Communicating Across Cultures A Guide for Teachers

1
Communicating Across CulturesA Guide for Teachers
How to include culture learning in English
language classes
Linell Davis January 2005
2
What do we mean by culture?

• Chinese speakers often mean characteristics of
  Chinese people as compared to characteristics of
  people from other nations
• Knowledge about culture is often expressed as
  generalizations
• The English are conservative
• Americans are individualistic
• The French are romantic
• National culture
• Personal traits of people from that nation

3
More meanings of culture

• Way of life of any group
• Regional culture- north/south, rural/urban
• Religious culture- Christian, Buddhist, Moslem
• Ethnic culture- Han, Hui, Tibetan, Xinjiang
• Gender culture- male/female
• Economic class culture- farmer/intellectual/busine
  ss
• Generational culture- youth/middle age/elderly
• Organizational culture schools, education

4
Way of Life definition of culture

• Assumes that people with similar life experiences
  share VALUES.
• They see the world in similar ways.
• Members of important groups share MEANINGS.
• They can understand one another more easily than
  they can understand people from other groups.
• Group membership is often more important than
  national culture.

5
What do I know about the NBA?

• Nothing at all
• I am female and I am old
• The NBA is American and I am an American
• It is an experience shared by male members of the
  international youth culture
• I am not a member of that culture
• So, dont assume that national culture is the
  only or best level of analysis

6
What do I know about teaching?

• A lot it is my love, my craft, my life
• I share many experiences with other teachers
• It doesnt matter whether they are Americans or
  Chinese
• We can communicate about teaching, learning,
  schools, students, etc.
• We share an academic or educational culture
• Differences in national culture are not
  necessarily significant barriers to communication

7
Do I know how to use chopsticks?

• Of course, I do. Why do people keep asking me
  that question?
• Because Chinese use chopsticks and Americans use
  knives and forks, and I am an American
• They assume that I am different from them in
  every way because I am a waiguo ren
• Look for similarities, not just differences
• When you meet someone for the first time, you
  look for what you have in common with that
  person.

8
How do Americans celebrate Christmas?

• In many different ways, some not at all
• Ethnic cultures Italian/Swedish/German/Hispanic
• Religious cultures Christian/Jewish/secular
• Regional cultures south/north, east coast/west
  coast
• People often ask me questions about Americans
• They assume all Americans are alike
• They want me to give them a generalization
• Generalizations about national cultures cause
  many misunderstandings in communication

9
Do all Americans sleep late?

• A Chinese friend invited me to go to a park to do
  morning exercises
• BUT all along the way she complained about the
  traffic.
• I asked Why do you do it if it is so
  unpleasant?
• Her answer You are an American, so I didnt
  think you would want to go as early as I usually
  go.
• I am an early-riser.
• National culture is not a good predictor of most
  personal habits.

10
Are Americans more individualistic than Chinese?

• The conventional opinion is yes, they are.
• There is some truth to it, but it is an
  oversimplification.
• This idea alone is not a useful guide to
  predicting the preferences or behavior of
  Americans.
• Chinese educational culture is much more
  individualistic than American educational
  culture.
• American teachers collaborate more.
• Students do more group work.

11
If you use American individualism to predict
what Americans prefer, you will make many
mistakes

• In international competition Americans excel at
  team sports while Chinese excel at individual
  sports.
• Americans are constantly forming groups and
  joining groups to meet a variety of personal and
  professional goals.
• Typically, Americans participate in groups very
  differently from the way Chinese people do.

12
Pay attention to processes rather than traits

• How do people carry on a friendship?
• How do they teach how do they learn?
• How do they show respect?
• How do they express disagreement?
• How do they apologize?
• How do they handle relationships with people of
  higher or lower status than themselves?
• How do they participate in work groups?

13
ICC - Intercultural communication competence

• Knowledge of social groups in your own country
  and other countries
• Attitude of openness about other cultures and
  people
• Ability to gain new knowledge and to act on that
  knowledge
• Knowledge of processes and ability to use that
  knowledge
• How to communicate not just how to speak the
  target language
• Meeting, greeting, starting a conversation
• Expressing agreement and disagreement
• Asking for information
• Working with others

14
Then, how do we teach culture?Three approaches
are used

• Big C Culture
• Important people, works, events
• Mark Twain, Bill Gates, I have a dream speech,
  War of Independence, Civil War
• Little c culture
• Daily life, holidays, customs
• Cultural awareness
• Culture-general rather than culture-specific

15
Try these two approaches

• Cultural awareness
• The classroom as a cultural scene
• Stretching, expanding, destabilizing the
  culturally prescribed ways of teaching and
  learning
• When a butterfly flaps its wings in the north,
  it produces a typhoon in the south.
• It means doing small things can have big effects

16
Cultural awareness

• Sensitivity to
• People
• Situations
• Similarities and differences
• Expanding the concept of culture beyond the idea
  of national culture
• Working on problems of generalization and
  prejudice
• Building on what students already know about how
  to communicate

17
English is a global language

• People in many countries learn English.
• Dont limit culture learning to the study of
  countries where English is a native language.
• English can be used to learn about many different
  cultures and about culture in general.
• It is likely that in the future your students
  will be communicating with speakers of English as
  a second or foreign language.
• They are participants in the emerging global
  culture.
• So are you!

18
Culture learning begins with awareness of the
home culture

• How did you/your family come to Shenzhen?
• How does your family entertain guests?
• What was life like for your grandparents when
  they were your age?
• Tell about an experience in which someone judged
  you based on a single characteristic.
• Tell about an experience in which you
  communicated with someone different from you.

19
Your class is full of cultural diversity

• A microcosm of our global village
• Through these activities you teach how to deal
  with differences
• Respect differences, appreciate them and learn
  from them
• Look for similarities as a basis for building
  relationships
• Notice that these learning activities are
  inductive and student-centered.
• Using them you are doing culture, not just
  learning about a specific culture
• You are modeling social practices from the global
  culture.

20
Bring new experiences into the classroom

• Look at the organizational culture of the school
  and the classroom.
• Take steps to stretch that culture a little to
  move it closer to the ways of the target culture.
• This is the best way to teach culture.
• It is the way for you and your students to gain
  intercultural competence.

21
Similarities in classroom cultures

• Students study similar subjects
• They usually live at home and attend school five
  days a week
• They have homework they take exams
• They are sensitive to the approval/disapproval of
  their teachers and classmates
• From the classroom culture they are learning how
  to participate in the larger culture

22
Differences in classroom cultures

• American Chinese

23
Relationships based on hierarchy

• The teacher is at the top of the hierarchy, the
  leader of the class
• Relationships between teacher and students
  somewhat distant because students owe respect and
  obedience
• Relationships are reciprocal or complementary
• The pattern is one of mutual dependence

Direction, care and protection
Respect, service and obedience
24
Communication flow

• The classroom leader, the teacher, belongs to
  other hierarchies.
• Teacher owes respect, service and obedience to
  those above
• Communication flows from the top down
• Teachers communicate with one student at a time
  or with the group as a whole
• Students can communicate freely with each other
  unless they are competing for the approval of the
  leader.

25
Teacher - Student Interaction

• Teachers are likely to give very precise
  instructions
• The students job is to produce the correct
  answer
• This process is endlessly repeated and
  elaborated
• It produces the examination system

I better tell them exactly what to do I dont
want any mistakes
What am I supposed to do? I hope I dont make a
mistake
26
Bring the new close to the familiar

• Develop your intercultural competence by
  stretching the system a little.
• Introduce activities in which students learn
  inductively cultural awareness activities.
• Encourage student inquiry.
• Encourage them to ask questions that do not have
  definite or fixed answers.

27
Western style groups

• Short term time limited group learning projects
• Belong to many groups classes and a variety of
  extra-curricular groups such as sports teams and
  music groups
• Less emotionally involved in each group
• Prefer equal relationships teacher is not as
  socially distant, not as elevated in status
• The teacher is more like the coach of a team

28
Group identity and personal identity are separate

• In the West groups have less influence over the
  individuals behavior
• The person forms and breaks ties easily
• The person looks for groups that are useful in
  achieving personal goals

Professional groups
Community groups
person
Work groups
Recreation groups
29
Group leadership is dispersed

• Various members take leadership roles
• Leaders win their roles by convincing members of
  their effectiveness
• Members expect to contribute in different ways to
  the group
• Their rewards will be different too.

Task leader
Formal leader
Emotional leader
Process leader
Resource leader
30
Members cooperate and compete

• Members may compete with one another for
  recognition, leadership, allies, etc.
• They also cooperate within the group and outside
  the group
• Linking the group with other groups is an
  essential function
• The group boundary is relatively open
• These complex patterns of competition and
  cooperation are made orderly by rules of process
  called fair play rules

31
Examples of fair play rules

• Everyone should have an equal opportunity to
  participate no one should dominate or be left
  out
• Decision-making is shared not the exclusive
  responsibility of the leader whether that is the
  teacher or any other member
• Members should give honest feedback students
  freely say what they like and dont like they
  make suggestions
• Everyone should focus on the task at hand
• Some tasks are individual others are completed
  by the group
• Know the difference and dont cheat
• These process rules are often more important than
  reaching a specific outcome

32
Personal motivation is critical

• Because group membership is voluntary, members
  must be motivated to devote energy to the group
• If a person must be in a group, it is still
  necessary to build motivation to create energy
  for the groups work
• Chinese classroom groups depend more on extrinsic
  motivation passing exams

I like working with the people in this group
If I do a great job Ill move up in the
organization
I can learn some new skills from this group
My goals are the same as the groups goals
I really believe in the purpose of this group
33
Comparing group behaviors

• Western
• little difference between ingroup and outgroup
  behaviors
• less associative with ingroups less hostile to
  outgroups
• informal and direct
• insensitive to hierarchical relations among
  members

• Chinese
• great difference between ingroup and outgroup
  behaviors
• more associative with ingroups more hostile to
  outgroups
• may be motivated by loyalty to ingroups
• expect all members to be rewarded equally

34
Questions for teachers who want to stretch the
classroom culture

• What motivates me and others?
• Do I respond to extrinsic or intrinsic
  motivation?
• What roles do I play in the groups I participate
  in?
• A directive leader in some and passive follower
  in others?
• What behaviors/attitudes from the target culture
  can I practice?
• Sharing tasks and information with colleagues
  without waiting for the leaders instructions
• Introducing inductive learning experiences
• Coaching rather than directing learning
  experiences

35
Teams are Western style groups

• Teams are highly motivated, voluntary, short
  term, goal-oriented groups
• The team metaphor includes the idea that the
  group will win it will achieve its goal
• Members cooperate and even compromise if
  necessary to get the job done
• High energy and some ingroup competition serve
  the larger goals of the group
• When you enact the team metaphor in your class,
  you prepare students for participation in the
  global culture.

36
The Chinese national football team hired a coach
from the West

• The strategy was to build a Western style team
• Previously every member was behaving like a
  Chinese dragon
• Showing how great they were as individuals
• Sacrificing the best interests of the team as a
  whole
• One Chinese is a dragon three are a worm.
• Do you still say that Americans are more
  individualistic than Chinese?

37
For more information

• Read my book
• Doing Culture Cross-cultural communication in
  action. Beijing Foreign Languages Teaching and
  Research Press
• Available at Shenzhen Book City, telephone
  0755-82073020 talk to Miss Wu
• Chapters 1-3 on cultural awareness
• Chapter 13 on working in groups