Algunos factores explicativos

A somewhat expected finding of the research was that the vast majority of teachers

viewed intercultural teaching and learning as an integral part of language learning, a

finding from both the questionnaires and interviews (78.9%). This finding echoed

much of the existing literature (Aleksandrowicz-Pedich et al., 2003; Byram &

Risager, 1999; Sercu & Bandura, 2005). Interestingly, in the course of the study, a

recurring finding was that intercultural teaching was often perceived as a tool for

motivation by making the learning relevant and engaging for learners, reflecting the

views of Hennebry (2014b) that intercultural teaching is not frequently perceived as

a key element of language learning in its own right. Surprisingly, the instrumental

imperative for intercultural teaching in the wider context of globalisation (Beacco et

al., 2010) was not found in the responses of teachers participating in the study, and as

such the integration of aspects relating to culture as a political statement was not

evident in the findings.

A notable finding of this research, and of many studies before it (Baker, 2015;

Driscoll et al., 2013; Hennebry, 2014b; Sercu & Bandura, 2005), was that many

teachers, despite identifying intercultural understanding as a key element in defining

their beliefs, failed to translate this attributed value when ranking the various aspects

of language teaching and learning, with the linguistic elements often having greater

importance than the intercultural. The extent of this was rather surprising, with none

of the teachers surveyed identifying cultural awareness as the most important aspect

of language learning, and a majority (73.7%) ranking it either in last or penultimate

position. Teachers favoured speaking skills and vocabulary acquisition over all other

skills developed in language learning, a clear indication if it was needed that

communicative and linguistic competence are still the priority in many a language

classroom, as found by many authors (Aktor & Risager, 2001; Byram, 2008;

Grenfell, 2002; Mughan, 1999; Sercu & Bandura, 2005).

In seeking to establish the value that teachers attributed to the development of

learners’ intercultural competence, defined as the combination of knowledge, skills

and attitudes (Byram, 1998), the research also sought to establish which learner

attributes teachers valued most. The general impression from the inquiry was that

attributes relating to intercultural competence, such as open-mindedness, cultural

knowledge and the understanding of customs ranked low, while attributes relating to

motivation, such as a positive attitude and interest for the subject, and attributes

relating to linguistic competence, such as a good understanding of grammar all

ranked highly among the top five desired learner attributes.

If we posit that all three aspects - knowledge, skills and attitudes - should have parity

in order to provide a strong framework for intercultural competence (Burwitz-

Melzer, 2001; Fantini, 2000), then the question should be asked as to whether low

teacher expectations with regards to learner attitudinal attributes make for a

sufficiently strong foundation on which learners can build their intercultural

competence.

5.2.1.3. Do learners value intercultural learning?

Learners also seemed to afford intercultural learning less importance than

motivational or linguistic reasons for enjoying language learning, with fewer than

6% of respondents citing it as the main reason. Whether they liked learning

languages or not, enjoyment and the ‘fun’ element featured highly as a reason, with

over half of learners who stated they did not enjoy learning languages citing lack of

interest as the main reason.

A noteworthy finding was that, like their teachers, over a third of learners also

attributed more worth to communicative skills than to intercultural skills developed,

but interestingly, very few (under 4% for learners, over 40% for teachers) valued

vocabulary acquisition, and learners attached more value to intercultural learning

than their teachers did (nearly 20% of learners citing aspects of intercultural learning

as most important, and none for the teachers) - and this before any intervention had

taken place.

This finding was further reinforced when learners were asked to respond to

attitudinal statements relating to their openness to intercultural learning, with the vast

majority indicating a desire to learn about different people and countries.

Furthermore, there was a statistically significant relationship between this desire to

learn about otherness and learners’ stated level of enjoyment for language learning;

while it could be argued that learners’ enjoyment for the subject may naturally lead

them to be more interculturally open, it could also be asked whether or not those

learners who do not enjoy learning languages would do so if their intercultural

understanding and skills were given an opportunity to develop further, or indeed if

the lack of intercultural openness on the part of some learners could be improved if

their motivation for language learning itself was also improved - and how this could

be achieved.

Another interesting finding was that, while learners ranked communicative skills

highly for their language learning experience, instrumental worth for the application

of language learnt was prevalent in learners’ responses, with particular emphasis on

future education and employment prospects, while only a small proportion (a little

over 3%) valued a communicative application of their skills. Even more interesting,

the fact that intercultural aspects, such as meeting people from different countries

and understanding how they may do things differently, seemed a much more worthy

application of language learnt to learners (over 20%) than communicative ones.

There is evidence in the literature that the teaching of culture can represent an

important affective motivation for learners, and that the development of intercultural

awareness / competence may prove a longer-lasting legacy for them, beyond any

linguistic competence they may - or many not - have acquired and, most importantly,

that they may or may not have occasion to apply (Arens, 2010; Mughan, 1999).This,

and the above findings, leads me to the dual hypothesis that:

• There is a relationship between learner motivation for and enjoyment of language learning, and their intercultural awareness; since motivation is often

an issue in language teaching and learning in England, then intercultural

teaching could have a greater role to play in improving learners’ motivation;

• Learners seem to value intercultural learning more than their teachers, whether in their learning experience or in how they get to apply their

language skills in the wider sense of the term, one which includes

intercultural understanding.

5.2.2. To what extent is ICU incorporated in MFL teaching and

learning?

Policy documents across countries and continents have also often reflected the

interrelationship between language and culture (Baker, 2015; Council of Europe,

2001; MLA, 2007). Yet despite the widening role given to intercultural competence

in policy, owing to the demands of globalisation, the curriculum for languages in

England, while it has afforded culture varying degrees of importance over the years,

has failed to afford intercultural learning the same level of importance when

compared to other European curricula. Even in versions of the curriculum where

greater mention was made to intercultural learning, it could be argued that teachers

did not always make the most of this licence to explore its potential scope in their

daily practice (Baker, 2015; Barnlund, 1999; Campos, 2009; Driscoll et al., 2013).

Yet both policy and practice need to reflect this interrelationship between language

and culture, and its role in integrating the cultures of the modern classroom.

Globalisation and the growing diversity of learners can be seen as an opportunity for

teachers, but also as an imperative for intercultural teaching and learning in their

classroom - yet none of the teacher participants mentioned globalisation and diversity

as a motive for intercultural learning and teaching. Although some national curricula

may offer a prominent role to intercultural understanding, its place in practice can

only be defined within the framework of teachers’ and learners’ perceptions and the

place that they afford to ICU in their everyday practice and experiences (Beacco et

al., 2010). Indeed, the perception of teachers of their own role in developing

intercultural competence in their learners is a key factor (Hennebry, 2014a).

5.2.2.1. What place does intercultural teaching have in language teachers’