Vol. 5 Issue 28 – Research Paper: Integrating Culture with English Language Education’ by Dr Anand Mahanand

ELTWeekly Vol. 5 Issue#28 | August 5, 2013 | ISSN 0975-3036

* This paper is submitted for publication by Dr Anand Mahanand. Dr Mahanand  teaches English at the English and Foreign Languages University, Hyderabad. He is interested in  Language through Literature, English  for  Specific Purposes, and English in Multilingual (Indigenous) Contexts. He has conducted and supervised research projects and published books, materials and research papers in these areas. His publications include English through Folktales (2011), Tribal India in Fiction (2011),  English Language Teaching: Perspectives from the Periphery (2012), and English for Academic and Professional Skills (2012).

Abstract

English language practitioners   earlier emphasized on developing four skills such as listening, speaking, reading and writing in order to develop learners’ proficiency in English. It had been  thought that if learners developed proficiency in these four skills  then they  could use the language  effectively. In addition to these four skills, they  added vocabulary and grammar components.  But  they  generally ignored another important aspect that has assumed importance in the process of language learning as well as language use. That component is culture. In recent years  language experts have recognized its importance in language teaching. For this reason, it has been termed as the fifth skill for language learners that “enhances students’ over all learning experience”(Kramsch 1993 p. 1). The role of culture was over looked earlier by  practitioners as language educators as language  education was thought to be a process of mastering the linguistic codes. It was mostly confined to language skills plus vocabulary, grammar and punctuation.

However, they have realized its importance as language learning and teaching can’t take place without contexts and cultures. Earlier, emphasis was on the culture associated with the target language. For instance, if one wants to learn  French one needs to learn some aspects of French culture.  Now, with the advent of learners’ centred teaching, the focus has shifted to culture  and contexts of the learner. This paper makes an attempt to explore the place of culture in English language education and explores ways  of  integrating   it  in English language education through collaborative tasks and activities. Here,   first the term culture has been defined, then rationale for integrating culture is elaborated. Theoretical support for integrating culture with language teaching is also added. Then it has been shown through tasks  by way of example how we can integrate culture with English language  education.

Introduction

Culture is an important aspect of our life. It has been defined in so many ways. It can be seen as a concept. We can also understand it as a process. We can see culture as a way of life. It includes manners, values, food, dress, language, literature, symbols art and craft of people of a particular place at a point of time. Gail Rabinson (1985), an American researcher classifies culture into three interrelated categories: products, ideas and behavior. He put literature, folklore, art, music and artefacts under products ; beliefs, values and institutions under ideas  and customs, habit, dress, foods and leisure under behaviours.  Culture is fluid and variable. It differs  from people to people, place to place and from time to time.  Let us take a very simple example. In the U.K. people say ‘thank you’  very often. If mother passes on  a bowl of salad to the child at the dining table, the child says ‘thank you.’ If  the child passes on the napkin to the father , father says ‘thank you.’ Such conventions are not  found  in most Indian families as we  take this  gesture for granted and understood even  without  an utterance.

As it has been mentioned, language learning is not confined to learning of  the four skills only , vocabulary and grammar and the linguistic code of the language but the culture and context in which it will be used. For instance, if one goes to teach the Chinese learners, one has to be aware of Chinese culture or else they will be misunderstood. If some one comes to teach at Hyderabad, they need to be acquainted with the local culture.  In Hyderabad, it is generally, asked as a  gesture of greetings whether one has had one’s food. The same is not the case in the North of India. If one asks “ Have you had your food? The other person  might feel offended. He might think why he has been asked about his food habits. Once an Indian  student invited by  a family in the U.K. to have dinner.  It was a special occasion. Good food was offered. While having food, the student was offered  to have some more. The student  had the habit of saying ‘no’ as a matter of politeness (In  India usually if we are offered something to eat it is customary to say ‘no’ for the first time, then if we are offered again, we say yes). So he said, “No, thank you” expecting that they would ask him again. They offered him different dishes but every time he said ‘No, Thank You.” In the U.K. they  go by what you say and don’t ask you again and again. So he was not given any food for the second time. As a result he was half- fed and came back hungry. To explain the cultural variation it is said in Odia, “ Eka deshara boli ,anya deshara  gali” meaning “One nation’s language could be the another’s taboo!” The above mentioned incident happened  to the student on a social occasion. This  kind of problem can also occur in our classroom.  A teacher  may  come across certain objects or practices of culture,  about which they may  not be aware of. They need to be aware of some of these as they have to interact with others in the teaching learning process. Certain texts  though written in English, might have such cultural  elements. A teacher has to be aware of them.

Hence there been stress on cultural aspects in language teaching these days.

Theoretical Support

The urge for inclusion of culture in language teaching is a result of inputs and ideas given by different linguistics and intellectuals  such as Jean Piaget, Halliday, Vygotsky and Cummins. Jean Piaget’s Constructivist theory of learning maintains that  learning is an active process in which the learner constructs meaning. He was influenced by John Dewey’s (1938) ideas that a learner learns by doing which means that a learner learns by participating in one’ environment or cultural contexts. The social integrationist theory of Vygotsky (1962) proposes that children learn through meaningful interactions with their environments. Environment and cultural contexts play an important role in social  interactional  theory. The role of  primary language described by Jim Cummins is also important here. School and community create an important role in raising self esteem of a learner. Halliday places culture in grammar and calls  it a theory of human experience. When he calls it a theory of human experience, it entails larger scope beyond linguistic confines.  All these suggest that language education  should be looked  from a broader perspectives including social and cultural  factors in to account.  In the next section, we shall discuss why is culture important in English language  education?

Why Culture?

It has  already been mentioned why culture is important in English Language education. We can reiterate that culture helps in bridging the gap between language and cognition.  In other words we can say that it provides a kind of background  or contextual knowledge for the learner to understand and acquire  skills. For example, if  a learner is reading a story by  R.K. Narayan say  “A Horse and Two Goats”, some  cultural input  on    food habit of farmer in a small village in Southern India, relationship between wife and husband (narrated in the initial page of the story)  will help them to comprehend the text easily .Without this,  learners might have problem  due to contextual difficulties even though the language  suits their level.

Culture  can foster  critical thinking in learners. There are many  cultural practices that  can evoke serious discussion, argumentative writing and so on. For instance, we give learners  a text on dormitory system of the tribal people from Verrier Elwin’s  book which describes this system it will lead to very fruitful discussion, argument and debate.

Vocabulary building will be easier if we bring in culture into it. Suppose a primary level child reads a word and sees an object on its side, it will be easier for the child  to pick up the word.

Integrating culture  can ease out the difficulty level or in Krashen’s term lower the affective filter. With the inclusion of cultural elements learners  become more familiar with the context and hence more interested and motivated. Their  level of anxiety and strain  is reduced and learning  process becomes easier.

Integrating culture  can  foster understanding and harmony among people. There are  misunderstandings and  stereotypes  among people because people don’t know  about one another’  culture. Knowledge of others’  culture will make us more understanding, tolerant and help to co-exist in peace and harmony.

If language  like English (as it has been seen as a dominant language) is taught just as a code, children from indigenous communities will have a feeling of lack diffidence but if their cultural elements are used they feel resourceful and confident. This may happen to teachers too. Research ( Meher,  2010) has shown that  when the learners culture is integrated with English language education, the proficiency level  of the learners has gone up.

How?

The composition of an average English classroom in India is multicultural and multilingual. Children from different linguistic and cultural background   come to the classroom. This is not a hurdle for us. It should be treated as a strength. There are plenty of cultural resources available in our learners’ contexts. They include course or text books, folktales, songs, riddle, proverbs,  audiovisuals,  newspapers, magazines which could be used as materials. For using cultural resources  “ task oriented approach towards culture” should be used through cooperative learning tasks ( Tomalin and Stempleski 1993, p.9). Here are some examples:

Activity 1

Food Festival

Level:  Intermediate

Skills: Speaking, Listening and Writing.

Time: 30 minutes

Make the students form into groups of six. Each group  is asked to prepare a recipe of a particular region. They plan in group what to prepare and discuss the ingredients and describe how it is prepared. They collect information and materials such picture and clips  about the recipe to present in the class. One of the member writes down  the points to present in the class. The write-up should contain Introduction to the recipe, Where do we get it? What are the ingredients? How do we make it?  Once  each group is ready with their recipe, they make a presentation on their recipe describing all these points.

Activity 2

Poster Workshop (Show cashing your place)

Level: Intermediate

Skills: Speaking, Listening and writing.

Time: 30 minutes

The class is divided into a group of five according their region/state/town. They are  told that they will be making a  presentation to the class about their state/region or town. They  need to discuss in the  group, what they want to tell or show their class about their state/region/town. They can use pictures, clips and   any other materials. After the discussion and preparation of the write up. One member or two members  from each group make their presentation.

Activity 3

Role Play (Say with a Smile)

Level : Intermediate

Skills: Speaking and listening

Time: 20 minutes

A few students are identified to come  and  show  the class  in their first language and then in English the following

a. How do two people  greet each other?

b. How do they take leave? What do they say?

c. How do they introduce the third person?  Show  by introducing a friend.

Conclusion

English language teaching is not  about four skills, grammar, vocabulary and phonetics but it also culture. Any language should be taught in context and culture  and not in vacuum. Integrating learners’ culture empowers the learner and make the local culture survive. We have tried some of these activities in a class on English in Multilingual Contexts at  the EFL university Hyderabad. Students enjoyed the activities and the class made them feel resourceful and therefore  confident and  enthusiastic. What was most striking was that even the most quiet and shy students could take active part in these activities.

References

Mahanand , Anand .(2010). “ Using Indigenous Oral Narratives as Scaffolding in L2 Learning.” Languaging.

Meher, Sadanand.(2010). Using home Language as a  Support for English language Education. Diss. Hyderabad: EFLU.

Kramsch, C.(1993). Contexts and Culture in Language Teaching. Oxford: OUP.

Narayan, R.K. (1992). Malgudi Landscapes: The Best of R.K.Narayan. Ed. S. Krishnan. Delhi: Penguin.

Robinson, G.L.N.(1985). Cross Cultural Understanding. New York: Prentice Hall.

Tomalin, Barry and Susan Stempleski.( 1993). Cultural Awareness.  Oxford: OUP.