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Intercultural Communication Lesson Plan

Michael Westwood

Azusa Pacific University

Context

This lesson has been prepared for a class of thirteen advanced students from China (6), Saudi Arabia (4), and South Korea (3). The students are involved in an English for Academic Purposes Program (EAP) and most have intentions of pursuing higher education at an American University. They range in age from nineteen to twenty five. The class is composed of three females and ten males. The language school is well equipped with whiteboards, markers, photocopiers, and a computer lab with Internet access.

Learning Outcomes

By the end of this lesson, students will be able to:

• Provide a definition of “culture”.

• Distinguish between “Big C” culture and “Little c” culture.

• Provide examples of both “Big C” culture and “Little c” culture from their home countries.

• Present five aspects of “Little c” culture that they believe would be helpful in aiding someone visiting their country or interacting with someone from their country.

• Write a summary of one other group’s presentation.

Resources

• Markers

• Eraser

• Critical Incident Cards from Joe McVeigh’s Tips for Teaching Culture: Practical Approaches to Intercultural Communication

Timing 2 hours

Assessment

The teacher will monitor student participation throughout, noting students who are not actively engaged in activities or who are having difficulty understanding the concepts. However, the primary assessment will be the final writing, which will be collected and read by the teacher in order to check student understanding of concepts discussed.

|Activity |Teacher Activities |Student Activities |Assessment |Time |

| | | | | |

|Introduction |Share that the topic for the day is |Listen to the teacher. | |3 minutes |

| |“culture” and that students will be | | | |

| |learning about what culture includes as | | | |

| |well as sharing about their own | | | |

| |cultures. | | | |

|Pre-lesson Activity |Divide class into pairs (with one group |Read the cards and discuss what may have|Note any students who are not actively |10 minutes |

|Critical Incidents Part 1 |of three) and explain that they will |caused the problem. Prepare to share a |participating or seem to be having | |

|(Wintergerst & McVeigh, 2011, pp. |read about a problem between two people |summary of the problem and a theory as |difficulty. | |

|194-194; 197-198) |and try to guess what the problem was. |to what caused it. | | |

| |Supply a critical incident card for each| | | |

| |group. Monitor progress and answers | | | |

| |questions. | | | |

|Pre-lesson Activity |Ask groups to share about their critical|Share about their critical incidents and|Note any students who are not actively |10 minutes |

|Critical Incidents Part 2 |incidents and provide an interpretation.|provide an interpretation. |participating. | |

| |Ask for clarification when answers are | | | |

| |unclear. | | | |

|Activity One |Write, “Culture is _________” on the |Suggest various words to fill in the |Note any students who are not actively |15 minutes |

|“What is culture?” |board and asks students to fill in the |blank. One student records ideas. Groups|participating or seem to be having | |

|(Wintergerst & McVeigh, 2011, pp. 5-6) |blank with their own words. Remind |share ideas with the class. After all |difficulty. | |

| |students that many possible answers are |groups share, each group attempts to | | |

| |acceptable. Ask students to share what |create a one sentence definition of | | |

| |was difficult about the activity. |culture. One student from each group | | |

| |Provide an opportunity for students to |will write that group’s definition on | | |

| |vote on which definition is the best. |the board. Students vote on which | | |

| | |definition is the best. | | |

|Activity Two |Draw a picture of an iceberg and ask |Answer questions. | |3 minutes |

|Adapted from |students how much of the iceberg is | | | |

|“Exploring the iceberg” (Wintergerst & |available above the surface and how much| | | |

|McVeigh, 2011, pp. 10-12) |of it is below the surface. Ask students| | | |

| |how the image of an iceberg can be | | | |

| |applied to culture. | | | |

| |Have students share what they have |Supply answers. |Note any students who are not actively |10 minutes |

| |observed about American culture. What is| |participating. | |

| |unique or different about the U.S.A.? | | | |

| |What images come to mind? Write | | | |

| |responses on the board. | | | |

| |Organize students by country groups. Ask|Work in groups with one recorder and one|Note any students who are not actively |15 minutes |

| |each group to write two aspects of their|or more presenters. Choose aspects of |participating or seem to be having | |

| |home culture that are easily observable |culture and present them. |difficulty. | |

| |and two aspects that are more difficult | | | |

| |to notice. | | | |

| |Explain the differences between “Big C” |Listen to the teacher. |Note any students who are not actively |4 minutes |

| |and “Little c” cultures. The former is | |participating or seem to be having | |

| |observable yet not always helpful in | |difficulty. | |

| |aiding understanding. The latter is more| | | |

| |difficult to detect, but will be more | | | |

| |beneficial in cross-cultural | | | |

| |understanding. Use “Thank you” as an | | | |

| |illustration. | | | |

| |Challenge students to continue working |Work in groups with one recorder and one|Note any students who are not actively |30 minutes (15 to prepare, and 5 minutes|

| |in country groups to present five |or more presenters. Choose five aspects |participating or seem to be having |for each group to present) |

| |aspects of “Little c” culture that could|of “Little c” culture to share about. |difficulty. | |

| |be helpful for someone visiting their |Present to the class while the rest of | | |

| |country. |the class takes notes on the | | |

| | |presentation. | | |

| Post Lesson Writing |Instruct students to write a response |Write in response to the prompt. |These essays will be collected and |20 minutes |

| |entitled, “Helpful Tips in Understanding|Demonstrate understanding of both the |evaluated by the teacher in order to | |

| |_____ Culture”. In this response, the |topic and their peers in writing. |check for understanding and engagement | |

| |students should write about another | |with the presentations of their | |

| |country represented in the class and | |classmates. (See Appendix) | |

| |discuss that country’s “Little c” | | | |

| |culture. | | | |

References

Wintergerst, A. C., & McVeigh, J. (2011). Tips for teaching culture: Practical approaches to

intercultural communication. White Plains, NY: Pearson Education.

Appendix

|Dimension |Poor |Below Average |Good |Excellent |

| |1 |2 |3 |4 |

|Lesson Content |Does not demonstrate |Demonstrates limited |Demonstrates accurate |Demonstrates exceptional |

| |understanding of “little c” |understanding of “little c” |understanding of “little c” |understanding of “little c” |

| |culture |culture |culture |culture |

|Peer Content |Does not demonstrate |Demonstrates limited |Demonstrates accurate |Demonstrates exceptional |

| |understanding of peer’s |understanding of peer’s |understanding of peer’s |understanding of peer’s |

| |culture. |culture. |culture. |culture. |

|Form |Essay is poorly organized |Essay is either poorly |Essay is organized and shows|Essay is very well organized|

| |with numerous mistakes. |organized or contains |competence for the level. |with minimal errors. |

| | |numerous mistakes. | | |

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