8/6/2019 COMPETENCIA LINGUISTICA1

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Magda Garca Guerra

HOW WOULD YOU TEACH AND CONNECT

LANGUAGE AND CULTURE?

We are long past an era when first language acquisition and foreign language learningwere the products of imitation and language drills. Knowledge of the grammatical

system of a language has to be complemented by understanding of culture-specific

meanings. Learning a world language involves experiencing and knowing about the

cultures of those who use it, in addition to knowing how to listen to, speak, read, and

write the language. We cannot go about teaching a foreign language without at least

offering some insights into its speakers culture. Communication requires

understanding, and understanding requires stepping into the shoes of the foreigner and

sifting his cultural baggage, while putting the target culture in relation with ones own.

Otherwise, we would be teaching meaningless symbols or symbols to which the student

attaches the wrong meaning.

Language is a tool of communication used by groups of people with a shared history

and a set of traditions, that is, a shared culture. Language is the verbal expression of a

culture. On the other hand, culture encompasses daily objects, games, work, clothing,

housing, family patterns, behavioral routines, religious traditions, artistic and literary

expression, and a host of other indicators including the symbols of the dominant culture

of the language, such as the most renowned figures and masterpieces in the culture's

history, arts, letters and sciences, and the widely recognized architectural landmarks.

Anthropologists define culture as the whole way of life of a people or group.

When teaching language, cultural awareness should be viewed as an important

component. Whoever is learning the foreign language is also learning the cultural

knowledge and skills required to be competent in the target language. Culture varies

from country to country and so does the interpretation of language. In Western culture,

roses mean passion or love. In another culture, roses could mean something different,

even the opposite of passion or love. If we ask an Indian why he worships cows or a

Frenchman why he says a foot of lettuce whereas English speakers say a head of

lettuce and Greek speakers a heart of lettuce, chances are that we would get no more

satisfactory an answer than we ourselves would be ready to give regarding our own

language.

In order to teach language and culture, the foreign language classroom should become acultural island. From the first day, teachers should bring into the class posters,

pictures, maps, and other realia in order to help students develop a mental image of the

target culture. Teachers can introduce students to the borrowed words from English to

their own language. This helps students to realize they already know many words in the

target language (i.e. internet, mail, lunch, Halloween). Some of the foods they eat are

another example of the influence of foreign culture (i.e. hamburgers, cheeseburgers,

pizza).

An effective and stimulating activity could be to send students on cultural errands to

supermarkets and department stores and have them write down the names of imported

goods. Teachers can also invite guest speakers, who will talk about their experiences ona foreign country. Computer technology or the mail can be used to contact youths from

other cultures.

8/6/2019 COMPETENCIA LINGUISTICA1

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Magda Garca Guerra

Another insightful activity could be to divide the class into groups of three or four and

have them draw up a list of those characteristics and traits that supposedly distinguish

the home and target cultures. Also, the teacher can give the students short descriptions

of various situations where one person from the target culture interacts with persons

from the home culture and then follow possible interpretations of the meaning of thebehaviour and speech.

Cultural problem solving is yet another way to provide cultural information, learners

can be presented with some information but they are on the horns of a dilemma. For

example, by analyzing a TV conversation, ordering a meal at a restaurant or reading a

narrative on marriage ceremonies, they are expected to assess manners and customs.

Alongside linguistic knowledge, students should also familiarize themselves with

various forms of non-verbal communication, such as gesture and facial expressions,

typical in the target culture. An interesting activity focusing on non-verbal

communication could be to hand out some pictures showing gestures and then invite thestudents to discuss and answer some questions. Which gestures are different from those

in the home culture? Which of the gestures shown would be used in different situations

or even avoided in the home culture?

Another activity would be to invite learners to role-play emotions. The teacher writes a

list of several words indicating emotions (happiness, fear, anger, joy, pain, guilt,

sadness) and then asks the students to use facial expressions and gestures to express

these emotions. Then follows a discussion on the different ways in which people from

different cultures express emotions as well as interpret gestures as indices to

emotions.

Celebrating foreign festivals is a favorite activity of many students. At Christmas time,

they can learn some folk songs and folk dancing. This kind of activity enables student to

actively participate in the cultural heritage of the people they are studying. Exposure to

literary works can help students to expand their language awareness and develop their

language competence. Of course, literature can extend to cover the use of film and

television in the foreign language classroom.

In conclusion, the teaching of culture should become an integral part of foreign

language instruction. Culture should be our message to students and language our

medium. Teachers should concentrate on active learning and should give students morehands-on experiences so that they can feel, touch, smell, and see. These kinds of

activities will keep students motivated and will result in positive attitudes, greater

awareness, and academic success.

Learning a language is not just learning grammar and vocabulary; it is learning new

sounds, expressions, and ways of seeing things; it is learning how to act in another

culture, how to know a new community from the inside.

Even if a person has advanced knowledge of the target language, ignorance of the target

culture sometimes puts him/her in an uncomfortable position, and often creates

unnecessary conflict.

The exquisite connection between the culture that is lived and the language that is

spoken can only be realized by those who possess knowledge of both.