Implementing a critical intercultural approach to foster adult english students' intercultural communicative competence

Abstract

ABSTRACT: Language education today entails a great challenge: to prepare learners for the challenges of a demanding globalized society, and particularly for the intercultural interactions they will encounter in their lives. However, beyond a preparation on the structure of the language, global citizens need an education that helps them become open-minded and respectful of differences. Data collected for this study evidence that, when intercultural activities and critical questions are used to tackle authentic materials, students become able to identify stereotypes portrayed in texts, recognize problematic representations they hold of other cultures, and use strategies to interact with English speakers around the world. Moreover, it was found, that creating spaces in the language class to share different perspectives about other cultures and practices results in the development of more positive attitudes towards them. Finally, it is argued that topics such as cultural representations can and should be addressed in EFL classes even with novice learners to promote the development of their communicative competence.