Cultural Studies

Cultural Studies is a term that focuses on cultural phenomena. The modern concept of culture is composed of different elements which have come into existence gradually. Originally the term was used with reference to the cultivation of land, animals etc. But this concept has undergone several transformations. Today it aims at studying a particular culture and society, at teaching an intricate network of cultural knowledge and awareness, at giving insight into the systems of meaning of another culture which is important for the individual's cultural understanding.
The non-native speaker learns to understand the cultural dimension of a foreign language and arrives at a better understanding of his own. Cultural awareness as a part of language awareness enables him to communicate with native speakers and to mediate between two cultures. The acquisition of linguistic competence cannot be isolated from the acquisition of intercultural competence.

 

Teaching Intercultural Communicative Competence

Intercultural education pursues three aims. The first aim is concerned with awareness, cultural differences and information about culture. The second area concerns the attitudes related to intercultural communication. How people feel about others who are culturally different is included here. The third goal relates to the patterns of behaviour that increase the possibility of effective communication when living with people from different cultural backgrounds. It is important to put linguistically correct utterances into a culturally appropriate context.

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