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Developing Multicultural Awareness Through English: Reflections on Culture and Multiculturalism. Achilleas Kostoulas, The University of Manchester. Overview. Culture and the ELT Curriculum Examples of ELT materials Multicultural Awareness Through English (MATE).
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Developing Multicultural Awareness Through English: Reflections on Culture and Multiculturalism Achilleas Kostoulas, The University of Manchester
Overview • Culture and the ELT Curriculum • Examples of ELT materials • Multicultural Awareness Through English (MATE)
Culture & The ELT Curriculum Instances of methodological tension
Multiculturalism & the curriculum “ …multiculturalism emerges naturallysince, as a language of international communication, [English]will make a significant contribution towards shaping multicultural awareness” Pedagogical Institute. (2003). Διαθεματικό Ενιαίο Πλαίσιο Προγραμμάτων Σπουδών και Αναλυτικά Προγράμματα Σπουδών.Vol. Β,p. 4086
Obstacles to multicultural pedagogy • “Limited range of suggested activities [which] provide some lead for the development of a generic (?) intranational cultural awareness through English.” • Selected objectives in the National Curriculum: • “Putting together a display of foods from different English-speaking countries.” • “Collection of myths or legends from Greece and English speaking countries” • Sifakis, N., Lytra, V. and Fay, R. (2010). English as a lingua franca in an increasingly post-EFL era: The case of English in the Greek state education curriculum. Paper presented at the Third International Conference on English as a Lingua Franca. Vienna: 22 – 25th May 2010.
Cultural images in the courseware “cultures that are considered to be low-status are systematically invisiblised” • PozoukidisN.&Balabanidou,Z.(2010) Η διαπολιτισμική διάσταση των νέων βιβλίων αγγλικής γλώσσας για το δημοτικό σχολείο: μια ανάλυση περιεχομένου. Paper presented at the 13th International Conference on Intercultural Education, Immigration and Conflict Management. Alexandroupolis: 7-9 May 2010.
Tension Curricular aims Actuality of teaching
Examples of ELT Materials How multicultural is the courseware?
Multicultural awareness Through English An alternative approach to multiculturalism
Requisites for MATE • Equal representation of cultural images (courseware, learners’ backgrounds) • Safe social space for sharing cultural knowledge • Rethinking of professional credentials
Thank you for your attention Questions? Achilleas.Kostoulas@postgrad.manchester.ac.uk