Volume 6, Issue 2 , September 2018, Pages 0-0
Volume 6, Issue 2 , September 2018, Pages 0-0
Masoomeh Estaji; Ali Rahimi
Volume 6, Issue 2 , September 2018, Pages 1-18
Abstract
This study aimed to examine the effect of EFL teachers’ level of instruction, education, and experience on their perceptions of Intercultural Communicative Competence (ICC) on the one hand and the effect of teachers’ ICC perceptions on their practices of teaching culture on the other. The ...
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This study aimed to examine the effect of EFL teachers’ level of instruction, education, and experience on their perceptions of Intercultural Communicative Competence (ICC) on the one hand and the effect of teachers’ ICC perceptions on their practices of teaching culture on the other. The participants of this study were 111 EFL teachers (59 males, 52 females), selected through purposive sampling. In order to collect data, this study used a Likert scale questionnaire developed by Zhou (2011) and a semi-structured interview (with 12 instructors). The findings revealed that there were no significant differences in the participants’ perceptions of ICC in terms of their level of experience, education, and instruction. However, it was found that, the participants' perceptions of ICC did have a role in their self-perceived instructional practices. Qualitative analyses further evinced that ICC is of paramount significance to most EFL teachers. In brief, the findings suggest that with the increasing influence of globalization, teachers of language need to become teachers of language and culture, developing the specific elements of intercultural competence.
I-Chung Ke; Tzu-Yu Lai
Volume 6, Issue 2 , September 2018, Pages 19-31
Abstract
Desire has been a marginal topic in TESOL. This study investigated whether and to what extent English learning affects Taiwanese young females’ aspiration toward western males. Four hundred ninety-nine respondents filled out a questionnaire that investigates their English learning experience and ...
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Desire has been a marginal topic in TESOL. This study investigated whether and to what extent English learning affects Taiwanese young females’ aspiration toward western males. Four hundred ninety-nine respondents filled out a questionnaire that investigates their English learning experience and aspiration to cross–culture marriage with western males. Sixteen were interviewed. Results showed correlations between the acceptance of marrying a westerner and the following variables (in the rank of strength): 1. Preference for western movie stars, 2. Parents’ attitudes toward marrying a westerner, 3. Perceptions of compliments from native-English-speaking teachers, 4. Making foreign friends as the motivation to learn English, 5. The fondness of learning English, 6. Becoming more charming as the motivation to learn English, and 7. Going abroad as the motivation to learn English. The findings suggest that the experience and motivation of English learning did influence the female students’ aspiration toward western males, but not as strong as their inner motivation and the mass media.
Razieh Eslamieh
Volume 6, Issue 2 , September 2018, Pages 32-46
Abstract
Among various cultural models, the dichotomy of static versus dynamic models has provided a fertile ground for research. Although a number of static models are suggested, the dominant trend in almost all static models is provided by Hofstede who focuses on cultural differences along four major dimensions ...
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Among various cultural models, the dichotomy of static versus dynamic models has provided a fertile ground for research. Although a number of static models are suggested, the dominant trend in almost all static models is provided by Hofstede who focuses on cultural differences along four major dimensions (power distance, individualism, uncertainty avoidance, and masculinity) and reduces “the complex phenomenon of culture in simple and measurable terms” (Fang, 2010, p. 156). The main concern is whether static bipolar models can cope with the requirements of the globalized era when cross-cultural communication “in an increasingly borderless and wireless workplace, marketplace, and cyberspace” (Fang, 2012, p. 2) is needed. Studying Fang’s dynamic cultural model versus Hofstede’s static cultural dimensions theory, the present paper, through the case study of Iranian culture, hypothesizes that dynamic models, such as Fang’s (2005, 2012), which recognize the paradoxical essence of cultures, emphasize all-dimensional cultural nearness. In Fang’s model, cultures are dialogic and open for cross-cultural interaction rather than monologic and segregated.
Wyman King; Richard Emanuel; Xavier Brown; Niroby Dingle; Vertis Lucas; Anissa Perkins; Ayzia Turner; Destinee Whittington; Qwa'dryna Witherspoon
Volume 6, Issue 2 , September 2018, Pages 47-58
Abstract
The N-word is the ultimate insult that has tormented generations of African-Americans. Yet over time, N-word derivatives have become popular terms of endearment by the descendants of the very people who once had to endure the N-word. Therein lies the root of an ongoing argument in society today: Who ...
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The N-word is the ultimate insult that has tormented generations of African-Americans. Yet over time, N-word derivatives have become popular terms of endearment by the descendants of the very people who once had to endure the N-word. Therein lies the root of an ongoing argument in society today: Who has the ‘right’ to use the N-word and N-word derivatives? A quota sample (N=347) of undergraduate students at a historically Black college/university in the deep-South participated in this survey study. Participants were mostly Black (88%) and female (62%). Using a five-point semantic differential scale from ‘always’ to ‘never’, participants were asked the degree to which they believe it is acceptable to use the N-word and N-word derivatives. A majority (76%) of respondents agreed that it is never acceptable for non-Blacks to use the N-word with anyone in any situation. Fifty-six percent of respondents agreed that it is never acceptable for anyone to use N-word derivatives with anyone in any situation.
Katja Keisala; Niina Kovalainen; Arja Majakulma; Pirkko Pitkänen
Volume 6, Issue 2 , September 2018, Pages 59-72
Abstract
The article aims to explain what kind of intercultural communication competence is needed in border crossing labor markets. The experiences of international higher education students and information and communications technology (ICT) experts are analyzed in different Finnish working and educational ...
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The article aims to explain what kind of intercultural communication competence is needed in border crossing labor markets. The experiences of international higher education students and information and communications technology (ICT) experts are analyzed in different Finnish working and educational environments. We seek answers to the following questions: How are language and communicative abilities tied to individuals´ ability to participate in transnational labor markets? How is a valid intercultural communication competence produced in transnational settings? According to our results, the intercultural communication competence of individual job seekers is not evaluated in the recruitment situation, but employees are expected to acquire the necessary skills on the job. However, students and ICT experts face communication problems and marginalization due to inadequate communication skills. Even though the organization may facilitate intercultural communication and collaboration by structuring work and communication processes, it nevertheless demands a marked dedication to learning for individuals to succeed in a multicultural work organization.
Lisa Hilte; Reinhild Vandekerckhove; Walter Daelemans
Volume 6, Issue 2 , September 2018, Pages 73-89
Abstract
In a large social media corpus (2.9 million tokens), we analyze Flemish adolescents’ non-standard writing practices and look for correlations with the teenagers’ social class. Three different aspects of adolescents’ social background are included: educational track, parental profession, ...
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In a large social media corpus (2.9 million tokens), we analyze Flemish adolescents’ non-standard writing practices and look for correlations with the teenagers’ social class. Three different aspects of adolescents’ social background are included: educational track, parental profession, and home language. Since the data reveal that these parameters are highly correlated, we combine them into one social class label. The different linguistic practices emerging from the analyses demonstrate the crucial impact of social class on adolescent online writing practices. Furthermore, our results nuance classical findings on working class adherence to ‘old vernacular’ by also highlighting working class youth’s strong connection to the online writing culture, or ‘new vernacular’. Finally, we point out the complexity of the social class variable by demonstrating interactions with gender and age, and by examining groups of teenagers whose social background is ambiguous and therefore hard to operationalize.
Hisham M. Ali
Volume 6, Issue 2 , September 2018, Pages 90-101
Abstract
While Bourdieu’s theory of practice provides an ensemble of conceptual tools which analyze patterns of social life that are irreducible to the limiting view of individuals as free-acting agents, Genette’s paratextual theory offers the metalanguage necessary to account for the microcosm of ...
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While Bourdieu’s theory of practice provides an ensemble of conceptual tools which analyze patterns of social life that are irreducible to the limiting view of individuals as free-acting agents, Genette’s paratextual theory offers the metalanguage necessary to account for the microcosm of paratext as a linguistic space. This study takes issue with unidirectional approaches to researching paratexts in terms of linguistic or sociological accounts, and argues for a bidirectional understanding of paratext to unearth the interplay between structure and agency. Drawing on Genette’s paratextual features and Bourdieu’s sociology, this interactive approach is explored in a series of analyses of paratexts enveloping two Arabic translations of Gibran’s The Earth Gods. Through a discussion of the linguistic manifestations and the socio-historical backdrops of paratexts, the paper argues that the preface with its attendant micro features has the potential to exhibit the translation illusio which epistemologically foregrounds the stakes and investments that motivate the production of translation.
Samad Zare
Volume 6, Issue 2 , September 2018, Pages 102-112
Abstract
This paper focuses on the concept of consciousness and liminality in the Iranian Diaspora and the way Iranians create digital diasporas where they can practise cultural identities outside the homeland. The discussion elaborates on the concept of traditional dowreh (family/social circle) in the fibre ...
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This paper focuses on the concept of consciousness and liminality in the Iranian Diaspora and the way Iranians create digital diasporas where they can practise cultural identities outside the homeland. The discussion elaborates on the concept of traditional dowreh (family/social circle) in the fibre of Persian culture and then illustrates the creation of a virtual dowreh among Persian bloggers in the diaspora and the reasons that might contribute to the formation of such a digital dowreh in the diaspora. By exploring a section of a weblog called “Friday for Living” it demonstrates that weblogs provide a unique opportunity for the Persian diasporic bloggers to revive a dowreh in a virtual way where they can get together and practise cultural identities in the diaspora while living between two cultures. The examination of “Friday for Living” also reveals that the virtual dowreh for this group of Iranian diasporic bloggers acts as a community of practice that assigns the members a domain, membership, and commitment, and members took part in joint activities by sharing their stories and experiences.
Qianqian Geng
Volume 6, Issue 2 , September 2018, Pages 113-124
Abstract
This paper explores the relationship between cultural knowledge and the specific meaning of a pronominal adverb in legal English where Chinese translators need to get the correct translation in their venture into translating the language of law. On the one hand, relying on the relevant legal cultural ...
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This paper explores the relationship between cultural knowledge and the specific meaning of a pronominal adverb in legal English where Chinese translators need to get the correct translation in their venture into translating the language of law. On the one hand, relying on the relevant legal cultural knowledge functioning as domain-general reference within a community or jurisdiction, translators, especially those non-lawyers, may find out the common grounds for decoding the meaning of linguistic expressions in source legal English and adopt such commonalities as bases for further exploring the specific meaning of a pronominal adverb, which would let translators, no matter a professional lawyer or not, get the general sketch of the meaning thereof. On the other hand, such efforts to consult the general sense cultural information need further extraction. Since the framework information out of such extraction would be organized into a systematic structure and lead to their final determination of the translation with efficiency.
Simindokht Rahmani
Volume 6, Issue 2 , September 2018, Pages 125-133