CREDUTIA No.

CZ/09/LLP-PS/LdV/022 LLP Leonardo da Vinci Partnership

MODULE 5 COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUES IN CLASS TO BREAK INTERCULTURAL BARRIERS

Some days it's like Xiao Lin was not in class, neither for the teacher, nor for his teammates. In classes with newly arrived children you can usually hear sentences like this. They are children without words, insecure and often frozen in relation to nonverbal language. They almost become invisibles in big groups, but sometimes they defrost in settings of greater closeness and lower affective filters. S. Krashen, 1982

Cultures change continuously, and people cross them starting from their life and experiences. There isnt any pure or default identity, inalterable and handed down from father to son. Plurality and porosity of different identities protect people from being absorbed by cultures: everyone, native or migrant, refers to different and singular behaviours, narrations, myths and values. Being aware of the fragmentation of identities is the first fundamental step to manage an intercultural class, keeping the educational process far from stereotyped approaches. For example, avoiding that a Chinese pupil guy should be considered representative of Chinese culture (G. Favaro, 2011). Good practices of intercultural education see migrants and travellers as representatives of a social project of emancipation (A. Jabbar, 2007). Biggest part of newcomers are passing through a complex identity adjustment process, aimed at finding a synthesis of elements belonging both to the new environment and the context of origin. This process is affected by culture and a huge quantity of other variables as gender, age, social background, education level, type of employment, etc... The challenge that an intercultural teaching approach has to deal with is the organization of a common language that includes all values and all differences. A complex language which manages to combine diversity obtaining added value in

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terms of emotions, cognitive processes, linguistic issues and social attitudes (E. Caon, 2008) for all the students, and even for teachers.

IMPORTANCE OF COMMUNICATION IN L2

A class is not a regiment which marches with an even pace. A class is an orchestra which learns to play the same symphony. D. Pennac

a) Inclusion cui prodest ?

Analyzing the factors that affect management of intercultural classes or workgroups, we can identify four issues which interfere with cross-cultural understanding: 1. Linguistic issue - verbal communication can drastically reduce relational and learning processes. Even with adults, knowledge of words and synonymous affects strongly understanding and interpretation of messages. 2. Relational issue interaction and negotiation of meanings strengthen active listening and empathy. An interactive and bottom-up approach is a catalyst for the development of social and relational skills. 3. Cognitive issue - people get demotivated when they are confined in a passive role, just receiving teachers information. Contents can be easily transmitted only if they are connected with interests, needs, goals and prior knowledge. 4. Affective issue classroom setting directly interferes with students (emotions and feelings. Learning difficulties and the subsequent exclusion of most classroom activities involves loss of motivation and low self-esteem, frustration and isolation. A student who feels cut off from activities can therefore assume attitudes of rejection, closure and aggressiveness (Pallotti, 2000) 2

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Intercultural learning is not a simple "training" aimed at satisfying immediate needs. It includes the sphere of social education, which influences the nature of people and, indirectly, that of the society we live in. An inclusive approach can facilitate the process of language learning, especially if didactical activities stimulate a continuous cultural-linguistic mediation (Rutka, 2006). In this perspective, teachers are no longer experts transfering knowledge, but they become researchers who work in synergy concert with students. In order to create an inclusive approach, teachers have to be aware of their communicative behaviour. Our culture and background directly influence our language, and the way we communicate has much in common with our ways to categorize information.

Some basic tips to promote ease a friendly and inclusive classroom environment paying attention to our communicative behaviour: Pay attention to the use of pronouns us and them. Be conscious about the way we describe differences and our students will not easily get used with creating others. And above all let them feel that no one is kept out from the US Emphasize the connections between groups, not the differences. We may just want to celebrate someones success and, thus, we might highlight his efforts saying that a young mother has particular challenges. Do not let our students think that we can consider unusual a success from a member of a group. Find new examples. We often try to connect our subjects with daily life, making comparisons and examples. Using frequently examples that refer mainly to politics or gossip columns, we might exclude those without access to internet and television. Try to give a variety of different examples in order to involve everyone in discussions.

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Do your best to be sensitive to terminology! (B. Gross Davis,1999) We can find out which terms are more or less accepted raising the question with our students, maybe through a brainstorming exercise.

b) Group activities to find a common language

Intercultural language teaching has to foster communicative behaviours, cultural knowledge and relational competences. Learners are involved in a deep cognitive activity which involves reflection based on the way they use language and the kind of meanings they give to verbal and non-verbal communications. In intercultural classes many different cultures, identities, values and emotions coexist. Interactive teaching methods can turn differences into resources by teaching students an easier way to share their learning strengths and weaknesses. Every student carries along a package of peculiar competences, and the teachers task is to let everyone be an active member of a knowledgeable community. Students motivated to cooperate by sharing responsibilities and commitments improve social relationships and learning abilities (Rutka, 2006). In order to promote effective learning, teachers should provide a balanced menu of tasks and activities. The proposal of a balanced range of activities can give to each learner the opportunity to build a personal path to knowledge and thus to feel welcomed. Choosing or building an intercultural learning activity is a complex process. First step is to not forget to distinguish between exercises designed to learn and exercises/tests . Practice: Are we proposing a learning oriented activity or a test? Even if an activity aims to evaluate the comprehension of contents, we can guide learning processes. As an example, a reading activity may imply some questions over about the understanding of the text (multiple choice, or true/false questions). If we want to check language knowledge, questions must be:

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commensurate to the ability of students; not facilitate the comprehension of the text; not be repetitive. If our activity is learning oriented, we can organize pre-reading exercises (discussions on the topic of the text, dramatization exercises on communicative registers, brainstorming on complex words, ) or making simple questions to highlight and debate on complex syntax and words meanings. Well now focus on some examples of interactive pair-work and group-work activities structured to make students feel more comfortable and well disposed to interact with each other.

c) Pair-work: promote communicative interactions using three-steps interviews

The technique of the 3-steps interview can be used to induce students to share experiences related to a learning unit. This kind of teamwork is intended to improve the responses of the individual with the support of classmates, and to share ideas and different proposals. Most activities of this technique take place in pair-work, with a final de-briefing plenary session.

HOW TO STRUCTURE A 3-STEPS INTERVIEW: Provide each person with a question to solve. It could be a text in L2 to translate, or a brief written simulation of a daily life situation. We can even give a same question to everyone, the answer to which requires individual processing (e.g. Which elements of this text you feel related to your life? Or What would you do in that situation?). Leave to each one anyone a bit of time to prepare an individual answer. Split the class in work-pairs. Couples will work with the following roles: one (A) presents his answer or the solution to the partner (B); the other (B) will listen, ask reasons, give advises, and offer contributions to improve the response. Find enough space to let work-pairs interact easily, and if needed emphasize the simulation setting giving to each couple a microphone (or a symbolic item representing it)

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Ask to A and B to switch roles. Interviewer will now be interviewed, and viceversa. Class reunion. The group may have a moment to summarize responses presented, so that all members know and are able to present (to the class or the teacher) responses of classmates. This activity encourages the development of a strong positive interdependence, related to the sharing of information and ensures that "everyone knows everything". The interactive method of interviews strengthen meta-linguistic competences (reconceptualization, synthesis and integration) and communication abilities (listening abilities, positive relationships, understanding of other perspectives) (R. Minello, 2007).

d) Group-work: sharing meanings in L2 with role playing

If we consider language as a tool, we realize that L2 learning process need a continuous communicative practice. As we do not learn to drive a car only by studying rules but we have to try driving, language skills have to be applied to a meaningful context (H. Wessels, 1987). Many students have problems to express themselves because of shyness, or they are afraid of making mistakes in a language they still dont master. Many teachers use role playing and dramatizations to create a real context in which communication is not just a formal exercise. Dramatization activities strengthen language learning in many ways: Contextualizing language skills and connecting them with everyday communication behaviours Allowing students to test their communicative creativity Giving students the chance to work at a common project Creating a link between students cultural backgrounds and learning language culture.

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e) Working on communication

project:

dramatization,

inclusion

and

To clearly explain what we mean by role-playing techniques, we propose the experience of an intercultural dramatization workshop held in in Rome in 2008 with a small group (6/7 participants): First lesson: o We start with relaxation and breathing exercises, giving indications in more than a language in order to make each student feel comfortable (e.g. close your eyes, fermez les yeux, chiudete gli occhi) o Propose students a short team-building activity, so they can feel at their ease with people and spaces (e.g. The walk. Make people walk around the class speeding and slowing the pace, .... at the same time make students greet themselves in various manners and with various moods and expressing different feelings like surprise, happiness, sadness, ...) o Give to each student a common object (books, pens, toys,...). Make students put objects on the ground and then have them pick them up again, as if objects were something delicate and precious Students then will pass objects to each other, expressing their feelings about those symbols. Initially object-symbols may be dangerous, then disgusting, then precious,... o Each student, with the facilitation of the teacher, will give an identity to his object-symbol expressing verbally to the group o Starting from the object-symbol identity, make students think about a possible person owning that object. Focus on behaviours, attitudes and needs of those future characters Second lesson: o Repeat relaxation and breathing exercises

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o Starting from the character building activity held in first lesson, go on with the discussion. Try to attribute a mood and a voice to characters. o Teachers will guide students to understand Propps rules of folktales morphology (you find a description in http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vladimir_Propp). o Referring to Propps rules, let students imagine a basic plot of a story. Starting elements are characters born in the objects dramatization activity. Third lesson: o In plenary, students begin to tell the story they imagined together. Students with better L2 expression competences will facilitate the discussion, but teachers will make everybody participate actively. o Relaxation and breathing exercises this time are set after storytelling activity. Students will spell a brief sentence, adding everytime a new element (e.g. I went to the cinema; Yesterday I went to the cinema; Yesterday I went to a cinema in the city centre;...) o Make students repeat the sentence with different expressive moods. Begin with a calm mood, then an aggressive mood, than sad, happy, bored,... o Lets start making our characters speak ! Each student will present his character with his own voice. Keep on practicing with characters voices and moods. Fourth lesson o Explain to students that this time theres no distinction between people and characters. Each student will practice introducing himself with short sentences. o Give some time to students to memorize stories and characters way of expressing themselves. Fifth lesson o Relaxation and breathing exercises. Everyone will introduce his character and practice repeating the introducing sentences with an increasingly loud voice. o Referring to the storytelling held in fourth lesson, make students write basic dialogues. As usual, students with better L2 writing competences

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will work as facilitators. Let students focus on plot and contents. Then teachers will correct texts. o Begin with rehearsals! Make students start in pairs in order to make them feel more comfortable.

Summarizing this workshop we wanted to emphasise learning processes more than results. The great attention given to comfort of students is aimed at promoting self expression, so that different ways of thinking can be included, and the learning environment can ensure the benefit of both local and international students. Roma, 2010 10 - 26 Staff Consult S.r.l.