Songul Dogan Ger: Developing Students’ Cultural Diversity Awareness and Intercultural Communicative Competence in English Classes
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7 The Place of Culture in Teaching Materials Used in an International School in Budapest – Data Source 3: Teaching Materials Analysis
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7.3 Findings
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7.3.4 Analysis of the Guidance for Teachers

7.3.4 Analysis of the Guidance for Teachers

Jegyzet elhelyezéséhez, kérjük, lépj be.!

The analysis of teaching materials across Years 5 to 10 at the observed international school in Budapest revealed that the English curriculum, aligned with the British National Curriculum, provided structured yet adaptable guidance for teachers. While the core objective remained language development—specifically reading, writing, speaking, listening, and SPaG—the materials also included embedded ideas for culture-related activities. These were not explicitly labelled as intercultural teaching strategies, but they nonetheless supported the development of CDA and ICC components in various ways.

Jegyzet elhelyezéséhez, kérjük, lépj be.!

The guidance documents, titled “teaching and activities” for Years 5 and 6, and “teaching ideas” for Years 7 to 10, provided clear daily lesson plans. These included learning objectives, required materials, main and extension tasks, plenaries, outcomes, and contextual information to scaffold instruction. Activities were highly detailed and supported by internal resources (literary texts, poems, worksheets) and external links (websites, videos, articles). Although teachers were encouraged to follow these plans, they were also advised to assess the appropriateness of the materials, particularly media content. Teachers confirmed during interviews that while they used the suggested guidance, they frequently adapted tasks and materials to better suit their students’ English proficiency, cultural backgrounds, and personal interests.

Jegyzet elhelyezéséhez, kérjük, lépj be.!

The materials for Years 5 and 6 included historical and contextual background information, author biographies, and scaffolded questions that encouraged discussions on race, empathy, and moral action. Tasks like summarising experiences of racism and identifying appropriate responses reflected attempts to embed deep culture and civic responsibility. Though culture teaching was not framed explicitly, ICC components—such as empathy, knowledge of others, and civic action—were clearly embedded. Nevertheless, the treatment remained subtle, often framed as tools for better literary understanding rather than intercultural development.

Jegyzet elhelyezéséhez, kérjük, lépj be.!

From Year 7 onwards, the materials became more explicit in suggesting or requiring culture-related content. The teaching ideas introduced activities like exploring cultural perspectives, making cross-curricular links with history and religion, and encouraging students to reflect on language diversity and cultural norms. Tasks involved comparing global practices, analysing stereotypes, and discussing cultural shifts through idiomatic and sociolectual vocabulary. However, there was variation in how these tasks were presented—some were required, while others were optional or noted as extension ideas. Teachers were thus empowered to prioritise or omit cultural activities depending on class dynamics.

Jegyzet elhelyezéséhez, kérjük, lépj be.!

The Year 8 and 9 materials further extended these efforts by providing deeper engagement with historical and social contexts, particularly through fiction such as To Kill a Mockingbird and Of Mice and Men. Teachers were instructed to guide students in connecting plot events and character behaviours to issues like racial injustice, class, and gender roles. Vocabulary and thematic analysis supported this work by encouraging exploration of topics like civil rights, systemic racism, and social inequality. Nevertheless, the cultural lens largely remained focused on the UK and USA, with limited space for comparisons with other cultural contexts or student backgrounds.

Jegyzet elhelyezéséhez, kérjük, lépj be.!

Year 10 teaching guidance included the richest cultural integration. Texts such as Animal Farm and Macbeth served as platforms for investigating political symbolism, historical ideologies, and global social justice movements. Tasks included analysing animal symbolism across cultures, drawing connections between fictional and real-life oppression, and responding to contemporary issues like racism, gender inequality, and LGBTQ+ rights. In addition to interpreting literature, students were expected to develop personal positions and articulate responses, thereby fostering critical awareness and civic engagement. The inclusion of action-oriented tasks marked a shift from passive learning toward participatory intercultural competence development.

Jegyzet elhelyezéséhez, kérjük, lépj be.!

Despite the range of culture-related guidance, the majority of the activities and contextual references were grounded in the target culture. International or comparative perspectives were rare and typically appeared only as optional extensions. Furthermore, the cultural dimension was never foregrounded in lesson aims or assessment criteria. Teachers were not explicitly directed to develop CDA or ICC, and culture teaching often went unlabelled or was framed only as background knowledge for literary analysis.

Jegyzet elhelyezéséhez, kérjük, lépj be.!

In summary, the teaching guidance materials did offer substantial support for implementing culture-related activities, especially from Year 7 onward. However, their design left considerable room for teacher agency. Teachers used these materials flexibly, selecting, adapting, or omitting elements based on classroom realities. While not intentionally structured around intercultural learning goals, the materials allowed teachers to embed CDA and ICC development—particularly empathy, perspective-taking, and critical reflection—through their own interpretive choices. Yet the narrow focus on UK and US contexts and the absence of explicit intercultural outcomes limited the broader potential of these resources. More explicit framing of intercultural aims, along with inclusion of diverse cultural narratives and comparative tasks, could enhance their effectiveness in fostering critical intercultural competence across the curriculum.
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