November 10, 2004

definition of culture in language teaching

Valette, R.M. (1986). The culture test. In J.M. Valdes, Culture Bound: Bridging the cultural gap in language teaching. New York: Cambridge University Press.

Author points out that there are two "major components" of culture in the language classroom:
"One [component] is the anthropological or sociological culture: the attitudes, customs, and daily activities of a people, their ways of thinking, their values, their frames of reference. Since language is a direct manifestation of this phase of culture, a society cannot be totally understood or appreciated without a knowledge of its language. The other component of culture is the history of civilization. Traditionally representing the 'culture' element in foreign language teaching, it includes geography, history, and achievements in the sciences, the social sciences, and the arts. This second component forms the framework for the first: it represents the heritage of a people and as such must be appreciated by the students who wish to understand a new target culture" (p. 179).

Posted by roge0229 at November 10, 2004 8:50 AM