The Cultural and Intercultural Dimensions of English as a Lingua Franca

Abstract

The cultural and intercultural dimensions of English as a Lingua Franca is a challenging collection which questions certain orthodoxies deemed to be counterproductive and of the past, such as the uncritical use of the concept of culture, the obsession with cultural differences and the straitjacketing of individuals. This volume also reminds us that culture is not always congruent with nations or ethnic groups as, "a volatile and mobile, fluid and invisible frontier can separate those who seem near, and unite those whose language and culture seem to separate" (Augé 2010:7 translated). It is therefore necessary to promote a situated understanding, which does not try to simplify and essentialise 'other' cultures.

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“…Thus, the understanding of a cultural context is different from the understanding of a cross-cultural context. This fully applies to the English language as the lingua franca (e.g., see Holliday, 2009;Holmes & Dervin, 2016;Poppi, 2017).…”

“…Culture-general domains refer to what is more generalisable and transmittable across cultures. These two domains can also differ in terms of attitudes, behaviour, and knowledge (Bloom, 1964;Damen, 1987;Poppi, 2017). Qu (2010) developed a milestone framework on teaching culture through several devices such as dialogues, mini dramas, role playing, dances, songs, pictures, films, bulletin boards, and engaging in conversations with native speakers.…”

Culture and Interculture in Saudi EFL Textbooks : A Corpus-Based Analysis

“…Thus, the understanding of a cultural context is different from the understanding of a cross-cultural context. This fully applies to the English language as the lingua franca (e.g., see Chinh, 2013;Holliday, 2009;Holmes & Dervin, 2016;Poppi, 2017).…”

Developing Culture-Based English Instructional Materials to Improve Students’ Thinking, ELT Achievement, and Classroom Interaction

“…In this context, English language and cultural learning become the crucial issue in the EFL curriculum development (Su, 2016). English teachers from the countries in which English is taught as a foreign language encourage cultural instruction in EFL classes (Imig, 2016). The insertion of cultures in textbooks is not only in ELT practices but also in the other discipline (Niman et al, 2020).…”