Songul Dogan Ger: Developing Students’ Cultural Diversity Awareness and Intercultural Communicative Competence in English Classes
›
6 Teachers’ Perceived Attitudes and Practices and Students’ Responses to the Development of Cultural Diversity Awareness and Intercultural Communicative Competence – Data Source 2: Classroom Observation
›
6.3 Findings
›
6.3.5 Teachers’ Perceived Attitudes and Practices in Relation to the Development of CDA and ICC in EAL Classes

6.3.5 Teachers’ Perceived Attitudes and Practices in Relation to the Development of CDA and ICC in EAL Classes

Overview of EAL Lessons and Observed Groups

Jegyzet elhelyezéséhez, kérjük, lépj be.!

To explore how CDA and ICC were addressed in English as an Additional Language (EAL) classes, I observed lessons conducted by two different teachers. These lessons, aimed at supporting students not yet ready for mainstream English, focused on developing reading, writing, listening, and speaking skills. The observations spanned 300 minutes in total: two 60-minute sessions and two 90-minute block lessons. The students ranged from Key Stage 2 (YG5/6), Key Stage 3 (YG7/8), to Key Stage 4 (YG9/10), and came from diverse cultural backgrounds.
 
Superficial Cultural Input in Lower Year Groups (YG5/6)

Jegyzet elhelyezéséhez, kérjük, lépj be.!

The first EAL teacher began a lesson in YG5/6 with a vocabulary focus on international meals. She asked students to differentiate between “meal,” “dish,” and “food,” and wrote “breakfast, lunch, and dinner” on the board. Students contributed terms like “afternoon tea” and “second breakfast,” which the teacher explained in a British cultural context. She emphasised British pronunciation throughout, aligning with the British school’s context. Despite the natural cultural links, there was no exploration of which cultures practiced second breakfasts or how brunch varied globally. Students were then asked to list what they ate for each meal, leading into a discussion on international food, where dishes like sushi, croissants, dumplings, and Indian food were mentioned—though dumplings dominated the discussion as most students were Chinese.

Jegyzet elhelyezéséhez, kérjük, lépj be.!

In a follow-up YG5/6 session, the same teacher facilitated a game-based lesson on countries, capitals, languages, and flags. Students, divided into boys and girls, took turns answering questions such as “What language is spoken in Thailand?” or “What is the population of Russia?” using their devices to search for answers. While this game introduced students to elements of big C culture, the learning remained surface-level, knowledge-based, and lacked depth (Shin et al., 2011).

Jegyzet elhelyezéséhez, kérjük, lépj be.!

What struck me was that, despite the cultural richness of the topics, students were never invited to speak about their own countries or cultures. There were no compare/contrast activities, no reflection on cultural meanings or practices, and no critical lens (Byram, 1997). The teacher relied primarily on factual recall rather than interaction or cultural exchange. I believe possible reasons for this absence of deep or little c culture might include curriculum constraints, teachers’ limited training or preparation in intercultural pedagogy (Larzén-Östermark, 2008), students’ language proficiency, or even assumptions about what young learners are capable of (Sadeghi & Sepahi, 2017; Çelik & Erbay, 2013).
 
Interactive and Culturally Rich Practice in YG7/8

Jegyzet elhelyezéséhez, kérjük, lépj be.!

In contrast, the YG7/8 block lesson led by the second teacher provided a more meaningful integration of intercultural themes. The lesson focused on international food, starting with a question about breakfast habits. Students mentioned rice, noodles, bread, honey, and eggs. The teacher connected these examples to different cultural traditions, noting variations in bread types across countries and explaining the French origin and pronunciation of “croissant,” drawing on his own experiences of living in France.

Jegyzet elhelyezéséhez, kérjük, lépj be.!

When a Chinese student described eating noodles with chopsticks, and an Iraqi student said they sometimes ate with their hands, the class responded with curiosity and amusement. The teacher then shared his observations from India. The openness and positivity of the teacher encouraged students to ask questions and share their own practices. At one point, students laughed about each other’s food traditions—Chinese and Mongolian classmates about rice for breakfast, and everyone chuckling when the teacher described cooking rice with milk and sugar. Yet, no one seemed offended, and the atmosphere remained respectful and engaged.

Jegyzet elhelyezéséhez, kérjük, lépj be.!

This teacher’s intercultural experience and genuinely curious attitude were key to establishing a warm environment where students felt comfortable speaking. I noticed how he maintained classroom management even as the discussion became lively, and how his smile, active listening, and probing questions made students feel valued. The lesson concluded with a reading passage and a writing task on typical meals in students’ countries—an effective way to blend language development with cultural reflection.

Jegyzet elhelyezéséhez, kérjük, lépj be.!

Although the lesson didn’t delve into deep cultural meanings or comparative analysis, it aimed to develop students’ CDA by encouraging them to share personal experiences and reflect on cultural eating habits. The students’ enthusiastic engagement and curiosity suggested that they were open to discussing cultural practices when supported by a positive classroom environment. They explored differences in a playful but reflective way. This aligned with Byram’s (1997) emphasis on the role of the teacher in shaping the affective and cognitive environment of intercultural lessons. My observations also supported findings by Larzén-Östermark (2008) and Young and Sachdev (2011), who highlight that teacher attitudes and intercultural experiences greatly influence student engagement with culture.
 
Cultural Teaching Missed Due to Lack of Preparation in YG9/10

Jegyzet elhelyezéséhez, kérjük, lépj be.!

The YG9/10 EAL lesson, taught by the same second teacher, had a different focus: vocabulary development and reading skills using a British Council worksheet on robot teachers. The teacher also played a short video to reinforce the theme. While most of the lesson went smoothly—students completed comprehension tasks in pairs and asked each other questions—I noticed a missed opportunity when the teacher introduced the words “empathy” and “adaptation.”

Jegyzet elhelyezéséhez, kérjük, lépj be.!

Although these are rich in intercultural meaning, they were addressed only briefly. Students failed to match “empathy” with its correct definition, and the teacher later admitted in our post-observation discussion that he had not adequately prepared to explain those terms. He acknowledged this gap and stated his intention to improve next time, which I found encouraging. His reflective approach, despite the oversight, demonstrated a degree of intercultural awareness and professional responsibility.

Jegyzet elhelyezéséhez, kérjük, lépj be.!

The students were highly interested in the topic of robot teachers. Many expressed their opinions about whether they would prefer human or robotic teachers. However, the discussion remained anchored in the students’ own viewpoints, without prompting a comparative discussion of how teachers are perceived in their home countries, or how cultural attitudes toward robots might differ. The topic had immense potential for cultural exploration, but it was left underdeveloped.

Jegyzet elhelyezéséhez, kérjük, lépj be.!

Across the EAL lessons, I observed considerable variation in how teachers integrated cultural elements and fostered CDA and ICC. In the YG5/6 classes, opportunities for culture teaching were missed due to a reliance on factual knowledge, lack of student voice, and limited teacher initiative. Although big C culture was present, there was no scaffolding toward deeper reflection, and the lessons lacked a critical intercultural orientation. By contrast, the YG7/8 lesson stood out as a strong example of how teacher experiences, positive attitudes, and learner-centred strategies can create an inclusive environment for intercultural learning—even without explicit deep culture tasks. Students were animated, respectful, and deeply engaged in exploring cultural differences through food practices.

Jegyzet elhelyezéséhez, kérjük, lépj be.!

The final lesson with YG9/10 highlighted a challenge familiar to many educators: time constraints, lesson planning demands, and the difficulty of balancing language instruction with cultural education. While the teacher recognised his shortcoming in addressing empathy and adaptation, his openness to reflection was a positive sign. Overall, the findings reaffirm that CDA and ICC are not automatically embedded in multicultural classrooms; rather, they depend on teacher attitudes, preparedness, intercultural experiences, and pedagogical choices. Even young learners with limited language proficiency can develop intercultural sensitivity when given space to speak, compare, and reflect—provided that the classroom climate encourages curiosity, respect, and inclusion.
chevron_left
chevron_right
Tartalomjegyzék navigate_next
Keresés a kiadványban navigate_next
A kereséshez, kérjük, lépj be!
Könyvjelzőim navigate_next
A könyvjelzők használatához
be kell jelentkezned.
Jegyzeteim navigate_next
Jegyzetek létrehozásához
be kell jelentkezned.
    Kiemeléseim navigate_next
    Mutasd a szövegben:
    Szűrés:
    Kiemelések létrehozásához
    MeRSZ+ előfizetés szükséges.
      Útmutató elindítása
      delete
      Kivonat
      fullscreenclose
      printsave