Culture Introduction in Middle School English Teaching

Zou　Song

【Abstract】Language teaching can not be separated from cultural learning. However， problems still exist in culture introduction. Some suggestions are put forward to help improve cultural teaching in middle school English class.

【Key words】cultural introduction; problems; methods

【作者簡介】Zou Song， Mianyang Nanshan Experimental High School.

1. Introduction

As the exchanges between China and western countries have increased tremendously in business， academic research and many other fields， culture introduction in English teaching has got more and more attention than ever before. More and more English teachers are aware that English teaching can not be separated from cultural learning. To help students learn English more effectively and communicate with native speakers more smoothly， this paper discusses how culture introduction can be conducted in English teaching.

2. Problems of culture introduction in middle school English teaching

For a long period of time， influenced by instrumentalism， people used to look upon language as a kind of instrument. They thought they could communicate with native speakers effectively by grasping the language itself. Although all teachers are aware that teaching culture is necessary， still a lot of English teachers only concentrate on the training of the students listening， speaking， reading and writing while neglecting the improvement of the students intercultural communicative competence. Some claim lack of time is the main reason， since most classroom activities are focused on language points and grammatical rules; some argue that the problem comes from attaching too much importance to NEMT， the main criterion to evaluate teachers work. Teachers only bring in some cultural information if necessary instead of seeking for a suitable method to improve their cultural instruction.

3. Ways to carry out culture introduction in middle school English teaching

Culture introduction in middle school English teaching should be carefully organized and incorporated into lesson plans. Some useful ideas for presenting culture in class are as follows.

On one hand， films and TV segments should be presented for students to witness cultural phenomenon. Films are often one of the more current and comprehensive ways to encapsulate looking and feeling. In English films， there are a lot of social， political and popular culture contents， so it is easier for us to pick up idioms， slings and to get familiar with verbal and non-verbal behaviors. Film are most attractive to students and seeing films is the most effective way to observe western culture.

On the other hand， English teachers should posses the comprehensive ability of double cultures. That is to say， they should know not only the native language culture but also the target language culture background. They must explain the culture background knowledge if necessary and compare these cultures properly during teaching process， so students may understand the similarities and differences between these two cultures， and teachers should guide the students to notice the cultural background of texts， bring the social meaning of some big words and cultivate the students social cultural insight.

There are still many other means we can use to change the situation and increase cross-cultural awareness. For example， reading classic literature books is also a good way to gather cultural knowledge. Middle school students should try to read various kinds of materials because whether that kind of reading materials will be in entrance examinations is not predictable， consequently middle school students read materials in different areas and they will encounter materials on their favorite topic. Favorite reading materials can be an excellent entry into a different culture and thought.

4. Conclusion

It is of great importance to introduce cultural elements in English teaching， so every English teacher should realize the importance and necessity of culture teaching. Of course， students themselves should make good use of the library， website and something like that， to cultivate their own cultural awareness. Only by the efforts of foreign language teachers and students altogether can culture introduction go well in middle school.

References：

[1]Krashen. Second Language Acquisition and Second Language Learning[M]. Oxford： Pergamon Press，1981.

[2]胡文仲，高一虹.外語教学与文化[M].长沙湖南教育出版社，1997.