Vietnam national university, hanoi
University of languages and international studies
Post graduate department

T NGC HIN MINH Using Supplementary Activities to Raise Cross-Cultural
Awareness of Students in Hanoi University of Industry

Sử dụng các hoạt đông bổ trợ nhằm nâng cao nhận thức giao thoa văn hoá
của sinh viên Tr-ờng Đại học Công nghiệp Hà Nội M.A Minor Thesis

Field: English Methodology

Using Supplementary Activities to Raise Cross-Cultural
Awareness of Students in Hanoi University of Industry

Sử dụng các hoạt đông bổ trợ nhằm nâng cao nhận thức giao thoa văn hoá
của sinh viên Tr-ờng Đại học Công nghiệp Hà Nội M.A Minor Thesis

Field: English Methodology
Code: 60 14 10
Supervisor: Dr. Trn Xuõn ip

2.2.2 Task based approach to incorporating culture into teaching 8
2.3 Activities for raising students’ cultural awareness in conversational classes9
2.3.1 Goals for incorporating culture into English speaking class 9
2.3.2 Activities for raising students’ cultural awareness in conversational classes 10
2.3.2.1 The summary of Christine Elmore’s activities 10

v
2.3.2.2 Elizabeth Peterson and Brownyn Coltrane’s activities 15
2.3.2.3 Deborah Peek’s activities 16
CHAPTER 3: SITUATION ANALYSIS 19
3.1 Situation analysis 19
3.1.1 Setting of the study 19
3.1.2 Participants and classroom context 19
3.2 Data collection instruments 20
3.2.1 Survey questionnaire 20
3.2.2 Tests 21
3.2.3 Class observation 21
3.2.4 Informal discussions 21
3.3 Data analysis 21
3.3.1 Survey questionnaire for teachers 21
3.3.1.1 An overview of culture teaching in HaUI 22
3.3.1.2 Teachers’ opinions of the difficulties in delivering cross – cultural elements in
speaking classes 23
3.3.1.3 Teachers’ opinions of the necessity of including cultural information in the lessons
23
3.3.1.4 Teachers’ opinions of the cross – cultural topics and activities for speaking lessons
24
3.3.1.5 Teachers’ difficulties in incorporating culture into speaking classes 25

vi


ABBREVIATIONS

HaUI: Hanoi University of Industry
EFL: English as Foreign Language
ELT: English language Teaching
ELL: English Language Learning
1
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
1.1 Rationale
English learning does not only include grammatical competence and language proficiency, it
also includes culture learning. “Foreign language learning is comprised of several
components, including grammatical competence, communicative competence, language
proficiency as well as a change in attitudes towards one‟s own or another culture. For scholars
and laymen alike, cultural competence, i.e., the knowledge of the conventions, customs,
beliefs and systems of meaning of another country, is indisputably an integral part of foreign
language learning, and many teachers have seen it as their goal to incorporate the teaching of
culture into the foreign language curriculum.” (Dimitrios Thanasoulas,
[email protected])

From the idea above, it can be inferred that foreign language teaching can‟t be complete
without the transmission of cultural information in the lessons.

However, it is still controversial among many language teachers about the appropriate

this thesis refers to British and American culture in language use and in communication
contexts.

1.4 Research questions
The study is carried out to find the answers to the following research questions:
1. What are the effective activities for improving HaUI students‟ cross-cultural awareness?
2. What are the difficulties in incorporating cultural elements into speaking lessons at HaUI?

1.5 Methods of the study
In this study, action research is employed. The author makes comments, remarks, comparisons
and conclusions from observations, survey questionnaires, discussions and experience.

Survey questionnaires are utilized to survey the situation of teaching and learning culture at
the beginning of the study. They are also used to collect teachers‟ and students‟ opinions about
culture teaching and learning after the study. 2 tests are administered before and after the study

3
to figure out the differences in students‟ cultural knowledge. Observations and formal
discussions are also effectively combined in the study.

1.6 Design of the study
The study is divided into 4 chapters

Chapter I is an introduction to the research in which rationale, methods of the study
and research questions are discussed.

Chapter II reviews the literature of culture in foreign language teaching, the
relationship between culture and language learning. The study also looks at some influential
theories of activities used for teaching culture.


expressions that are created and adapted by a society or a social group as well as the ways it
functions and reacts in given situations; this helps distinguish one society or social group from
another not only in terms of the availability of those expressions and behaviors, but also in
terms of their proportionality and manifestability”. (Nguyen Quang, 2006:24)

According to Brown (1994: 170) culture is a deeply ingrained part of the very fiber of our
being, but language - the means for communication among members of a culture – is the most
visible and available expression of that culture. And so a person‟s worldview, self – identity,
and system of thinking, acting, feeling, and communicating can be disrupted by a change from
one culture to another.

From these points of view, it can be inferred that language and culture are inextricably linked.
Therefore, language teaching can not be separated from culture teaching.
2.1.2 Culture and language learning
Language and cultures are closely related in many ways. According to Claire Kramsch,
language is the principal means whereby we conduct our social lives (Claire Kramsch,
1998:3). When it is used in contexts of communication, it is bound up with culture in multiple
and complex ways. 5
To begin with, the words people utter relate to common experience. They express facts, ideas
or events that are communicable because they refer to a stock of knowledge about the world
that other people share. Words also reflect their authors‟ attitudes and belief, their point of
view that are also attitudes, belief and point of views of others. In both cases, language
expresses cultural reality.

But members of a community or social group do not only express experience; they also create
experience through language. According to Claire Kramsch (Claire Kramsch, 1998:3) “They
give meaning to it through the medium they choose to communicate with one another, for


2.1.3.2 Cross – cultural awareness
There exist differences between cultures in the way people communicate, behave and act.
People use various terms to refer to communication between people from different nationality,
social or ethnic origin, gender, occupation and sexual preference.

„Cross – culture‟ refers to the meeting of two cultures or two languages across the political
boundaries of nation – states (Claire Kramsch, 1998:81). They are predicated on the
equivalence of one nation one culture language, and on the expectation that a “culture shock”
may take place upon crossing national boundaries.

Cross culture can be seen as culture in contact or culture encounters. Cross – cultural
communication does not only study cultural differences and their influences on the people‟s
behaviors but also see the similarities between them (crossing – common and different
aspects).
In foreign language teaching a cross – cultural approach is applied in order that students will
be aware of the cultural differences and equipped with knowledge and skills to act in puzzling
cross – cultural situations. This also assists them in achieving effective communication.

2.2 Culture teaching in conversational classes
2.2.1 What aspect of culture should be taught

7
As mentioned earlier, culture is defined differently from different aspects. Researchers,
therefore, have made many attempts to find out relevant cultural issues to delivers in foreign
language lessons.
Stephen More (1985) identifies the components of culture as: beliefs, values, norms, roles,
role conflicts and status, and those of language as morphemes, words and sentences.
Nelson Brooks (1983) identifies 5 meanings of culture: growth, refinement, fine arts, patterns
of living, and total way of life. He believes that pattern of living should receive the major

In a nutshell, the type of culture we teach in conversational classes should be flexibly
comprised of both “big C” and little c”. “The study of culturally – influenced behaviors should
arise out of the language material being studied, but should nevertheless be clearly identified
and systematically treated as a regular feature of the language lessons.” (Tomalin and
Stempleski, 1993:7)

2.2.2 Task based approach in incorporate culture into teaching
Although intercultural communicative competence has long been viewed as an
important goal of EFL, many materials used to train learners or raise cross – cultural
awareness are limited in clarifying appropriate methods to carry out “culture part” in EFL
lessons. Incorporating culture into English speaking lessons entails more than teachers‟ merely
giving information and students‟ taking notes. According to Willis (1996) an appropriate
classroom task is “a goal – oriented activity in which learners use language to achieve a real
outcome”. In this way, tasks can actively engage learners or promote skills required for
negotiating meaning. Nunan similarly states that, a task “…is a piece of classroom work which
involves learners in comprehending, manipulating, producing, or interacting in the target
language while their attention is principally focused on meaning rather than form” (Nunan,
1989).

Behaviors
Customs
Habits
Dress
Foods

Goal 5: Why – The student understands that people generally act the way they do because they
are using options society allows for satisfying basic physical and psychological needs, and that
cultural patterns are interrelated and tend mutually to support need satisfaction.
Goal 6: Exploration – The student can evaluate a generalization about the target culture in
terms of the amount of evidence substantiating it, and has the skills needed to locate and
organize information about the target culture from the library, the mass media, people, and
personal observation.
According to Tomalin and Stempleski (1993:7-8), Seelye (1993), Hammerly (1982, pp.522-
524), and Stern (1992, pp.212-215), the teaching of culture has the following goals:

10
 To help students to develop an understanding of the fact that all people exhibit
culturally – conditioned behaviors
 To help students to develop an understanding that social variables such as age, sex,
social class, and place of residence influence the ways in which people speak and
behave
 To help students to become more aware of conventional behavior in common
situations in the target culture
 To help students to increase their awareness of the cultural connotations of words and
phrases in the target language
 To help students to develop the ability to evaluate and refine generalizations about the
target culture, in terms of supporting evidence
 To help students to develop the necessary skills to locate and organize information
about the target culture.
 To stimulate students‟ intellectual curiosity about the target culture, and to encourage
empathy towards its people
 To help students develop an understanding of the dynamic nature of the target culture,
as well as their own culture.
2.3.2 Activities for raising students’ cultural awareness in conversational
classes

cultural point and then leading a discussion about the differences between cultures.
* Culture Clusters
A culture cluster is simply a group of three or more illustrated culture capsules on related
themes/topics (about the target life) + one 30 minute classroom simulation/skit that integrates
the information contained in the capsules (the teacher acts as narrator to guide the students).
For example, a culture cluster about grades and their significance to university students could

12
contain the capsule about how a grade point average is figured plus another about what kind of
decisions (such as being accepted in graduate study, receiving scholarships, getting a better
job, etc.) are affected by a person's grade point average.
* Culture Assimilators
The culture assimilator provides the student with 75 to 100 episodes of target cultural
behavior. Culture assimilators consist of short (usually written) descriptions of an incident or
situation where interaction takes place between at least one person from the target culture and
persons from other cultures (usually the native culture of the students being taught). The
description is followed by four possible choices about the meaning of the behavior, action, or
words of the participants in the interaction with emphasis on the behavior, actions, or words of
the target language individual(s).
Students read the description in the assimilator and then choose which of the four options they
feel is the correct interpretation of the interaction. Once all students have made their individual
choices, the teacher leads a discussion about why particular options are correct or incorrect in
interpretation.
* Critical Incidents/Problem Solving
Critical incidents are another method for teaching culture. Critical incidents are descriptions of
incidents or situations which demand that a participant in the interaction make some kind of
decision. Most of the situations could happen to any individual; they do not require that there
be intercultural interaction as there is with culture assimilators. Generally, the procedure with
a critical incident is to have students read the incident independently and make individual
decisions about what they would do. Then the students are grouped into small groups to

made and students can see what factors require adjustment (e.g., Is it proper to shake hands
with adults and children in the same way? If two come in together and have to pass in front of
people, does it alter what anyone says or does?, etc.)
* Cultoons

14
Cultoons are like visual culture assimilators. Students are given a series of (usually) four
pictures depicting points of surprise or possible misunderstanding for persons coming into the
target culture. The situations are also described verbally by the teacher or by the students who
read the accompanying written descriptions. Students may be asked if they think the reactions
of the characters in the cultoons seem appropriate or not.
After the misunderstandings or surprises are clearly in mind, the students read explanations of
what was happening and why there was misunderstanding.
* Media/Visuals
Magazine pictures, slide presentations, and/or videos are among the kinds of media/visual
presentations which can be used to teach culture. Usually with this method, the teacher
presents a series of pictures or slides or a video with explanation of what is going on and what
it means in terms of the target culture. Many aspects of culture, such as appropriate dress for
activities, kinds of activities students participate in or the weekend, public transportation, etc.,
can be effectively presented with such visuals.
* Celebrating Festivals
Celebrating foreign festivals is a favorite activity of many students. Even though this activity
takes a lot of planning, it works well as a culminating activity.
* Kinesics and Body Language
Culture is a network of verbal and non-verbal communication. If our goal as foreign language
teachers is to teach communication, we must not neglect the most obvious form of non-verbal
communication which is gesture. At the beginning of the year, teachers can also show foreign
films to students just to have them focus on body movements.
* Cultural Consciousness-Raising


 Ethnographic studies
This is a very effective way for students to learn about the target language and culture.
Students can be sent to a community where they can carry out ethnographic interviews with
native speakers, record in note books, audiotapes or videotapes valuable observation.
 Literature
Literary texts are often full of cultural information and evoke memorable reactions for readers.
Carefully selected texts for students to obtain specific goals might be very helpful to students‟
enlargement of cultural knowledge.
 Film
Films and television programs are also good sources for students to improve cultural
knowledge. Through behaviors and manners of people in films and TV programs, students
learn a lot about culture of the target language.
2.3.2.3 Deborah Peek’s activities
Deborah Peek (1998) introduced some other activities, which can be used in the foreign
language class.
 Quizzes
Quizzes are one of the most successful activity types. Quizzes can be used to test materials
that the teachers have previously taught, but they are also used in learning new information.
The teacher can ask the students to answer true or false to each of the questions in pairs or
groups. They will share their existing knowledge and common sense to give answers. It is not
important whether students get the right answer or not, but by predicting, students will become

17
more interested in finding out the right answer. The right answer can be given by the teacher,
through a reading, listening, or video. At this point, extra information can be provided.
Quizzes offer a high – interest activity that keeps students involved in learning.
 Action logs
An action log is a notebook used for written reflection on the activities done during class
which also provides useful feedback for teachers. Students write it up after each class or at the
end of each class. By requiring students to evaluate each class activity for interest, usefulness,

 Research
Student research is one of the most powerful tools that we can use with college students
because it combines their interests with the classroom. For example, after the first class, we
ask students to search the internet or library and find information on any aspect of the target-
culture that interests them. In the following class, students explain to their group what they
have learned and answer any questions about it. This can lead to poster-sessions or longer
projects. For some students, it can even lead to a long-term interest in the target-culture.
Activities are varied for raising students‟ cross – cultural awareness. However, some certain
activities are better selected in certain classroom contexts with different students at different
English level. Under any circumstances, it is undeniable that students can only be successful in
language learning if cultural issues are an indispensable part in foreign language teaching
curriculum.

19
CHAPTER 3: SITUATION ANALYSIS
In this chapter, the author describes the situation where the study is conducted and the
participants involved. Different methods of data collection are also discussed in detail.
Activities applied in the study are described. Besides, the author focuses on the analysis of the
data collected from survey questionnaires and tests to find out the truth about the effective
activities for raising HaUI students‟ cross-cultural awareness and difficulties in including
cultural issues in speaking lessons.
3.1 Situation analysis
3.1.1 Setting of the study
The study is carried out at HaUI. This study targets at English major students who are trained
to become interpreters and translators. Like interpreter and translator trainees from other
universities, students at HaUI are required to take English courses as major subjects for 4
years. Textbooks such as Let’s talk 2, Speak up, Listen to it, Academic Writing, etc are