, the School of Languages of the
University of Veracruz. It also highlights the advantages and positive effects that
this perspective could bring to the students and educators.

To my family, especially my brother,
who encouraged me to make the right decision

Contents
Introduction ………………………………………………………………………………..1
Thesis statement ………………………………………………………………………….2
Rationale ……………. …………………………………………………………………....2
Research questions ………………………………………………………………………2
Objectives ………………………………………………………………………………….3
Chapter 1. Context
School of Languages …………………………………….……………………….4
Integral Flexible Educational Model …………………………………………….8
Educational program description ………………………………………………..9
The organizational academic structure …………………………………….....10
Chapter 2. Theoretical-conceptual frame
Culture …………………………………………………………………………....11
Cultural diversity …………………………………………………………………12
Interculturality …………………………………………………………………....12
Mexico as an intercultural country ………………………………....………….13
Intercultural perspective: Importance, advantages and effects …………….14
Chapter 3. Methodology
Participants ……………………………………………………………………....18
Data collection instruments ………………………………………………….....19
Procedure ………………………………………………………………...…….. 20
Chapter 4. Findings
Multicultural environment in classrooms ………………….…………………..22
Students’ perceptions ……………………………….………………………….27
Teachers’ perceptions of interculturality …………...………………………....35
Conclusions ……………………………………………………………………………...41
Limitations ………………………………………………………………………………..42
Implications ……………………………………………………………………………....42
Bibliography ……………………………………………………………………………...43

Appendices ………………………………………………………………………………45
Appendix A ……………………………………….……………………………..……….45
Appendix B ……………………………………………………………………..………..47
Appendix C ............................................................................................................48
Appendix D ............................................................................................................49
Appendix E .............................................................................................................51

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Introduction
The relevance of culture in Mexico has always been a topic of interest, especially
since Mexico is a country that is erroneously considered as monocultural by many
people. However because of the different cultural elements such as religion,
language, traditions, and so on Mexico can be clearly seen as a multicultural
country. This erroneous idea has been reinforced by the authorities when they talk
about a “Mexican National culture”, but it is necessary to recognize that this
concept does not exist and that there is not one single Mexican identity (Trujillo,
2004). It must be considered that in this country not all people share the same
characteristics and cultural background, due to different factors.
It is the recognition of heterogeneous cultures which makes it necessary to
include cultural diversity in the educational field, because it is present in every
school and classroom, through the interaction of individuals with different
backgrounds. These differences make possible the existence of interculturality in
classrooms. For this reason, the Department of Public Education (SEV, for its
Spanish initials) states that “Mexican society has stopped perceiving itself as
culturally homogeneous” (Trujillo, 2004:22).
Due to the importance of these cultural differences, this research work
focuses on the study of teachers’ awareness of interculturality at the School of
languages from two points of view, those of teachers and students.
The research is divided into four chapters. In the first chapter, the context of
the School of languages is described. The second chapter contains the entire
theoretical-conceptual framework, necessary to fully understand the topic as well
as the related works that were reviewed. In the third chapter, the methods to carry
out the research and the instruments used to obtain the data are defined. In the
last chapter, the results are organized into categories and presented in order to
clarify the findings of the research project.

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Thesis statement
There is a perception of an intercultural environment at the School of Languages of
the University of Veracruz that some members of the faculty may not be aware of
and which causes them not to take this important factor into consideration when
planning lessons and teaching EFL.
Rationale
Nowadays, society is a mixture of people with different cultural backgrounds living
in the same space. For this reason, the interaction of different cultures is part of our
everyday lives. This cultural interaction is present in schools and classrooms. Due
to this, adopting an intercultural perspective while teaching English is very
important and highly recommended. Far from highlighting minorities or cultural
differences, this perspective trains students for intercultural communicative
competence, cross-cultural encounters, and reinforces their own identity. By
favoring an intercultural perspective, teachers can improve their own attitudes
toward student’s culture and backgrounds and improve student’s attitudes toward
differences in classrooms. An intercultural perspective might also help to reinforce
students’ cultural identity (Gagliardi, 1995).
The objective of this research work is to find out whether teachers are aware of the
problems that cultural differences could bring about in classrooms. The awareness
of an intercultural environment at school can be a potential resource for teachers
when teaching EFL.
Research questions
This paper attempts to answer the following questions:
1. Are classes at the School of Language intercultural?
2. Are teachers at the School of Languages aware of the interculturality in the
classrooms and the advantages that this could bring when teaching
English?

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3. Is interculturality an important factor to take into account when planning and
implementing lessons?
Objectives
The main purpose of this research work is to analyze the existence of
interculturality in the classrooms at the School of Languages while highlighting how
teachers could take advantage of this situation. Secondly, this research work seeks
to find out how aware teachers are of this aspect of classroom interaction at the
School of Languages. As a final objective, this paper attempts to find out whether
teachers take this factor (interculturality) into consideration, when planning and
teaching EFL, and how they do it.

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Chapter 1 Context
In this section, the educational setting of this research is described. It is important
to know how the school works, its objectives, the participants involved, and the
system used at the institution. First of all, a brief description of the School of
Languages and its mission and vision are presented, as well as the work plan for
the 2011-2015 term. Secondly, this paper will present the educational model this
school follows: Integral Flexible Educational Model (MEIF for its Spanish initials). In
the third place, the program is provided in order to identify the courses that are part
of the curriculum students have to follow at the English Language B.A. Finally, the
organizational academic structure of the school will be described.
 School of languages
The School of Languages at the University of Veracruz (FIUV for its Spanish
initials), offers three degrees: French Language, English Language and English
Language Teaching as an on-line program. All these degrees are part of the MEIF
and were integrated into this model in different years: 2006, 2007 and 2008,
respectively.
It also offers a specialization and a Master’s Degree in Teaching English as
a Foreign Language and a Master’s Degree in Teaching French. In addition, a
Continuous Education Program is offered by the school, featuring courses in
English Teaching for the graduate students or people who wish to update their
knowledge of current educational trends and teachers from other institutions and
schools, as well as those who know English and want to learn more about teaching
this language.
The institution has also a Department of Foreign Languages (DELEX for its
Spanish initials) created in 1968. This department offers courses to students from
the School of Languages, to the university community, and to the general public.
DELEX is also a space for students of both degrees (English Language and
French Language) to complement their academic formation by participating in
some activities. Its objective is the improvement of foreign language skills among

5
the university community as a link to culture and knowledge. The department offers
English, French, Italian, German and Japanese courses, among others.
The School of Languages has defined objectives and these are described in the
vision of the institution and the reason of its creation, which is outlined in its
mission. Below, the mission and vision of the institution are briefly discussed.
Mission
The School of Languages has the mission of training professionals in
English and French teaching, as well as in translation areas through its B.A.
degrees and graduate programs in the different modalities available (classroom-
based or on-line). All this with the objective of satisfying the needs of intercultural
communication, generation of knowledge, and the preparation of students to
perform professional activities ethically, responsibly, efficiently and with a sense of
justice. The educational programs are designed to form individuals with a wide
command of the foreign language. Professionals must be prepared to perform in a
variety of educational environments where English, or French, is the language of
use. Besides, training them in language teaching and translation. Graduates from
the institution are expected to be critical, purposeful, and respectful people who will
use foreign languages as a work tool, that is, people open to opportunities who will
participate in the construction of a better society.
Vision
The School of Languages is an institution recognized regionally, nationally and
internationally for its leadership in the generation and application of knowledge in
the foreign languages areas offering B.A. and graduate programs certified by the
internal and external organisms that aim at catering for the needs of their
graduates through:
 Certification of the academic staff in foreign language, teaching and
translation by national and international institutions.
 Certification of the educational programs according to the academic
standards of quality.
 The consolidation of academic bodies where teaching, translation, research
and application of knowledge constitute its academic raison d’etre.

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 The recognition and registration of generation and application of knowledge.
 The update of educational programs which contribute to the integral
formation of the student and stimulate the development of academic
competences.
 The flexibilization of the existing educational programs through a multimodal
strategy with alternative options such as: Technical Colleges, Seminars,
Master’s degrees and PhD programs aimed at the realization of novel
research.
 A mentoring program which provides students with the elements to perform
in a successful way at the B.A. and graduate degrees.
 The resources for all the teachers of the School of Languages.
 The availability of cubicles for all full-time teachers and a staff room.
 The search and consolidation of funding support from public and private
special institutions which contribute to the permanent training of teachers
and also the equipping and development of the institution infrastructure.
 Generation of projects that promote the financial support of official
programs.
 The liaison between a variety of economic and social sectors that contribute
to the promotion and dissemination of knowledge in foreign languages and
the promotion of service programs to the community and to the
management of financial resources to continue performing all the programs.
 An effective administrative structure that works to support the management
of the academic activities, with a system of government supported by the
management and strengthening corporate bodies that favor academic work
and promote accountability.
It is important to highlight that even though satisfying the needs of intercultural
communication is part of the schools’ mission, nowhere in the mission statement
nor in the vision description is it mentioned that the school has an objective to raise
awareness among teachers and students of an intercultural environment in the
school.

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The institution has educational programs that meet the quality standards of the
accreditation organizations of higher education. It also, offers other services such
as support programs for teaching foreign languages in basic, intermediate and
advanced levels in public and private institutions. It certifies foreign language
competence, and offers translation services for public and private institutions. It
also promotes cultural events.
It also has links with the Department of Education and Culture, the Department
of Public Education, the United States Embassy, the French Embassy and some
other institutions through programs which promote the academic mobility and the
granting of scholarships for students and teachers.
Work plan for 2011-2015:
Over the last 2 years the School of Languages has developed a new “Work Plan”.
This plan reaches into the year 2015 as the deadline to achieve the objectives
proposed. The new plan consists of a mission and a vision, and some other points
that will be discussed below.
Mission
The fulfillment of duties by the head of the school with responsibility, efficiency,
commitment and dedication. The support for teaching functions, research,
application projects, liaison between university and community, and sustainable
development of environmental projects must be prioritized.
Vision to 2015:
The School of Languages will certify B.A. degrees for their quality of standards.
The school is nationally and internationally recognized by the quality of its
professional training and its curriculum. Its teaching staff pursuits common
objectives that benefit student’s professional training.
The plan is based on the following points:
 The teaching work
 Academic quality and innovation
 Support for student’s integral training
 Mentoring program
 Quality service improvement

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 Reinforcement, retention and recruitment of teaching staff
 Accountability
These points respond to guidelines put forward by the 2009-2013 rectorship,
The School of Languages (FIUV for its Spanish initials) 2009-2013 plans, the
Council for Accreditation of Educational Programs in Humanities (COAPEHUM for
its Spanish initials) recommendations, and the current needs of the B.A. degrees
and DELEX courses.
 Integral and Flexible Educational Model (MEIF)
By the beginning of 1999, the new Educational Model was started up at in the UV.
The innovative model was called Integral Flexible Educational Model (MEIF). The
model is an organizational proposal of the B.A. Degree curriculum in different
disciplinary areas. The MEIF is a model whose purpose is to train students not only
in the intellectual and professional fields, but also in the human and social domain.
In addition, its function is based on three main axes: the theoretical-epistemological
axis, the heuristic axis and the axiological axis.
This model has the advantage of allowing students to choose the pace and
time they want or need to study their B.A. Degree under the guidance of academic
tutors. This is possible because the MEIF curriculum is formed by educational
experiences (EEs) which are divided into four groups: The general area, where the
main purpose is the development of computational abilities, the development of
critical and creative thinking and writing and reading skills, English I and II belong
to this area. The second one is the disciplinary area, where the necessary EE of
professional training for each B.A. Degree are included. The terminal area is
integrated by the set of EEs with disciplinary character that students can choose in
order to form their professional profile. The fourth area, the one for elective
subjects, was created for the complementary development of students. It can
include a variety of EEs and some others such as sports, artistic activities,
languages, and other courses from different disciplines.

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Finally, this model claims that all courses provide students with life learning
experiences. For this reason, all the subjects are now called Educational
Experiences (EEs) to make students learn in all areas.
 Educational program description
The English Language B.A. works to reach two fundamental goals: on the one
hand to ensure that students achieve a sound command of English. On the other
hand, it allows them to obtain the necessary skills to teach, translate, and develop
in different areas where English is the language of use.
In order to improve autonomy and make learning flexible, some EEs of the
educational program include some hours dedicated to activities outside the
classroom. In this way, students are given space for language practice, self-
training, and the use of technological and bibliographic resources, etc., in order to
develop linguistic and communicative competences, and learning and research
strategies, among others.
The educational program is structured into 5 areas: the first one is the
general area which provides students with the basis to achieve their English
Language B.A. Degree. Within this area, there is the subarea called “introduction to
discipline area”, where all the EEs related to the generation of communicative skills
based on linguistics, translation, and research training are included. The third area
is called disciplinary area and is formed by 17 EEs that offer methodological and
conceptual tools to improve students’ abilities and experiences. The following area
comprises the educational experiences: Social Service, Final Research Paper and
the Seminary for writing the Final Paper. This is called the terminal area. The last
area is integrated by the elective EEs, where students can choose any kind of
educational experience from other disciplines in order to complement their
education. To make this clearer, the curriculum is displayed in appendix A.
The English Language educational program is designed to develop the main
skills: listening, speaking, reading and writing, but it also includes cultural aspects
through some subjects focus on the target culture. This program allows students to

10
take control of the specialization area that best suits their formation needs and
preferences.
Finally, it is important to say that the English Language B.A. was created to be
studied in seven semesters as indicated in the table provided in the appendix B.
 The organizational academic structure
The academic structure of the School of Languages is described next. This
institution belongs to the Academic Area of Humanities of the University of
Veracruz. The Academic English Language School is divided into different
departments depending to their functions. The highest authority is the School Head
below her is the Academic Secretary and then the head of English Language B.A.
and finally the teachers of the institution.

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Chapter 2 Theoretical-conceptual frame
In this section, the useful information to understand the topic is described. It is
important to explain from which perspective the research is developed and its
implications. This chapter describes the general background of the topic. It starts
from the general to the specific for a better comprehension.
 Culture
The concept of culture has many different definitions according to different
perspectives. It is usually understood that culture is the shared patterns of beliefs,
customs and values (Crawford and MacLaren, 1996; in Brooks-Lewis, 2012:2), but
for the purpose of this research work the definition that best suits is the one that
states that “Culture has different features, which means that culture never
represents a universal set, it is just a subset with a specific organization. A
definition of culture never comprises everything.” (Lotman and Uspenski, 1979:
68).
Another definition of culture states that culture is language (Brown, 1994; in
Cakir, 2006). Because these both have an interdependent relation, each one is
part of the other as Tang (1999:2) claims: “Culture is language and language is
culture”. The relationship between these two words may give us some idea of the
importance of taking students cultural background into account in classrooms.
When we learn a language, we learn about its culture too. For this reason, it is
necessary to take into consideration the different cultures that exist in the
classroom. Our own culture is as important as the one from the target language.
Another definition which fits with the idea of this research work is the one
offered by García in the book Diversidad cultural y educación intercultural (Trujillo,
2004). He points out that culture is no other thing that an organization of diversity,
of the heterogeneity among different groups, which is inherent to every social
group.

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 Cultural diversity
In modern societies the existence of cultural diversity is evident. Cultural diversity
has always existed, we are diverse as individuals, in gender, in terms of regions
and cultures, against all homogenization proposals, diversity is present. (Tirzo,
2005).
Cultural diversity can be defined as “the set of interactions between cultures
that are intended to regenerate themselves through their own capabilities of
dialogue and openness” (UNESCO, 2006:1). This concept “is based on the idea
that cultural identities should not be discarded or ignored, but rather maintained
and valued.” (American Cultural Publication, 2013). The recognition of ethnic
groups is the first step in cultural diversity, but Mexican Society is not only diverse
because of these groups, which represent 10% of the population. For the purpose
of this piece of research, cultural diversity and the social multiculturalism should be
analyzed away from the indigenous peoples (Trujillo, 2004:).
Also, “cultural diversity is a component that should be considered as part of
education because it is present in every school and every classroom in different
ways.” (Trujillo, 2004:22). According to this author, cultural diversity should be
recognized in the educational fields in order to reduce the inequalities that have
emerged from homogenization. This is important because “students are social
subjects with social identities that form themselves from the different social,
economic, cultural and educational contexts where they are involved” (Trujillo,
2004:19).
 Interculturality
It is relevant to point out the difference between multiculturalism and
interculturality. “Multiculturalism is the existence of diverse cultures in the same
space or territory while interculturality represents the tendency to recognize the
possibility of cultures (subjects with different cultural backgrounds) to relate”
(Trujillo, 2004:18). From now on, this definition will be used when referring to the
term.

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People often think that because we share the same geographic space with
some indigenous groups, we have experienced interculturality, but it is not the case
(Tirzo, 2005). According to Muños in the book Educación e Interculturalidad,
miradas a la diversidad (2005:21), just living together is not enough, to experiment
real interculturality some characteristics must be present, a few are mentioned
below:
 Recognition of the explicit right to cultural differences
 Recognition of diverse cultures
 Relations and interchanges between individuals, groups and institutions
from a variety of cultures
“Interculturality also conveys the intention of living with respect, harmony and
mutual learning, recognizing the values and knowledge of the others and
participating if conditions are adverse” (Tirzo, 2005:22).
Interculturality is a term that can involve many other implications, for this reason
“interculturality is an active process of communication and interaction between
cultures for their mutual enrichment” (Bell in Tirzo, 2005:22).
According to Tirzo, 2005, is important for teachers to know that one of the
bases of interculturality is that there are not superior or inferior cultures, just
different cultures. “Interculturality attempts to raise the levels of mutual
understanding and solidarity between different communities, while stepping away
from racism” (Gagliardi and Bernadini, 1995:4).
To sum up, individuals interacting everyday have and share different cultures,
some of them depend on different aspects such as religion, family, neighborhood,
or even education. All of these cultures form an individual and collective cultural
identity where values and attitudes are expressed from diverse social groups that
are related.
 Mexico as a multicultural country
In Mexico, the existence of different cultures is a fact. The country was declared as
multicultural in the National Education Program 2001-2006, were the recognition of
the Mexican society as multicultural was established (Trujillo 2004). In the National

14
Educational Program it was pointed out that there is not such a thing as one
Mexican identity and the nation is culturally heterogeneous.
In addition, it is relevant to point out that culture changes individually and
collectively. And it is necessary that society and teachers recognize this because
cultural diversity is an educational component present in every school and
classroom (Trujillo 2004), as was mentioned before.
In Mexico there is no homogenous existence of culture, social and educational
groups, because the subjects that interact on a daily basis have differences that
can be distinguished in their own cultures, such as religion, place of origin and
family background, even though there is a strong reinforcement of the “National
Culture” (Trujillo, 2004).
This paper takes this theoretical perspective as the most appropriate for this
research, because it comprises the ideas about interculturality that have been
discussed before. Trujillo (2004) states that students are social subjects with their
own identity that changes and evolves depending on the different contexts such as
the economic, social, cultural and educational environment where they are
immersed.
To achieve this goal it is necessary to prepare teachers to respond to changes
and multicultural environments that they thought did not exist until today. It is
important to raise some awareness of social diversity and the changes that
individuals undergo as they go through life. An example of this, are all the students
who abandon their places of birth to live in another city and become immersed in a
different culture. These differences are associated not only to their place of origin;
there are some other factors that are involved as it was mentioned before.
 Intercultural Perspective: importance, advantages and effects
For a long time teachers have worked with the only purpose of fostering
communicative competence. Even though this is of vital importance, it is not
enough in view of the changes that society has suffered in the recent years.
Nowadays, developing communicative competence is necessary so as to have
some training in intercultural encounters. For this reason, “a shift of perspective-

15
resulting from the challenge and modification of the learner’s schemata as well as
the recognition that other people have different schemata – allows them to
abandon their monocultural awareness and adopt intercultural perspective”
(Byram, 1984; in Porto, 2000:92). As it has been quoted above, the acquisition of a
new perspective helps not only teachers but students as “it is precisely this shift of
perspective that will enable learners to become sensitive to the requirements of
successful cross-cultural communication” (Porto, 2000:92)
In addition, it is important to say that this change is necessary since the
majority of us tend to regard our schemata as universal, assuming that anything
which departs from our norms is deviant, or worse, inferior (Porto, 2000). As it has
been stated, we all tend to think that all students or classmates are equal to us or
in the same circumstances just because they are in the same classroom. But
these perceptions can be changed by being aware of the cultural differences of
students and the intercultural environment. As Porto (2000:93) states, “a shift of
perspective offers an insight into their identity by re-interpreting elements of the
foreign culture not as threats but as contributions to it”.
Working with an intercultural perspective inside the classroom could bring
advantages for teachers and students. As Gagliardi (1995:2) states “intercultural
education is a way of reinforcing the cultural identity of pupils from all communities,
included those discriminated against. Such education stimulates pupils’ self-
esteem by developing their knowledge of the characteristics and achievements of
their own communities”. To learn a new language does not mean that students
have to change and acquire the target culture, “preservation of the learner’s
identity is essential” (Kabakchy, 1978; in Porto, 2000:91). To make this clearer,
another pair of authors (Guiora and Acton, 1979; in Porto, 2000:91) point out that
“learning a foreign language does not mean losing one’s identity and assuming
new cultural roles. Rather, it entails having a clearly defined identity, a strong
sense of self, a ‘healthy ego’”. As Trujillo (2004) says the intercultural perspective
helps to work with students’ differences and cultural diversity and stop trying to
transform the minorities into a “homogeneous” mass.

16
By adding an intercultural perspective while teaching, teachers can help
their students. As Gagliardi (1995:2), affirms “those responsible for education
frequently lack awareness of the problems caused by cultural and linguistic
differences in the classroom, or pay little attention to those problems. Any
improvement of education in the multicultural contexts starts with awareness of
pupils’ difficulties”.
Also, all the variety of cultural backgrounds could be turned into resources
for teachers in the classroom. As Gagliardi (1995:2) claims, “such diversity can be
a resource in classroom activities if teachers are capable of accepting pupils’
conceptions and knowledge and stimulating pupils to share them”. As it has been
stated, teachers are the key for changing the way classes are taught. Dunnett,
(1994:148) refers to this line of argumentation by claiming that “those professionals
concerned must possess certain basic understanding about language and culture.
If they have this awareness, the programs they plan, the courses they create, the
syllabi they construct and the materials they write can foster an intercultural point
of view”.
Additionally, “when using a foreign language to communicate with someone
of different cultural origins and different identities, mere linguistic competence is
not enough. We also need intercultural competence, a competence which is
different and more complex than that of the native speaker” Byram (1996:97).
According to this author, competence comprises the following aspects:
 Attitudes. Curiosity and openness, readiness to suspend disbelief about
other cultures and belief about one’s own.
 Knowledge. Of social groups and their products and of the general
processes of societal and individual interaction.
 Skills of interpreting and relating. To interpret a document or event from
another culture, explain it and relate it to documents or events from one’s
own.
 Skills of discovery and interaction. To acquire new knowledge of a culture
and cultural practices. To operate the aspects mentioned before under
the constraints of real time communication and interaction.

17
 Critical cultural awareness. To evaluate practices and products in one’s
own and other cultures and countries critically.

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Chapter 3 Methodology
This research report includes data collected during the August 2012-February 2013
term from students of two advanced English groups. These subjects were chosen
because they are the best candidates due to their experience with a variety of
teachers. The data were collected using three different instruments, two of them
(questionnaires) answered by students, the third one is an interview with some
teachers.
The purpose of these data collection methods is to obtain information from
two different points of view of the participants involved, and make a comparison of
the ideas about the same topic. It also seeks to contrast the perspectives of
teachers and students by getting information of what they think about
interculturality at the School of Languages.
This paper sums up some information about interculturality at the School of
Languages in a research report so that readers can easily understand the results
and purposes of the research topic. In addition, this research attempts to contribute
with new useful information for the improvement of intercultural training skills in
teaching English as a Foreign Language. This is a descriptive study which provides
detailed information about the characteristics of the phenomenon studied. Thus,
the information presented in this research report was obtained through a
combination of instruments of a qualitative and quantitative nature (interviews,
questionnaires, lesson plans) and analysis of the data.
 Participants
In this research, the two groups of advanced English of the B.A. program were the
main participants. Both groups are part of MEIF and have students from different
years of registration such as 2007, 2008 and 2009. In the first group, there were 26
participants and 21 of them answered both questionnaires. Participants are in the
range of ages between 20-27 years old. In the second group, there were 18
participants, from this group 15 students answered the instruments. Their ages are
in a range of 20-29 years old. The students of both groups were chosen due to the
fact that they have experienced their training with a variety of teachers, because

19
they have studied English courses in the B.A. for six periods from elementary to
advanced; they all participated in this project on a voluntary basis. Students were
told that all information is confidential and anonymous.
The other informants were some professors from the English Language B.A.
These teachers have English groups in different levels. Some of them have
travelled abroad and lived the experience of living in a different cultural context and
some others have never been abroad. Some of these professors have taught for
many years and some others are relatively new in teaching the English courses.
Teachers were asked to answer a little interview about the topic. The only criterion
for selecting them was to be English teachers. Not all the English teachers were
interviewed, because some of them did not have the time or disposition to do it.
Also, the teachers who directed this research were not taken into account in order
not to invalidate the results.
 Data collection instruments
In order to get the necessary information three different instruments were designed
to carry out the research, these instruments were designed in Spanish to avoid
confusion with terms. The first is a questionnaire. This instrument was made up by
thirteen simple questions that participants had to answer. The instrument collects
demographical information of subjects such as age, place of birth, parent’s
occupation, religion, sexual orientation, etc., in order to point out the cultural
differences between students and get to know their cultural background. The
instrument can be seen in the Appendix C.
Then, a second instrument was designed for students in order to know their
opinion about interculturality at the School of Languages. This instrument has two
parts. The first part is a tool of quantitative research commonly known as Likert
scale, where participants react to some affirmations or statements in order to
measure their agreement or disagreement. Eight statements related to the
heterogeneous situation of the school were included into the scale. The second
part of this instrument was integrated by seven open questions related to students

20
opinion about their teachers and the way English classes are carried out and how
students feel about it. The instrument described before is in the Appendix D.
The use of the two instruments described, responds to the objectives of this
research about the university community and the intercultural environment of it. It
also clarifies students’ opinions about teachers’ cultural awareness.
The third instrument is a semi-structured interview. It was designed for the
English teachers at the School of Languages in order to obtain information about
cultural awareness and the way they plan and perform their classes. The interview
consists of 4 questions. It was planned as a semi-structured guide interview to
have the possibility of introducing other questions that could help to get relevant
information during the interview. All the interviews were recorded to avoid mistakes
with the information provided. The third instrument can be seen in the appendix E.
 Procedure
There were three phases in this study. The first phase was the application of the
first instrument designed for each student of the advanced English groups. The
questionnaire was answered during the English class of each group (3-5 p.m. and
5-9 p.m.). It was necessary to ask teachers of both groups for permission in
advance. Then, all students that were in classes at that moment answered the
questionnaire. It took the students between 8-10 minutes to answer it. If students
had questions the researcher was ready to help them. Questionnaires were
collected as every student finished.
The second phase was the application of the second instrument to all
students of the advanced English class (3-5 p.m. and 5-9 p.m.). This questionnaire
was also answered during the English class. Teachers were asked for permission
and the questionnaire was given to students. It took between 10-15 minutes. All the
students’ questions were clarified by the researcher and the questionnaires were
collected as soon as students finished.
For the last phase, some teachers of the School of Languages were
interviewed. These interviews were carried out in some classrooms, cubicles and
halls of the school. The interview was based on the interview guide previously

21
designed. Teachers were asked to answer the interview and when they agreed, an
appointment to do it was arranged. The third instrument was used to do the
interviews, but new questions that were not included in the interview guide were
allowed when necessary, because sometimes relevant information emerged. The
interviews were recorded and transcribed.

22
Chapter 4 Findings
The results obtained during the different stages of this research as well as the
analysis of the data collected are presented in this chapter. These results are a
comparison between the different participants (teachers and students) of the study.
All the data (questionnaires and interviews) collected by the mix of quantitative and
qualitative instruments were read and analyzed.
 Multicultural environment in classrooms
Demographic information
Regarding the first part of this research work, which refers to the multicultural
environment in the classrooms, demographic information is presented below.
A total of 32 students answered the first instrument that shows the following
results: classrooms are made up of students in a range of ages from 20 to 29 with
students from different semesters of their studies, from 5th semester to the 9th.
One of the most relevant differences is the place of birth of each student,
every classroom is a mixture of different cultural backgrounds that mingle every
day. The majority of the students come from some others cities or towns different
from Xalapa, such as Mártinez de la Torre, Rafael Delgado, Santiago Tuxtla,
Altotonga, Guadalajara, Minatitlán, Palenque, Naolinco, Orizaba, Coatzacoalcos,
Cd. Mendoza, Veracruz, Tlacotalpan, Colipa, Cardel, Huatusco and Córdoba. This
data is showed in the graph 1.

23
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
Xalapa Coatzacoalcos Veracruz Other
cities/towns
Naolinco
Number
of
students
Place of birth
Xalapa
Coatzacoalcos
Veracruz
Other cities/towns
Naolinco
Graph 1: Students’ places of birth.
Graph 1 shows the common cities or places where the majority of the
students were born, highlighting that not all the students come from Xalapa. In
addition, there is also another difference related to students’ cultural backgrounds
and the cities where they have lived sometime in their life. An important number of
students (38%) have lived in others cities or countries. Some of the places
mentioned are Veracruz, Cardel, Oslo (Norway), Mérida (Yucatán), Querétaro,
México, Guadalajara, New York City, Puebla, Teziutlán (Puebla), Chiapas,
Altotonga (Veracruz), Colima, Xico and San Andrés Tuxtla.
The information collected also shows that classrooms can have a mix of
students that come from different zones of economical development, apart from the
places where they live nowadays. Some of them come from an urban zone (60 %)
while some others (30%) come from a rural environment as is shown in the graph
2.

24
Graph 2: Students’ origin zone
Graph 2 shows that a number of students do come from a rural zone, while
the majority of the students were raised in an urbanized zone. Even though there is
a significant number of students that come from a rural zone, only one of them
speaks an indigenous language.
Moreover, as it was mentioned before, the place of residence of the majority
of these students is conditioned by different factors, such as the proximity to the
school, their economical capacity, etc. Due to this, there are students that live
alone in neighborhoods near their schools and some others who still have a close
family way of life. The neighborhoods mentioned are situated throughout the city.
Sometimes, the neighborhood makes a difference in the cultural background
development. These differences are also determined by the people that have
contact with the students. In this case, students were asked about their family life
and their members. Half of them (50%) live in a close family environment (parents,
sisters and brothers, uncles and aunts, grandparents), while some others live alone
(23%) because they are away from home due to their studies. Some of others
(12%) live only with their sisters and just a few (4%) have already formed their own
family as can be seen in graph 3.
0
5
10
15
20
25
Urban Rural
Number
of
students
Origin Zone
Urban
Rural

25
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
Alone No answer Family
environment
Sister Own family
Number
of
students Family members
Alone
No answer
Family environment
Sister
Own family
Graph 3: Family members and people which students live with.
The green bar represents the higher percentage of this category where the
family environment is the most common, followed by the red bar that shows the
opposite result where students live by themselves. Regarding the information
related to the family aspect, the results show that the students’ families have
members who have studied and were raised in different ways that obviously
formed their cultural background. An example of this is the occupation of the
students’ parents. A variety of occupations was found. The most common are:
teachers, housewives, agricultural workers, housemaids and retirees, among
others.
Concerning students’ beliefs, the results show the existence of religious
diversity in classrooms. The data demonstrate that the majority of students do not
share the same beliefs as it is presented in graph 4.

26
0
5
10
15
20
25
Catholic Mormom Agnostic No religion
NUmber
of
students Religion
Catholic
Mormom
Agnostic
No religion
Graph 4: Student’s beliefs
In graph 4 the red bar shows that most of students are catholic, while some
others have a different religion represented by the blue bar. The green bar
represents those who are agnostic while the yellow one represent those students
who do not have any religion.
Besides, there is another element that can make a difference in students’ culture.
The sexual orientation of all students is not the same. Even though only a minority
(9%) of the students do not share the same sexual orientation, it is important to
take this factor into account because nowadays students are willing to show their
sexual orientation more openly than they did some years ago when this aspect was
not common in society.
The last items in the questionnaire focused on another important factor of
the interculturality in the classroom. This factor refers to the place where students
have studied previously. About this aspect, a huge number of schools all around
the state and some others from different cities were mentioned, such as Técnica 3,
Colegio Preparatorio Orizaba, Artículo 3º, José Vasconcelos, CBTIS, COBACH,
Antonio María de Rivera, COBAEV, Ángel Carbajal and TEBAEV, among others.
Additionally, it was found that there was the variety of schools where students had
learnt English before starting the English Language B.A. This is an important

27
feature because this factor makes a difference in students’ learning and also in
their cultural background. Besides, it can give students an edge if they have had
foreign teachers or professors that have travelled abroad and shared their
experience, which will probably increase students’ view of the world. Some of the
schools named were Berlitz, DELEX, the Language School and Harmon Hall
among others. It is relevant to mention that the 41% of the students have already
had some approximation to the Language School. 31% of the students learnt
English in their previous schools and only 16% have studied English in a private
school. This shows the different ways of learning and having contact with the same
language and its effects in students’ culture.
The graphs and percentages presented demonstrate that students come from
different places, have different beliefs, get along with different people who come
from different family backgrounds and have different sexual orientation. For these
reasons classrooms are multicultural and interculturality is present.
 Students’ perceptions
Concerning the second part of the study, as it was mentioned before, a second
instrument was applied and the following data were collected. A total of 36
students answered the second instrument. This instrument focused on students’
perceptions about their teachers and their awareness of interculturality in
classrooms.
In order to get a complete understanding, the information of the first
question was organized into 3 categories: participants who agreed with the
statements, participants who did not agree with the statements and participants
who are neutral. The cases where the answers were not clear were placed in an
“uncertain” category which was not taken into account in the final percentages. The
results from the first item are presented in the next table:

28
Table 1: Measure of students’ agreement
Table 1 shows that all the students think that their own culture is as
important as the one of the language they are learning. This statement supports
the basis of the intercultural perspective while teaching because it promotes the
culture of each student.
Questions 2 and 3 address the perception of the students about an
intercultural environment in the classrooms. The majority of the students (57%)
perceive that the School of Languages is not homogeneous, but question 3 shows
that the number of students who think that classrooms have an intercultural
environment is the same of those who think that classrooms do not have an
intercultural environment.
Regarding question 4, students are not sure if teachers are aware of the
interculturality in classrooms. It could be that students have not realized or noticed
teachers’ awareness, but it could also be that teachers are not culturally aware. In
any case, the majority of the students (83%) think that an intercultural perspective
while teaching can bring advantages in the English learning process because
taking into account the students’ cultural differences can add resources in the
classroom. Regarding this, students perceive that teachers do notice the cultural
Statements
Categories
Agreed Neutral Disagreed Uncertain
1. Both, our own culture and the target
culture are important when learning a
language.
100% (36) 0% 0% 0
2. The student population at the School
of Languages is homogeneous.
17% (6) 26%(9) 57%(20) 1
3. Classrooms at the School of
Languages are multicultural.
37% (13) 26%(9) 37%(13) 1
4. Teachers at the School of Languages
are not aware of this interculturality.
36% (13) 42%(15) 22%(8) 0
5. An intercultural perspective when
teaching could bring advantages to the
English learning process.
83% (29) 17%(6) 0% 1
6. Teachers think all students share one
single culture and there is no a cultural
diversity.
30.5%(11) 30.5%(11) 39%(14) 0
7. It bothers me that teachers believe all
students are culturally the same.
42%(15) 42%(15) 16%(6) 0
8. The student population at the School
of Languages is culturally
heterogeneous.
67%(24) 25%(9) 8%(3) 0

29
diversity in the classrooms as shown in question 6. Although, the number of
students who think teachers notice these differences is the highest (39%), there
are some other students (30.5%) who perceive that professors consider all
students as equal and believe there is not cultural diversity. Question 7 highlights
that the number of students (42%) who get upset when teachers treat them as
equals, is the same number of those who are neutral to this feature.
Finally, the last item is a control question, because it confirms that the
student population is not homogeneous as presented in table 1; and the majority of
students (67%) see these differences, which is why they perceive the environment
as heterogeneous.
The following data collected from the open questions are related to the
students’ perceptions about teachers’ cultural awareness and what they think
about the intercultural perspective in classrooms. The data are organized into
different categories according to students’ answers. This information is
summarized in the following chart and graphs.
Categories Yes No
Some
teachers
Do not know
Do not
care
Teacher’s
awareness of
cultural
diversity in
classrooms
36% (13) 44% (16) 19% (7) Ø Ø
Teachers’
consideration of
this factor
36% (13) 31% (11) 25% (9) 8% (3) Ø
Is
interculturality
an advantage
while teaching?
91%(33) 3% (1) 6% (2) Ø Ø
Students’
interest of this
perspective in
their lessons
55% (20) 31% (11) Ø 3% (1) 11% (4)
Table 2: Students’ perceptions about interculturality

30
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
40%
45%
50%
Yes No Some
teachers
Do not know
Percentage
of
students Cultural diversity awareness and consideration
Teachers awareness
Consideration of
interculturality
Graph 5: Comparison between teachers’ awareness of cultural diversity and the consideration of this factor
while teaching
Graph 5 shows that the majority of students consider that teachers are not
aware of the cultural diversity existing in classrooms while some others perceive
that some teachers or all the teachers are definitely aware of this cultural diversity.
Graph 5 also shows what students think about the consideration of the
interculturality when teaching in the classroom. A total of 61% think that teachers,
or at least some of them, take this factor into account while a 31% believe that
teachers do not consider interculturality when teaching. This means that some
teachers at the School of Languages are observed to be aware of the cultural
diversity that exists in the classrooms. It also means that other teachers seem not
to be aware of this and do not take it into account when teaching EFL.
In order to confirm these results some extracts from the most interesting
comments of students’ answers in the open questions are presented. These
extracts support the statements previously presented in the chart according to
students’ perceptions of teachers’ awareness. In the item where students were
asked if teachers are aware of the cultural diversity one of the students wrote:
 “No, porque generalizan y dan por hecho que todos tienen el mismo nivel
cultural”

31
(No, because they generalize and take for granted the fact that everybody has
the same cultural level)
-Student 1
Others students said:
 “No, creo que no les interesa”
(No, I think they are not interested)
-Student 2
 “No, la mayoría de ellos desarrolla su clase de un solo modo, no la adapta.”
(No, most of them develop their class in just one way, they do not adapt it)
-Student 3
 “No, no creo que se fijen en eso, no se nota.”
(No, I don’t think they can notice that, I don’t see that)
-Student 4
 “No, ejemplo claro es que los maestros piensan que todos al ingresar a la
carrera tenemos el mismo nivel de inglés y no se ponen a analizar si
algunos no han podido acceder a un conocimiento previo, ya sea por falta
de recursos o cuestiones sociales.”
(No, an example of this is that teachers think all students have the same
English level when we start our B.A., they do not consider that not all of us have
studied English before, because of lack of resources or social issues)
-Student 5
These extracts represent the opinions of students who think teachers are
not aware of the cultural diversity in classrooms and the reasons why they think so.
Concerning the next category where students express whether they think
interculturality is an advantage that should be exploited in the classroom and their
preference about including this perspective while teaching is illustrated in graph 6.

32
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Yes No Do not know Do not care
Percentages
of
students
Interculturality in the classroom
Interculturality as an
advantage
Interest of students
Graph 6: Interculturality as an advantage in the classroom and students’ preference of it.
As it appears in graph 6, most of the students agreed that interculturality is
an advantage that should be considered in the classroom when teaching EFL.
91% of the students think interculturality could bring numerous resources into the
classroom, because as English speakers, they should be ready for intercultural
encounters and be able to communicate.
Additionally, the majority of the students, who think interculturality is an
advantage, are interested in adopting this perspective in their lessons. As graph 6
shows, more than the half of the students agreed that teachers should take
interculturality into account when planning their lessons. In order to reinforce these
opinions, some of the most representative comments regarding this category
(where students were asked if interculturality is an advantage that should be taken
into account when planning lessons) are presented next:
 “Por supuesto, siempre la interacción con personas de diferentes
culturas enriquece el conocimiento”
(Of course, interaction with people from other cultures always enriches knowledge)
-Student 1
 “Es una de las más grandes ventajas que la universidad ofrece, sobre
todo en la facultad de idiomas, puesto que es necesario para un óptimo
aprendizaje de lenguas.”

33
(It is one of the biggest advantages offered by the university, specifically in the
School of Languages, because it is necessary for language learning)
-Student 6
 “Sí, porque se puede tener más conocimiento al interactuar unos con
otros, e intercambiar opiniones, creencias y costumbres, etc.”
Yes, because we can get more knowledge when interacting with others,
exchanging opinions, beliefs and customs, etc.
-Student 7
 “Sí, todos tenemos algo que aprender de todos y podría aprovecharse
para hacer diálogos dentro del aula.”
(Yes, we all have something to learn from each other and it could be exploited
when having dialogues inside the classroom)
-Student 8
 Pienso que sí, ya que así tomamos en cuenta la manera en que un
alumno puede aprender y facilitar su aprendizaje enfocándola y
usándola favorablemente.
(I think so, because in this way students’ leaning style is taken into account which
makes learning easier by using it favorably)
-Student 4
At the end of this instrument, students were asked to give examples of cases
where they had observed if teachers had been indifferent/apathetic to cultural
diversity, or on the contrary if they had made use of interculturality as a resource
for teaching. Some of the most remarkable cases are presented:
 “Una profesora en particular nos comentó que durante su clase nos
debíamos comportar como ‘Americanos’. Creo que ella no consideró la
diversidad cultural”

34
(Particularly, one of the professors commented that we have to behave as
“Americans” during her lesson. I do not think she considered cultural diversity)
-Student 9
 “Claro que sí, en el sentido de estado socioeconómico, todos asumen
que todos tenemos computadora y que podemos estar ‘conectados’ todo
el día, esperando qué magnificencias de trabajo nos planea mandar.”
(Of course, regarding the socioeconomical aspect, all teachers assume that all
students have computers and we can be online all day, just waiting for their
majesties’ orders)
-Student 10
Some other opinions represent the opposite, in order to reflect these ideas,
the testimony of student 11 is presented:
 “Sí, por ejemplo cuando se nos pide que comparemos una situación en
un país diferente con la misma situación en México, ya sea que surja
como tema del libro o por vías externas, estas actividades ayudan a
conocer como las culturas de diversos países se asemejan o diferencian
entre sí.”
(Yes, for example when we are asked to compare a situation in Mexico with a
situation in a different country, this is because that is a topic from the book or from
some other sources. These activities can help to get familiar with similar o different
cultures from a variety of countries)
All of these testimonies clearly represent the ideas mentioned before. Some
teachers do not take into account the interculturality existing in the classrooms, and
some of them do not mind hiding it, but it also shows that other teachers have
taken advantage of interculturality, whether it is because it is pointed out in the
book or because the teacher decided to include it during the lesson.

35
 Teachers’ perceptions of interculturality
As it was mentioned before, another phase of the study concerns teachers’
testimony about the topic. In this phase, teachers were asked to answer a semi-
structured interview which contrasts the perception of the students that were
presented previously. The results show a comparison between what students
perceive and teachers’ real intentions when teaching lessons. In this case,
teachers talked about interculturality and how they take advantage (or not) of this
resource. In order to completely understand this analysis, some of their answers
are quoted and their identity is kept as anonymous. For this reason the participants
will be named as teacher A, B, C and D.
Knowledge of the term and existence of an intercultural environment
The first item is related to the definition of interculturality. Three of the teachers
answered that they have a vague idea of the term. These teachers (A,B and C)
defined interculturality just by guessing. One of the teachers (teacher D) was the
only one who answered accurately.
For question 2, teachers were asked if they think that there is interculturality
in the School of Languages in order to find out if teachers are aware of
interculturality. In this case, just one of the teachers (Teacher A) claims that there
is interculturality in the school of languages.
 Yo creo que sí; definitivamente aquí sí.
(Yes, I think so, definitely)
-Teacher A
The others (Teachers B, C and D) completely disagreed. Some of the arguments
which support the main idea of this research work about the lack of teachers’
awareness of interculturality in classrooms are now presented:
 “No lo creo tanto así, a diferencia de la escuela para estudiantes
extranjeros, aquí se hacen círculos de conversación pero casi siempre
de inglés y francés porque no hay personas que vengan de otros
países”

36
(I don’t think so, unlike from the School for Foreign Students, we have English and
French conversation clubs because there are not any people from other countries)
in our school.
-Teacher B
 “No. Los alumnos de otros estados estarían inmersos en una forma de
cultura, sería intercultural solamente si ese bagaje que traen, lo
compartieran en distintas manifestaciones. Ahora que si hablamos de
esas personas que pertenecen a distintos grupos étnicos o que
descienden de ellos, ahí habría interculturalidad pero sólo superficial.”
(No. Students from other states would be immersed in some way of culture. It
would be interculturality if they shared their cultural background in different ways. If
we talk of the people who belong to different ethnic groups that would be
interculturality but just in a superficial way)
-Teacher C
 “No, yo creo que no existe un ambiente intercultural porque el ambiente
es completamente mestizo, con una fuerte preferencia sobre lo Europeo,
entonces no existe una interculturalidad que permita a los jóvenes de
otros grupos étnicos desarrollarse…”
(No, I think there is not an intercultural environment because we all belong to a
mestizo culture with a strong preference for the Eurepean lifestyle, so there is not
such interculturality which would allow students from different ethnic groups to
develop)
-Teacher D
Most of the teachers interviewed responded that there is no such thing as
interculturality in the School of Languages as the extracts above state. These
answers could be an indicator that some teachers from the School of Languages
are not aware of the interculturality existing in classrooms just as it was stated at
the beginning of this research work.

37
Is interculturality an important factor when teaching English?
In the third category, teachers were asked to respond if they think interculturality is
an important factor when teaching English. For this item the 100% of the
participants (Teachers A, B, C and D) answered that it is important to take into
account interculturality while teaching English in order to prepare students in the
best possible way. Here are the arguments they mentioned concerning this
question:
 Muchos académicos de la facultad de idiomas estamos muy interesados
en el desarrollo de esa interculturalidad o transculturalidad, no desde un
punto de vista peyorativo o racista o prejuicioso, sino desde un punto de
vista de desarrollo profesional, para que la persona se sienta más
cómoda a la hora de pasar de ser estudiante a insertarse en un
ambiente profesional.”
(Many professors at the School of Languages are interested in the development of
interculturality and transculturalization but not from a pejorative, racist or prejudiced
point of view, but from the perspective of professional development in order to
make the person feel more comfortable during the process of becoming a
professional)
-Teacher D
 Creo que depende de la clase y el contenido. En una clase de cultura es
importante que el profesor aborde estos temas, pero en la clase de
inglés no lo creo a menos que se toquen temas como los idioms y
vocabulario, pero en una clase de lengua no creo que sea determinante.
(I think it depends on the subject and the contents. In culture clases it is important
that teachers address these topics, but not in the English class unless they study
idioms and vocabulary, but for a language lesson it is not determinant)
-Teacher B
 “Viene a mi cabeza un grupo de la tarde cuando vemos los idioms y
buscamos el equivalente en español, debido a las diferentes regiones de

38
donde vienen los alumnos, conocen diferentes dichos y cada uno los
comparte, por lo que yo creo que sí es importante.”
(An evening class comes to my mind, when we are learning idiomatic expressions
and we look for the appropriate Spanish equivalent, and because students’ come
from different regions, they know different sayings and everyone shares them in
class. That is the reason why I think it is important.)
-Teacher A
Teachers’ awareness of cultural diversity in classrooms when planning and
implementing lessons.
The results obtained in the last part of the interview are related to whether cultural
diversity is taken into account when planning and implementing lessons. In this
final category, 2 teachers answered that they take it into account. It may not be
part of their lesson plan but they do it when they talk about idiomatic expressions
and ask students to share the equivalences in Spanish according to their places of
origin. They also ask students to share their traditions when culture is part of the
topic. The answers given are presented:
 “Sí. Yo en la medida en que puedo les comparto a los alumnos lo
que yo he experimentado en mi desarrollo del idioma inglés,
todos los aspectos culturales a los cuales he estado expuesto
que son la música, el idioma, el trato con las personas, la manera
de hablar, las expresiones idiomáticas, todo eso en lo más que
puedo lo comparto con los alumnos.”
(Yes, I share my experiences with my students as much as possible, all the cultural
aspects I have been exposed to, such as music, language, dealing with people, the
way of talking and idiomatic expressions. I try to share all that with my students.)
 Por otro lado, sé de buena fuente que compañeros míos también
lo hacen muy a su manera, pero lo hacen. Yo conozco maestros,
o al menos uno que tiene libros en donde hay textos que tratan

39
de las actividades que tiene los anglo parlantes y él trata de
compartírselos a los alumnos y estén conscientes.
(On the other hand, I know that some of my colleagues do it in their own way. I
know some teachers, or at least one who has books which discuss the English
speakers activities and this teacher tries to share it with his students and to nake
them be aware of this)
-Teacher C
The teacher A accepted that she does not do it consciously, but she has
somehow taken advantage of this.
 “No soy muy consciente de que lo tome en cuenta, pero creo que sí es
importante aplicarlo por el vocabulario, porque hay personas diferentes y
por ejemplo, cómo le pides a alguien que use una palabra si no entiende el
concepto ni en español, entonces tienes que estar consciente.”
(I am not completely sure I take interculturality into account, but I think it is
important to use it when teaching vocabulary because there are different people
and for example, how can you ask somebody to use a word if he/she does not
understand the meaning of the word? For this reason you must be aware)
-Teacher A
Finally, teacher B stated that he does not take interculturality into account when
planning and implementing lessons. He focuses his attention on some other factors
such as students’ learning styles. Here is the testimony of Teacher B:
 “En un salón hay alumnos de Chiapas, Tabasco, Oaxaca, Veracruz, etc.,
que tienen una ‘cultura diferente’ por sus familias, pero yo no tomo tanto en
cuenta eso, sino que más bien me enfoco en los diferentes estilos de
aprendizaje. Unos días puedo preparar material para aquellos que son
visuales, a los que les llama el movimiento, o para los que aprenden
escuchando.”
(In a classroom there are students from Chiapas, Tabasco, Oaxaca, Veracruz, etc.,
who have a “different culture” because of their families. But I don’t take that into

40
account, I’d rather focus on the learning styles. Some days I prepare
materials/resources for those students, who are visual, enjoy moving around or for
those who learn by listening)
-Teacher B

41
Conclusions
The results obtained in the different phases of this research work provide a sample
of the participants’ (teachers and students) perceptions about interculturality at the
School of Languages. First, according to the variety of definitions presented in this
research project, the data collected shows that there is a cultural diversity
highlighted by all the differences (social, economical, educational, religious, etc,.)
among students and for this reason, interculturality exists in classrooms at the
School of Languages as it was presented in the different graphs and charts.
Second, the information presented above seems to show that some of the
teachers that were interviewed are not aware of cultural diversity in classrooms,
while others are. According to their own words, some of these teachers do not
even know the meaning of these words. For this reason, they could not be capable
of noticing interculturality or reflecting upon it. Results indicate that they tend to
believe interculturality is experienced only when there are foreign students in the
classroom, an idea which does not match with the concepts previously discussed.
Third, the results also show students’ perceptions about teachers’ cultural
awareness at the School of Languages. It is interesting to notice that students’
perceptions confirm that teachers give the impression of not taking into
consideration cultural diversity and interculturality. These results were obtained by
listening to the voices and points of view of the interviewed students about this
topic and their experiences. The results also show that some teachers are not
interested in addressing this factor when teaching EFL while some others make
use of this resource by sharing experiences and knowledge, but not by taking
cultural diversity into account when they plan or implement their classes. Then,
some others just make use of this when some topics related to idiomatic
expressions are addressed, because they have a tendency to think interculturality
is not as important as other factors when teaching a language class/lesson.
However, all the participants of this study (teachers and students) agreed that
interculturality is a resource that could bring advantages and be exploited in
classrooms, as it was discussed before, as it is an ongoing phenomenon at the
School of Languages.

42
It is my hope that this research work increases awareness of diverse cultural
features among teachers at the School of Languages in view of the complexity of
the relationship between culture and language learning. The same way I hope that
this work is of some use for future studies, or discussions.
Limitations
For this research project, some limitations were faced. The first of them was the
lack of time to go deeper into the analysis of the research findings because of the
deadlines that have to be observed if the final paper was to be submitted in time.
Therefore, this lack of time did not allow me to work with a larger number of
participants. The number of teachers and students participating is not enough to
get more conclusive results about this topic and as a consequence no
generalizations can be drawn from this work.
Implications
To improve the significance of this research, it is necessary to extend the project
by increasing the number of participants (teachers and students) who were
interviewed because I could not cover all the faculty and student body, who could
provide more information in order to get more precise results. This extension would
allow me to go deeper into the findings to clarify the impact of interculturality in the
students at the School of Languages. Further and more inclusive research would
complement the data by providing additional information on how this factor affects
students’ learning and how it happens.

43
Bibliography
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dentro del contexto turístico. Universidad de Salamanca. Retrieved from
http://www.encuentrojournal.org/textos/16.3.pdf
Alward, Edgar. (1998). Research paper step-by-step: simplified method of
learning the research process. Westhampton. Esparto Press.
American Multicultural Publications. (2013). What is cultural diversity?. Retrieved
from http://www.diversity-books.com/what-is-cultural-diversity.html
Byram, Michael & Fleming, MichaeL. (1998). Language learning in intercultural
perspective, approaches through drama and ethnography. UK. Cambridge
University press.
Cakir, Ismael. (2006). Developing cultural awareness in foreign language teaching.
Turkey.
Dietz, Gunther & Mateos, Laura. (2011). Interculturalidad y educación,
Interculturalidad en México: un análisis de los discursos nacionales e
internacionales en su impacto en los modelos educativos mexicanos. México. SEP
Institutional web page (School of Languages of University of Veracruz). Retrieved
from: http://www.uv.mx/idiomas/
Institutional web page (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural
Organization). Retrieved from http://www.unesco.org/new/en/
Elizundia, María del Carmen. (2003). Antología de textos. Hombre y cultura.
México. Universidad Anáhuac del Sur.
Gagliardi, Raúl. (1995). Teacher training and multiculturalism: National studies.
Paris, France. UNESCO: International Bureau of Education.

44
Jameson, Fredic. (2003). Reflexiones sobre el multiculturalismo. Buenos Aires.
Paidós.
Merril, Joyce. (1994). Culture Bound. USA. Cambridge Language Teaching
Library.
Mountford, Alan & Wadham-Smith, Nick. (2000). British studies: Intercultural
perspectives. England. LONGMAN in association with the Bristish council.
Sampieri, Roberto. (2003). Metodología de la investigación. México. Mc Graw Hill.
Tirzo et al. (2005). Educación e interculturalidad, miradas a la diversidad. México.
UPN
Trujillo, Gustavo & Meseguer, Shantal. (2004). Diversidad cultural y educación
intercultural, reflexiones desde la docencia. México.
Unesco. (1994). The futures of cultures. France. UNESCO publishing.

45
Appendix A
Taken from http://www.uv.mx/docencia/programa/Creditos.aspx?Programa=LEIN-08-E-
CR
AREA DE FORMACION BASICA
EXPERIENCIAS EDUCATIVAS TEORIA PRACTICAOTROSCREDITOSANTECEDENTES
GENERAL
COMPUTACION BASICA 0 6 0 6
HABILIDADES DEL PENSAMIENTO CRITICO Y
CREATIVO
2 2 0 6
INGLES I 0 6 0 6
INGLES II 0 6 0 6 INGLES I
LECTURA Y REDACCION A TRAVES DEL
ANALISIS DEL MUNDO CONTEMPORANEO
2 2 0 6
INICIACION A LA DISCIPLINA
ESTRATEGIAS PARA EL APRENDIZAJE DE LE 2 2 0 6
FUNDAMENTOS DE LA CULTURA
CONTEMPORANEA
2 2 0 6
FUNDAMENTOS DE LINGÜISTICA GENERAL 4 0 0 8
GRAMATICA COMUNICATIVA DEL ESPAÑOL 4 0 0 8
HABILIDADES DE LECTURA Y REDACCION EN
INGLES
2 2 0 6
INGLES ELEMENTAL 2 6 0 10
INGLES INTERMEDIO 2 6 0 10
INGLES PRE-INTERMEDIO 2 6 0 10
INGLES PRINCIPIANTES 2 8 0 12
INICIACION A LA LECTURA Y REDACCION EN
INGLES
2 2 0 6
INICIACION A LA TRADUCCION 2 2 0 6
INTRODUCCION A LA INVESTIGACION 4 2 0 10
CREDITOS MINIMOS 34 60 0 128
EXPERIENCIAS EDUCATIVAS TEORIA PRACTICAOTROSCREDITOS ANTECEDENTES
COMPOSICION DE TEXTOS EN ESPAÑOL 2 2 0 6
CULTURA BRITANICA 4 0 0 8 INGLES ELEMENTAL
CULTURA ESTADOUNIDENSE 4 0 0 8 INGLES ELEMENTAL
ENSEÑANZA APRENDIZAJE DEL INGLES 2 4 0 8
ESTUDIOS DE LA TRADUCCION 4 2 0 10 INGLES INTERMEDIO
INGLES AVANZADO 2 6 0 10
INGLES INTERMEDIO ALTO 2 6 0 10
INICIACION A LA LITERATURA EN LENGUA
INGLESA
2 2 0 6
INGLES PRE-INTERMEDIO
LECTURA Y REDACCION DE TEXTOS
ACADEMICOS EN INGLES
2 2 0 6
LITERATURA EN LENGUA INGLESA 2 2 0 6 INICIACION A LA LITERATURA EN LENGUA
INGLESA
METODOS Y ENFOQUES ACTUALES EN LA
ENSEÑANZA DEL INGLES
4 0 0 8
PLANEACION DE LA PRACTICA DOCENTE 2 2 0 6
SISTEMAS LINGÜISTICOS 6 0 0 12
TALLER DE TRADUCCION 2 4 0 8 ESTUDIOS DE LA TRADUCCION
OPTATIVAS 0 0 0 24

46
EXPERIENCIAS EDUCATIVAS TEORIA PRACTICA OTROS CREDITOS ANTECEDENTES
OPTATIVAS 0 0 0 8
SEMINARIO DE REDACCION PARA EL TRABAJO
RECEPCIONAL
2 2 0 6
SERVICIO SOCIAL 0 0 0 12
EXPERIENCIA RECEPCIONAL 0 0 0 12
EXPERIENCIAS EDUCATIVAS TEORIA PRACTICA OTROS CREDITOS ANTECEDENTES
ELECCION LIBRE 0 0 0 16
TOTAL DE EXPERIENCIAS EDUCATIVAS VARIABLE
TOTAL DE HORAS TEORIA VARIABLE
TOTAL DE HORAS LABORATORIO VARIABLE
TOTAL DE HORAS OTRO VARIABLE
TOTAL MINIMO DE CREDITOS 318
AREA ACADEMICA AREA DE HUMANIDADES
NIVEL LICENCIATURA
SISTEMA ESCOLARIZADO
AÑO DEL PLAN 2008

48
Appendix C
Universidad Veracruzana
Facultad de Idiomas
Esta encuesta es parte de una investigación que pretende analizar el contexto
cultural existente en la facultad de idiomas, gracias por tu honestidad y tu
cooperación. La información proporcionada será confidencial y anónima.
Completa las siguientes preguntas.
1. Edad ___________
2. Semestre__________
3. Lugar de nacimiento ________________________
4. ¿Has vivido en otros estados aparte de tu ciudad de origen y de la ciudad
de Xalapa? ¿Dónde?
5. El lugar de donde provienes es una zona:
a) Rural b) Urbana
6. Actualmente, ¿en qué colonia de la ciudad de Xalapa vives?
7. ¿Con qué miembros de tu familia vives?
8. Tus padres se dedican a
Padre__________________ Madre___________________
9. ¿Hablas alguna lengua indígena o perteneces a algún grupo étnico?
¿Cuál?
10.Religión _________________
11.Orientación sexual _______________________
12.Escuela de procedencia _____________________
13.¿Dónde aprendiste inglés?

49
Appendix D
Facultad de Idiomas
Con la finalidad de realizar un estudio sobre la interculturalidad existente en la
población estudiantil de la Facultad de Idiomas de la Universidad Veracruzana, se
te solicita tu cooperación para contestar de forma verídica el siguiente
cuestionario. La información proporcionada será confidencial.
Nombre: __________________________________________________________
9. ¿Crees que un ambiente intercultural genera un impacto a la hora de dar
clases? ¿Por qué?
Muy
de
acuerdo
De
acuerdo
Ni
de
acuerdo
ni
en
desacuerdo
En
desacuerdo
Completamente
en
desacuerdo
1. La cultura propia y la extranjera son parte
importante en el aprendizaje de un idioma.
2. La población estudiantil de la Fac. de Idiomas
es homogénea (todos son iguales).
3. Los salones de inglés en la Fac. de idiomas
son de un ambiente intercultural.
4. Los profesores de la Facultad no se dan
cuenta de esta interculturalidad.
5. Una perspectiva intercultural de enseñanza
puede generar ventajas a la hora de aprender
inglés.
6. Los profesores consideran que todos los
alumnos son iguales y que no existe una
diversidad cultural.
7. Me molesta que los profesores crean que
todos los alumnos somos culturalmente
iguales.
8. La población estudiantil de la Fac. de Idiomas
es culturalmente heterogénea.

50
10.¿Consideras que los profesores de la Facultad de Idiomas son conscientes
de la diversidad cultural existente en los salones de clases? ¿Por qué?
11.¿Consideras que los profesores de la Fac. de Idiomas toman este factor
intercultural en cuenta cuando dan clases?
12.¿Piensas que la interculturalidad es una ventaja que debería ser
aprovechada? Explica
13.¿Te gustaría que tu profesor de inglés tomara en cuenta este factor a la
hora de planear sus clases? ¿Por qué?
14.¿Consideras que los profesores son indiferentes hacia la diversidad
cultural?
15.¿Has notado alguna actitud que refleje esta indiferencia o que por el
contrario proyecte que los profesores toman en cuenta la diversidad cultural
existente? Descríbela.

51
Appendix E
Facultad de Idiomas
Guía de entrevista a profesores de la Facultad de Idiomas
Esta entrevista forma parte de una investigación a través de la cual se pretende
recabar información relacionada con la interculturalidad existente en la facultad de
idiomas, por lo que a continuación se le solicita responda a las siguientes
preguntas.
1. ¿Sabe qué es la interculturalidad?
2. ¿Cree que exista un ambiente intercultural en la Facultad de Idiomas?
3. ¿Cree que la interculturalidad es un factor importante a la hora de dar
clases y específicamente a la hora de enseñar inglés? ¿Por qué?
4. ¿Toma en cuenta la diversidad cultural en su salón de clase a la hora de
planear e implementar sus clases?

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