Developing Intercultural Competence in Practice

It is now widely recognised that learning a language should not just involve linguistic competence but also intercultural competence. It is also clear that intercultural competence can be developed through related subjects such as geography, history, mother tongue teaching. This book takes this as a given and provides practical help for teachers who wish to help their learners acquire intercultural competence in the ordinary classroom. It contains descriptions of lessons and materials from a wide range of classrooms in several countries and for beginners to advanced learners.

Less a textbook than a forum for language teachers to share examples of what worked for them in teaching learners both in multicultural societies and in the study of other societies. Some common themes that the 17 chapters emphasize include: having learners become aware of the cultural phenomena of their own society as well as others; the development of analytic and interpretive skills in unfamiliar social and cultural settings; the value of collecting firsthand data outside the classroom; and the use of literary texts to stimulate emotional as well as cognitive understanding of "otherness." The contributors are academics and classroom teachers working in the UK, Europe, and Japan. Distributed by UTP Distribution.

Annotation © Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

Biography

Michael Byram, Adam Nichols and David Stevens are in teacher education at the University of Durham. They specialise in the teaching of foreign languages (Byram), geography (Nichols) and English as mother tongue (Stevens) and have found a common interest in the ways in which all these subjects involve cultural issues. They have invited authors from throughout Europe and North America to describe their work in the classroom or in producing teaching materials to develop intercultural competence.

Michael Byram, Adam Nichols and David Stevens are in teacher education at the University of Durham. They specialise in the teaching of foreign languages (Byram), geography (Nichols) and English as mother tongue (Stevens) and have found a common interest in the ways in which all these subjects involve cultural issues. They have invited authors from throughout Europe and North America to describe their work in the classroom or in producing teaching materials to develop intercultural competence.