This document discusses ways to incorporate cultural awareness and knowledge into English language classes. It suggests examining one's own culture first to understand how it shapes perspectives. Teachers can then explore elements of other cultures using frameworks like the 3P model of culture (perspectives, practices, products). Intercultural phenomena like acculturation are also important to understand. Focusing on particular cultures involves studying their history, values and communication styles. Developing strategies for ongoing culture learning includes developing curiosity and critical thinking about different cultural practices. The document provides examples of culturally-aware classroom activities.

1. is :
I. A shared system of
• meanings,
• beliefs,
• values
• behaviours
through which experience is interpreted and carried out
I. John H. Bodley :
“what people think, make, and do.”

2. Forces Shaping Individual Culture
Personal
Culture
Values
World-views
Beliefs
Behaviours
Urbanization
Migration
Minority
Experience
Cross-
cultural
Adjustments
Profession
Gender Language
Education
Industrialization
Social
background
Ethnic
background
Religion
Nationalism Colonisation

4. Cultural Awareness
“A fish only discovers its need for water when it is no
longer in it. Our own culture is like water for the
fish. It sustains us. We live and breathe through
it.”
~ Stephanie Quappe and Giovanna Cantatore

5.  Eating habits
 Religion
 Family and Gender
 Communication
 Gesture/body language
 Dress Code
 Traffic
 concept of time

7. Degrees of Cultural Awareness
1) My way is the only way - people are aware of their way of
doing things, and their way is the only way. they ignore the
impact of cultural differences. (Parochial stage)
2) I know their way, but my way is better - people are aware of
other ways of doing things, but still consider their way as the
best one. In this stage, cultural differences are perceived as
source of problems and people tend to ignore them or reduce
their significance. (Ethnocentric stage)
3) My Way and Their Way - people are aware of their own way
of doing things and others’ ways of doing things, and they
chose the best way according to the situation. people realize
that cultural differences can lead both to problems and benefits
and are willing to use cultural diversity to create new solutions
and alternatives. (Synergistic stage)
4) Our Way - This fourth and final stage brings people from
different cultural background together for the creation of a
culture of shared meanings. People dialogue repeatedly with
others, create new meanings, new rules to meet the needs of
a particular situation. (Participatory Third culture stage)

8. How can we incorporate cultural knowledge within the context of our English
language classes?
• Grammar, syntax, phonetics, and some of the
social conventions associated with English
wont give real insights
• There is a lack of consensus on how to
introduce cultural elements (what approach to
take )
• There is no universally accepted set of criteria

9. One approach would be to adapt Michael Paige’s dimensions of culture learning
model. Paige groups culture learning into categories:
1. The self as cultural
2. The elements of culture
3. Intercultural phenomena (culture-general learning)
4. Particular cultures (culture-specific learning)
5. Acquiring strategies for culture learning

10. 1. The self as cultural:
All people are members of at least one culture.
the culture we belong to affects how we think,
interact, communicate, and transmit knowledge
from one generation to another
English teachers can help students activate their
“cultural antennas” by making them aware of
important elements of their own culture and
how it shaped them
Kramsch (1993) calls this learning process
establishing a “sphere of interculturality.

11. • teachers need to define what culture first.
• Teachers can guide students to think about
people in their own cultures by asking questions
like these:
• What behaviors reflect our culture, and how are they learned and shared?
• What important factors influence our culture?
• What are some important traditions that are unique to our country?
• What ideals and values bind our culture together?
• How does culture in our country function as a way for humans to live with one
another?
• What symbols are prevalent in our culture?

12. 2. Elements of culture
like the beliefs, values, customs, products, and the
communication styles of a given culture or society
Foreign Language Learning provides a framework for
students (the 3P model of culture) both tangible and
intangible :
1. • Perspectives(what members of a culture think, feel,
and value)
2. • Practices(how members communicate and interact
with one another)
3. • Products(technology, music, art, food, literature, etc.;
the things members of a group create, share, and
transmit to the next generation)

13. Brooks Makes A Distinction Between
“Formal Culture” And “Deep Culture”
Formal Culture Deep Culture
literature, fine arts, history, etc patterns of social interactions, values,
attitudes, etc
the elements are easily observable
across cultures
are often difficult to identify, as they tend to
be value-based and deeply rooted in the
psyches of individuals who make up a
specific culture.
Like products in the 3P model

14. Edward T. Hall’s “cultural iceberg” analogy (surface and subsurface)

15. 3. Intercultural phenomena
• When we teach EFL, part of our job should be to
prepare students for challenges they may meet when
they travel or move to a country where English is
spoken

16. Acculturation, according to Brown
(1994), has four stages:
1.Excitement
( Honeymoon )
2. culture shock 3. recovery 4. adaption
about being in a new
country
First exciting contact
with new culture
feelings of frustration and
hostility
adjustment and
emergent comfort in the
new culture
bridging
cultural
barriers and
accepting the
new culture
in a new environment,
we tend to overlook
the negative and see
only the new, fresh,
and exciting. Once
the novelty fades,
individuals move into
Stage Two
People may start to make
unfair comparisons
between their host
culture
and the culture of their
own country
people may want to
withdraw.
It is perhaps the most
difficult
stage of the acculturation
process
more familiar with
their new environments,
so gradually move
into Stage Three. They
make friends, feel
more comfortable using
the target language,
appreciate the
differences between their
own culture and the new
one
the
newcomer
will adapt and
accept the
new culture

17. 4. Particular cultures
• focus on the elements of a particular culture.
These elements can include history,
geography, and political systems (an
understanding of the particular characteristics
of a society)
• Hall’s theory of high- and low-context cultures
helps us understand how characteristics of a
given culture affect communication (question)

18. high-context culture low-context culture
people tend to emphasize interpersonal relationships
and prefer group harmony and consensus over
individual achievement
tend to be individualistic and goal-oriented
people tend to value directness with
discussions resulting in actions.
Words are less important than a speaker’s intent
Speakers are expected to be straightforward
and concise
They share a high degree of commonality of
knowledge and viewpoints
little need to spell things out, meanings tend to be
implicit or can be communicated in indirect ways
are typified by long-lasting social relationships,
spoken agreements, and mutual trust
Maybe found as secretive or unforthcoming Maybe found as overly blunt
Like many Asian, Middle Eastern, and Latin
American cultures
Like Most native English-speaking countries

19. 5. Acquiring strategies for culture
learning
• According to Byram, intercultural competence includes these
features:
• • a curiosity and openness to other cultures
• • an understanding of social practices and products in both one’s
own culture and the target culture
• • the ability to relate something from another culture and make it
comprehensible to members of one’s own
• • the ability to use new knowledge of a culture in authentic
situations
• • the ability to critically evaluate the cultural practices and
products of one’s own culture and that of other countries

20. Culturally friendly classroom strategies
• Cultural collections
• Web quests
• Cultural “informants”
• Role plays
• Cultural observations
• Culture journals

21. Summary:
• Cultural awareness is increased by giving you
the most common examples
• This is the first step to handle cultural
differences positively, avoid conflicts due to
misperception and to make you interact
positively with host cultures
• What is considered an appropriate behavior
in one culture is frequently inappropriate in
another one.

22. Summary of ways to raise
cultural awareness:
• Using the iceberg analogy
• the Internet
• Examples provide a starting point for students to
think and brainstorm more examples
• Books (including titles cited in this article)
• Teachers’ professional development plans
• If students understand and anticipate the stages of
acculturation, they may be able to reduce the time they
spend in the less desirable stages.
• An interesting activity is to have students reflect on Hall’s
• classifications to determine whether theirs is a high- or low-
context culture(10 questions)