Bridging the language and culture gap: A study of cultural content and manner of presentation of 'Integrated Chinese I'.

摘要

As people of the world grow closer, language and cultural study become even more indispensable to our communication. The task of educating our citizens to be inter-cultural communicators became especially urgent in the aftermath of September 11, 2001. The language profession has made great progress in the area of research and practice. However, the goals of language and culture still remain more theoretical than practical. Foreign language textbooks are instrumental in imparting language and cultural knowledge to students. Yet research has shown that there is relatively little study on foreign language textbooks, especially Asian language textbooks. There exists an overwhelming emphasis on the form of the language rather than on cultural content. Even when they contain cultural information, they are far from accurate, authentic, and diverse.; Textbooks reflect the fundamental views of the authors of language and cultural study. By examining these, we can assess, in part, whether our stated goals of language and cultural learning can be realized.; This is a study of the cultural content and manner of presentation of cultural content in Integrated Chinese I. With content analysis as its research methodology, six categories were adopted and adapted from other foreign language textbook researchers. These are: demographic information, expressions, social relations, social interactions, location of interactions, and manner of presentation.; The results indicate that even though the authors made some effort in presenting cultural information in dialogues, it is far from efficient and conscious. Because over 70% of the locations of interaction are set in the U.S., this variable has a cascading effect on other variables under study. Target cultural information is thus not as fully integrated into the textbook as it should have been.; Furthermore, the authors used cultural notes, copy of authentic material, and drawings to present some cultural information. However, audio-visual technology was not utilized to benefit the learners. Drawings are mostly used to reinforce American rather than Chinese cultural information.; This study implies three needs: material development that integrates target culture from the first year of language study, teacher training in related areas, and the creation of college level language-learning standards.