On English Teaching and Cross-cultural Communication

【Abstract】Since last century, because of reforming and opening policy, many people, especially young people go abroad to get a better job or get further education and so on. Besides, many foreigners are curious about our country. Consequently, people come to realize that if we known little about cross-cultural communication, there will be many conflicts. Some experts suggest that todays English teaching should emphasize intercultural communication. Learners ought to know not only grammar or words, but should learn cultural knowledge. If not, they will meet many difficulties while they communicate with foreigners. Therefore, it is important to introduce this kind of knowledge while teaching. This paper mainly talks about cross-cultural communication in foreign language teaching in China. In the first part, we talk about the importance of learn cross-culture and discuss the relationship between language teaching and cultural teaching. Next part is talk about the problems of culture teaching nowadays. According to these problems, we explore some culture teaching methods to improve culture teaching. The aim of this paper is to emphasize the importance of culture teaching during foreign language teaching. Culture teaching is necessary for all of us, it can make it possible for learners to prevent miscommunication from occurring in intercultural communications.

【Key words】Cross-cultural communication; Cultural teaching; English teaching

Because of the development of the transportation, communication and economy, the world seems to be getting smaller，people with different cultures keep closer contact. Its an urgent task for English teachers to master how to make teaching of English meet the needs of social and economic development. The concept of foreign language teaching in Chinese school should be changed from stressing the vocabulary and grammar to cultivating the students communicative competence. So, cultural teaching in foreign language teaching becomes an important part. But culture teaching is a very complex procedure. Li Guoliang argues, “The ignorance of communicative culture will affect the quality of foreign language teaching and the students ability to use the language as well. ”

1.Ways of improving cross-culture communication in English teaching

(ⅰ) Culture awareness

Culture awareness is the term we have used to describe sensitivity to the impact of culturally—induced behavior on language use and communication. It including two qualities: one is awareness of ones own culture, the other is awareness of the culture.

Unfortunately, in China, cross-cultural communication errors can be found from time to time. In English teaching, culture factor needs to be taken seriously. To cultivate students intercultural communication we need first to arouse their cultural awareness. Because of different cultural background, life experience, profession, sex, education, even age, character, people may have different modes of interaction. People learn to think, feel, behave and strive for what their culture considers proper. These means there might not be the same as what is intended by the speaker. If we are aware of this, we can avoid ethnocentricity, and can have better communication with people all over the world.

(ⅱ)The importance of raising culture awareness

Speakers of a foreign language often have the experience of making careless mistakes which may cause get angry, may be embarrassing and may arouse hostility from native speaker. Often such mistakes occur even though the application of the linguistic rules of grammar, vocabulary or pronunciation is correct. These mistakes are culture errors but occur because of not knowing or choosing the appropriate style, and manner to use for effective communication.

(ⅲ) The development of sensitiveness to culture differences

There are four stages in the development of the sensitiveness to culture differences. The first, one can make out the obvious, superficial culture characteristics. In other word, he will find them interesting and exotic. The second, one can judge the delicate meaningful cultural characteristics that are quite different from his own. Usually he will feel them incredible or hard to accept .The third, one can accept the cultural characteristics after rational analysis. The fourth, one can be in the other peoples shoes and appreciate the cultural characteristics. In other words, the first three stage can be understood, and the fourth empathy.

To achieve the first three goals, the following approaches are recommended.

(1)The textbook should contain the western customs, habits, hobbies, and living modes.

(2)Communications with the native speakers are encouraged from those of Chinas various ethnic groups.

(3)The students can discuss the western customs different from those of Chinas customs various ethnic groups.

(4)Make full use of English videos and films. All these materials are welcome.

Some stories, essays and screenplays should be read and noted, about cultural details should be made.

(5)Lectures about culture should be held, if possible. At the same time, experts can tackle the problem with more examples, both deep and broad.

(ⅳ) The development of empathy

In order to communication effectively, you need a deep degree of empathy, that is to be able to understand the other persons affective and cognitive states. Empathy involves relativism and flexibility, which knowledge alone cannot consist. Teachers can create good classroom environment where students tolerate and appreciate different norms by bringing up students empathy. In China, we always emphasize collectivism instead of individualism. But in English class, we advocate differences, to encourage students to understand each other.

2. Improving assessment of culture learning

In further strengthening the integration of culture with language learning, the assessment of culture learning is a very necessary and important part of the whole project of teaching language and culture; otherwise, culture learning might probably be regard again as something of secondary importance. This issue has also been recognized and supported by many scholars. Students should realize that they will be tested over culture information presented. However, the assessments of culture learning in China have been quite problematic. Byram and Cain in discussion of what to test and how to test describes the following items:

—The “content” to be test: knowledge, attitude, and behavioral skill.

—The ability to investigate: Since we had focused on ethnographic techniques, these should be best in principle also

—The techniques for testing: oral and written assessment by using the role-play, using the essay.

—The criteria for assessment and the determination of levels of competence.

This model of culture tests seems to be workable if the body of knowledge associated with the mentioned areas to be tested can be taught in the classroom. We recommend the techniques of testing suggested by Byram and Cain, because they are practical and manageable.

We will combine culture tests with linguistic competences tests according to the Chinese context of foreign language teaching, English examinations in Chinese secondary school and college are made up of two parts, listening and writing isolated sentences or short passages that carry culture information such as value, and beliefs can all be used as testing materials in both listening and written test.

In brief, a culture test is very important to ensuring systematic and consistent teaching development.

3. Some suggestions about improving culture teaching

Culture is communication. Thus culture acquisition should provide learners with chances transfiguration of their viewpoints about the interaction of communication and culture, so that they will successfully cope with a new situation. Only learners have achieved the diversity of perspectives, not in the stereotypical or prejudiced perspectives, the intercultural communication can be more interpersonal.

In intercultural communication settings, Chinese learners in culture instruction should keep an open mind: we should try to avoid the prejudiced culture stereotypes over the other cultures and our own. Especially, we should put higher focus on the learning of our own Chinese culture. Another key point is becoming awareness of our own culture bottom lines. We must learn what our own culture line is ― the values where we are can negotiate, but we cannot compromise. We can allow others to be different, and respect their differences as they respect ours.

Though the culture teaching is a very complicated and difficult part to deal with, the educators and teachers involved in language education should make great efforts to carry out this part thoroughly. This determines much whether the effective cross-cultural communication can be proceeded smoothly between China and the world.

Notes：

[1]李郭连.外语教学中文化内容的导入[J].外语教学与研究出版社,2001.6.

[2]Barryt Tomalin and Susan Sempleski.Culture Awareness[J].Shanghai Normal University Press,1998,20.

[3]Barry Tomalin and Stempleski.Culture Awareness[J].Shanghai Normal University Press,1999,10.

[4]戴炼栋.外语交际中的文化迁移及其对外语教改的启示[M].外语教学与研究出版社,2002,(2):156.

References:

[1]Oxford,R.L.Language Strategies:What Every Teacher Should Know[J].Rowley:Newbury House,2003.

[2]Wilga.kivers.Interactive Language Teaching[M].Beijing:People‘s Education Press,2000.10.

[3]Byram.“Criteria for Textbook Evaluation ”[M].in Byram,Germany,its representation in textbooks for teaching German in Great Britain,1993.

作者简介：王琪(1980.4-)，女，文学学士、经济学硕士，讲师，研究方向：商务英语，翻译。