PdF:AJ1306 Inquiries in Intercultural Com - Course Information

AJ1306 Inquiries in Intercultural Communication A

Extent and Intensity

0/2/0. 3 credit(s). Type of Completion: k (colloquium).

Teacher(s)

Natalia Marakhovska, Ph.D. (seminar tutor)
Ailsa Marion Randall, M.A. (seminar tutor)
Mgr. Jana Zerzová, M.A., Ph.D. (seminar tutor)

Guaranteed by

Mgr. Jana Zerzová, M.A., Ph.D.
Department of English Language and Literature – Faculty of Education
Contact Person: Jana Popelková
Supplier department: Department of English Language and Literature – Faculty of Education

Timetable of Seminar Groups

AJ1306/Kombi01: Fri 16. 9. 15:00–16:50 učebna 57, Fri 30. 9. 15:00–16:50 učebna 57, Fri 14. 10. 15:00–16:50 učebna 57, Fri 4. 11. 15:00–16:50 učebna 57, Fri 18. 11. 15:00–16:50 učebna 57, Fri 2. 12. 15:00–16:50 učebna 57, N. Marakhovska
AJ1306/Prez01: Tue 14:00–15:50 učebna 63, except Tue 25. 10., N. Marakhovska
AJ1306/Prez02: Wed 16:00–17:50 učebna 58, except Wed 26. 10., N. Marakhovska
AJ1306/Prez03: Mon 8:00–9:50 učebna 33, except Mon 24. 10., N. Marakhovska

Course Enrolment Limitations

The course is only offered to the students of the study fields the course is directly associated with.

fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with

there are 12 fields of study the course is directly associated with, display

Course objectives

INQUIRIES IN INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION
This is not a class in 'American' or 'British' studies but rather a course in cultural fluency with an emphasis on the difference in social and cultural patterns between the Czech Republic and various other countries (not solely English-speaking lands).
In the winter semester, classes will be organized in learning centres, with students leading them and given a further choice as to which other options they would like to take in the winter semester.
A note about the method: In a seminar, there are no correct or incorrect answers, the aim is to "think out loud", offering your thoughts to your colleagues in the circle. If everyone does this, we all walk away with more insight into the situation than when we came. But because we are talking about culture and real life, we will NEVER arrive at "THE ANSWER". It doesn't exist. Our goal is, instead, that we will all acquire more understanding and "cultural fluency".
In general, the aims of the class are to:
1) Provide you as current or future teachers of English with the cultural background necessary for language teaching.
2) Give you the opportunity to speak in group situations and provide each of you individually the material, supervision and support to lead an interactive class presentation.
3) Provide a cultural perspective that could mitigate the culture shock awaiting those of you who do or will live and study abroad.

Learning outcomes

By the end of the course, the student will:
- be more aware of the cultural differences between people from different countries and how to react to them
- be able to analyse the reasons behind failure in communication - be ready to face culture shock in another country
- be able to create a presentation based on culture for students of English

Syllabus

• 1 Introduction and organization
• 2 Challenges of living in a global society
• 3 The importance of intercultural communication
• 4 Understanding communication
• 5 The influence of culture on perception
• 6 Bias in perceiving other cultures
• 7 Verbal Communication and culture
• 8 Nonverbal communication and culture
• 9 Developing relations with culturally different others - Intercultural Communicative Competence
• 10 Mass media, technology, and cultural change
• 11 Becoming an effective intercultural communicator
• 12 Conclusion and evaluation, planning for the spring semester

Literature

required literature
• LIU, Shuang, Zala VOLČIČ and Cindy GALLOIS. Introducing intercultural communication : global cultures and contexts. London: Sage, 2011, x, 318. ISBN 9781848600362. info

recommended literature
• Routledge Encyclopedia of language teaching and learning. Edited by Michael Byram - Adelheid Hu. Second edition. Oxford: Routledge, 2017, xxxvi, 817. ISBN 9780415593762. info
• The Sage handbook of intercultural competence. Edited by Darla K. Deardorff - Derek Curtis Bok. London: Sage, 2009, xiv, 542. ISBN 9781412960458. info
• PETERSON, Brooks. cultural Intelligence. Intercultural Press, 2004. info
• Context and culture in language teaching and learning. Edited by Michael Byram - Peter Grundy. Buffalo: Multilingual Matters, 2003, 105 p. ISBN 1853596574. info
• BYRAM, Michael and Karen RISAGER. Language teachers, politics, and cultures. Philadelphia: Multilingual Matters, 1999, x, 206. ISBN 1853594415. info
• SHULMAN, Myra. Cultures in Contrast. University of Michigan Press, 1998. info
• NOLLEN, Tim. Culture Shock. London: Kuperard, 1997. ISBN 1-85733-190-7. info
• MACIONIS, John and Nijole BENOKRAITIS. Seeing Ourselves. Prentice Hall, 1995. info
• HOFSTEDE, Geert. Cultures and organizations : software of the mind : intercultural cooperation and its importance for survival. 1st pub. London: Harper Collins Business, 1994, xiv, 279. ISBN 0006377408. info
• BYRAM, Michael. Cultural studies in foreign language education. Philadelphia: Multilingual Matters, 1989, ix, 165. ISBN 1853590185. info

Teaching methods

1st year KOMBI students:
Compulsory parts:
1. Attendance and participation in class (15%): This is a seminar, not the sort of class you can study at home if you miss class. You must be present if you expect to learn anything, and for that reason, it's important that you are here every meeting. You will be allowed only 2 absences each term. Three or more absences will mean loss of this portion of the credit, or in extreme and unavoidable circumstances, additional work. You will be expected to come to the classes having read all the material provided on Moodlinka. This will be checked.
2. Leading a learning centre (45%): The major credit work will be in the form of a 30-minute presentation on culture in which your classmates will become your students as you demonstrate your ideas on the cross-cultural concepts we will be dealing with this semester. Your activities for your learning centre will be based on the reading for the respective week and no less than 5 other different sources on the topic. Your centre must be interactive - take the form of asking questions and involving your classmates, in short, leading and directing class discussion about your topic. Also, I expect you to be expert enough that you can answer questions on your subject as it relates to other topics throughout the year. You are welcome to use any tools you find suitable for your learning centre (videos, texts, various online tools). If you need the students to go through some materials before your presentation, write into the respective Moodlinka forum, please, one week before your presentation.
This should help you prepare your classmates to come to your class with enough basic knowledge that they can discuss the subject intelligently and profit from your more detailed presentation.
You should provide your classmates with copies of your lesson plan and any texts or material you have used. Also, include a complete list of print and/or electronic sources you used to research and prepare your learning centre. Your lesson plan will be uploaded into our Moodlinka course.
3. Options:
There are 4 options and you should complete two of them to get the credit. They are each worth a maximum of 15 points.
A: Lead one more learning centre during the semester.
B: Interview a foreigner in Brno (or online) on one (or more) of the topics we cover in class, analyze and present the interview in class.
C: Moderate a forum for one week.
D: Write in all of the forums.
You must complete the compulsory parts and 2 options and get at least 70 points overall to pass the course.
1st year DAILY students: 1. Attendance and participation in class (15%):
This is a seminar, not the sort of class you can study at home if you miss class. You must be present if you expect to learn anything, and for that reason, it's important that you are here every meeting. You will be allowed only 2 absences each term. Three or more absences will mean loss of this portion of the credit, or in extreme and unavoidable circumstances, additional work. You will be expected to come to the classes having read all the material provided on Moodlinka. This will be checked.
2. Leading a learning centre (45%):
The major credit work will be in the form of a 30-minute presentation on culture in which your classmates will become your students as you demonstrate your ideas on the cross-cultural concepts we will be dealing with this semester. Your activities for your learning centre will be based on the reading for the respective week and no less than 5 other different sources on the topic. Your centre must be interactive - take the form of asking questions and involving your classmates, in short, leading and directing class discussion about your topic. Also, I expect you to be expert enough that you can answer questions on your subject as it relates to other topics throughout the year. You are welcome to use any tools you find suitable for your learning centre (videos, texts, various online tools). If you need the students to go through some materials before your presentation, write into the respective Moodlinka forum, please, one week before your presentation.
This should help you prepare your classmates to come to your class with enough basic knowledge that they can discuss the subject intelligently and profit from your more detailed presentation.
You should provide your classmates with copies of your lesson plan and any texts or material you have used. Also, include a complete list of print and/or electronic sources you used to research and prepare your learning centre. Your lesson plan will be uploaded into our Moodlinka course.
3. Options:
There are 4 options and you should complete two of them to get the credit. They are each worth a maximum of 15 points.
A. Leading a learning centre - one of them has questions prepared and one of them is a discussion about a case study, which you should lead. B. Write an essay. You can choose a topic which interests you out of the ones we are discussing in class and write a 500 word essay based on the topic. You must use at least 3 different sources and they should be properly referenced. You should upload the essay to Moodlinka by November 28th. C. You should find someone who is living in the Czech Republic but is from a different country and interview them about any culture shock they have experienced and their impression of the differences they have noticed between their own country and the Czech Republic. You should video your interview and show it to us in class. It should be about 3 minutes long. If possible, try to steer the direction of the conversation into non-repetitive waters (i.e., so that not all the interviews are about topic XYZ and ZYX). D. For this option you become the teacher - you moderate one forum, answering people's entries and encouraging them in what they have said or asking follow-up questions. You do not need to answer every entry but the more the better. The original question will be given but you can open a new thread if you want. E. For this option you should write in all the forums. This should be done regularly throughout the semester so if you know you are not a very organised person don't go for this option! You must complete the compulsory parts and 2 options and get at least 70 points overall to pass the course.

Assessment methods

1. Attendance and participation in class (15%)
2. Leading a learning centre (45%)
3. Options: There are 3 options and you should complete two of them to get the credit. They are each worth a maximum of 15 points.
You must complete the compulsory parts and 2 options and get at least 70 points overall to pass the course. Points: 3 options - 25 points each Reading the materials provided and participation in class - 25 points

Language of instruction

English

Further comments (probably available only in Czech)

Study Materials
The course is taught annually.
Information on the extent and intensity of the course: kombinované studium: výuka v blocích.

Listed among pre-requisites of other courses

• AJ1307 Inquiries in Intercultural Communication B
  AJ1306  

• Enrolment Statistics (Autumn 2022, recent)
  
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