E-cigarette use and disparities by race, citizenship status and language among adolescents.

Science.gov (United States)

Alcalá, Héctor E; Albert, Stephanie L; Ortega, Alexander N

2016-06-01

E-cigarette use among adolescents is on the rise in the U.S. However, limited attention has been given to examining the role of race, citizenship status and language spoken at home in shaping e-cigarette use behavior. Data are from the 2014 Adolescent California Health Interview Survey, which interviewed 1052 adolescents ages 12-17. Lifetime e-cigarette use was examined by sociodemographic characteristics. Separate logistic regression models predicted odds of ever-smoking e-cigarettes from race, citizenship status and language spoken at home. Sociodemographic characteristics were then added to these models as control variables and a model with all three predictors and controls was run. Similar models were run with conventional smoking as an outcome. 10.3% of adolescents ever used e-cigarettes. E-cigarette use was higher among ever-smokers of conventional cigarettes, individuals above 200% of the Federal Poverty Level, US citizens and those who spoke English-only at home. Multivariate analyses demonstrated that citizenship status and language spoken at home were associated with lifetime e-cigarette use, after accounting for control variables. Only citizenship status was associated with e-cigarette use, when controls variables race and language spoken at home were all in the same model. Ever use of e-cigarettes in this study was higher than previously reported national estimates. Action is needed to curb the use of e-cigarettes among adolescents. Differences in lifetime e-cigarette use by citizenship status and language spoken at home suggest that less acculturated individuals use e-cigarettes at lower rates. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Teaching Cultural Taboos and Taboo Language for Intercultural Awareness and Understanding

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Georgeta Rata

2017-11-01

Full Text Available The goal of the paper is to show that language can support social and intercultural competence of both students and teachers: one of the ways to do it is teaching cultural taboos and taboo language for intercultural awareness and understanding. The current state of the art in the field points to an increasing interest in the teaching of taboos. The material we analysed consisted in 238 offensive, vulgar and obscene English words that both students and teachers should know to attain social and intercultural competence. The method used is the descriptive one. The degree of novelty is rather high in our cultural area. Results show that there are 134 offensive (slang words and expressions (referring to the country of origin or to an ethnic group, to sex and sex-related issues (sexual orientation, to race, etc., 75 vulgar words and expressions (referring to sex and sex-related issues, to body parts, to people, etc., and 29 obscene words and expressions (referring to body secretions, to sex and sex-related issues, to people, etc.. There seems to be no research limitations given the lexicographic sources that we used. The implications of teaching cultural taboos and taboo language at tertiary level concern both the students and teachers and the organisation they belong to. The paper is original and relevant given the process of globalisation.

The relation between language, culture, and thought.

Science.gov (United States)

Imai, Mutsumi; Kanero, Junko; Masuda, Takahiko

2016-04-01

The relationship between culture, language, and thought has long been one of the most important topics for those who wish to understand the nature of human cognition. This issue has been investigated for decades across a broad range of research disciplines. However, there has been scant communication across these different disciplines, a situation largely arising through differences in research interests and discrepancies in the definitions of key terms such as 'culture,' 'language,' and 'thought.' This article reviews recent trends in research on the relation between language, culture and thought to capture how cognitive psychology and cultural psychology have defined 'language' and 'culture,' and how this issue was addressed within each research discipline. We then review recent research conducted in interdisciplinary perspectives, which directly compared the roles of culture and language. Finally, we highlight the importance of considering the complex interplay between culture and language to provide a comprehensive picture of how language and culture affect thought. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Primary language and cultural background as factors in resident burnout in medical specialties: a study in a bilingual US city.

Science.gov (United States)

Afzal, Khalid I; Khan, Farhan M; Mulla, Zuber; Akins, Ralista; Ledger, Elizabeth; Giordano, Frank L

2010-07-01

The aim of this study was to identify the degree of burnout among resident physicians enrolled in seven postgraduate training programs at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center (TTUHSC), Paul L. Foster School of Medicine, El Paso, Texas, as it related to residents' age, gender, marital status, number of hours worked per week, primary language, race/ethnicity, and cultural background. : The Maslach Burnout Inventory Human Service Survey (MBI) was administered to measure the level of burnout according to the prevalence of emotional exhaustion (EE), depersonalization (DP), and reduced personal accomplishment (PA). : Eighty-one percent of the residents at TTUHSC participated in the study. Residents raised in the United States or Canada comprised 28% and 35% of the study, and all reported English as their primary language. The EE scale was significant for obstetrics/gynecology (OB/GYN) residents (prevalence odds ratio [POR] = 13.55, P = 0.02) and psychiatry (PSY) residents (POR = 6.50, P = 0.03). Emergency medicine (EM) residents (POR = 23.35, P = 0.002), OB/GYN (POR = 10.89, P = 0.02), and general surgery (GS) (POR = 6.24, P = 0.03) residents had high DP. Internal medicine (IM) residents (primarily Spanish-speaking) reported significantly low EE (POR = 0.22, P = 0.03) and PA (POR = 0.09, P = 0.001) scores. Residents from the United States or Canada who reported English as their primary language and noted their race as white, had high EE (POR = 3.06, P = 0.03; POR = 5.61, P = 0.0001; POR = 2.91, P = 0.004), DP (POR = 3.19, P = 0.02; POR = 8.34, P burnout and residents' race/ethnicity, primary language, and cultural background. Larger studies with similar focus would be necessary to generalize these findings. At-risk residents in bilingual locations should be provided with cultural awareness workshops, language assistance programs, as well as senior resident and faculty mentors.

Culture in Language Learning: Background, Issues and Implications

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Omid Pourkalhor

2017-03-01

Full Text Available The present study aimed at presenting the historical background of the emergence of culture in language learning and how it can be correlated with the language learners. In fact, by providing various definitions of culture and the role it might play in the process of language learning, whether directly or indirectly, this research provides a clear-cut overview of culture and its application among the people as well as their communication in the society. Moreover, the relationship between culture and language learning is also taken into account. To this end, basic definitions of culture in different research studies are investigated moving toward finding a path to make a connection between language and culture. Therefore, a review of studies on the relationship between language learning and culture is provided to account for the possible effectiveness of benefiting from culture in the language learning process in that the learning context (i.e. foreign or second language can be affected by the culture of the teachers as well as the learners. This demands that both teachers and learners should be aware of cultural issues surrounding the language and the fact that it can be beneficial for the process of language learning. If learner are consciously involved in the culture of the language they are learning, they certainly can have better performance and understand the language more tangibly.

Language as a Facilitator of Cultural Connection

Science.gov (United States)

Gonzalez, Miigis B.; Aronson, Benjamin D.; Kellar, Sidnee; Walls, Melissa L.; Greenfield, Brenna L.

2018-01-01

Understanding culture as a means of preventing or treating health concerns is growing in popularity among social behavioral health scientists. Language is one component of culture and therefore may be a means to improve health among Indigenous populations. This study explores language as a unique aspect of culture through its relationship to other demographic and cultural variables. Participants (n = 218) were adults who self-identified as American Indian, had a type 2 diabetes diagnosis, and were drawn from two Ojibwe communities using health clinic records. We used chi-squared tests to compare language proficiency by demographic groups and ANOVA tests to examine relationships between language and culture. A higher proportion of those living on reservation lands could use the Ojibwe language, and fluent speakers were most notably sixty-five years of age and older. Regarding culture, those with greater participation and value belief in cultural activities reported greater language proficiency. PMID:29782622

Could languages of the same language families reflect a similar culture?

OpenAIRE

Laumann, Christiane

2006-01-01

When learning two languages of the same language family, one will realize quickly that there are similarities. But how deep are language and culture related? For long time the hypothesis that languages are responsible for cultural development was held to be true, later the opposite was assumed, and today it is maybe somewhere in between. With the help of Geert Hofstede's dimensions, comparing cultures on a continuum of nonverbal aspects, a connection between linguistic and intercultural commu...

Race and Ethnicity: Powerful Cultural Forecasters of Science Learning and Performance

Science.gov (United States)

Atwater, Mary M.; Lance, Jennifer; Woodard, UrLeaka; Johnson, Natasha Hillsman

2013-01-01

This article addresses the impact of race and ethnicity on students' science learning in US schools. Specifically, it discusses (a) the constructs of race, ethnicity, and culture, and the racial and ethnic student composition in US public schools; (b) effective classroom practices for curriculum, instruction, and assessment related to race…

Film Cross-culture Research under the Perspective of Language and Culture

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

罗淞译

2015-01-01

Language as an important tool of cultural transmission, it can achieve the cross-culture development of film. With the strength of globalization, film cross-culture communication are increasing, and how to enhance the communication of film through language and culture and let more people enjoy the thought expressed in film is one of the most important content for cross-culture development of mant films. Different cultural backgrounds will produce large diversities in watching a same film, so it is helpful for the cross-culture development of film when making good use of culture and language, on the contrary, it will become a hindrance. This article do research on cross-culture development of film under the perspective of language and culture to find out the existing problems in present cross-culture development of film and put forward effective resolution strategy in order to promote certain reference for the internationalization of China’s film industry.

Foreign Language Teaching and Cultural Identity.

Science.gov (United States)

Nasr, Raja T., Ed.; And Others

A collection of works on the role of cultural identity in second language learning and teaching includes: "Linguas estrangeiras e ideologia" (Roberto Ballalai); "Cultural Identity and Bilinguality" (Josiane F. Hamers, Michel Blanc); "Foreign Language Teaching and Cultural Identity" (Lakshmie K. Cumaranatunge);…

Culture in Southeast Asian Language Classes.

Science.gov (United States)

Liem, Nguyen Dang

A view of the status of Southeast Asian language programs in American schools leads the author to comment on five interrelated issues. They include: (1) the importance of Southeast Asian language and culture teaching and learning, (2) integrating culture in Southeast Asian language classes, (3) teaching techniques, (4) staffing, and (5)…

Culture and Language Teaching through Media

Science.gov (United States)

Tanriverdi, Belgin; Apak, Ozlem

2008-01-01

The topic of teaching and learning culture has been a matter of considerable interest to language educators and much has been written about the role of culture in foreign language instruction over the past two decades. ESL students whose success in a new environment is conditioned not only by their mastery of the new language, but also, and…

Language Study: Language and Socio-Cultural Values: An Analysis ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Language is an important tool in the human society. Apart from the fact that it makes communication and integration possible, it is an important aspect of the socio-cultural life of a people. To this extent, language is closely knit with culture as it embodies the society's value system and patterned way of life. This paper ...

Global health language and culture competency.

Science.gov (United States)

Beadling, Charles; Maza, John; Nakano, Gregg; Mahmood, Maysaa; Jawad, Shakir; Al-Ameri, Ali; Zuerlein, Scott; Anderson, Warner

2012-01-01

This article presents findings from a survey conducted to examine the availability of foreign language and culture training to Civil Affairs health personnel and the relevance of that training to the tasks they perform. Civil Affairs forces recognize the value of cross-cultural communication competence because their missions involve a significant level of interaction with foreign governments? officials, military, and civilians. Members of the 95th Civil Affairs Brigade (Airborne) who had a health-related military occupational specialty code were invited to participate in the survey. More than 45% of those surveyed were foreign language qualified. Many also received predeployment language and culture training specific to the area of deployment. Significantly more respondents reported receiving cultural training and training on how to work effectively with interpreters than having received foreign language training. Respondents perceived interpreters as important assets and were generally satisfied with their performance. Findings from the survey highlight a need to identify standard requirements for predeployment language training that focuses on medical and health terminology and to determine the best delivery platform(s). Civil Affairs health personnel would benefit from additional cultural training that focuses on health and healthcare in the country or region of deployment. Investing in the development of distance learning capabilities as a platform for delivering health-specific language and culture training may help ease the time and resources constraints that limit the ability of Civil Affairs health personnel to access the training they need. 2012.

Globalisation of Language and Culture in Singapore

Science.gov (United States)

Vaish, Viniti

2007-01-01

What are the effects of globalisation on patterns of language use in the domain of media in Singapore? Rather than only cultural imperialism of hegemonic English, which is no doubt the case, the use of languages in the "mediascap" also shows the consumption of non-English languages and cultures. Though English may be the main language of…

The Teaching of Culture in English Language Teaching

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

吴月娥

2012-01-01

　　Language is not only part of culture, but also the carrier. The relationship between them decides the important role of culture teaching in language teaching. However, some problems still exist in college English teaching. For example, classroom English teaching time is not enough for culture teaching; English learners’native language thinking has negative transfer in the target language learning, etc.. In order to solve these problems, this paper tends to discuss whether English teaching should put an emphasis on Big-C Culture or Little-c Culture.

Legal Language – a Cultural Ambassador. A Language for Various Purposes, not only a Language for Specific Purposes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Cancino, Rita

2014-01-01

to another. It means also overcoming the typical blindness to one’s own culture. The Spanish-Danish Legal Language course introduces Danish language students to a new world of cultural knowledge, as they generally have insignificant knowledge of Danish law and the Danish legal system. Furthermore, they have......KONFERENCE SINGAPORE Culture-related competence Courses in comparative Spanish -Danish legal language: A cultural Kinder egg? Learning comparative legal language is not only a question of linguistic competence, but it is also cultural training in which the students achieve culture......-related competences as culture is implicitly embedded in many legal terms in the shape of historical, societal and legal knowledge from two different worlds. Students need to understand these legal terms, fixed expressions, metaphors, collocations, etc. in order to be able to translate from one legal language/culture...

Study of the Relationship between Cultural differences and Language teaching

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

孟庆瑜

2014-01-01

Language is an important part of culture,each language belong to a certain culture.Language and culture are interdependent from each other.So,language teaching must be concerned with teaching the culture which it belongs to.Language teaching should pay more attention to the cultural differences.

Integrating Culture into Language Teaching and Learning: Learner Outcomes

Science.gov (United States)

Nguyen, Trang Thi Thuy

2017-01-01

This paper discusses the issue of learner outcomes in learning culture as part of their language learning. First, some brief discussion on the role of culture in language teaching and learning, as well as on culture contents in language lessons is presented. Based on a detailed review of previous literature related to culture in language teaching…

The Australian Racism, Acceptance, and Cultural-Ethnocentrism Scale (RACES): item response theory findings.

Science.gov (United States)

Grigg, Kaine; Manderson, Lenore

2016-03-17

Racism and associated discrimination are pervasive and persistent challenges with multiple cumulative deleterious effects contributing to inequities in various health outcomes. Globally, research over the past decade has shown consistent associations between racism and negative health concerns. Such research confirms that race endures as one of the strongest predictors of poor health. Due to the lack of validated Australian measures of racist attitudes, RACES (Racism, Acceptance, and Cultural-Ethnocentrism Scale) was developed. Here, we examine RACES' psychometric properties, including the latent structure, utilising Item Response Theory (IRT). Unidimensional and Multidimensional Rating Scale Model (RSM) Rasch analyses were utilised with 296 Victorian primary school students and 182 adolescents and 220 adults from the Australian community. RACES was demonstrated to be a robust 24-item three-dimensional scale of Accepting Attitudes (12 items), Racist Attitudes (8 items), and Ethnocentric Attitudes (4 items). RSM Rasch analyses provide strong support for the instrument as a robust measure of racist attitudes in the Australian context, and for the overall factorial and construct validity of RACES across primary school children, adolescents, and adults. RACES provides a reliable and valid measure that can be utilised across the lifespan to evaluate attitudes towards all racial, ethnic, cultural, and religious groups. A core function of RACES is to assess the effectiveness of interventions to reduce community levels of racism and in turn inequities in health outcomes within Australia.

Language, Thought, and Culture: Views and Arguments

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Keyvan Zahedi

2009-07-01

Full Text Available This study follows two aims: one to review some late views on the relations among language, thought, and culture; and the other, to offer a new strategy, in a novel model, based on last achievements in the minimalist approach. Studying views and arguments, three dichotomies are discussed: 1 the views which confirm the relation between culture and language in opposition to the views that deny this; 2 distinguishing the symmetry-procedural view and the transforming views of language; and 3 distinction among the social-communicational, and the biological-genetic motivations of language. The hypothesis for the novel strategy is that considering what the minimalist program has offered, especially from 2000 onwards, it is possible that language affects thought, while coding the and that culture affects language (which is called ethno-grammar . This is in addition to the biological-genetic base. From this point of view, language’s main function is neither to provide communication, nor to express thought, but to connect cognitive and socio-cultural terminals together.

Tasks for Integrating Language and Culture Teaching

Science.gov (United States)

Neff, Peter; Rucynski, John, Jr.

2013-01-01

This article discusses the role of culture in language teaching and provides activities for introducing culture in the classroom, focusing on teaching context and methodology to integrate culture. The authors outline five activities that can be adapted to the language level and interests of students. Instructions for each activity include language…

Integrating Indigenous Cultures into English Language Teaching

Science.gov (United States)

Barfield, Susan C.; Uzarski, Joelle

2009-01-01

One of the most important components of a culture is its language. With language, people not only expeditiously communicate; they also express their values, beliefs, and world views. When a language becomes extinct, a part of the cultural patrimony of humanity is lost. For linguists, this also means the loss of an opportunity for a better…

Developing Cultural Awareness in Foreign Language Teaching

Science.gov (United States)

Shemshadsara, Zahra Ghorbani

2012-01-01

Culture awareness has become an important focus of modern language education, a shift that reflects a greater awareness of the inseparability of language and culture, and the need to prepare students for intercultural communication. The paper reports on an ongoing study into the presence and status of cultural understanding in EFL teaching. In…

Some Aspects of Culture Teaching in Foreign Language and ESP Classes: Cultural Scripts and Small Talk

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ivona Baranovskaja

2011-12-01

Full Text Available The present paper deals with the problem of teaching culture in the foreign language classes at all levels of education. Cultural studies should not be separated from the language syllabus and foreign language learning should not be limited to formal learning of systems of sounds, words, and syntactic structures, but should also include learning the culture of the target language. Success in intercultural communication depends greatly on the understanding of a number of cultural features. The article emphasizes the importance of teaching and learning target culture, as well as introduces the analysis of cultural scripts and small talk in English, Russian and Polish languages. Understanding the cultural differences will benefit and facilitate cross-cultural communication under diverse circumstances. Thereby, this issue is relevant to foreign language and ESP classes focusing on the improvement of both students’ language and cultural skills.

Learning bias, cultural evolution of language, and the biological evolution of the language faculty.

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Kenny

2011-04-01

The biases of individual language learners act to determine the learnability and cultural stability of languages: learners come to the language learning task with biases which make certain linguistic systems easier to acquire than others. These biases are repeatedly applied during the process of language transmission, and consequently should effect the types of languages we see in human populations. Understanding the cultural evolutionary consequences of particular learning biases is therefore central to understanding the link between language learning in individuals and language universals, common structural properties shared by all the world’s languages. This paper reviews a range of models and experimental studies which show that weak biases in individual learners can have strong effects on the structure of socially learned systems such as language, suggesting that strong universal tendencies in language structure do not require us to postulate strong underlying biases or constraints on language learning. Furthermore, understanding the relationship between learner biases and language design has implications for theories of the evolution of those learning biases: models of gene-culture coevolution suggest that, in situations where a cultural dynamic mediates between properties of individual learners and properties of language in this way, biological evolution is unlikely to lead to the emergence of strong constraints on learning.

Differential effect of race, education, gender, and language discrimination on glycemic control in adults with type 2 diabetes.

Science.gov (United States)

Reynolds, D Brice; Walker, Rebekah J; Campbell, Jennifer A; Egede, Leonard E

2015-04-01

Discrimination has been linked to negative health outcomes, but little research has investigated different types of discrimination to determine if some have a greater impact on outcomes. We examined the differential effect of discrimination based on race, level of education, gender, and language on glycemic control in adults with type 2 diabetes. Six hundred two patients with type 2 diabetes from two adult primary care clinics in the southeastern United States completed validated questionnaires. Questions included perceived discrimination because of race/ethnicity, level of education, sex/gender, or language. A multiple linear regression model assessed the differential effect of each type of perceived discrimination on glycemic control while adjusting for relevant covariates, including race, site, gender, marital status, duration of diabetes, number of years in school, number of hours worked per week, income, and health status. The mean age was 61.5 years, and the mean duration of diabetes was 12.3 years. Of the sample, 61.6% were men, and 64.9% were non-Hispanic black. In adjusted models, education discrimination remained significantly associated with glycemic control (β=0.47; 95% confidence interval, 0.03, 0.92). Race, gender and language discrimination were not significantly associated with poor glycemic control in either unadjusted or adjusted analyses. Discrimination based on education was found to be significantly associated with poor glycemic control. The findings suggest that education discrimination may be an important social determinant to consider when providing care to patients with type 2 diabetes and should be assessed separate from other types of discrimination, such as that based on race.

Culture and Language Education

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

kazem Lotfipour saedi

2012-11-01

Full Text Available There are different views on the relationship between language and culture. Some consider them as separate entities one being a code-system and the other a system of beliefs and attitudes. Some believe in a cause and effect relationship between the two; and yet others argue for a co-evolutionary mode of interrelation. This paper will subscribe to the Hallidayan co-evolutionary view of the relationship (cf. Halliday 1991, presenting the view that language and culture are both integrated into a unique socio-semiotic system always interacting with one another for the successful functioning of the system. It will discuss some aspects of this interaction and the implications for ESL/EFL education programs.

LANGUAGE, CULTURE AND IDENTITY: THE PORTUGUESE LANGUAGE AS A SYMBOLIC IDENTIFICATION SPACE ON DOCUMENTARY: LANGUAGE – LIVES IN PORTUGUESE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Joelton Duarte de Santana

2012-06-01

Full Text Available Language as a social element is constitutive to every human being. Language gives each person, as well as to his or her own linguistic community, an individual and peculiar way to figure out the world and its surroundings. Language is influenced by several processes, including sociocultural and historical ones. If we say that each language may allow its speaker to do a very own world reading, a question about its language behavior in other continents arises. This way we were able to understand how sociocultural influences could improve the whole cultural identity construction process. Both defining linguistic communities and specifying social groups, language becomes a symbolic space of identification. The movie – Language- lives In Portuguese reunites Portuguese speakers reports around the world aiming to illustrate Portuguese language as a nations identity construction, autoafirmation and legitimation factor through social, cultural and historic processes. This study is based on the belief in such a kind of dialogism between Language and Culture. The sociolinguistic studies nowadays do not intend, as they used to, understanding or describing structural language aspects and very individuals ones, but especially to reflect upon relations among subject, language, identity, culture and history.

Culture, language, and patient safety: Making the link.

Science.gov (United States)

Johnstone, Megan-Jane; Kanitsaki, Olga

2006-10-01

It has been well recognized internationally that hospitals are not as safe as they should be. In order to redress this situation, health care services around the world have turned their attention to strategically implementing robust patient safety and quality care programmes to identify circumstances that put patients at risk of harm and then acting to prevent or control those risks. Despite the progress that has been made in improving hospital safety in recent years, there is emerging evidence that patients of minority cultural and language backgrounds are disproportionately at risk of experiencing preventable adverse events while in hospital compared with mainstream patient groups. One reason for this is that patient safety programmes have tended to underestimate and understate the critical relationship that exists between culture, language, and the safety and quality of care of patients from minority racial, ethno-cultural, and language backgrounds. This article suggests that the failure to recognize the critical link between culture and language (of both the providers and recipients of health care) and patient safety stands as a 'resident pathogen' within the health care system that, if not addressed, unacceptably exposes patients from minority ethno-cultural and language backgrounds to preventable adverse events in hospital contexts. It is further suggested that in order to ensure that minority as well as majority patient interests in receiving safe and quality care are properly protected, the culture-language-patient-safety link needs to be formally recognized and the vulnerabilities of patients from minority cultural and language backgrounds explicitly identified and actively addressed in patient safety systems and processes.

Cultural influences for college student language brokers.

Science.gov (United States)

Weisskirch, Robert S; Kim, Su Yeong; Zamboanga, Byron L; Schwartz, Seth J; Bersamin, Melina; Umaña-Taylor, Adriana J

2011-01-01

Children from immigrant families often translate communication for parents, a process known as language brokering (LB). LB begins in childhood, but may continue through emerging adulthood, even when individuals are in college. We surveyed 1,222 university students with two immigrant parents and compared non-language brokers, infrequent language brokers, and frequent language brokers on a variety of ethnic, cultural, and identity measures. Significant differences emerged for cultural heritage value orientation, ethnic identity, and dimensions of acculturation with frequent language brokers scoring highest, infrequent language brokers scoring in the middle, and non-language brokers scoring the lowest on these measures. There were no significant differences on acculturative stress among these three groups. These results suggest that LB experiences may contribute to the development of psychological assets for ethnic minority, emerging adults from immigrant families.

Destruction of a Language and Culture: A Personal Story

Science.gov (United States)

Clearsky, Eileen

2011-01-01

The extinction of language and culture in Canadian Aboriginal communities is closely linked to the historical experiences of families under past assimilation policies. Families must recover the language and culture to ward off the possibility of extinction. The revival of culture and languages, in effort not to lose our identity as First Nation…

Cross-cultural differences and similarities underlying other-race effects for facial identity and expression.

Science.gov (United States)

Yan, Xiaoqian; Andrews, Timothy J; Jenkins, Rob; Young, Andrew W

2016-01-01

Perceptual advantages for own-race compared to other-race faces have been demonstrated for the recognition of facial identity and expression. However, these effects have not been investigated in the same study with measures that can determine the extent of cross-cultural agreement as well as differences. To address this issue, we used a photo sorting task in which Chinese and Caucasian participants were asked to sort photographs of Chinese or Caucasian faces by identity or by expression. This paradigm matched the task demands of identity and expression recognition and avoided constrained forced-choice or verbal labelling requirements. Other-race effects of comparable magnitude were found across the identity and expression tasks. Caucasian participants made more confusion errors for the identities and expressions of Chinese than Caucasian faces, while Chinese participants made more confusion errors for the identities and expressions of Caucasian than Chinese faces. However, analyses of the patterns of responses across groups of participants revealed a considerable amount of underlying cross-cultural agreement. These findings suggest that widely repeated claims that members of other cultures "all look the same" overstate the cultural differences.

Prejudices in Cultural Contexts: Shared Stereotypes (Gender, Age) Versus Variable Stereotypes (Race, Ethnicity, Religion).

Science.gov (United States)

Fiske, Susan T

2017-09-01

Some prejudices share cross-cultural patterns, but others are more variable and culture specific. Those sharing cross-cultural patterns (sexism, ageism) each combine societal status differences and intimate interdependence. For example, in stereotypes of sex and age, lower status groups-women and elders-gain stereotypic warmth (from their cooperative interdependence) but lose stereotypic competence (from their lower status); men and middle-aged adults show the opposite trade-off, stereotypically more competent than warm. Meta-analyses support these widespread ambivalent (mixed) stereotypes for gender and age across cultures. Social class stereotypes often share some similarities (cold but competent rich vs. warm but incompetent poor). These compensatory warmth versus competence stereotypes may function to manage common human dilemmas of interacting across societal and personal positions. However, other stereotypes are more variable and culture specific (ethnicity, race, religion). Case studies of specific race/ethnicities and religions reveal much more cultural variation in their stereotype content, supporting their being responses to particular cultural contexts, apparent accidents of history. To change stereotypes requires understanding their commonalities and differences, their origins and patterns across cultures.

Hispanic immigrants and bilingual education after proposition 227 : a case study of attitudes about language and culture in American Society

OpenAIRE

小林, ひろみ

2009-01-01

Public criticism of bilingual education or bilingualism in the United States has been growing since the early 1990s. As part of the argument against bilingual education, Hispanic immigrants have been portrayed as a monolithic group clinging to their own language and culture and reluctant to assimilate into American society. Proposition 227, which officially ended bilingual education programs in California public schools, was passed on June 2, 1998. Race and ethnicity were reflected in the ...

The Mapping of a Framework: Critical Race Theory and TESOL

Science.gov (United States)

Liggett, Tonda

2014-01-01

In this article, I attempt to elucidate some key intersections between critical race theory (CRT) in synthesis with English language learning as a way to examine linguistic and racial identity in English language teaching. I ask: How does critical race theory apply to English language learners when language rather than race is fore-grounded? What…

Cultural Diversity in English Language Teaching: Learners' Voices

Science.gov (United States)

Chinh, Nguyen Duc

2013-01-01

The focus of culture in English language teaching (ELT) has traditionally been on the target culture of English speaking countries. However, the new status of English as international language (EIL) has led to significant changes in the practice of teaching and learning culture in ELT. Rather than relying on the paradigm of native speaker…

Second Language Acquisition, Culture Shock and Language Stress of Adult Latina Students in New York.

Science.gov (United States)

Buttaro, Lucia

This study identified the second language acquisition, culture shock, and language stress of adult Latinas in New York as related to language, culture, and education. Participants were eight adult Latinas, for whom Spanish was the first language, who had come to the United States 10-15 years previously and developed some functioning English as a…

Lessons in the Korean Language and Culture for Teachers of English as a Second Language.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Chang Whan

This language text is designed to introduce the Korean language and culture to Peace Corps trainees and volunteers who will be teachers of English as a second language to Korean students. The disciplines of language training, cross-cultural training, and TESL are combined in a single volume into one integrated curriculum. The text contains 100…

Language and Cross-Culture Understanding—Through Cross-Culture Study of the Word'Dragon'

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

周玲

2016-01-01

This essay contributes to the analysis of the significance of cross-culture understanding in connection with language. It is important and necessary to promote cross-cultural understanding in order to communicate with people from various cultural backgrounds with the development of globalization. This essay also gives the example of the word'dragon'to illustrate that the cross-culture understanding of language will make us communicate with each other more effectively.

Afrocentric cultural values and beliefs: movement beyond the race and ethnicity proxy to understand views of diabetes.

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Scollan-Koliopoulos, Melissa; Rapp, Kenneth J; Bleich, David

2012-01-01

The purpose of this study was to estimate the benefit of using a cultural characteristics scale to help diabetes educators understand how African Americans cope with diabetes. Illness representations are influenced by culture. Race and ethnicity as a proxy for culture provides an incomplete understanding of the mechanism by which cultural values influence representations of diabetes. A descriptive correlational design was employed by recruiting hospitalized adults with type 2 diabetes at 3 metropolitan northeast coast sites. The TRIOS Afrocentric cultural characteristics measure and the Illness perception Questionnaire were administered by paper-and-pencil to a diverse sample. Black race and African American ethnicity was used as a proxy for culture and compared to levels of agreement on an Afrocentric cultural scale to determine the relative ability to explain variance in illness representations of diabetes. The TRIOS measure adapted to diabetes care explained variance in illness representations of diabetes, while African American ethnicity/black race was not able to explain variance in illness representations. Clinicians would benefit from considering the degree to which a patient identifies with particular cultural characteristics when tailoring interventions to manipulate illness representations that are not concordant with biomedical representations.

The other-race effect in children from a multiracial population: A cross-cultural comparison.

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Tham, Diana Su Yun; Bremner, J Gavin; Hay, Dennis

2017-03-01

The role of experience with other-race faces in the development of the other-race effect was investigated through a cross-cultural comparison between 5- and 6-year-olds and 13- and 14-year-olds raised in a monoracial (British White, n=83) population and a multiracial (Malaysian Chinese, n=68) population. British White children showed an other-race effect to three other-race faces (Chinese, Malay, and African Black) that was stable across age. Malaysian Chinese children showed a recognition deficit for less experienced faces (African Black) but showed a recognition advantage for faces of which they have direct or indirect experience. Interestingly, younger (Malaysian Chinese) children showed no other-race effect for female faces such that they can recognize all female faces regardless of race. These findings point to the importance of early race and gender experiences in reorganizing the face representation to accommodate changes in experience across development. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

National Language Policy and Its Impacts on Second Language Reading Culture

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Azmi, Mohd Nazri Latiff

2013-01-01

This research concentrates on Malaysian language policy and its impacts on the development of English language (regarded as a second language in Malaysia) specifically on reading culture. The main objectives of this research are to investigate the weaknesses and strengths of the policy and also to come out with recommendations to improve the…

What pediatricians should know about normal language development: ensuring cultural differences are not diagnosed as disorders.

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Weiss, Amy L; Van Haren, Melissa S

2003-07-01

The roles and responsibilities of speech-language pathologists and pediatricians have become greater with the changing population demographics in the United States. In some states, the majority of the population belongs to a national cultural minority, eg, New Mexico. Even a state such as Iowa, with only a 5% nonmajority population, has a school-aged population that is almost 10% nonmajority. This growth of diversity is likely to continue. Rather than viewing sensitivity to the influence of culture on language learning and other developmental areas as an "add-on" to a practice, it may be wiser to recognize that approaching all clients with as few assumptions about their behaviors as possible will guarantee nonbiased service delivery for all. Without nonbiased service delivery, incorrect diagnoses and provision of inappropriate therapy become more likely. Fortunately, many resources are available to assist pediatricians and speech-language pathologists in learning about various cultures. Institutional review boards have become more vigilant about the inclusion of a cross-section of subject populations as participants in research studies in addition to protecting the rights of all participants. Funding agencies also have expressed as a priority the inclusion of research subjects from minority populations to add to the information available about the incidence and prevalence of disorders across the range of our potential patients. In a society in which cultural differences are not just defined by race or ethnicity, but by gender, sexual orientation, age, geographic region, and religion, belief systems about disease, disability, and treatment are dynamic entities for health professionals to take into consideration. It is a challenge that speech-language pathologists and pediatricians must meet if they are to provide the best and most appropriate services for their patients.

LANGUAGE AND CULTURE INTERFERENCE IN PLURILINGUAL EDUCATION

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Hackett-Jones, A.V.

2016-09-01

Full Text Available The article deals with interlingual phenomena that occur in the process of multiple language acquisition in a learning environment. The notions of language interference and transfer put forward by the theories of bilingualism, give useful insights when applied to the modern day educational trends. Language and culture interference is an important aspect to be considered with regard to teaching of plurilingual learners, whose communicative competence is formed on the basis of several linguistic and cultural systems that interact with each other and exert mutual influence.

Cultura Obscura: Race, Power, and "Culture Talk" in the Health Sciences.

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Benjamin, Ruha

2017-05-01

"The price of culture is a Lie." 1 This Article advances a critical race approach to the health sciences by examining "culture talk" as a discursive repertoire that attributes distinct beliefs, behaviors, and dispositions to ethno-racialized groups. Culture talk entails a twofold process of obfuscation - concealing the social reality of the people it describes and hiding the positionality of those who employ cultural generalizations. After tracing how culture talk circulates and reproduces racist narratives in and beyond the health sciences, I examine how cultural competency training in medical schools and diversity initiatives in stem cell research use the idiom of culture to manage and manufacture group differences. From culturing cells in the lab to enculturing people in the clinic, I apply the concept of coproduction to argue that culture talk is a precondition and product of scientific knowledge construction.

Heritage-culture images disrupt immigrants' second-language processing through triggering first-language interference.

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Zhang, Shu; Morris, Michael W; Cheng, Chi-Ying; Yap, Andy J

2013-07-09

For bicultural individuals, visual cues of a setting's cultural expectations can activate associated representations, switching the frames that guide their judgments. Research suggests that cultural cues may affect judgments through automatic priming, but has yet to investigate consequences for linguistic performance. The present studies investigate the proposal that heritage-culture cues hinder immigrants' second-language processing by priming first-language structures. For Chinese immigrants in the United States, speaking to a Chinese (vs. Caucasian) face reduced their English fluency, but at the same time increased their social comfort, effects that did not occur for a comparison group of European Americans (study 1). Similarly, exposure to iconic symbols of Chinese (vs. American) culture hindered Chinese immigrants' English fluency, when speaking about both culture-laden and culture-neutral topics (study 2). Finally, in both recognition (study 3) and naming tasks (study 4), Chinese icon priming increased accessibility of anomalous literal translations, indicating the intrusion of Chinese lexical structures into English processing. We discuss conceptual implications for the automaticity and adaptiveness of cultural priming and practical implications for immigrant acculturation and second-language learning.

Collective Pedagogical Teacher Culture and Mathematics Achievement: Differences by Race, Ethnicity, and Socioeconomic Status

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Moller, Stephanie; Mickelson, Roslyn Arlin; Stearns, Elizabeth; Banerjee, Neena; Bottia, Martha Cecilia

2013-01-01

Scholars have not adequately assessed how organizational cultures in schools differentially influence students' mathematics achievement by race and socioeconomic status (SES). We focus on what we term "collective pedagogical teacher culture", highlighting the role of professional communities and teacher collaboration in influencing…

The Employment of Pop Culture in Middle School English Language Teaching

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杨才英

2007-01-01

Nowadays,culture teaching is more emphasized in language teaching. But less attention is paid to the influence of pop culture in language teaching. The important role of pop culture in middle school English language teaching will be discussed in this thesis through its correlation with some factors in English language teaching.

Teaching culture in the Japanese language classroom: A NSW case study

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Caroline Mahoney

2009-12-01

Full Text Available This study examines, through a qualitative case study approach, how non-native- speaking (NNS Japanese language teachers in New South Wales (NSW teach culture and why. The study seeks to understand the pedagogy used to teach culture, teachers’ attitudes and beliefs on teaching culture and how these attitudes and beliefs have been influenced by past experiences. This study also explores how the NSW K-10 Japanese syllabus and concepts of Intercultural Language Learning (IcLL are being implemented in teachers’ classrooms. Two non-native-speaking (NNS Japanese language teachers from a selective secondary school in NSW were interviewed and their classes observed over three days. Analysis of interview and observation data shows that these teachers teach culture as determined by language content, integrate language and culture teaching and teach culture as observable and factual. The study shows that both teachers view culture teaching as easier than language teaching, however their views on the influence of the syllabus differ. The study explores the teachers’ past experiences and how these affect how they feel towards, and teach culture. Finally, this study looks at how the teachers’ practices reflect concepts of IcLL such as integrating language and culture, student-centered learning and how their status as NNS teachers affects their culture teaching.

Introduction: integrating genetic and cultural evolutionary approaches to language.

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Mesoudi, Alex; McElligott, Alan G; Adger, David

2011-04-01

The papers in this special issue of Human Biology address recent research in the field of language evolution, both the genetic evolution of the language faculty and the cultural evolution of specific languages. While both of these areas have received increasing interest in recent years, there is also a need to integrate these somewhat separate efforts and explore the relevant gene-culture coevolutionary interactions. Here we summarize the individual contributions, set them in the context of the wider literature, and identify outstanding future research questions. The first set of papers concerns the comparative study of nonhuman communication in primates and birds from both a behavioral and neurobiological perspective, revealing evidence for several common language-related traits in various nonhuman species and providing clues as to the evolutionary origin and function of the human language faculty. The second set of papers discusses the consequences of viewing language as a culturally evolving system in its own right, including claims that this removes the need for strong genetic biases for language acquisition, and that phylogenetic evolutionary methods can be used to reconstruct language histories. We conclude by highlighting outstanding areas for future research, including identifying the precise selection pressures that gave rise to the language faculty in ancestral hominin species, and determining the strength, domain specificity, and origin of the cultural transmission biases that shape languages as they pass along successive generations of language learners.

Intercultural Manifestations of Racial, Language, and Class Privilege in Schooling: An Autoethnographic Tale

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Marx, Sherry

2017-01-01

In this autoethnographic tale, I tell the story of my own family's experience with race, class, and language privilege. In particular, I focus on my children's experience with elementary schooling in the United States and Hungary. Their intercultural education experience vividly illuminates the socially and culturally constructed nature of race,…

The Influence of Target Culture on Language Learners

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Arif Sarıçoban

2011-04-01

Full Text Available This study was aimed at investigating the types of cultural activities students at Çankaya University wanted to have during their study of the target language and the level at which students preferred to see those cultural components in language classrooms. A questionnaire was used by the researcher for the purpose of collecting data. The questionnaire that was adapted for the study included 13 multiple choice questions. Each question had the option of “other” to enable further comments on the part of the students. The first part of the questionnaire elicited demographic information of the students. The data-gathering instrument was implemented on 95 preparatory school intermediate students and the results were analyzed statistically in terms of frequency, percentage and average. The findings of the research clearly showed the types of cultural activities students would enjoy in language classrooms, at which level they would like to do them, their attitudes towards the target culture, the level of importance students attach to the target culture and their understanding of “culture”. From the results it can be seen that most of the students who took part in the study had positive attitudes towards the inclusion of cultural components during their study of the English language. The study revealed very important data for the language teachers as well. The outcomes of the study are important not only for teachers but also for textbook publishers. This study presents them with valuable suggestions.

Culture in teaching English as an international language in CLT curriculum

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韩笑晨

2017-01-01

This thesis explored the role of culture in EIL teaching on the basis of CLT contexts by reviewing plentiful previous studies. Generally speaking, this thesis emphasized the relationship between language and culture, the necessity and importance of culture teaching in language teaching, what kind of culture should be included in cultural content for culture teaching and challenges of culture teaching in EIL teaching as well. In a word, Culture is correlated with language. Culture teaching plays a significant role in EIL teaching. In culture teaching, not only the target culture, but also various cultures related to EIL learners' daily life should be included.

Race, language, and mental evolution in Darwin's descent of man.

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Alter, Stephen G

2007-01-01

Charles Darwin was notoriously ambiguous in his remarks about the relationship between human evolution and biological race. He stressed the original unity of the races, yet he also helped to popularize the notion of a racial hierarchy filling the gaps between the highest anthropoids and civilized Europeans. A focus on Darwin's explanation of how humans initially evolved, however, shows that he mainly stressed not hierarchy but a version of humanity's original mental unity. In his book The Descent of Man, Darwin emphasized a substantial degree of mental development (including the incipient use of language) in the early, monogenetic phase of human evolution. This development, he argued, necessarily came before primeval man's numerical increase, geographic dispersion, and racial diversification, because only thus could one explain how that group was able to spread at the expense of rival ape-like populations. This scenario stood opposed to a new evolutionary polygenism formulated in the wake of Darwin's Origin of Species by his ostensible supporters Alfred Russel Wallace and Ernst Haeckel. Darwin judged this outlook inadequate to the task of explaining humanity's emergence. (c) 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

The Language-Culture Interface in German Advertisements.

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Gramberg, Anne-Katrin

A comparison of German and American advertising reveals differences in technique and structures. Persuasion is central in both, but the grammatical structures and illocutionary devices available in each language vary. The culture is also reflected in the type and degree to which each language uses techniques of persuasive language. The findings…

Youth Culture, Language Endangerment and Linguistic Survivance

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Wyman, Leisy

2012-01-01

Detailing a decade of life and language use in a remote Alaskan Yup'ik community, Youth Culture, Language Endangerment and Linguistic Survivance provides rare insight into young people's language brokering and Indigenous people's contemporary linguistic ecologies. This book examines how two consecutive groups of youth in a Yup'ik village…

African Americans Who Teach German Language and Culture.

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Fikes, Robert Jr.

2001-01-01

A large number of black scholars have pursued advanced degrees in the German language, history, and culture. Describes the history of African American interest in the German language and culture, highlighting various black scholars who have studied German over the years. Presents data on African Americans in German graduate programs and examines…

Portal: Your Door to World Languages and Cultures

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Elliott, Don; Lawton, Rachele

2009-01-01

Portal: Your Door to World Languages and Cultures was a series of public cultural events, in a variety of formats, created through a new partnership between the credit and continuing education (noncredit) foreign language programs at the Community College of Baltimore County (CCBC). Portal was designed to cultivate interest in foreign languages…

The Role of Culture in the Language Classroom.

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Dwyer, David; Folarin-Schleicher, Antonia; Moshi, Lioba

1999-01-01

Discusses the role of culture in second language instruction; Examines properties of culture, culture as a product of human activity, culture as a shared product, culture as an artificial product, cultural diversity, cultural relativism, cultural sensitivity, and stages of cultural awareness. Focuses on how to teach cultural knowledge, and the…

Inquiring into Culture in our Foreign-Language Classrooms

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Damaris Castro

2011-06-01

Full Text Available This article presents some theoretical reflections about the concept of culture and its paramount importance in foreign language classrooms, as a basis for examining curriculum as inquiry, a facilitative tool to incorporate culture in courses in the Bachelor’s degree in the Teaching of English as a Foreign Language at the National University of Costa Rica (UNA. Feasible solutions to common problems that teachers face when trying to incorporate culture in their classrooms, are also discussed.

Breastfeeding Perceptions and Attitudes: The Effect of Race/Ethnicity And Cultural Background

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Krystal Christopher

2012-10-01

Full Text Available Breastfeeding has been generating a lot of publicity in the past years largely due to new legislation promoting breastfeeding -friendly policies. However, the United States is far below many developed nations in regards to its populations’ breastfeeding prevalence and despite the unprecedented benefits of breastfeeding being documented, many are not breastfeeding. Breastfeeding in the U.S. varies dramatically by race, with individuals identifying as Black or African American breastfeeding much less at 6 months postpartum than Asian or Pacific Islander, White, or Hispanic. Overall, Individuals identifying as Asian or Pacific Islander have a higher breastfeeding rate 6 months postpartum with Hispanics coming in second. This study uses survey data to analyze the impact of race/ethnicity and cultural background on college students’ attitudes towards breastfeeding. This study found that respondents identifying as Hispanic had a more positive attitude towards breastfeeding than any other race or ethnicity. Also, respondents having at least one parent born outside of the United States had a more positive perception of breastfeeding than those who had parents born in the United States. These findings suggest that there are some cultural and racial influences on one’s perception and attitudes as it pertains to breastfeeding.

Raising Cultural Awareness in the English Language Classroom

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Frank, Jerrold

2013-01-01

This article discusses how teachers can incorporate cultural knowledge into English language classes, exploring elements of culture, intercultural phenomena, and high-context and low-context cultures. Activities offered by the author to raise cultural awareness include web quests, role plays, cultural observations, and culture journals.

AWARENESS AND MOTIVATION IN CROSS-CULTURAL LANGUAGE TEACHING

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Elena SAVU

2013-11-01

Full Text Available The focus in language education in the twenty-first century does no longer fall on grammar, memorization and learning from rote, but rather on using language alongside with cultural knowledge as a means to communicate and connect to other people all over the world. Our learners are going to become part of today’s intercultural communication network and they will need to use both their language and cultural skills for real life communication. Therefore, teachers themselves should be ready to assume the responsibility of teaching their learners how to become culturally competent. To do this properly and successfully, practitioners need to build and develop their own awareness of and motivation for an intercultural approach. The current paper will present and analyze some recent research findings on higher education practitioners’ motivation to adopt a cross-cultural approach in their classrooms.

Influence of culture and language sensitive physics on science attitude enhancement

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Morales, Marie Paz E.

2015-12-01

The study critically explored how culture and language sensitive curriculum materials in physics improve Pangasinan learners' attitude towards science. Their cultural dimensions, epistemological beliefs, and views on integration of culture and language in the teaching and learning process determined their cultural preference or profile. Design and development of culture and language sensitive curriculum materials in physics were heavily influenced by these learners' cultural preference or profile. Pilot-study using interviews and focus group discussions with natives of Pangasinan and document analysis were conducted to identify the culture, practices, and traditions integrated in the lesson development. Comparison of experimental participants' pretest and posttest results on science attitude measure showed significant statistical difference. Appraisal of science attitude enhancement favored the experimental group over the control group. Qualitative data deduced from post implementation interviews, focus group discussions, and journal log entries showed the same trend in favor of the experimental participants. The study revealed that culture and language integration in the teaching and learning process of physics concepts enabled students to develop positive attitude to science, their culture, and native language.

Prospective English Language Teachers' Perceptions of the Target Language and Culture in Relation to Their Socioeconomic Status

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Arikan, Arda

2011-01-01

Prospective foreign language teachers need to have an accurate knowledge and a positive perception of the target language and target culture so that they can help their students gain further insight on culture by and large. Hence, by means of a questionnaire, prospective English language teachers' (n= 412) perceptions of the target language and…

Person-first and identity-first language: Developing psychologists' cultural competence using disability language.

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Dunn, Dana S; Andrews, Erin E

2015-04-01

The American Psychological Association (APA) advocates the use of person-first language (e.g., people with disabilities) to refer to individuals with disabilities in daily discourse and to reduce bias in psychological writing. Disability culture advocates and disability studies scholars have challenged the rationale for and implications of exclusive person-first language use, promoting use of identity-first language (e.g., disabled people). We argue that psychologists should adopt identity-first language alongside person-first constructions to address the concerns of disability groups while promoting human dignity and maintaining scientific and professional rigor. We review the evolution of disability language and then discuss the major models used to characterize disability and people with disabilities. The rationale for person-first language and the emergence of identity-first language, respectively, are linked to particular models. We then discuss some language challenges posed by identity-first language and the current intent of person-first language, suggesting that psychologists make judicious use of the former when it is possible to do so. We conclude by offering five observations of ways that use of both person-first and identity-first language could enhance psychologists' cultural competence regarding disability issues in personal and scientific communications. (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

Educational Environment and Cultural Transmission in Foreign Language Teaching

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Memis, Muhammet Rasit

2016-01-01

Foreign language teaching is not to teach grammar and vocabulary of the target language and to gain basic language skills only. Foreign language teaching is teaching of the language's culture at the same time. Because of language and community develop and shape together, learning, understanding and speaking a foreign language literally requires…

language as a culture and biodiversity conservation

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biodiversity conservation because life in a particular human environment is ... communication ,by language, by word expression as cultural genes, stories, legends and ..... for expressing individual identity, preserve culture, understanding the ...

Language Cultural Specificity of the Language Units “Cat” and “Dog” in English and Chinese Languages

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Жером Багана

2016-12-01

Full Text Available The article deals with the national and cultural features of zoonyms “cat” and “dog” in English and Chinese languages. The authors point out zoonyms’ main characteristics and their national cultural originality. Zoonyms represent the special features of national linguistic world view and values in the comparative analysis’ aspect The article represents interpretation of the language units in the monolingual explanatory dictionaries. The dictionary definitions of the terms phraseology and zoonym are given. The research is devoted to phraseology in the English and Chinese languages. The historical notes about the attitude toward cats and dogs in Britain and China are shown. Also some peculiarities of zoonyms function in English and Chinese animal fairy-tales are observed. Based on the differences the authors notice differences of phraseology between zoonyms “cat” and “dog”. Some examples in the English and Chinese languages are observed. The analysis represents universal and national specific semantic features of the present units in the languages so far as phraseology contains the most vivid representation of the national-cultural specificity of world view, connotative features and values peoples in Europe and Asia.

Just a preference: racialised language in the sex-seeking profiles of gay and bisexual men.

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Callander, Denton; Holt, Martin; Newman, Christy E

2012-10-01

Racialised language is a salient and contested aspect of contemporary sexual cultures, particularly in the online domain. This paper explores the ways in which gay men in Australia employ race-related language when using online sex/dating websites. Using inductive content analysis, descriptive categories were developed to identify recurrent patterns in the racialised language employed by website users. A coding framework was then constructed to identify the 'subject' (self, other or concept) of each piece of race-related content, its 'purpose' (marketing, negative or positive discrimination, commentary) and the 'position' adopted (defensive, normalised or critical). Descriptive and comparative analyses revealed differences in the ways in which members of racial groups employed racialised language online. These differences are reviewed in relation to broader discourses on Whiteness and race in Australia, as well as recent community-produced anti-racism campaigns.

The Cultural Dimensions of Language Teaching and Learning

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Risager, Karen

2011-01-01

Language teaching and learning has many different cultural dimensions, and over the years more and more of these have been the subject of research. The first dimension to be explored was that of content: the images of target language countries and the world that were offered in textbooks...... and presented in class. The next dimension was that of the learner: the (inter)cultural learning, competence and identity of the learner or subject. The next dimension was context: the situation and role of language teaching and learning in society and in the world....

Culture and Language Learning: Middle Eastern Students.

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Magrath, Douglas

Middle Eastern students face cultural conflicts in adapting to the western value system. While feeling obligated to maintain their native culture they also need to feel comfortable with the culture of their target language. In attempting to identify with a new group, ESL students may sense a loss of membership in their native group. Culture stress…

The Interesting Teaching and Learning of Malay Language to Foreign Speakers: Language through Cultures

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Mazlina Baharudin

2016-06-01

Full Text Available The interesting teaching and learning of Malay languages is a challenging effort and need a relevant plan to the students’ needs especially for the foreign students who already have the basic Indonesian Malay language variation that they have learned for four semesters in their own country, Germany. Therefore, the variety of teaching and learning strategies should be considered by the teachers to make teaching and learning become interesting, effective and not boring. Basic effectiveness of a language program was the factors of socio-culture, the style of teaching and learning, the students, and the characteristics of the program. This paper however focused on the socio-cultural factors (learning of cultures and the activities program that enable to generate excitement and effectiveness in the teaching and learning of Malay language as a foreign language. In the teaching and learning process found that the more we gave the activities to the students, the more the students acquired the meaning of the lessons. In this study, the selected respondents were the two groups of students from TWG, Konstanz, Germany who have followed the Malay Language and Culture Program in the Languages, Literacies and Translation Center, University of Sains Malaysia, Penang, in 2011. The first group was started in March to June, and the second group in September to November. The research was based on formal and informal observations and interviews. This paper also discussed about the outdoor activities program used as curriculum in the teaching and learning process that gives an interesting environment to foreign students

Integrating Culture and Second Language Teaching through Yoruba Personal Names

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Akinyemi, Akintunde

2005-01-01

Using Yoruba as a case study, this article demonstrates the fact that the languages of Africa and the cultures of its peoples are inseparable. Therefore, the study advocates that appropriate aspects of these cultures should form an integral part of African language teaching. This article discusses specifically how language teachers can transmit…

Family Treasures: A Dual-Language Book Project for Negotiating Language, Literacy, Culture, and Identity

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Roessingh, Hetty

2011-01-01

This article advances a framework for early language and literacy development among young English language learners (ELLs). A dual-language book project undertaken in partnership with a local elementary school provides a context within which to address children's need to negotiate language, culture, and identity as they transition and make meaning…

World Language Students' Ethnographic Investigations of Culture through Mobile Devices

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Tuttle, Harry G.; Tuttle, Lori A.

2017-01-01

World language teachers can transform how their students learn culture through the use of mobile devices. When world language students use their mobile devices to access authentic current culture, they go from being passive receivers of culture to active cultural investigators. These students go from learning thin surface culture to exploring…

Relationship between Language Learners’ Attitudes toward Cultural Instruction and Pragmatic Comprehension and Production

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Vahid Rafieyan

2016-08-01

Full Text Available Development of target language pragmatic competence in language learners requires not only provision of cultural features of target language community in language classes but also language learner’s willingness to learn and use those cultural features. To investigate the relationship between language learners’ attitudes toward cultural instruction and their gains in comprehension and production aspects of pragmatic competence, the current study was conducted on 50 undergraduate Japanese students of English education at a university in Japan. The adapted version of the attitude questionnaire developed by Albirini (2009 was used to measure language learners’ attitudes toward cultural instruction. A 24-item pragmatic comprehension test developed by Taguchi (2007, 2008 was used to measure language learners’ pragmatic comprehension ability. Finally, a 32-item discourse completion task developed by Bardovi-Harlig (2009 was used to measure language learners’ pragmatic production ability. The analysis of Pearson product–moment correlation coefficient (r revealed a strong positive relationship between attitude toward cultural instruction and pragmatic comprehension ability as well as attitude toward cultural instruction and pragmatic production ability. The pedagogical implications of the findings suggested incorporation of interesting cultural features of the target language community in language classes and presenting them in interesting ways to attract language learners’ attention and interest. Keywords: Attitude, Cultural Instruction, Pragmatic Comprehension, Pragmatic Production

A Model of Instruction for Integrating Culture and Language.

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Papalia, Anthony

An integrated model of instruction in language and culture uses a sequential method of discovering sensation, perception, concept, and principle to develop self-analysis skills in students. When planning activities for learning a language and developing cultural understanding, teachers might follow a sequence such as the following: introduce…

Cultural Transfer and Creating Cultural Awareness in Teaching Turkish as a Foreign Language: A Sample from Gaziosmanpasa University Tömer

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Iscan, Adem; Karagöz, Beytullah; Konyar, Merve

2017-01-01

Culture and language are two phenomena that have existed by influencing each other for centuries. It is impossible to think independently of the culture on which the language is cultivated, nor on the language, which influences culture. One of the best signs of mastering a language is the ability to understand the cultural elements and the…

Language and culture modulate online semantic processing.

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Ellis, Ceri; Kuipers, Jan R; Thierry, Guillaume; Lovett, Victoria; Turnbull, Oliver; Jones, Manon W

2015-10-01

Language has been shown to influence non-linguistic cognitive operations such as colour perception, object categorization and motion event perception. Here, we show that language also modulates higher level processing, such as semantic knowledge. Using event-related brain potentials, we show that highly fluent Welsh-English bilinguals require significantly less processing effort when reading sentences in Welsh which contain factually correct information about Wales, than when reading sentences containing the same information presented in English. Crucially, culturally irrelevant information was processed similarly in both Welsh and English. Our findings show that even in highly proficient bilinguals, language interacts with factors associated with personal identity, such as culture, to modulate online semantic processing. © The Author (2015). Published by Oxford University Press.

Influence of Culture and Language Sensitive Physics on Science Attitude Enhancement

Science.gov (United States)

Morales, Marie Paz E.

2015-01-01

The study critically explored how culture and language sensitive curriculum materials in physics improve Pangasinan learners' attitude towards science. Their cultural dimensions, epistemological beliefs, and views on integration of culture and language in the teaching and learning process determined their cultural preference or profile. Design and…

Narrative Inquiry: A Dynamic Relationship between Culture, Language and Education

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Chan, Esther Yim Mei

2017-01-01

Human development is a cultural process, and language serves as a cultural tool is closely related to virtually all the cognitive changes. The author addresses issues of language in education, and suggests that changing the medium of instruction should not be understood as purely a pedagogical decision. The connection between culture and language…

"Más allá del fútbol": Teaching Highland Afro-Ecuadorian Culture and Engaging Race and Racism through Documentary Film

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Ruggiero, Diana M.

2015-01-01

This study presents strategies for teaching highland Afro-Ecuadorian culture and for broaching the topic of race and racism through the documentary film "Más allá del fútbol." Produced in 2008 by the author, this film explores "afrochoteño" identity and culture as well as the issues of race and racism in Ecuador through a…

Popular Culture in Transglossic Language Practices of Young Adults

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Sultana, Shaila; Dovchin, Sender

2017-01-01

Based on virtual conversations drawn from two separate intensive ethnographic studies in Bangladesh and Mongolia, we show that popular cultural texts play a significant role in young adults' heteroglossic language practices. On the one hand, they borrow voices from cultural texts and cross the boundaries of language, i.e., codes, modes, and…

Relationship between Attitude toward Target Language Culture Instruction and Pragmatic Comprehension Development

Science.gov (United States)

Rafieyan, Vahid; Majid, Norazman Bin Abdul; Eng, Lin Siew

2013-01-01

Familiarity with the cultural features of the target language society and interest in learning those cultural features are the key factors to determine language learners' level of pragmatic comprehension. To investigate this issue, this study attempted to assess the relationship between attitude toward incorporating target language culture into…

Culturally and linguistically diverse students in speech-language pathology courses: A platform for culturally responsive services.

Science.gov (United States)

Attrill, Stacie; Lincoln, Michelle; McAllister, Sue

2017-06-01

Increasing the proportion of culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) students and providing intercultural learning opportunities for all students are two strategies identified to facilitate greater access to culturally responsive speech-language pathology services. To enact these strategies, more information is needed about student diversity. This study collected descriptive information about CALD speech-language pathology students in Australia. Cultural and linguistic background information was collected through surveying 854 domestic and international speech-language pathology students from three Australian universities. Students were categorised according to defined or perceived CALD status, international student status, speaking English as an Additional Language (EAL), or speaking a Language Other than English at Home (LOTEH). Overall, 32.1% of students were either defined or perceived CALD. A total of 14.9% spoke EAL and 25.7% identified speaking a LOTEH. CALD students were more likely to speak EAL or a LOTEH than non-CALD students, were prominently from Southern and South-Eastern Asian backgrounds and spoke related languages. Many students reported direct or indirect connections with their cultural heritage and/or contributed linguistic diversity. These students may represent broader acculturative experiences in communities. The sociocultural knowledge and experience of these students may provide intercultural learning opportunities for all students and promote culturally responsive practices.

Second Language Acquisition and Its Pscycho-cultural Implications

OpenAIRE

Waskita, Dana

2009-01-01

Bilingualism or multilingualism may imply socioeconomic advantages. But a further literature study indicates that this may also affect psychological and cultural viewpoints. The acquisition of second language would significantly influence the mentality or perceptual framework of the language users. Consequently, this finding may inspire to the appropriate pedagogical methods in language acquisition.

Emergent Processes of Language Acquisition: Japanese Language Leaning and the Consumption of Japanese Cultural Products in Thailand

OpenAIRE

Toyoshima, Noboru

2013-01-01

Motivation for learning a second language varies among individuals: some people enjoy the process of learning languages, while others learn a second language for practical reasons. Previous fieldwork research in Thailand has shown that many consumers of Japanese cultural products are also learners of the Japanese language. This suggests that Japanese cultural products motivate consumers to start studying Japanese and to continue learning it. In this study, two hypotheses will be posed in orde...

On the viewpoint of Culture and Language

OpenAIRE

李, 潤玉

2006-01-01

(Summary)This paper is intended to raise the query of `What is culture?' and to represent my assumption that `culture' is equivalent to `the way of thinking / viewing which people in the same group, community, nation etc. have in common conceptually'. This definition of `culture' is proved to be right mainly through linguistic examples in different languages.

The necessity of cultural knowledge during the foreign language studies

OpenAIRE

Kroteva, Marijana; Mirascieva, Snezana

2010-01-01

The aim of this paper is to present the significance and introduction of cultural studies in the curricula for foreign language studies. Although the main focus in the paper is pointed to English as the most dominant language in the world today, the paper is primarily intended and refers to all the languages. Section two consists of the aspects and reasons for the necessity of introducing the cultural studies in the foreign language curricula. Section three is written upon the research result...

Attitudes of Foreigners Who Learn Turkish as a Second Language towards Turkish Culture

Science.gov (United States)

Maden, Sedat

2017-01-01

There is a very close association between language and culture. Thus, cultural values should be prioritized in language training and cultural knowledge should be concurrently instructed. Turkish culture should also be introduced to learners of Turkish as a foreign language. Therefore, it is important to determine the attitudes of learners of…

Herder and Modernity: From Lesser-Taught Languages to Lesser-Taught Cultures

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Martin Votruba

2017-03-01

Full Text Available The typical North American curriculum of a lesser-taught Slavic language implicitly relies on the legacy of Johann Gottfried von Herder’s interpretation that language in and of itself contains national (ethnic culture. At the same time, enrolments are dwindling even in courses in the most commonly taught Slavic languages. Millennials’ understandable focus on the practicality of the courses they take make it unlikely for the lesser-taught languages to survive the slump. On the other hand, foreign culture courses are appearing to hold their ground more successfully. Slavic departments may reconsider Herder’s dictum as they try to maintain or establish programs in lesser-taught languages and cultures.

A Spanish language and culture initiative for a doctor of pharmacy curriculum.

Science.gov (United States)

VanTyle, W Kent; Kennedy, Gala; Vance, Michael A; Hancock, Bruce

2011-02-10

To implement a Spanish language and culture initiative in a doctor of pharmacy (PharmD) curriculum that would improve students' Spanish language skills and cultural competence so that graduates could provide competent pharmaceutical care to Spanish-speaking patients. Five elective courses were created and introduced to the curriculum including 2 medical Spanish courses; a medical Spanish service-learning course; a 2-week Spanish language and cultural immersion trip to Mexico; and an advanced practice pharmacy experience (APPE) at a medical care clinic serving a high percentage of Spanish-speaking patients. Advisors placed increased emphasis on encouraging pharmacy students to complete a major or minor in Spanish. Enrollment in the Spanish language courses and the cultural immersion trip has been strong. Twenty-three students have completed the APPE at a Spanish-speaking clinic. Eleven percent of 2010 Butler University pharmacy graduates completed a major or minor in Spanish compared to approximately 1% in 2004 when the initiative began. A Spanish language and culture initiative started in 2004 has resulted in increased Spanish language and cultural competence among pharmacy students and recent graduates.

25 tips for working through language and cultural barriers in your medical practice.

Science.gov (United States)

Hills, Laura Sachs

2009-01-01

The language and cultural barriers facing medical patients with limited English language proficiency pose tremendous challenges and risks. Moreover, medical practices today are more likely than ever to employ individuals whose first language is not English or who do not possess native-like knowledge of American culture. Knowing how to work through the language and cultural barriers you are likely to encounter in your medical practice has become increasingly more important. This article is written by a practice management consultant who has graduate-level linguistics training and second-language teaching credentials and experience. It offers 25 practical tips to help you communicate more effectively with individuals who are outside of your native culture and language. These include easy-to-implement tips about English language pronunciation, grammar, and word choice. This article also suggests what you can do personally to bridge the cultural divide with your patients and co-workers. Finally, this article includes a case study of one Virginia practice in which cultural differences interfered with the practice's smooth operation. It explains how the practice eventually worked through and overcame this cultural obstacle.

Language and Culture: Nigerian Perspective | Obiegbu | African ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The power of language to reflect culture and influence thinking was first proposed by an American linguist and anthropologist, Edward Sapir (1884-1939) and his student, Benjamin Whorf (1897-1941). The Saphir-Whorf hypothesis stated that the way we think and view the world is determined by our language. This theory ...

Community health center provider and staff's Spanish language ability and cultural awareness.

Science.gov (United States)

Baig, Arshiya A; Benitez, Amanda; Locklin, Cara A; Campbell, Amanda; Schaefer, Cynthia T; Heuer, Loretta J; Lee, Sang Mee; Solomon, Marla C; Quinn, Michael T; Burnet, Deborah L; Chin, Marshall H

2014-05-01

Many community health center providers and staff care for Latinos with diabetes, but their Spanish language ability and awareness of Latino culture are unknown. We surveyed 512 Midwestern health center providers and staff who managed Latino patients with diabetes. Few respondents had high Spanish language (13%) or cultural awareness scores (22%). Of respondents who self-reported 76-100% of their patients were Latino, 48% had moderate/low Spanish language and 49% had moderate/low cultural competency scores. Among these respondents, 3% lacked access to interpreters and 27% had neither received cultural competency training nor had access to training. Among all respondents, Spanish skills and Latino cultural awareness were low. Respondents who saw a significant number of Latinos had good access to interpretation services but not cultural competency training. Improved Spanish-language skills and increased access to cultural competency training and Latino cultural knowledge are needed to provide linguistically and culturally tailored care to Latino patients.

Using Interconnected Texts to Highlight Culture in the Foreign Language Classroom

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Maya

2013-01-01

SLA research on foreign language pedagogy has long demonstrated that culture is essential to language learning. However, presenting culture in the language classroom poses certain problems. For learners, there is a tendency to stereotype others and to rely excessively on the teacher. For teachers, there is a tendency to transmit isolated facts…

The politics of race in cultural distribution: Addressing inequalities in British Asian theatre

OpenAIRE

Saha, Anamik

2017-01-01

This article has two aims. Firstly, it challenges the assumption in both policy and media studies of race that increasing the number of minorities in the media will automatically lead to more diverse content. Secondly, it highlights how cultural distribution is a critical, yet under-researched, moment for racialised minorities working in the arts. Using a case study on ‘British Asian theatre’, the article problematises a particular cultural policy approach that emphasises the need to attract ...

Simulating the Effects of Cross-Generational Cultural Transmission on Language Change

Science.gov (United States)

Gong, Tao; Shuai, Lan

Language evolves in a socio-cultural environment. Apart from biological evolution and individual learning, cultural transmission also casts important influence on many aspects of language evolution. In this paper, based on the lexicon-syntax coevolution model, we extend the acquisition framework in our previous work to examine the roles of three forms of cultural transmission spanning the offspring, parent, and grandparent generations in language change. These transmissions are: those between the parent and offspring generations (PO), those within the offspring generation (OO), and those between the grandparent and offspring generations (GO). The simulation results of the considered model and relevant analyses illustrate not only the necessity of PO and OO transmissions for language change, thus echoing our previous findings, but also the importance of GO transmission, a form of cross-generational cultural transmission, on preserving the mutual understandability of the communal language across generations of individuals.

Institutional marginalisation and student resistance: barriers to learning about culture, race and ethnicity.

Science.gov (United States)

Roberts, Jane H; Sanders, Tom; Mann, Karen; Wass, Val

2010-10-01

Although education about culture, race and ethnicity has increasingly been viewed as an important addition to the medical undergraduate curriculum, internationally the evidence of its effectiveness is mixed. Research to date fails to show why. We chose to explore how contrasting approaches to learning about cultural diversity impacted on medical students. The views of second year students towards teaching about cultural diversity at two UK medical schools, with differently structured curricula, were explored using a series of focus groups (7). The findings, using a methodology based on a combination of grounded theory and thematic analysis identified two potentially competing views espoused by the students at both sites. First, they claimed that although cultural diversity was important, their medical schools marginalised and failed to adequately support effective teaching. Second, in contrast, they claimed that the medical school was an 'inappropriate' setting for successful teaching about cultural diversity. Students did not consider the subject matter to be of central relevance to biomedicine. They felt it should be learnt experientially in the workplace and socially among peers. These narratives represent two potentially conflicting standpoints, which might be understood through the sociological concept of 'habitus', where students conform to the institution's dominant values in order to succeed. The tensions identified in this study cannot be ignored if effective learning about race, ethnicity and culture is to be achieved. Early introduction to understanding the delivery of health care to diverse populations is needed. This should be accompanied by more open collaborative debate between tutors and students on the issues raised.

Culture and Early Language Development: Implications for Assessment and Intervention

Science.gov (United States)

Parada, Patricia M.

2013-01-01

The purpose of this qualitative study--"Culture and Early Language Development: Implications for Assessment and Intervention"--was to explore and describe the perceptions and beliefs of Salvadoran mothers of low socioeconomic status regarding the language development of their young children in order to identify cultural variations in…

Wikipedia Culture Gap: Quantifying Content Imbalances Across 40 Language Editions

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Marc Miquel-Ribé

2018-06-01

Full Text Available The online encyclopedia Wikipedia is the largest general information repository created through collaborative efforts from all over the globe. Despite the project's goal being to achieve the sum of human knowledge, there are strong content imbalances across the language editions. In order to quantify and investigate these imbalances, we study the impact of cultural context in 40 language editions. To this purpose, we developed a computational method to identify articles that can be related to the editors' cultural context associated to each Wikipedia language edition. We employed a combination of strategies taking into account geolocated articles, specific keywords and categories, as well as links between articles. We verified the method's quality with manual assessment and found an average precision of 0.92 and an average recall of 0.95. The results show that about a quarter of each Wikipedia language edition is dedicated to represent the corresponding cultural context. Although a considerable part of this content was created during the first years of the project, its creation is sustained over time. An analysis of cross-language coverage of this content shows that most of it is unique in its original language, and reveals special links between cultural contexts; at the same time, it highlights gaps where the encyclopedia could extend its content. The approach and findings presented in this study can help to foster participation and inter-cultural enrichment of Wikipedias. The datasets produced are made available for further research.

The Role of Cultural Competence in the Teaching of Hungarian as a Foreign Language and in Cultural Diplomacy

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Erika Sólyom

2015-01-01

Full Text Available In the present paper, I aim to shed light on the importance of cultural competence from three perspectives. First, in my capacity as a sociolinguist, I will talk about how Hungarian culture is incorporated in the textbook "Colloquial Hungarian" (Rounds and Sólyom 2011, providing particular examples from various dialogues and cultural notes from the book. I believe that linguistic competence, communicative competence, and cultural competence are equally important parts of foreign language teaching and foreign language learning. Second, as a foreign language instructor at U.S. study abroad programs, I plan to discuss the importance of cultural norms of the speakers of the local language in the host country. Third, as a director of an American cultural and resource center in Budapest, I will talk about the importance of building bridges between two cultures, describing the goals and missions of the center as well as giving specific examples of the activities of the American Corner Budapest.

Is it culture or is it language? Examination of language effects in cross-cultural research on categorization.

Science.gov (United States)

Ji, Li-Jun; Zhang, Zhiyong; Nisbett, Richard E

2004-07-01

Differences in reasoning styles between Chinese and European Americans held even when controlling for the language of testing. Bilingual Chinese organized objects in a more relational and less categorical way than European Americans, whether tested in English or in Chinese. Thus, culture affects categorization independent of the testing language. Nevertheless, language affected some Chinese bilinguals' categorization. The responses of Chinese from the Mainland and Taiwan were more relational when tested in Chinese than when tested in English. Responses of Chinese from Hong Kong and Singapore were equally relational when tested in Chinese and in English. Age and context of learning English are discussed to explain the differential language effects among different Chinese groups. Theoretical and methodological implications are discussed. Copyright 2004 American Psychological Association

The fading phase of Igbo language and culture: path to its ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The fading phase of Igbo language and culture: path to its revitalisation. ... philosophy of the Igbo man towards himself, his environment and his personal effects, and has discovered that the bane of Igbo language and culture is the Igbo man's attitude towards that which is his, and his easy enchantment with foreign cultures.

BAHASA MELAYU DI PERSIMPANGAN: ANTARA JATI DIRI DENGAN REMPUHAN GLOBALISASI (THE MALAY LANGUAGE AT CROSSROADS: BETWEEN IDENTITY AND THE ONSLAUGHT OF GLOBALISATION

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ABDULLAH HASSAN

2009-01-01

Full Text Available This article discusses the relationship between the Malay language and the identity of the individual and the race, particularly in relation to the Malays in Malaysia. The identity of an individual and a race is defined from a philosophical perspective and cross-referenced with definitions by sociologists, historians and social scientists. Based on this, it is concluded that there are five elements that shape the identity of a race, that is, the same ancestry, language, culture, religion, and locale. Whilst there are elemental structures that undergird an identity, there are factors that can cause an identity to change. This is discussed in light of a few hypotheses that the present article argues can generate change in the identity of a race. The article concludes that the change in the identity of an individual or a race happens when there is change in the language that is used.

Effects of Community Service-Learning on Heritage Language Learners' Attitudes toward Their Language and Culture

Science.gov (United States)

Pascual y Cabo, Diego; Prada, Josh; Lowther Pereira, Kelly

2017-01-01

This study examined the effects of participation in a community service-learning experience on Spanish heritage language learners' attitudes toward their heritage language and culture. Quantitative and qualitative data from heritage language learners demonstrated that engagement in community service-learning activities as part of the Spanish…

An Inventory of Foreign Language Cultural Resources.

Science.gov (United States)

Steele, Winifred H.

The results of a survey of cultural resources available to high school foreign language students in the Central New Jersey and New York City areas are presented in a listing of cultural and professional organizations, businesses, schools, government tourist offices, television and radio broadcasts, publications, religious groups, travel agents,…

Exploring the Impact of Culture- and Language-Influenced Physics on Science Attitude Enhancement

Science.gov (United States)

Morales, Marie Paz E.

2016-02-01

"Culture," a set of principles that trace and familiarize human beings within their existential realities, may provide an invisible lens through which reality could be discerned. Critically explored in this study is how culture- and language-sensitive curriculum materials in physics improve Pangasinan learners' attitude toward science. Their cultural preference or profile defined their cultural dimensions, epistemological beliefs, and views on integration of culture and language in the teaching and learning processes. The culture- and language-influenced curriculum materials in physics were heavily influenced by Pangasinan learners' cultural preference or profile. Results of the experimental participants' pretest and posttest on science attitude measure, when compared, showed significant statistical difference. Assessment of science attitude enhancement favored the experimental group over the control group. Qualitative data gathered from postimplementation interviews, focus group discussions, and journal log entries indicated the same trend in favor of the experimental participants. The study yielded that culture and language integration in the teaching and learning processes of physics concepts allowed students to develop positive attitude to science, their culture, and native language.

Inter-functional influence of culture and language during the process of foreign language teaching of teenagers

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Ergeshali kyzy A.

2017-01-01

Full Text Available this article describes some theoretical tasks of multicultural education of teenagers in foreign language teaching. The work also has analyzed inter-functional influence of the language and culture in the process of foreign language teaching.

Slavic and Norwegian Language and Culture in Contact: The Influence of the Norwegian Language and Culture on Immigrant Youth from the Former Yugoslavia

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Branka Lie

2000-06-01

Full Text Available This paper is in fact an extensive summary of the author’s dissertation, which focuses on the immigrant children’s life in migratory existence in Norway. The dissertation is divided into two main parts: Part I – Cultures in Contact and Part II – Languages in contact. The main purpose of this dissertation was to find out what happened with the first language of the former Yugoslav immigrant youth in Norway, while under the influence of the Norwegian environment and language. It has been an aim to understand and analyse these immigrant children’s bilingual and bicultural lives as immigrants in Norway. The term immigrant children are here defined as children of first generation of immigrants where both parents are ex-Yugoslavians. Among these immigrant children were those who were born in Norway, and those who arrived in Norway as babies, as preschoolers, and as school age children. Research on immigrants’ language and culture indicates that it is possible for immigrant children to identify themselves with two cultures and two languages. The dissertation tries to give answer to what extent the immigrant children in this study have become bilingual and bicultural.

Do Experiences with Medicare Managed Care Vary According to the Proportion of Same-Race/Ethnicity/Language Individuals Enrolled in One's Contract?

Science.gov (United States)

Price, Rebecca Anhang; Haviland, Amelia M; Hambarsoomian, Katrin; Dembosky, Jacob W; Gaillot, Sarah; Weech-Maldonado, Robert; Williams, Malcolm V; Elliott, Marc N

2015-01-01

Objective To examine whether care experiences and immunization for racial/ethnic/language minority Medicare beneficiaries vary with the proportion of same-group beneficiaries in Medicare Advantage (MA) contracts. Data Sources/Study Setting Exactly 492,495 Medicare beneficiaries responding to the 2008–2009 MA Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS) Survey. Data Collection/Extraction Methods Mixed-effect regression models predicted eight CAHPS patient experience measures from self-reported race/ethnicity/language preference at individual and contract levels, beneficiary-level case-mix adjustors, along with contract and geographic random effects. Principal Findings As a contract's proportion of a given minority group increased, overall and non-Hispanic, white patient experiences were poorer on average; for the minority group in question, however, high-minority plans may score as well as low-minority plans. Spanish-preferring Hispanic beneficiaries also experience smaller disparities relative to non-Hispanic whites in plans with higher Spanish-preferring proportions. Conclusions The tendency for high-minority contracts to provide less positive patient experiences for others in the contract, but similar or even more positive patient experiences for concentrated minority group beneficiaries, may reflect cultural competency, particularly language services, that partially or fully counterbalance the poorer overall quality of these contracts. For some beneficiaries, experiences may be just as positive in some high-minority plans with low overall scores as in plans with higher overall scores. PMID:25752334

Race and Culture in the Secondary School Health and Physical Education Curriculum in Ontario, Canada: A Critical Reading

Science.gov (United States)

Petherick, LeAnne

2018-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore issues of race and culture in health education in the secondary school health and physical education (HPE) curriculum in Ontario, Canada. Design/methodology/approach: Using Ontario's secondary school curriculum as a point of analysis, this paper draws from critical race theory and a whiteness lens…

From Cultural Knowledge to Intercultural Communicative Competence: Changing Perspectives on the Role of Culture in Foreign Language Teaching

Science.gov (United States)

Piatkowska, Katarzyna

2015-01-01

Approaches to the concept of culture and teaching cultural competence in a foreign language classroom have been changing over the last decades. The paper summarises, compares, contrasts and evaluates four major approaches to teaching cultural competence in foreign language teaching, that is, knowledge-based approach, contrastive approach,…

Differential Effect of Race, Education, Gender, and Language Discrimination on Glycemic Control in Adults with Type 2 Diabetes

OpenAIRE

Brice Reynolds, D.; Walker, Rebekah J.; Campbell, Jennifer A.; Egede, Leonard E.

2015-01-01

Background: Discrimination has been linked to negative health outcomes, but little research has investigated different types of discrimination to determine if some have a greater impact on outcomes. We examined the differential effect of discrimination based on race, level of education, gender, and language on glycemic control in adults with type 2 diabetes.

The Importance of Culture in Second and Foreign Language Learning

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sheeraz Ali

2015-06-01

Full Text Available English has been designated as a source of intercultural communication among the people from diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds. A range of linguistic and cultural theories contribute meaningful insights on the development of competence in intercultural communication. The speculations suggest the use of communicative strategies focusing on the development of learners’ efficiency in communicating language through cultural context. However, the teaching of culture in communication has not been paid due importance in a number of academic and language settings of Pakistan and Iran. This assignment study indicates problems in view of teaching English as a medium of instruction in public sector colleges of interior Sindh, Pakistan and prescribed textbooks in Iranian schools. It also aims to identify drawbacks and shortcoming in prescribed textbooks for intermediate students at college level and schools. Therefore, the assignment study recommends integration of cultural awareness into a language teaching programme for an overall achievement of competence in intercultural communication.

Law and Language in a Multilingual Society

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Judge Louis Harms

2012-08-01

Full Text Available Terence McKenna, in Wild Ducks Flying Backwards, said that he did not believe thatthe world is made of quarks or electro-magnetic waves, or stars, or planets, or of anysuch things. ’I believe’ he said, ‘the world is made of language.’ It would have beenmore correct to have said that the world is made of languages, many of them.The subject, Law and Language in a Multilingual Society, raises critical issues notonly for us in this country but also for others because language is part – the greaterpart – of one's culture. A people without a culture is said to be like a zebra withoutstripes. Culture, and not race, nationality, religion or border (natural or political,determines one's identity. As one of the founding fathers of the Afrikaans language,Rev SJ du Toit, wrote in 1891: language is a portrait of the soul and life of a nation;and it mirrors the character and intellectual development of a people (my translation.Unfortunately language tends to divide, more particularly, a multilingual society. Lawis supposed to close the divide but more often than not widens it and is used todeepen divisions. This is because the ruler determines the law and, consequently,the language of the law, in the belief that the use of language can be enforced fromabove. Law and language, like oil and water, do not mix although the former isdependent on the latter.

Community Health Center Provider and Staff’s Spanish Language Ability and Cultural Awareness

Science.gov (United States)

Baig, Arshiya A.; Benitez, Amanda; Locklin, Cara A.; Campbell, Amanda; Schaefer, Cynthia T.; Heuer, Loretta J.; Mee Lee, Sang; Solomon, Marla C.; Quinn, Michael T.; Burnet, Deborah L.; Chin, Marshall H.

2014-01-01

Many community health center providers and staff care for Latinos with diabetes, but their Spanish language ability and awareness of Latino culture are unknown. We surveyed 512 Midwestern health center providers and staff who managed Latino patients with diabetes. Few respondents had high Spanish language (13%) or cultural awareness scores (22%). Of respondents who self-reported 76–100% of their patients were Latino, 48% had moderate/low Spanish language and 49% had moderate/low cultural competency scores. Among these respondents, 3% lacked access to interpreters and 27% had neither received cultural competency training nor had access to training. Among all respondents, Spanish skills and Latino cultural awareness were low. Respondents who saw a significant number of Latinos had good access to interpretation services but not cultural competency training. Improved Spanish-language skills and increased access to cultural competency training and Latino cultural knowledge are needed to provide linguistically and culturally tailored care to Latino patients. PMID:24858866

Colorectal Cancer Rates by Race and Ethnicity

Science.gov (United States)

... Associated Lung Ovarian Prostate Skin Uterine Cancer Home Colorectal Cancer Rates by Race and Ethnicity Language: English (US) ... Tweet Share Compartir The rate of people getting colorectal cancer or dying from colorectal cancer varies by race ...

Prostate Cancer Rates by Race and Ethnicity

Science.gov (United States)

... HPV-Associated Lung Ovarian Skin Uterine Cancer Home Prostate Cancer Rates by Race and Ethnicity Language: English (US) ... Tweet Share Compartir The rate of men getting prostate cancer or dying from prostate cancer varies by race ...

Exploring communication challenges due to language and cultural ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Salient findings include that communication problems occur on construction sites due to languageand cultural diversity-related barriers; site managers are generally effective at communicating; the South African workforce is diversely cultured, which potentially leads to misunderstandings on sites, and language barriers ...

Cancer Rates by Race/Ethnicity and Sex

Science.gov (United States)

... Skin Uterine Cancer Rates by Race/Ethnicity and Sex Language: English (US) Español (Spanish) Recommend on Facebook ... and ethnicity. Incidence Rates by Race/Ethnicity and Sex “Incidence rate” means how many people out of ...

Cultural Sensitivity in English Language Teaching Materials

OpenAIRE

MEHMET, Sean Collin

2008-01-01

This expository paper will begin by uncovering and examining some lesser known, Western journal articles, ones that deal specifically with the issue of cultural sensitivity in language classrooms. This opening discussion will attempt to reveal that cultural sensitivity in teaching materials is by no means an issue limited solely to the Western world. After this, the discussion will focus on Edward Said's widely-known Culture and Imperialism. Said's monograph will be used as a springboard to e...

Culture misunderstood——the language barrier in cross culture——From the aspect of differences on word cultural connotation

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

赵丽

2009-01-01

From the relationship between culture and language, we know language is a carrier of culture; each nation has its own distinctive culture. Through comparing cultural connotation between Chinese characters and English words, we know it is more important for us to master the cultural connotation of words than just knowing their spelling and pronouncing. Only under this condition, we can use English properly and freely.

Studies in Philippine Languages and Cultures.

Science.gov (United States)

Brainard, Sherri, Ed.

2001-01-01

This issue of Studies in Philippine Languages and Cultures contains the following articles: "Functions of Locatives in Northern Subanen Expository and Hortatory Discourse" (Josephine Sanicas-Daguman); "Functions of Demonstratives in Sama Bangingi' Expository Discourse" (John Blakely); "A Brief Look at Sinama Basic Verbs…

Language Proficiency and Cultural Identity as Two Facets of the Acculturation Process

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Kmiotek Łukasz

2017-10-01

Full Text Available This article describes a cross-cultural study comparing bicultural identity of first generation Poles and high school students in the Rhône Alpes region (France, as well as French language university students in Poland. Studies show that two components, language and identity, are related. This article intends to answer questions regarding the relationship between the migrant’s bicultural identity and language proficiency. Bilingualism is operationalized as (i listening comprehension and (ii bidirectional translation. The results do not confirm that there is a relation between bilingual skills and identification with shared French and Polish values. Cultural identity appears to be inversely related to country of residence: Polish identity is strongest amongst immigrant youth in France and French identity is strongest amongst Polish students of French language and culture. These identities run in opposite direction to language competencies. The results suggest internalization of one of the cultures' negative stereotypes towards the other or towards itself.

Dialogismo, lenguas extranjeras e identidad cultural (Dialogism, Foreign Languages, and Cultural Identity).

Science.gov (United States)

Zoreda, Margaret Lee

Foreign Language education will play an important role in the broadening and globalization of higher education for the 21st century. Where else will educators find the tools to "dialog" with--to engage--the "other" as part of the enriching process that accompanies cultural exchange, cultural broadening? This paper sheds light on these issues, and…

The Politics of Cultural Difference in Second Language Education

Science.gov (United States)

Kubota, Ryuko

2004-01-01

Cultural difference is an important topic of discussion in second language education. Yet cultural difference is often conceptualized as fixed, objective, and apolitical based on an essentialist and normative understanding of culture. This article challenges such conceptualizations by examining and politicizing multiple and conflicting meanings of…

Language and Culture in the Multiethnic Community: Spoken Language Assessment.

Science.gov (United States)

Matluck, Joseph H.; Mace-Matluck, Betty J.

This paper discusses the sociolinguistic problems inherent in multilingual testing, and the accompanying dangers of cultural bias in either the visuals or the language used in a given test. The first section discusses English-speaking Americans' perception of foreign speakers in terms of: (1) physical features; (2) speech, specifically vocabulary,…

Localisation - When Language, Culture and Technology Join Forces

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jody Byrne

2012-08-01

Full Text Available When you switch on your computer and type up a letter, what language do you see? What about when you visit a website or play a computer game? Does your mobile phone speak your language? Chances are that each of these technological marvels of the modern age communicates with you in your own language. For many of us, this is so commonplace and seamless that we hardly give it a moment's thought but behind the scenes there is a whole industry dedicated to making sure that technology bridges the gap between language and culture without you even noticing.

Localisation - When Language, Culture and Technology Join Forces

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jody Byrne

2009-03-01

Full Text Available When you switch on your computer and type up a letter, what language do you see? What about when you visit a website or play a computer game? Does your mobile phone speak your language? Chances are that each of these technological marvels of the modern age communicates with you in your own language. For many of us, this is so commonplace and seamless that we hardly give it a moment's thought but behind the scenes there is a whole industry dedicated to making sure that technology bridges the gap between language and culture without you even noticing.

THE WEB IS THE LIMIT: LANGUAGE, CULTURE AND MOOCS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Silvia FLOREA

2014-05-01

Full Text Available MOOCs remain the buzzwords of the current landscape of higher education (HE provision. In the context of the ever growing use of technology through e - Learning and OpenCourseWare and of the new generation of tablet - toting, hyper - connected youth, the university will continue to extend its reach to students around the world, unbounded by geography and time zones, at a fast pace and at a fraction of the cost of a traditional college education. In this context, “To Mooc or not to Mooc” remains a question that several universities are beginning to con sider against more pressing critical reflections on issues pertaining to their language and culture. Our paper aims to examine the role of language and culture in online learning, particularly the hegemony of English and Western cultures against the rising “politics of marginality” that other languages are forced to adopt in a dominant, non - negotiable, disruptive online competition space.

In the right words: addressing language and culture in providing health care.

Science.gov (United States)

2003-08-01

As part of its continuing mission to serve trustees, executives, and staff of health foundations and corporate giving programs, Grantmakers In Health (GIH) convened a group of experts from philanthropy, research, health care practice, and policy on April 4, 2003, to discuss the roles of language and culture in providing effective health care. During this Issue Dialogue, In the Right Words: Addressing Language and Culture in Providing Health Care, health grantmakers and experts from policy and practice participated in an open exchange of ideas and perspectives on language access and heard from fellow grantmakers who are funding innovative programs in this area. Together they explored ways to effectively support comprehensive language services, including the use of interpreters and translation of written materials. This Issue Brief synthesizes key points from the day's discussion with a background paper previously prepared for Issue Dialogue participants. It focuses on the challenges and opportunities involved with ensuring language access for the growing number of people who require it. Sections include: recent immigration trends and demographic changes; the effect of language barriers on health outcomes and health care processes; laws and policies regarding the provision of language services to patients, including an overview of public financing mechanisms; strategies for improving language access, including enhancing access in delivery settings, promoting advocacy and policy change, improving interpreter training, and advancing research; and roles for foundations in supporting improved language access, including examples of current activities. The Issue Dialogue focused mainly on activities and programs that ensure linguistic access to health care for all patients. Although language and culture are clearly inseparable, a full exploration of the field of cultural competence and initiatives that promote its application to the health care setting are beyond the scope

Foreign Language Workshop on French Culture.

Science.gov (United States)

Reynolds, Sue, Ed.; And Others

A compilation of French cultural units for use in secondary school language classes is presented in this text. Units include: (1) "Les mots et leur implication culturelle," (2) "Le telephone--une capsule culturelle," (3) "Le repas," (4) "La femme francaise 1972," (5) "Les Parents," (6)…

Language and other artifacts: socio-cultural dynamics of niche construction.

Science.gov (United States)

Sinha, Chris

2015-01-01

Niche construction theory is a relatively new approach in evolutionary biology that seeks to integrate an ecological dimension into the Darwinian theory of evolution by natural selection. It is regarded by many evolutionary biologists as providing a significant revision of the Neo-Darwinian modern synthesis that unified Darwin's theory of natural and sexual selection with 20th century population genetics. Niche construction theory has been invoked as a processual mediator of social cognitive evolution and of the emergence and evolution of language. I argue that language itself can be considered as a biocultural niche and evolutionary artifact. I provide both a general analysis of the cognitive and semiotic status of artifacts, and a formal analysis of language as a social and semiotic institution, based upon a distinction between the fundamental semiotic relations of "counting as" and "standing for." I explore the consequences for theories of language and language learning of viewing language as a biocultural niche. I suggest that not only do niches mediate organism-organism interactions, but also that organisms mediate niche-niche interactions in ways that affect evolutionary processes, with the evolution of human infancy and childhood as a key example. I argue that language as a social and semiotic system is not only grounded in embodied engagements with the material and social-interactional world, but also grounds a sub-class of artifacts of particular significance in the cultural history of human cognition. Symbolic cognitive artifacts materially and semiotically mediate human cognition, and are not merely informational repositories, but co-agentively constitutive of culturally and historically emergent cognitive domains. I provide examples of the constitutive cognitive role of symbolic cognitive artifacts drawn from my research with my colleagues on cultural and linguistic conceptualizations of time, and their cultural variability. I conclude by reflecting on

Language and other artifacts: socio-cultural dynamics of niche construction.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chris eSinha

2015-10-01

Full Text Available Niche construction theory is a relatively new approach in evolutionary biology that seeks to integrate an ecological dimension into the Darwinian theory of evolution by natural selection. It is regarded by many evolutionary biologists as providing a significant revision of the Neo-Darwinian modern synthesis that unified Darwin’s theory of natural and sexual selection with 20th century population genetics. Niche construction theory has been invoked as a processual mediator of social cognitive evolution and of the emergence and evolution of language. I argue that language itself can be considered as a biocultural niche and evolutionary artifact. I provide both a general analysis of the cognitive and semiotic status of artifacts, and a formal analysis of language as a social and semiotic institution, based upon a distinction between the fundamental semiotic relations of counting as and standing for. I explore the consequences for theories of language and language learning of viewing language as a biocultural niche. I suggest that not only do niches mediate organism-organism interactions, but also that organisms mediate niche-niche interactions in ways that affect evolutionary processes, with the evolution of human infancy and childhood as a key example. I argue that language as a social and semiotic system is not only grounded in embodied engagements with the material and social-interactional world, but also grounds a sub-class of artifacts of particular significance in the cultural history of human cognition. Symbolic cognitive artifacts materially and semiotically mediate human cognition, and are not merely informational repositories, but co-agentively constitutive of culturally and historically emergent cognitive domains. I provide examples of the constitutive cognitive role of symbolic cognitive artifacts drawn from my research with my colleagues on cultural and linguistic conceptualizations of time, and their cultural variability. I conclude

Cultural views, language ability, and mammography use in Chinese American women.

Science.gov (United States)

Liang, Wenchi; Wang, Judy; Chen, Mei-Yuh; Feng, Shibao; Yi, Bin; Mandelblatt, Jeanne S

2009-12-01

Mammography screening rates among Chinese American women have been reported to be low. This study examines whether and how culture views and language ability influence mammography adherence in this mostly immigrant population. Asymptomatic Chinese American women (n = 466) aged 50 and older, recruited from the Washington, D.C. area, completed a telephone interview. Regular mammography was defined as having two mammograms at age-appropriate recommended intervals. Cultural views were assessed by 30 items, and language ability measured women's ability in reading, writing, speaking, and listening to English. After controlling for risk perception, worry, physician recommendation, family encouragement, and access barriers, women holding a more Chinese/Eastern cultural view were significantly less likely to have had regular mammograms than those having a Western cultural view. English ability was positively associated with mammography adherence. The authors' results imply that culturally sensitive and language-appropriate educational interventions are likely to improve mammography adherence in this population.

Genes, language, cognition, and culture: towards productive inquiry.

Science.gov (United States)

Fitch, W Tecumseh

2011-04-01

The Queen Mary conference on “Integrating Genetic and Cultural Evolutionary Approaches to Language,” and the papers in this special issue, clearly illustrate the excitement and potential of trans-disciplinary approaches to language as an evolved biological capacity (phylogeny) and an evolving cultural entity (glossogeny). Excepting the present author, the presenters/authors are mostly young rising stars in their respective fields, and include scientists with backgrounds in linguistics, animal communication, neuroscience, evolutionary biology, anthropology, and computer science. On display was a clear willingness to engage with different approaches and terminology and a commitment to shared standards of scientific rigor, empirically driven theory, and logical argument. Because the papers assembled here, together with the introduction, speak for themselves, I will focus in this “extro-duction” on some of the terminological and conceptual difficulties which threaten to block this exciting wave of scientific progress in understanding language evolution, in both senses of that term. In particular I will first argue against the regrettably widespread practice of opposing cultural and genetic explanations of human cognition as if they were dichotomous. Second, I will unpack the debate concerning “general-purpose” and “domain-specific” mechanisms, which masquerades as a debate about nativism but is nothing of the sort. I believe that framing discussions of language in these terms has generated more heat than light, and that a modern molecular understanding of genes, development, behavior, and evolution renders many of the assumptions underlying this debate invalid.

Lung Cancer Rates by Race and Ethnicity

Science.gov (United States)

... the Biggest Cancer Killer in Both Men and Women” Stay Informed Rates by Race and Ethnicity for Other Kinds of Cancer All Cancers Combined Breast Cervical Colorectal (Colon) HPV-Associated Ovarian Prostate Skin Uterine Cancer Home Lung Cancer Rates by Race and Ethnicity Language: ...

The Implications of Culture for Dictionaries of the African Languages*

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A.C. Nkabinde

2011-10-01

Full Text Available

Abstract: This article attempts to show how culture or aspects thereof can be used to comple-ment linguistic and other information in the compilation of dictionaries of African languages. Some obstacles in the way of achieving this goal are identified and proposals made on how to deal with them. Although only some cultural aspects of a single language are examined, the conclusions are valid for cultural aspects of all African languages.

Keywords: CONTEXT, CULTURE, CORPUS, EUPHEMISM, FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE, HLONIPHA, KINSHIP TERMS, LEXICAL BORROWING, MULTILINGUALISM, SPEECH COM-MUNITY, STANDARD ZULU, TABOO

Opsomming: Die implikasies van kultuur vir woordeboeke van die Afri-katale. Hierdie artikel probeer om aan te toon hoe kultuur of aspekte daarvan gebruik kan word om taalkundige en ander inligting aan te vul by die samestelling van woordeboeke van die Afrika-tale. 'n Aantal struikelblokke op die weg om hierdie doel te bereik, word geïdentifiseer en voor-stelle gemaak oor hoe om hulle te hanteer. Alhoewel slegs sommige kulturele aspekte van 'n enkele taal ondersoek word, is die gevolgtrekkings geldig vir kulturele aspekte van alle Afrikatale.

Sleutelwoorde: EUFEMISME, FIGUURLIKE TAAL, HLONIPHA, KONTEKS, KORPUS, KULTUUR, LEKSIKALE ONTLENING, TAALGEMEENSKAP, TABOE, STANDAARDZOELOE, VEELTALIGHEID, VERWANTSKAPSTERME

Affectivity and race

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Vitus, Kathrine; Andreassen, Rikke

into the experience of racial difference and the unfolding of political discourses on race in various social spheres. Organised around the themes of the politicisation of race through affect, the way that race produces affect and the affective experience of race, this interdisciplinary collection sheds light...... on the role of feelings in the formation of subjectivities, how race and whiteness are affectively circulated in public life and the ways in which emotions contribute to regimes of inclusion and exclusion. As such it will appeal to scholars across the social sciences, with interests in sociology, anthropology......This book presents new empirical studies of social difference in the Nordic welfare states, in order to advance novel theoretical perspectives on the everyday practices and macro-politics of race and gender in multi-ethnic societies. With attention to the specific political and cultural landscapes...

Biological adaptations for functional features of language in the face of cultural evolution.

Science.gov (United States)

Christiansen, Morten H; Reali, Florencia; Chater, Nick

2011-04-01

Although there may be no true language universals, it is nonetheless possible to discern several family resemblance patterns across the languages of the world. Recent work on the cultural evolution of language indicates the source of these patterns is unlikely to be an innate universal grammar evolved through biological adaptations for arbitrary linguistic features. Instead, it has been suggested that the patterns of resemblance emerge because language has been shaped by the brain, with individual languages representing different but partially overlapping solutions to the same set of nonlinguistic constraints. Here, we use computational simulations to investigate whether biological adaptation for functional features of language, deriving from cognitive and communicative constraints, may nonetheless be possible alongside rapid cultural evolution. Specifically, we focus on the Baldwin effect as an evolutionary mechanism by which previously learned linguistic features might become innate through natural selection across many generations of language users. The results indicate that cultural evolution of language does not necessarily prevent functional features of language from becoming genetically fixed, thus potentially providing a particularly informative source of constraints on cross-linguistic resemblance patterns.

125 The Fading Phase of Igbo Language and Culture: Path to its ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Tracie1

favour of foreign language (and culture). They also ... native language, and children are unable to learn a language not spoken ... shielding them off their mother tongue”. ..... the effect endangered language has on the existence of the owners.

Research on the Importance of Language Culture for Transport Experts

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Angelika Petrėtienė

2014-06-01

Full Text Available The article analyses the importance of language culture for transport experts. The analysis has been conducted on a questionnaire basis. Pursuant to the questionnaire, the obtained data were aimed at establishing if the use of a correct language might increase employment possibilities, if service suppliers talking correctly were stronger preferred, what sources designated for language culture were used in order to revise the accuracy of the employed terminol- ogy (or word, etc. The questionnaire also presents terms more relevant to transport staff and investigates the frequency of the used terminology both correct and incorrect. The researched data have been systemized and presented in the form of charts.

Culturally diverse attitudes and beliefs of students majoring in speech-language pathology.

Science.gov (United States)

Franca, Maria Claudia; Smith, Linda McCabe; Nichols, Jane Luanne; Balan, Dianna Santos

Academic education in speech-language pathology should prepare students to provide professional services that mirror current knowledge, skills, and scope of practice in a pluralistic society. This study seeks to examine the impact of speech-language pathology (SLP) students prior multicultural experiences and previous formal education on attitudes and beliefs toward language diversity. A survey to investigate SLP students attitudes toward language diversity was applied. After the research study and instructions to complete the consent form questionnaire was presented by a research assistant, an announcement was given by a graduate student who speaks English as a second language with an accent. The participants then completed a questionnaire containing questions related to attitudes about the presentation of the announcement in particular and toward language diversity in general. Responses suggested a relationship between self-reported cultural bias and ability to concentrate on speech with an accent, and the extent of interaction with individuals from a cultural and linguistic diverse (CLD) background. Additional outcomes revealed that cultural bias may be predicted by factors related to amount of CLD exposure. Results of this study indicated critical areas that need to be considered when developing curricula in speech-language pathology programs. The results will be useful in determining procedures applicable in larger investigations, and encourage future research on attitudes and beliefs toward aspects of cultural diversity.

Languages in a global world learning for better cultural understanding

CERN Document Server

Scott, Jessica; Hinton, Christina

2012-01-01

The rise of globalisation makes language competencies more valuable, both at individual and societal levels. This book examines the links between globalisation and the way we teach and learn languages. It begins by asking why some individuals are more successful than others at learning non-native languages, and why some education systems, or countries, are more successful than others at teaching languages. The book comprises chapters by different authors on the subject of language learning. There are chapters on the role of motivation; the way that languages, cultures and identities are interc

Strangers in Stranger Lands: Language, Learning, Culture

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hong Li

2007-02-01

Full Text Available This study investigates international students’ perceptions of the issues they face using English as a second language while attending American higher education institutions. In order to fully understand those challenges involved in learning English as a Second Language, it is necessary to know the extent to which international students have mastered the English language before they start their study in America. Most international students experience an overload of English language input upon arrival in the United States. Cultural differences influence international students’ learning of English in other ways, including international students’ isolation within their communities and America’s lack of teaching listening skills to its own students. Other factors also affect international students’ learning of English, such as the many forms of informal English spoken in the USA, as well as a variety of dialects. Moreover, since most international students have learned English in an environment that precluded much contact with spoken English, they often speak English with an accent that reveals their own language. This study offers informed insight into the complicated process of simultaneously learning the language and culture of another country. Readers will find three main voices in addition to the international students who “speak” (in quotation marks throughout this article. Hong Li, a Chinese doctoral student in English Education at the University of Missouri-Columbia, authored the “regular” text. Second, Roy F. Fox’s voice appears in italics. Fox is Professor of English Education and Chair of the Department of Learning, Teaching, and Curriculum at the University of Missouri-Columbia. Third, Dario J. Almarza’s voice appears in boldface. Almarza, a native of Venezuela, is an Assistant Professor of Social Studies Education at the same institution.

1 The Moral Imperative of Language and Communication in Culture ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

User

development and progress, and language and communication function as special cultural tools for .... become chaotic and insecure language can only promote a moral ideal by enhancing the .... tolerance and corporate existence. To put it the ...

An Exploration of English Language Teachers' Perceptions of Culture Teaching and Its Effects on Students' Motivation

Science.gov (United States)

Yesil, Seyma; Demiröz, Hakan

2017-01-01

As the seamless connection between language and culture is commensurate with related research carried on language and culture; language is greatly affected and structured by cultural values, attitudes and beliefs. The goal of the present study is to investigate and analyse English language teachers' perceptions and opinions about the integration…

MORALITY IN CULTURAL ELEMENTS IN FAIRYTALE AND ITS IMPLICATION IN LEARNING FRENCH AS FOREIGN LANGUAGE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ninuk Lustyantie

2015-06-01

Full Text Available The culture of a society is closely related to the language used by the speakers. Moreover, there are opinions saying that in a language there will be patterns of behavior, materials, ideas (beliefs and knowledge, and sentiments (attitudes and norms of a society that are formed and exposed. This fact is in accordance with the opinion that a language is more than just a communion; it is the relation between individual and sociocultural values. Among all characteristics of culture, language is the most prominent distinguishing feature, since each social group feel themselves as a different entity from other groups. For certain social groups, language is used as the social identity/symbol. Close relation between language and culture is reflected in words used by the society. A concept or way of life in a society can be supported by words and language. Someone’s language behavior generally follows the culture of a society where he/she lives, including how the cultural elements appear in the equipment of human life, livelihood, social system, language (and literature system either written or oral, various of arts, knowledge system, and religious system. Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis states that there is a close relation between the language used by people and how they understand the world and behave in it. Based on 17th Century French fairytales, this article will review the moral values contained in the cultural elements and the implications in learning French as a foreign language.

Language Classroom Risk-Taking Behavior in a Performed Culture-Based Program

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stephen D. Luft

2013-01-01

Full Text Available While several studies have investigated the role of risk-taking in language learning, the findings of these studies may not be generalizable to language learning where the performed culture approach (PCA is used. This study describes the relationship between language learning and risk-taking in PCA, and the relationship between risk-taking and personal study habits, teaching style, daily grading, and classroom dynamics. Data were collected by means of a questionnaire. This study finds that risk-taking behavior has a moderate positive relationship with student performance in PCA. While questionnaire items related to teaching style and classroom dynamics are not found to significantly correlate with students’ risk-taking behavior, some items related to daily grading and personal study habits are found to have a moderate positive relationship with risk-taking behavior. Based on these findings, it is recommended that further research investigate the relationship between assessment and risktaking in language learning. As second language acquisition researchers have investigated the role of affective variables in language learning, risk-taking has frequently been identified as a variable linked with success (Beebe, 1983; Ely, 1986; Naiman, Frolich, Stern, & Todesco, 1978; Rubin, 1975; Samimy & Pardin, 1994; Samimy & Tabuse, 1992. However, it is difficult to apply these findings to language classrooms that use the performed culture approach (PCA, an approach to the teaching of East Asian languages, for two reasons: (a PCA’s focus on the learning of a foreign culture could mean that greater risk is involved in 106 Luft language learning than in a typical language classroom; (b PCA creates a language learning experience for which the risks involved are different than those in language classrooms where other approaches are used.

Learner Autonomy in Foreign Language Education and in Cultural Context

OpenAIRE

Ivanovska, Biljana

2015-01-01

The present paper is a brief review of the theoretical concepts about learner autonomy focusing on highlighting the main themes on learner autonomy in foreign language education and in cultural context as a globalized construct. These themes are based on the concepts of learner responsibility and independence, the importance of the autonomy in foreign language education in both the Western and Eastern style and the role of the culture in the concept of learner independence. The present study ...

Language, Culture and the Neurobiology of Pain: A Theoretical Exploration

OpenAIRE

Horacio Fabrega

1989-01-01

Language and culture, as conceptualized in traditional anthropology, may have an important influence on pain and brain-behavior relations. The paradigm case for the influence of language and culture on perception and cognition is stipulated in the Sapir–Whorf hypothesis which has been applied to phenomena “external” to the individual. In this paper, the paradigm is applied to information the person retrieves from “inside” his body; namely, “noxious” stimuli which get registered in consciousne...

The uncanny return of the race concept

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andreas eHeinz

2014-11-01

Full Text Available The aim of this Hypothesis & Theory is to question the recently increasing use of the race concept in contemporary genetic as well as social studies. We discuss race and related terms used to assign individuals to distinct groups and caution that also concepts such as ethnicity or culture unduly neglect diversity. We suggest that one factor contributing to the dangerous nature of the race concept is that it is based on a mixture of traditional stereotypes about physiognomy and unduly imbued by colonial traditions. Furthermore, the social impact on race classifications will be critically reflected. We then examine current ways to apply the term culture and caution that while originally derived from a fundamentally different background, culture is all too often used as a proxy for race, particularly when referring to the population of a certain national state or wider region. When used in such contexts, suggesting that all inhabitants of a geographical or political unit belong to a certain culture tends to ignore diversity and to suggest a homogeneity, which consciously or unconsciously appears to extend into the realm of biological similarities and differences. Finally, we discuss alternative approaches and their respective relevance to biological and cultural studies.

Cultural accommodation and language priming : Competitive versus cooperative behavior in a prisoner's dilemma game

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Akkermans, D.H.M.; Harzing, A.W.; van Witteloostuijn, A.

2010-01-01

This paper explores three arguments. First, cultural accommodation by living in another culture for a while may have a long-lasting but partially dormant influence on behavior. Second, foreign language is a prime, activating behavior associated with this language. Third, a foreign language is

Language and other artifacts: socio-cultural dynamics of niche construction

Science.gov (United States)

Sinha, Chris

2015-01-01

Niche construction theory is a relatively new approach in evolutionary biology that seeks to integrate an ecological dimension into the Darwinian theory of evolution by natural selection. It is regarded by many evolutionary biologists as providing a significant revision of the Neo-Darwinian modern synthesis that unified Darwin’s theory of natural and sexual selection with 20th century population genetics. Niche construction theory has been invoked as a processual mediator of social cognitive evolution and of the emergence and evolution of language. I argue that language itself can be considered as a biocultural niche and evolutionary artifact. I provide both a general analysis of the cognitive and semiotic status of artifacts, and a formal analysis of language as a social and semiotic institution, based upon a distinction between the fundamental semiotic relations of “counting as” and “standing for.” I explore the consequences for theories of language and language learning of viewing language as a biocultural niche. I suggest that not only do niches mediate organism-organism interactions, but also that organisms mediate niche-niche interactions in ways that affect evolutionary processes, with the evolution of human infancy and childhood as a key example. I argue that language as a social and semiotic system is not only grounded in embodied engagements with the material and social-interactional world, but also grounds a sub-class of artifacts of particular significance in the cultural history of human cognition. Symbolic cognitive artifacts materially and semiotically mediate human cognition, and are not merely informational repositories, but co-agentively constitutive of culturally and historically emergent cognitive domains. I provide examples of the constitutive cognitive role of symbolic cognitive artifacts drawn from my research with my colleagues on cultural and linguistic conceptualizations of time, and their cultural variability. I conclude by

Language Learning Strategies of Turkish and Arabic Students: A Cross-Cultural Study

Science.gov (United States)

Köksal, Dinçay; Ulum, Ömer Gökhan

2016-01-01

This study investigates the language learning strategy use of Turkish and Arabic students enrolled in middle schools and having different cultural and linguistic backgrounds. Using a strategy inventory for language learning, the study examines the cross-cultural differences in strategy use of the mentioned students while learning English as a…

Language, Culture and the Neurobiology of Pain: A Theoretical Exploration

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Horacio Fabrega

1989-01-01

Full Text Available Language and culture, as conceptualized in traditional anthropology, may have an important influence on pain and brain-behavior relations. The paradigm case for the influence of language and culture on perception and cognition is stipulated in the Sapir–Whorf hypothesis which has been applied to phenomena “external” to the individual. In this paper, the paradigm is applied to information the person retrieves from “inside” his body; namely, “noxious” stimuli which get registered in consciousness as pain.

Vulnerable populations: cultural and spiritual direction.

Science.gov (United States)

Quest, Tammie E; Franks, Nicole M

2006-08-01

Cultural, spiritual, and religious diversity of emergency department patients is increasing while that of emergency physicians in particular remains predominantly homogeneous. With a discordance of cultural, race, and ethnicity exist, in the case of ethical conflict -resolution becomes that much more difficult. Patients may feel vulnerable when their emergency care provider does not understand his or her cultural, spiritual, and religious uniqueness as it relates to the patient-doctor interaction and health care decision making. This review will examine (1) language differences; (2) cultural, religious, and spiritual differences between patient and provider; (3) differing explanatory models of disease between patient and provider; and (4) diverse bioethical models of decision making of differing cultures in an effort to reduce vulnerabilities.

Language, cultural brokerage and informed consent - will ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Language, cultural brokerage and informed consent - will technological terms impede telemedicine use? C Jack, Y Hlombe, M Mars. Abstract. Background. Telemedicine provides a solution to treatment of economically and geographically compromised patients and enhances the level of care. However, a problem has ...

Cultural Diversity and Information and Communication Impacts on Language Learning

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Wen-Cheng; Lin, Chien-Hung; Chu, Ying-Chien

2011-01-01

Cultural diversity doesn't just entail differences in dress and language. It also encompasses different ways of thinking, managing, and communicating. The relationship between communication and culture is a very complex and intimate one. Cultures are created through communication; that is, communication is the means of human interaction through…

Civilization, Culture, and Race in John Crawfurd’s Discourses on Southeast Asia: Continuities and Changes, c.1814-c.1868

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Müller, Martin

2013-01-01

aspects of Crawfurd et al’s knowledge production, its routes of transmission, receptions, and appropriations. The analytic focus is directed at the evaluative-descriptive qualities attributed to the terms civilization, race, and culture, and immanent in the concepts they refer to; on the surface claiming......In this dissertation I examine the uses of the notions of civilization, race, and culture within a set of British 19th century discourses on especially Southeast Asian societies, their present state and history. Taking the point of departure in John Crawfurd’s (1783-1868) publications, it contains...... a study of the many debates on economic, ethnological, historical, and linguistic issues in which he participated throughout six decades and to which he contributed significantly. Through this approach I aim at providing a densely contextualized analysis of the colonial, intellectual, political, and socio-cultural...

Excerpt from Subverting Exclusion: Transpacific Encounters with Race, Caste, and Borders, 1885–1928

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrea Geiger

2011-12-01

Full Text Available The Japanese immigrants who arrived in the North American West in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries included people with historical ties to Japan’s outcaste communities. In the only English-language book on the subject, Andrea Geiger examines the history of these and other Japanese immigrants in the United States and Canada and their encounters with two separate cultures of exclusion, one based in caste and the other in race.Geiger reveals that the experiences of Japanese immigrants in North America were shaped in part by attitudes rooted in Japan’s formal status system, mibunsei, decades after it was formally abolished. In the North American West, however, the immigrants’ understanding of social status as caste-based collided with American and Canadian perceptions of status as primarily race-based. Geiger shows how the lingering influence of Japan’s strict status system affected immigrants’ perceptions and understandings of race in North America and informed their strategic responses to two increasingly complex systems of race-based exclusionary law and policy.

Culture: The Basis for Learning Business in a Foreign Language

OpenAIRE

Hager, Michael

2012-01-01

In this article, we will first review various perspectives on the teaching of culture and what effect this can have on intercultural interaction in language teaching. We then take a look at ways of using culture to teach a foreign language. The first example is how preparing to write a German Lebenslauf can serve as a means to get to know and better understand fellow classmates. In addition, we look at how preparing for a mock job interview can function as the basis for teaching German. Final...

German Language and Culture: 9-Year Program Classroom Assessment Materials, Grade 4

Science.gov (United States)

Alberta Education, 2008

2008-01-01

This document is designed to provide assessment materials for specific Grade 4 outcomes in the German Language and Culture Nine-year Program, Grades 4-5-6. The assessment materials are designed for the beginner level in the context of teaching for communicative competence. Grade 4 learning outcomes from the German Language and Culture Nine-year…

Punjabi Language and Culture: 9-Year Program Classroom Assessment Materials, Grade 4

Science.gov (United States)

Alberta Education, 2008

2008-01-01

This document is designed to provide assessment materials for specific Grade 4 outcomes in the Punjabi Language and Culture Nine-year Program, Grades 4-5-6. The assessment materials are designed for the beginner level in the context of teaching for communicative competence. Grade 4 learning outcomes from the Punjabi Language and Culture Nine-year…

Othering: Towards a Critical Cultural Awareness in the Language Classroom

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sthephanny Moncada Linares

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Due to the need of decentering language learners’ conceptions and practices of “othering” against the target culture, it has become necessary to help them grow in critical cultural understanding and positive appreciation towards the richness of difference and plurality, as a transversal dimension of their intercultural competence. Thus, this paper seeks to summarize the literature on the notion of othering and its pedagogical possibilities to promote critical cultural awareness raising in the language classroom. It initially presents some theoretical contributions on the concepts of the “Other” and the “Self” and its dialectical relation, and later, it proposes four pedagogical tools that could enable learners to achieve the already mentioned objective.

Beyond demographics: differences in patient activation across new immigrant, diverse language subgroups.

Science.gov (United States)

Lubetkin, Erica I; Zabor, Emily C; Brennessel, Debra; Kemeny, M Margaret; Hay, Jennifer L

2014-02-01

The federal government promotes "patient-centered medical homes" to plan care with respect to patients' cultures and values and support patients' self-care efforts. To promote self-care, the medical home would be best utilized by activated, engaged patients. The objective of this study was to measure and compare patient activation scores in English-, Spanish-, and Haitian Creole-speaking patients seen at an inner-city hospital ambulatory care practice. Patient activation was measured using the patient activation measure (PAM). Mean PAM scores and activation levels differed according to survey language (p differ between Haitian Creole and Spanish speakers, PAM stages differed according to language of survey completion (p differ between Hispanics and non-Hispanics or according to race, illustrating the need to examine the role of language and culture on patient activation.

Language & Culture in English as a Foreign Language Teaching: a socio-cultural experience of some exchange students from Piauí Federal Institute

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Giselda dos Santos Costa

2018-04-01

Full Text Available The internationalization of higher education has been dramatically intensified over the last fifteen years in Brazil, creating wide-ranging opportunities as well as threats and limitations in relation to foreign language teaching practices and the teaching of culture. Many linguists and anthropologists (BYRAM, 1997; KRAMSCH, 1993; MCKAY, 2003; JENKINS, 2005 have stated that for communication to be successful the use of language must be associated with other culturally appropriated behavior, not just linguistic rules in the strict sense. In this article, we discuss the problems related to internationalization, more specifically, the discussion revolves around the sociocultural challenges faced by some students of the Federal Institute of Piauí (IFPI regarding their experiences in the Science without Borders program spread through five countries. By using qualitative interviews, the results revealed that students had sociocultural problems which could be avoided if English teachers had worked in the language classroom before the execution of the exchange program.

French, English or Kanak Languages? Can Traditional Languages and Cultures Be Sustained in New Caledonia?

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Anu Bissoonauth

2017-10-01

Preliminary results from the study show a difference in the language habits between older and younger generations on New Caledonians of Melanesian descent. Although French is perceived as the lingua franca by all, English is more valued than ancestral Melanesian languages by the younger generations. In terms of cultural representations and links with family history, there seems to be a discrepancy between the younger and the older generations. Whilst the older generations perceive the Centre Culturel Tjibaou as a traditional space for Melanesian art and culture their younger counterparts on the contrary view it as a place associated with contemporary art and music performances.

Rethinking Culture Teaching in English Language Programmes in Thailand

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Snodin, Navaporn S.

2016-01-01

This article reports on perceptions and practices in relation to integrating culture into EFL teaching and how course material was designed within the Thai curriculum framework. Thai teachers' understanding of what constitutes culture, the role it plays in language learning and how such understanding is being translated into pedagogical practices…

LITERARY LANGUAGE AS A SIGN. SEMIOTIC CONSIDERATIONS ON THE CROATIAN LANGUAGE IN THE CULTURAL SYSTEM

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Maciej Czerwiński

2011-01-01

Full Text Available In the article the question of the existence of the Croatian literary language in the semiotic space, i.e. the system of culture, is taken into consideration. In order to affirm the idea of the justification of the very term Croatian language, and thus acceptance of the thesis of the existence of such a language, this argumentation is directed towards theoretical investigation in the semiotic field. There is an attempt to envisage that discussions in the post-Yugoslav linguistics are not the problem, conventionally speaking, ‘ontological’ but ‘epistemological’. Thus, it is not important the question whether the Croatian language or any other language, e.g. Montenegrin, exists but rather the following question: what does it mean that literary language exists or does not exist?

Cultural and Social Processes of Language Brokering among Arab, Asian, and Latin Immigrants

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Guan, Shu-Sha Angie; Nash, Afaf; Orellana, Marjorie Faulstich

2016-01-01

This study examines how language and culture brokering (translating and interpreting language and culture for others) influences the acculturative experiences and self-perceptions of young adults from immigrant Arab, Asian, and Latino American backgrounds. Semi-structured interviews with 10 participants suggest that mediating information for…

CULTURAL ASPECTS IN TRANSLATION (A MULTICULTURAL PERSPECTIVE BASED ON ENGLISH, INDONESIAN, AND LOCAL LANGUAGES CONTEXTS

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Rudi Hartono

2017-04-01

Full Text Available Translation is an activity of transferring information from one language into another. In transferring the message, a translator not only renders a language form but also replaces a cultural content. Practically it is because translation itself an activity that involves at least two languages and two cultures (Toury in James: 2000. Translating the text that contains a cultural content and message is more difficult than translating an ordinary text that only has literal meanings. Cultural aspects that include in stereotypes, speech levels, pronouns, idioms, even in proverbs are things that can lead difficulties for translators to translate. He or she sometimes should look for the closest meaning in order the translation products can be accepted in the target language culture.

"Rape Culture" language and the news media: contested versus non-contested cases

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April COBOS

2014-12-01

Full Text Available The American news media has recently reported on several rape and sexual assault cases in various cultural settings, sparking public conversations about rape culture in different cultural contexts. The article is focused as a Critical Discourse Analysis that compares the language use in news articles from The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal over a six months period in order to more clearly understand the way the news media uses language in regards to gender and sexual assault and creates a spectrum of valid versus contested reports of sexual assault in different cultural settings.

Culture and English Language Teaching in the Arab World

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Mahmoud, Montasser Mohamed AbdelWahab

2015-01-01

This article discusses the relationship between culture and English language teaching (ELT) in the Arab World. A critical question arises in terms of ELT, that is, whether to teach culture along with English. To answer such a bewildering question, this article presents related literature and studies and discusses a theoretical frame based on…

Brazilian and German perspectives: a study on perception, interculturality and foreign language and culture teaching

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Mergenfel A. Vaz Ferreira

2011-12-01

Full Text Available This article aims to present a comparative study of the perception of multimodal texts, more specifically, advertisements printed in Brazilian and German magazines, by Brazilian learners of GFL(German as a Foreign Language and German learners of PFL (Portuguese as a Foreign Language , with special attention to the intercultural dimension involved in this process. Through the analysis developed in the study, it was possible to identify not only cultural aspects strictly related to language phenomena (as the use of personal pronouns and forms of treatment, for instance, but also more subjective cultural aspects (such as emotional states, the view about work, among others. This study also discusses the implications of the link between culture and language choices for the area of teaching and learning foreign languages / cultures.

Is it a Practical Strategy of Foreign Language Teaching? Unpacking the Integrated Language and Culture Instruction (ILCI Method in its Application to Learning of German as a Foreign Language in Zimbabwe

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Alfred Ndhlovu

2017-12-01

Full Text Available It is without doubt, that most contemporary methods of language teaching are based on the Communicative language Teaching (CLT model. The principle that these methods share is that language can only be considered meaningful when it is not taught separately from its context, which is the context of the target language speakers. In other words, second and foreign language teachers are encouraged to pursue methods of instruction that seek to simultaneously improve not only the linguistic knowledge of the L2/foreign language learners (such as vocabulary and grammar but also their learning of the “appropriate” contextual meaning of this knowledge. To mention a few, these methods include the integrated content and language learning instruction (ICLI, theme based language instruction (TBI, Task based instruction (TBI and the integrated language and culture Instruction (ILCI. The last method of instruction which is the central subject of discussion in this study is not commonly addressed by most researchers despite its growing popularity in most foreign language teaching classrooms. It is mainly related to the theme based language instruction since it advocates for the teaching of language in tandem with topics in culture and civilisation and realises the importance of both culture (as content and language (as a medium of communication. This study unpacks this method, looking at its benefits and limitations when it comes to its application to the foreign language classroom. The major concern of this study therefore, is pedagogical implications of this method in actual foreign language teaching. To illustrate this, the study gives insights into learning of German in Zimbabwe, with the University of Zimbabwe as a close example. The underlying position in this study is that, while the integrated language and culture Instruction (ILCI method is a very attractive method on paper, there are a number of obstacles that can censor its practical application

Trans-Cultural, Trans-Language Practices: Potentialities for Rethinking Doctoral Education Pedagogies

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Sarojni Choy

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Over the last decade, there has been a rapid increase in doctoral enrolments of Asian international students in Australian universities. While policies have been developed to meet the needs of these students, there seems to be some confusion around the terms internationalisation, globalisation, bi-cultural, inter-cultural, multi-cultural, and trans-cultural within these policies. In this paper, we define these terms and advocate for a policy position which orients to a futurist definition of culture. We then review the work of Michael Singh and his research team at Western Sydney University who have responded to this rapid increase in Asian international student doctoral enrolments in Australian universities by developing pedagogic principles around notions of trans-language and trans-cultural practices. In the final section of the paper, we then draw on our own experiences of doctoral supervision in Australian universities to reflect on our positioning within the pedagogic principles around trans-language and trans-cultural practices.

Transformation and communication research strategies: language - society – culture

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S. M. Forkosh

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Main research strategies in the humanitarian sphere, connected with the transformation-communicative approach by K.-O. Apel, have been studied in the article. This approach is based on I. Kant’s classic transcendental method, but has much wider sphere of application. Syncretic tendencies in humanitarian sciences cause the search of criteria or generalizing principles, which would allow not only combining basic research strategies, but also covering variable forms of the social-dynamics. Language in its various forms becomes the common ground, where it is possible not only to describe, but to explain disparate elements of the society’s functioning. These elements, when developed, cause the formation of culture. The basis for the analysis of the interdisciplinary communication features are relevant branches of philosophy. Specific realities of the research activity are understood by the methodologist as the deep interrelation of language tools and specific features of scientific knowledge’s changes. In fact, the researcher simultaneously performs double task: interprets scientific texts, improves his/her understanding of their structural characteristics, and also studies social, cultural, humanistic priorities of the available practices. Based on the characteristics of the modern culture (rapidity of development, lack of self-awareness and «maturation» vector, non-manifestation of methodological tools, sociological and linguistic sciences become to be a model in the humanitarian area. At the same time, awareness of the structural maturation of such knowledge is low. The development of linguistic sciences has more advanced conceptual design and it resonates with the evolution of the language philosophy. That’s why, considering the socio-cultural transformations of the globalization era, grounds of clarification of the specific methodological potential, which are accumulated in the contemporary linguistics, should be considered. In this

Tools for the Classroom. Gruezi Miteinand! A Focus on Swiss-German Culture and Language Online.

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Moehle-Vieregge, Linda

1999-01-01

Swiss-German language and culture rarely form the core focus in basic German language instruction. This article examines Swiss-German culture, focusing on geography and history, language, sports, world organizations, legendary figures, literature, music, art, holidays, and food. It points out online resources that touch upon aspects of Swiss…

So You Were a Language Major: Corporate Interviewing and Training in Foreign Languages and Cross-Cultural Skills.

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Seabrook, Roberta; Valdes, Berardo

A study of the attitudes and practices in multinational corporations concerning second language and intercultural skills as criteria for employment of international managers consisted of three elements: (1) a survey of corporations; (2) followup interviews with respondents and with commercial language schools and cross-cultural training…

Cooperating or competing in three languages : Cultural accommodation or alienation?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Gargalianou, Vasiliki; Urbig, D.; van Witteloostuijn, Arjen

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to study the effect of using foreign languages on cooperative behavior in a prisoner’s dilemma setting. The cultural accommodation hypothesis suggests that people are less cooperative in English, associated with the Anglophone cultural cluster, than in French,

Cooperating or competing in three languages : Cultural accommodation or alienation?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Gargalianou, Vasiliki; Urbig, Diemo; Van Witteloostuijn, Arjen

2017-01-01

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to study the effect of using foreign languages on cooperative behavior in a prisoner's dilemma setting. The cultural accommodation hypothesis suggests that people are less cooperative in English, associated with the Anglophone cultural cluster, than in French,

The Treatment of Culture in the Foreign Language Curriculum: An Analysis of National Curriculum Documents

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Lavrenteva, Evgenia; Orland-Barak, Lily

2015-01-01

Teaching culture in the foreign language classroom has been widely debated ever since its importance was recognized. Current research suggests that centralized "top down" curricular policies can become potential constraints to teaching culture and points to the need for adapting curricula for culture-integrated language learning. This…

A cultural setting where the other-race effect on face recognition has no social-motivational component and derives entirely from lifetime perceptual experience.

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Wan, Lulu; Crookes, Kate; Reynolds, Katherine J; Irons, Jessica L; McKone, Elinor

2015-11-01

Competing approaches to the other-race effect (ORE) see its primary cause as either a lack of motivation to individuate social outgroup members, or a lack of perceptual experience with other-race faces. Here, we argue that the evidence supporting the social-motivational approach derives from a particular cultural setting: a high socio-economic status group (typically US Whites) looking at the faces of a lower status group (US Blacks) with whom observers typically have at least moderate perceptual experience. In contrast, we test motivation-to-individuate instructions across five studies covering an extremely wide range of perceptual experience, in a cultural setting of more equal socio-economic status, namely Asian and Caucasian participants (N = 480) tested on Asian and Caucasian faces. We find no social-motivational component at all to the ORE, specifically: no reduction in the ORE with motivation instructions, including for novel images of the faces, and at all experience levels; no increase in correlation between own- and other-race face recognition, implying no increase in shared processes; and greater (not the predicted less) effort applied to distinguishing other-race faces than own-race faces under normal ("no instructions") conditions. Instead, the ORE was predicted by level of contact with the other-race. Our results reject both pure social-motivational theories and also the recent Categorization-Individuation model of Hugenberg, Young, Bernstein, and Sacco (2010). We propose a new dual-route approach to the ORE, in which there are two causes of the ORE-lack of motivation, and lack of experience--that contribute differently across varying world locations and cultural settings. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Development of races of Passalora sojina on different substrates and light regimes

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Juliane Nicolodi Camera

2014-09-01

Full Text Available The leaf “frog-eye” spot is a disease that often occurs in Argentina and Brazil is becoming important in soy producing regions. The difficulty in achieving inoculum for studies with P. sojina led to the development of this work was to determine the sporulation of races P. sojina in different culture media and light regimes and check difference in sporulation of races of this fungus. The plates with the culture media BDA, STT , AI , V8 and FAA containing the three races of P. sojina were subjected to a photoperiod of 12/12 h (light and dark and continuous dark. The experimental design was a factorial 5x2x3 (culture medium, light regimes, races of P. sojina with four replications. The greatest number of conidia cm- 2 of the fungus was found for race 23 in the middle of STT culture and races 24 e 25 in the middle of V8 culture. The fungus race 25, with the largest number of conidia cm-2, regardless of the medium and the light regimen. With respect to light regime for all races of the fungus, the largest esporulation were checked at a photoperiod of 12/12 h. When the fungus was grown in culture medium AI, this had the largest area of the colony, regardless of breed fungus and light regime

Made in the (Multicultural) U.S.A.: Unpacking Tensions of Race, Culture, Gender, and Sexuality in Education

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Asher, Nina

2007-01-01

The author discusses the challenges of educating teachers to engage, rather than deny or repress, differences that emerge at the dynamic, context-specific intersections of race, culture, gender, and sexuality. Although multicultural education discourse is well established, stereotypic representations and repressive silences persist in the sphere…

Excerpt from Subverting Exclusion: Transpacific Encounters with Race, Caste, and Borders, 1885–1928

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Andrea Geiger

2011-12-01

Full Text Available

The Japanese immigrants who arrived in the North American West in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries included people with historical ties to Japan’s outcaste communities. In the only English-language book on the subject, Andrea Geiger examines the history of these and other Japanese immigrants in the United States and Canada and their encounters with two separate cultures of exclusion, one based in caste and the other in race.

Geiger reveals that the experiences of Japanese immigrants in North America were shaped in part by attitudes rooted in Japan’s formal status system, mibunsei, decades after it was formally abolished. In the North American West, however, the immigrants’ understanding of social status as caste-based collided with American and Canadian perceptions of status as primarily race-based. Geiger shows how the lingering influence of Japan’s strict status system affected immigrants’ perceptions and understandings of race in North America and informed their strategic responses to two increasingly complex systems of race-based exclusionary law and policy.

A formative approach to cultural content learning in intercultural foreign language teaching

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Andrijević Maja M.

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The paper outlines the effectiveness of the formative approach in the adoption of cultural content as part of intercultural foreign language teaching. In contrast to the informative, the formative approach is based on a constructivist approach to foreign language acquisition; in other words, it is a process of tertiary socialization through the construction of an intercultural identity, by means of experiential acquisition, interaction and cognitive conflict with previously adopted patterns. Byram's (1997 propositions about the importance of acquiring intercultural competence in foreign language teaching represent a complete shift towards a formative approach since they formulate general educational goals according to which it is impossible to have an insight into the language reality of a different culture unless an individual is aware of their own and the relative nature of both, which is vital to the development of critical intercultural awareness. Thus the focus of teaching shifts to the integration of the target and the source cultures through participatory tasks and constructive analysis, and to the construction of the learner's identity as intercultural speaker with a range of affective, cognitive and behavioral competences enabling successful contact with difference. The formative approach enables the foreign language teacher, whose role has also been redefined, to use appropriate materials in order to develop critical thinking and intercultural competence in students through their active involvement in the process of target language acquisition.

To Know the Language: Leveraging Cultural Knowledge for Job Creation

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Antoine, Jurgita

2018-01-01

From the beginning, preservation and continuity of tribal histories and cultures have been at the center of the strategic vision for tribal colleges and universities (TCUs) (Bordeaux, 1989). TCUs have developed the infrastructure and networks to support the revitalization, preservation, and teaching of Indigenous languages and cultures. But while…

Othering: Towards a Critical Cultural Awareness in the Language Classroom

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Moncada Linares, Sthephanny

2016-01-01

Due to the need of decentering language learners' conceptions and practices of "othering" against the target culture, it has become necessary to help them grow in critical cultural understanding and positive appreciation towards the richness of difference and plurality, as a transversal dimension of their intercultural competence. Thus,…

Guidelines for conducting rigorous health care psychosocial cross-cultural/language qualitative research.

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Arriaza, Pablo; Nedjat-Haiem, Frances; Lee, Hee Yun; Martin, Shadi S

2015-01-01

The purpose of this article is to synthesize and chronicle the authors' experiences as four bilingual and bicultural researchers, each experienced in conducting cross-cultural/cross-language qualitative research. Through narrative descriptions of experiences with Latinos, Iranians, and Hmong refugees, the authors discuss their rewards, challenges, and methods of enhancing rigor, trustworthiness, and transparency when conducting cross-cultural/cross-language research. The authors discuss and explore how to effectively manage cross-cultural qualitative data, how to effectively use interpreters and translators, how to identify best methods of transcribing data, and the role of creating strong community relationships. The authors provide guidelines for health care professionals to consider when engaging in cross-cultural qualitative research.

Hupa Language: Literature and Culture. Third Edition.

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Parsons, Tom, Ed.; And Others

One in a series of materials developed to revive the Hupa language and renew knowledge of Hupa culture, this lexicon includes vocabulary, phrases, and stories in Hupa and English. The major portion of the document is an English-Hupa lexicon of basic vocabulary listed alphabetically by the English words. In addition to the Hupa and English terms,…

Translation of interviews from a source language to a target language: examining issues in cross-cultural health care research.

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Al-Amer, Rasmieh; Ramjan, Lucie; Glew, Paul; Darwish, Maram; Salamonson, Yenna

2015-05-01

To illuminate translation practice in cross-language interview in health care research and its impact on the construction of the data. Globalisation and changing patterns of migration have created changes to the world's demography; this has presented challenges for overarching social domains, specifically, in the health sector. Providing ethno-cultural health services is a timely and central facet in an ever-increasingly diverse world. Nursing and other health sectors employ cross-language research to provide knowledge and understanding of the needs of minority groups, which underpins cultural-sensitive care services. However, when cultural and linguistic differences exist, they pose unique complexities for cross-cultural health care research; particularly in qualitative research where narrative data are central for communication as most participants prefer to tell their story in their native language. Consequently, translation is often unavoidable in order to make a respondent's narrative vivid and comprehensible, yet, there is no consensus about how researchers should address this vital issue. An integrative literature review. PubMed and CINAHL databases were searched for relevant studies published before January 2014, and hand searched reference lists of studies were selected. This review of cross-language health care studies highlighted three major themes, which identify factors often reported to affect the translation and production of data in cross-language research: (1) translation style; (2) translators; and (3) trustworthiness of the data. A plan detailing the translation process and analysis of health care data must be determined from the study outset to ensure credibility is maintained. A transparent and systematic approach in reporting the translation process not only enhances the integrity of the findings but also provides overall rigour and auditability. It is important that minority groups have a voice in health care research which, if accurately

Negotiating Languages and Cultures: Enacting Translingualism through a Translation Assignment

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Kiernan, Julia; Meier, Joyce; Wang, Xiqiao

2016-01-01

This collaborative project explores the affordances of a translation assignment in the context of a learner-centered pedagogy that places composition students' movement among languages and cultures as both a site for inquiry and subject of analysis. The translation assignment asks students to translate scholarly articles or culture stories from…

Testing of a Model with Latino Patients That Explains the Links Among Patient-Perceived Provider Cultural Sensitivity, Language Preference, and Patient Treatment Adherence.

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Nielsen, Jessica D Jones; Wall, Whitney; Tucker, Carolyn M

2016-03-01

Disparities in treatment adherence based on race and ethnicity are well documented but poorly understood. Specifically, the causes of treatment nonadherence among Latino patients living in the USA are complex and include cultural and language barriers. The purpose of this study was to examine whether patients' perceptions in patient-provider interactions (i.e., trust in provider, patient satisfaction, and patient sense of interpersonal control in patient-provider interactions) mediate any found association between patient-perceived provider cultural sensitivity (PCS) and treatment adherence among English-preferred Latino (EPL) and Spanish-preferred Latino (SPL) patients. Data from 194 EPL patients and 361 SPL patients were obtained using questionnaires. A series of language-specific structural equation models were conducted to test the relationship between patient-perceived PCS and patient treatment adherence and the examined mediators of this relationship among the Latino patients. No significant direct effects of patient-perceived PCS on general treatment adherence were found. However, as hypothesized, several significant indirect effects emerged. Preferred language appeared to have moderating effects on the relationships between patient-perceived PCS and general treatment adherence. These results suggest that interventions to promote treatment adherence among Latino patients should likely include provider training to foster patient-defined PCS, trust in provider, and patient satisfaction with care. Furthermore, this training needs to be customized to be suitable for providing care to Latino patients who prefer speaking Spanish and Latino patients who prefer speaking English.

"Those Anime Students": Foreign Language Literacy Development through Japanese Popular Culture

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Fukunaga, Natsuki

2006-01-01

Using multiliteracies and sociocultural perspectives on language and literacy learning, this article describes three Japanese as a foreign language (JFL) students' literacy development through involvement with Japanese popular culture. As part of a larger qualitative ethnographic study, the author interviewed JFL learners who have a particular…

Race modulates neural activity during imitation

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Losin, Elizabeth A. Reynolds; Iacoboni, Marco; Martin, Alia; Cross, Katy A.; Dapretto, Mirella

2014-01-01

Imitation plays a central role in the acquisition of culture. People preferentially imitate others who are self-similar, prestigious or successful. Because race can indicate a person's self-similarity or status, race influences whom people imitate. Prior studies of the neural underpinnings of imitation have not considered the effects of race. Here we measured neural activity with fMRI while European American participants imitated meaningless gestures performed by actors of their own race, and two racial outgroups, African American, and Chinese American. Participants also passively observed the actions of these actors and their portraits. Frontal, parietal and occipital areas were differentially activated while participants imitated actors of different races. More activity was present when imitating African Americans than the other racial groups, perhaps reflecting participants' reported lack of experience with and negative attitudes towards this group, or the group's lower perceived social status. This pattern of neural activity was not found when participants passively observed the gestures of the actors or simply looked at their faces. Instead, during face-viewing neural responses were overall greater for own-race individuals, consistent with prior race perception studies not involving imitation. Our findings represent a first step in elucidating neural mechanisms involved in cultural learning, a process that influences almost every aspect of our lives but has thus far received little neuroscientific study. PMID:22062193

Communicative Competence Approach to Person-Oriented Teaching of the Russian Language and Culture of Speech

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Y. V. Orlova

2012-01-01

Full Text Available The paper is devoted to the communicative competence approach in professional training of physicians on the undergraduate level. The main emphasis is on developing linguistic, sociolinguistic and pragmatic competences while teaching the Russian language and the culture of speech. The paper is aimed at analyzing the requirements of federal state educational standards of the 3rd generation concerning the competences in the humanities which should be developed by medical students in the course of the Russian language and the culture of speech; defining the contents of the «communicative competence» term based on consideration of general European competences in mastering the language and the analysis of lingua-didactic works of modern Russian scientists; identifying the component content of linguistic, sociolinguistic and pragmatic competences of the Russian language and the culture of speech course for medical schools. The research results regarding the analysis and component content of linguistic, sociolinguistic and pragmatic competences of the Russian language and the culture of speech course have been applied while designing the Russian and the culture of speech curriculum, as well as electronic textbooks and manuals for medical students. 

The Role of Culture in English Language Education: Key Challenges

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Holliday, Adrian

2009-01-01

English language education is in the process of change regarding teacher identity and the ownership of English. Cultural issues are implicated in this change. Critical cosmopolitan approaches in the social sciences are critiquing the primacy of national cultures which they consider a Western imposition on the emergent identities of the Periphery.…

Discriminant Validity of the WISC-IV Culture-Language Interpretive Matrix

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Styck, Kara M.; Watkins, Marley W.

2014-01-01

The Culture-Language Interpretive Matrix (C-LIM) was developed to help practitioners determine the validity of test scores obtained from students who are culturally and linguistically different from the normative group of a test. The present study used an idiographic approach to investigate the diagnostic utility of the C-LIM for the Wechsler…

Learner Autonomy in Language Education : A Cross-Cultural Perspective

OpenAIRE

Kojima, Hideo

2006-01-01

In recent years, the importance of developing learner autonomy in language education hasbeen one of its more prominent themes in Japan as well as in the West. In spite of agreementconcerning its importance, there remains a good deal of uncertainty about its meaning inteaching and learning English as a foreign language (EFL). This paper aims to consider theconcept of learner autonomy amongst different cultures. Autonomy has a social as well as anindividual dimension. The promotion of learner a...

A Study of Formulaic Language in Traditional Greek Tales and Its Cultural Implications in Language Teaching

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Smaragda PAPADOPOULOU

2016-01-01

Full Text Available In our study we examine teaching mother tongue through faire and folk tales from the perspectives of recognizing clichés in fairy tales and myths, idiomatic phrases which work as morals, proverbs and very specific phrases of traditional tales’. We suggest that formulaic language can be involved in children’s language games at school and become a methodological tool for innovative approaches in Language and Teaching especially at the primary education. We search the sources from Greek traditional tales that could serve as teaching material for this option of teaching formulaic language in mother tongue. Cultural and geographical implications of the examples applied are noted as a suggestion for further discussion.

Special Operations Forces Language and Culture Needs Assessment: Cultural Awarenes and Knowledge Training

Science.gov (United States)

2010-11-01

hours. Training must incorporate language, culture, norms, customs, etiquette , religion, etc as to how not offend the local ethnicities.” SOF Leader...consensus. The frequency of occurrence for each theme is presented in this report. Analysis of the focus group data followed the same protocol , except

Language Classroom Risk-Taking Behavior in a Performed Culture-Based Program

OpenAIRE

Stephen D. Luft

2013-01-01

While several studies have investigated the role of risk-taking in language learning, the findings of these studies may not be generalizable to language learning where the performed culture approach (PCA) is used. This study describes the relationship between language learning and risk-taking in PCA, and the relationship between risk-taking and personal study habits, teaching style, daily grading, and classroom dynamics. Data were collected by means of a questionnaire. Th...

Teaching and Learning English as a Foreign Language in Taiwan: A Socio-Cultural Analysis

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Kung, Fan-Wei

2017-01-01

This article examines the English as a Foreign Language (EFL) context in Taiwan based on Vygotsky's (1978) socio-cultural framework. The historical context is provided after some delineations of the educational system in Taiwan with regard to its foreign language instruction policy and development. Based upon the proposed socio-cultural framework,…

Can formal language planning link to grassroots cultural initiatives? An informal investigation

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Wright, Laurence

2002-12-01

Full Text Available Formal language planning is inevitably a top-down, highly technical process. Success for such planning would seem to depend on engaging productively with existing or readily developed social motivation within the society. This article reports on an informal investigation into how ordinary language practitioners and cultural workers in South Africa view the possibilities of contributing to the country's emerging language dispensation, what they regard as their most useful possible contributions, and what they expect from the language planners and 'government' in support of South Africa's Language Policy and Plan.

Cultural and language differences in voice quality perception: a preliminary investigation using synthesized signals.

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Yiu, Edwin M-L; Murdoch, Bruce; Hird, Kathryn; Lau, Polly; Ho, Elaine Mandy

2008-01-01

Perceptual voice evaluation is a common clinical tool. However, to date, there is no consensus yet as to which common quality should be measured. Some available evidence shows that voice quality is a language-specific property which may be different across different languages. The familiarity of a language may affect the perception and reliability in rating voice quality. The present study set out to investigate the effects of listeners' cultural and language backgrounds on the perception of voice qualities. Forty speech pathology students from Australia and Hong Kong were asked to rate the breathy and rough qualities of synthesized voice signals in Cantonese and English. Results showed that the English stimulus sets as a whole were rated less severely than the Cantonese stimuli by both groups of listeners. In addition, the male Cantonese and English breathy stimuli were rated differently by the Australian and Hong Kong listeners. These results provided some evidence to support the claim that cultural and language backgrounds of the listeners would affect the perception for some voice quality types. Thus, the cultural and language backgrounds of judges should be taken into consideration in clinical voice evaluation. 2008 S. Karger AG, Basel.

VOLUNTEER ACTIVITIES FOR ADVANCE OF RUSSIAN LANGUAGE AND CULTURE IN MODERN CONDITIONS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mihailovna Olga Komornikova

2018-02-01

Full Text Available The article discusses the mechanisms and activities for promotion of the Russian language and culture of the Urals. Special attention is paid to one of the most promising directions of this activity is to attract students from other countries to obtain education in Russian language. The authors analyze a number of factors that determine the attractiveness of Russian education for students from post-Soviet States, as well as difficulties arising in the process of integration into the social and cultural environment of the host community. Presents the experience of the educational organization’s involvement in the work with foreign students volunteers at the example of club of international friendship Shadrinsk state pedagogical University and volunteers of the school “Dobroslava”. The article concluded that direct contact of volunteers from different countries contribute to the production practices of intercultural interaction, creating a favorable atmosphere for the promotion of Russian language and culture abroad.

FCJ-194 From #RaceFail to #Ferguson: The Digital Intimacies of Race-Activist Hashtag Publics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nathan Rambukanna

2015-06-01

Full Text Available This paper explores the rough, emergent and partial public culture of race-activist hashtags through the discourses of #RaceFail, a critical race quarrel that started in the sci-fi and fantasy blogosphere, and expanded from there into a broader, sustained discussion over social media; and #Ferguson, a recent race-activist hashtag raising issues around censorship, filtering and ‘gated discourse’. It ends with a discussion of how the frictions between the neoliberal desire to reduce hashtag publics to product publicity, and the activist desire to use hashtags to further public sphere awareness of political issues, is exemplified in the controversy over Facebook’s ‘algorithmic filtering’ of #Ferguson, and how, nevertheless, critical race hashtags are tapping into a developing tradition of vocal social media–supported dissent.

What can we talk about, in which language, in what way and with whom? Sami patients' experiences of language choice and cultural norms in mental health treatment.

Science.gov (United States)

Dagsvold, Inger; Møllersen, Snefrid; Stordahl, Vigdis

2015-01-01

The Sami in Norway have a legal right to receive health services adapted to Sami language and culture. This calls for a study of the significance of language choice and cultural norms in Sami patients' encounters with mental health services. To explore the significance of language and cultural norms in communication about mental health topics experienced by Sami patients receiving mental health treatment to enhance our understanding of linguistic and cultural adaptation of health services. Data were collected through individual interviews with 4 Sami patients receiving mental health treatment in Northern Norway. A systematic text reduction and a thematic analysis were employed. Two themes were identified:(I) Language choice is influenced by language competence, with whom one talks and what one talks about.Bilingualism was a resource and natural part of the participants' lives, but there were limited possibilities to speak Sami in encounters with health services. A professional working relationship was placed on an equal footing with the possibility to speak Sami. Sami patients' language choice in different communication situations is influenced by a complexity of social and cultural factors. Sami patients have varying opinions about and preferences for what they can talk about, in which language, in what way and with whom. Bilingualism and knowledge about both Sami and Norwegian culture provide latitude and enhanced possibilities for both patients and the health services. The challenge for the health services is to allow for and safeguard such individual variations within the cultural framework of the patients.

The 'biliterate' ballot controversy: language acquisition and cultural shift among immigrants.

Science.gov (United States)

Loo, C M

1985-01-01

This US study tested the validity of assumptions made regarding multilingual electoral ballot provisions. Rationale for language assistance was found to exist on the basis of number and proportion of recent immigrants, proportion of foreign born, lag of biliterate skill behind bilingual ability, linguistic differences between the Chinese language and English, and the discriminatory structure of the labor market. In California, where close to 1/2 the population is an ethnic minority, the issue is particularly relevant. Bilingual advocates view English-only advocates as "un-American" on legal and ideological grounds, while English-only advocates consider it "un-American" to be non-English speaking. In addition to census data and the existing literature, this study relies on the structured interview survey data of a representative sample of the Chinese adult population of San Francisco's Chinatown. 2/3 of the immigrants believed an immigrant should make some cultural changes, and 1/2 of the immigrants had done so. Data failed to support the claim that immigrants are uninformed that English is necessary for sociopolitical participation. Their more recent pattern of immigration, the linguistic differences between Asian languages and the English language, and structural constraints of US society make successive language acquisition difficult for Chinese migrant adults. Policy recommendations include: 1) changing language assistance criteria in the electoral process, 2) adding Vietnamese as a single language minority, 3) not considering Asian language minorities as 1 generic category, 4) justifying electoral assistance on several grounds, 5) disseminating data bearing directly on misguided assumptions related to language and cultural shift factors, and 6) renaming the "bilingual ballots" to "biliterate ballots."

History, Culture, Peace: Rumi Mevlana

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Alina Beatrice Cheşcă

2016-05-01

Full Text Available Along the history, for so many centuries, Rumi Mawlana – perhaps the most loved mystical poet of all times – has been alive and talking to people of all cultures through the language of love, peace, faith and true kindness. This remarkable man has always transcended the boundaries of time, space, race, religion, considering that “Love is the very meaning of creation and life”. It would not be an exaggeration to assert that the history of humankind would have been a paradise if human beings had followed such principles like peace, love and understanding. Rumi Mawlana created a splendid, humanitarian and universal type of art, culture and mentality; his message is God’s message to humankind: friendship, hope, generosity, peace, beauty, in one word: Love and happiness in all forms. Thus, he used his huge poetic talent not only in order to touch people’s hearts, but also to reach the most splendid goal of the human race: that of making people more sensitive to the eternal and most important human values.

Integrating Language and Cultural Knowledge into the Army Officer Corps

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Purser, Jennifer L

2008-01-01

.... By promoting the acquisition of culture and language comprehension before individuals become commissioned, the Army can save both time and money in training officers to prepare for the COIN fight...

FORMATION OF STUDENTS’ FOREIGN LANGUAGE COMPETENCE IN THE INFORMATIONAL FIELD OF CROSS CULTURAL INTERACTION

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Vitaly Vyacheslavovich Tomin

2015-09-01

Full Text Available Knowledge of foreign languages is becoming an integral feature of competitive persona-lity, ability to engage in cross-cultural communication and productive cross-cultural inte-raction, characterized by an adequate degree of tolerance and multi-ethnic competence, the ability for cross-cultural adaptation, critical thinking and creativity. However, the concept of foreign language competence has so far no clear, unambiguous definitions, thereby indicating the complexity and diversity of the phenomenon, which is an integrative, practice-oriented outcome of the wish and ability for intercultural communication. There have been mentioned a variety of requirements, conditions, principles, objectives, means and forms of foreign language competence forming, among which special attention is paid to non-traditional forms of practical training and information field in a cross-cultural interaction. There have been explained the feasibility of their application, which allows solving a complex of series of educational and teaching tasks more efficiently. There have been clarified the term «information field» in cross-cultural interaction, which is a cross-section of internally inherent in every individual «sections» of knowledge, skills, and experience, arising in certain given educational frameworks and forming a communication channel. The resultative indicators of the formation of foreign language competence and ways to improve its effectiveness are presented.

Iconic Native Culture Cues Inhibit Second Language Production in a Non-immigrant Population: Evidence from Bengali-English Bilinguals.

Science.gov (United States)

Roychoudhuri, Kesaban S; Prasad, Seema G; Mishra, Ramesh K

2016-01-01

We examined if iconic pictures belonging to one's native culture interfere with second language production in bilinguals in an object naming task. Bengali-English bilinguals named pictures in both L1 and L2 against iconic cultural images representing Bengali culture or neutral images. Participants named in both "Blocked" and "Mixed" language conditions. In both conditions, participants were significantly slower in naming in English when the background was an iconic Bengali culture picture than a neutral image. These data suggest that native language culture cues lead to activation of the L1 lexicon that competed against L2 words creating an interference. These results provide further support to earlier observations where such culture related interference has been observed in bilingual language production. We discuss the results in the context of cultural influence on the psycholinguistic processes in bilingual object naming.

Standing Strong: Maloney Interdistrict Magnet School Japanese Language and Culture Program

Science.gov (United States)

Haxhi, Jessica; Yamashita-Iverson, Kazumi

2009-01-01

Maloney Interdistrict Magnet School (MIMS) is the only elementary school in Waterbury that has a world language program and is one of only two elementary Japanese programs in Connecticut. In the past 15 years, more than 1500 students have participated in its Japanese Language and Culture (JLC) Program in grades Prekindergarten through 5th. The JLC…

Quantitative and qualitative research across cultures and languages: cultural metrics and their application.

Science.gov (United States)

Wagner, Wolfgang; Hansen, Karolina; Kronberger, Nicole

2014-12-01

Growing globalisation of the world draws attention to cultural differences between people from different countries or from different cultures within the countries. Notwithstanding the diversity of people's worldviews, current cross-cultural research still faces the challenge of how to avoid ethnocentrism; comparing Western-driven phenomena with like variables across countries without checking their conceptual equivalence clearly is highly problematic. In the present article we argue that simple comparison of measurements (in the quantitative domain) or of semantic interpretations (in the qualitative domain) across cultures easily leads to inadequate results. Questionnaire items or text produced in interviews or via open-ended questions have culturally laden meanings and cannot be mapped onto the same semantic metric. We call the culture-specific space and relationship between variables or meanings a 'cultural metric', that is a set of notions that are inter-related and that mutually specify each other's meaning. We illustrate the problems and their possible solutions with examples from quantitative and qualitative research. The suggested methods allow to respect the semantic space of notions in cultures and language groups and the resulting similarities or differences between cultures can be better understood and interpreted.

A Case Study on the Influence of Organizational Culture on Language Classroom

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Zhihui

2009-01-01

This paper tries to probe the influence of the organizational culture on language classroom at a newly-established local college. It firstly reviews the knowledge of the organizational culture and finds out its features, and then discusses how the organizational culture was greatly influenced by the host educational environment. On the basis of…

A STUDY OF CULTURAL ASPECTS OF ENGLİSH LANGUAGE WİTH TURKİSH LEARNERS OF ENGLİSH

OpenAIRE

KAHRAMAN, AYHAN

2015-01-01

There is a strong claim that culture learning affects students' linguistic ability positively in foreign language learning. Others claim that culture can be used as an instrument in the process of communication. This study hopes to expand previous understandings by analyzing the attitudes of Turkish students studying at the department of English Language and Literature towards cultural aspects in language teaching and learning. The data were collected through a Likert type questionnaire ...

Linguistic Minorities and the Multilingual Turn: Constructing Language Ownership through Affect in Cultural Production

Science.gov (United States)

McLaughlin, Mireille

2016-01-01

The "multilingual turn" brings questions of language ownership to the forefront of debates about linguistic minority governance. Acadian minority cultural producers construct language ownership using multiple languages and targeting multilingual publics, but use ideologies of monolingualism to situate Acadian authenticity in place and…

Enseignement de la langue francaise au Maroc et dialogue des cultures (Teaching of the French Language in Morocco and Dialogue of Cultures).

Science.gov (United States)

Lahjomri, Abdeljalil

1984-01-01

In the process of Arabization of Morocco, it is necessary to maintain French language instruciton, but as a necessary foreign language and not as a primary language. French remains an important part of Morocco's diverse cultural identity. (MSE)

The Cultural Politics of Language in Sudan: Against the Racialising Logic of Language Rights

Science.gov (United States)

Abdelhay, Ashraf; Eljak, Nada; Mugaddam, AbdelRahim; Makoni, Sinfree

2017-01-01

The sociolinguistic repertoires of individuals in Sudan are products of institutionalised orders of normalisation. The visibility of language in popular and official discourses in Sudan is always linked with wider cultural and political projects. This paper intends to engage with and explicate this observation by, first, examining how the dominant…

A Language for Modeling Cultural Norms, Biases and Stereotypes for Human Behavior Models

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Solomon, Steven; van Lent, Michael; Core, Mark; Carpenter, Paul; Rosenberg, Milton

2008-01-01

.... The Culturally-Affected Behavior project seeks to define a language for encoding ethnographic data in order to capture cultural knowledge and use that knowledge to affect human behavior models...

The national spirit reflection in the memory of language and culture

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Romanov A.S.

2017-01-01

Full Text Available this research focuses on a dialectic interrelation between language and culture perceived as existential manifestations of the national spirit. Identity of the national linguistic world perception is defined by its social-historic development, geographic and climatic conditions of living and distinctiveness of the national linguo-cultural heritage.

German Culture and Civilization, Foreign Language: 7536.14.

Science.gov (United States)

Dade County Public Schools, Miami, FL.

This is a guide to a realization and appreciation of the German culture, gained through the use of oral and written German. Four areas of language instruction are emphasized: (1) listening, (2) speaking, (3) reading, and (4) writing. The guide is divided into five sections: (1) broad goals and performance objectives, which include a breakdown of…

Curriculum-Based Language Assessment With Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students in the Context of Mathematics.

Science.gov (United States)

Newkirk-Turner, Brandi L; Johnson, Valerie E

2018-04-05

The purpose of this tutorial is to discuss the use of curriculum-based language assessment (CBLA) with students who are English language learners and students who speak nonmainstream varieties of English, such as African American English. The article begins with a discussion of the discourse of mathematics and the role of the speech-language pathologist (SLP), followed by a review of studies that includes those that examined the performance of English language learner and nonmainstream dialect-speaking students on word-based math items. The literature review highlights the linguistic and content biases associated with word-based math problems. Useful strategies that SLPs and educators can incorporate in culturally and linguistically appropriate assessments are discussed. The tutorial ends with a discussion of CBLA as a viable assessment approach to use with culturally and linguistically diverse students. Tests used at national, state, and school levels to assess students' math abilities have associated linguistic bias and content bias often leading to an inaccurate depiction of culturally and linguistically diverse students' math skills. CBLA as an assessment method can be used by school-based SLPs to gather valid and useful information about culturally and linguistically diverse students' language for learning math. By using CBLA, SLPs can help modify curricular tasks in broader contexts in an effort to make math, including high-level math, "accessible and achievable for all" students (American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, 2017).

Engaging a "Truly Foreign" Language and Culture: China through Chinese Film

Science.gov (United States)

Ning, Cynthia

2009-01-01

In this article, the author shares how she uses Chinese film in her Chinese language and culture classes. She demonstrates how Chinese films can help students "navigate the uncharted universe of Chinese culture" with reference to several contemporary Chinese films. She describes how intensive viewing of films can develop a deeper and…

Adapting tests of sign language assessment for other sign languages--a review of linguistic, cultural, and psychometric problems.

Science.gov (United States)

Haug, Tobias; Mann, Wolfgang

2008-01-01

Given the current lack of appropriate assessment tools for measuring deaf children's sign language skills, many test developers have used existing tests of other sign languages as templates to measure the sign language used by deaf people in their country. This article discusses factors that may influence the adaptation of assessment tests from one natural sign language to another. Two tests which have been adapted for several other sign languages are focused upon: the Test for American Sign Language and the British Sign Language Receptive Skills Test. A brief description is given of each test as well as insights from ongoing adaptations of these tests for other sign languages. The problems reported in these adaptations were found to be grounded in linguistic and cultural differences, which need to be considered for future test adaptations. Other reported shortcomings of test adaptation are related to the question of how well psychometric measures transfer from one instrument to another.

Race, Class, and Cultural Reproduction: Critical Theories in Urban Education

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Elaine M. Walker

2003-11-01

Full Text Available In spite of decades of reform attempts urban education remains an intractable policy issue for educators. National and state level data continue to show disparities in educational achievement and attainment between students from affluent and poor urban communities. If past policies have not proven to be effective in substantially improving urban educational systems the question is why? In this paper the argument is raised that urban educational policies lack sound epistemological grounding. Policies are divorced from an understanding of the “urban problematic”. Functionalist in orientation these policies have for the most part sought to “fix” urban schools by focusing on micro-ecological issues. In this paper three theoretical perspectives are explored for their potential contribution to inform research and policy on urban educational issues. The three perspectives are: 1 class theories 2 critical race theory and 3 cultural reproduction theories.

Away with Good Bantus: De-Linking African Language Literature from Culture, "Tribe" and Propriety

Science.gov (United States)

Mkhize, Nomalanga

2016-01-01

This paper argues that the "institutionalisation" model used by universities to spearhead the intellectualisation of African languages is a non-starter for taking African languages in new creative directions. The major constraint for African language literary culture is that written output has historically been heavily bent towards…

What can we talk about, in which language, in what way and with whom? Sami patients' experiences of language choice and cultural norms in mental health treatment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Inger Dagsvold

2015-05-01

Full Text Available Background: The Sami in Norway have a legal right to receive health services adapted to Sami language and culture. This calls for a study of the significance of language choice and cultural norms in Sami patients’ encounters with mental health services. Objectives: To explore the significance of language and cultural norms in communication about mental health topics experienced by Sami patients receiving mental health treatment to enhance our understanding of linguistic and cultural adaptation of health services. Methods: Data were collected through individual interviews with 4 Sami patients receiving mental health treatment in Northern Norway. A systematic text reduction and a thematic analysis were employed. Findings: Two themes were identified:(I Language choice is influenced by language competence, with whom one talks and what one talks about.Bilingualism was a resource and natural part of the participants’ lives, but there were limited possibilities to speak Sami in encounters with health services. A professional working relationship was placed on an equal footing with the possibility to speak Sami.(II Cultural norms influence what one talks about, in what way and to whom.However, norms could be bypassed, by talking about norm-regulated topics in Norwegian with health providers. Conclusion: Sami patients’ language choice in different communication situations is influenced by a complexity of social and cultural factors. Sami patients have varying opinions about and preferences for what they can talk about, in which language, in what way and with whom. Bilingualism and knowledge about both Sami and Norwegian culture provide latitude and enhanced possibilities for both patients and the health services. The challenge for the health services is to allow for and safeguard such individual variations within the cultural framework of the patients.

What can we talk about, in which language, in what way and with whom? Sami patients' experiences of language choice and cultural norms in mental health treatment

Science.gov (United States)

Dagsvold, Inger; Møllersen, Snefrid; Stordahl, Vigdis

2015-01-01

Background The Sami in Norway have a legal right to receive health services adapted to Sami language and culture. This calls for a study of the significance of language choice and cultural norms in Sami patients’ encounters with mental health services. Objectives To explore the significance of language and cultural norms in communication about mental health topics experienced by Sami patients receiving mental health treatment to enhance our understanding of linguistic and cultural adaptation of health services. Methods Data were collected through individual interviews with 4 Sami patients receiving mental health treatment in Northern Norway. A systematic text reduction and a thematic analysis were employed. Findings Two themes were identified: (I) Language choice is influenced by language competence, with whom one talks and what one talks about. Bilingualism was a resource and natural part of the participants’ lives, but there were limited possibilities to speak Sami in encounters with health services. A professional working relationship was placed on an equal footing with the possibility to speak Sami. (II) Cultural norms influence what one talks about, in what way and to whom. However, norms could be bypassed, by talking about norm-regulated topics in Norwegian with health providers. Conclusion Sami patients’ language choice in different communication situations is influenced by a complexity of social and cultural factors. Sami patients have varying opinions about and preferences for what they can talk about, in which language, in what way and with whom. Bilingualism and knowledge about both Sami and Norwegian culture provide latitude and enhanced possibilities for both patients and the health services. The challenge for the health services is to allow for and safeguard such individual variations within the cultural framework of the patients. PMID:25976741

Race, history, and black British jazz

OpenAIRE

Toynbee, Jason

2013-01-01

This article traces the history of black British jazz across five moments from 1920 to the present. It also makes a theoretical argument about the nature of race and its connection both with music and belonging to the nation. Race is indeed a musical-discursive construction, as has been argued in the literature about culture and ethnicity over the last thirty years or so. But it is a social structure too, and the contradictions that result are key to understanding the race-music relationship.

True to the Language Game: African American Discourse, Cultural Politics, and Pedagogy

Science.gov (United States)

Gilyard, Keith

2011-01-01

In "True to the Language Game", Keith Gilyard, one of the major African American figures to emerge in language and cultural studies, makes his most seminal work available in one volume. This collection of new and previously published essays contains Gilyard's most relevant scholarly contributions to deliberations about linguistic diversity,…

Race, ethnicity, language, social class, and health communication inequalities: a nationally-representative cross-sectional study.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kasisomayajula Viswanath

2011-01-01

Full Text Available While mass media communications can be an important source of health information, there are substantial social disparities in health knowledge that may be related to media use. The purpose of this study is to investigate how the use of cancer-related health communications is patterned by race, ethnicity, language, and social class.In a nationally-representative cross-sectional telephone survey, 5,187 U.S. adults provided information about demographic characteristics, cancer information seeking, and attention to and trust in health information from television, radio, newspaper, magazines, and the Internet. Cancer information seeking was lowest among Spanish-speaking Hispanics (odds ratio: 0.42; 95% confidence interval: 0.28-0.63 compared to non-Hispanic whites. Spanish-speaking Hispanics were more likely than non-Hispanic whites to pay attention to (odds ratio: 3.10; 95% confidence interval: 2.07-4.66 and trust (odds ratio: 2.61; 95% confidence interval: 1.53-4.47 health messages from the radio. Non-Hispanic blacks were more likely than non-Hispanic whites to pay attention to (odds ratio: 2.39; 95% confidence interval: 1.88-3.04 and trust (odds ratio: 2.16; 95% confidence interval: 1.61-2.90 health messages on television. Those who were college graduates tended to pay more attention to health information from newspapers (odds ratio: 1.98; 95% confidence interval: 1.42-2.75, magazines (odds ratio: 1.86; 95% confidence interval: 1.32-2.60, and the Internet (odds ratio: 4.74; 95% confidence interval: 2.70-8.31 and had less trust in cancer-related health information from television (odds ratio: 0.44; 95% confidence interval: 0.32-0.62 and radio (odds ratio: 0.54; 95% confidence interval: 0.34-0.86 compared to those who were not high school graduates.Health media use is patterned by race, ethnicity, language and social class. Providing greater access to and enhancing the quality of health media by taking into account factors associated with social

The Cultural Socialization Scale: Assessing Family and Peer Socialization toward Heritage and Mainstream Cultures

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Yijie; Benner, Aprile D.; Kim, Su Yeong

2015-01-01

In a culturally diverse society, youth learn about multiple cultures from a variety of sources, yet the existing assessment of cultural socialization has been limited to parents' efforts to teach youth about their heritage culture. The current study adapted and extended an existing cultural socialization measure (Umaña-Taylor & Fine, 2004) to assess four types of socialization practices encountered specifically during adolescence: cultural socialization by families and peers toward both one's heritage culture and the mainstream culture. In a pilot study, we developed the cultural socialization scale based on retrospective reports from 208 young adults, maximizing young adults' ability to reason and reflect their adolescent experiences with various socialization practices. In the primary study, we examined the psychometric properties of the scale using reports from 252 adolescents. Cultural socialization occurred from both socialization agents toward both cultures. Our cultural socialization scale demonstrated stable factor structures and high reliabilities. We observed strong factorial invariance across the four subscales (six items). MIMIC models also demonstrated invariance for each subscale across adolescents' demographic characteristics (i.e., gender, race/ethnicity, nativity, SES, language of assessment). The implications of the cultural socialization scale are discussed. PMID:25961139

A Socio-Cultural Perspective on Children's Early Language: A Family Study

Science.gov (United States)

Marjanovic-Umek, Ljubica; Fekonja-Peklaj, Urška; Socan, Gregor; Tašner, Veronika

2015-01-01

This study examines the effect of certain socio-cultural factors of the family environment on the language of toddlers and children in early childhood. The sample included 86 families with one- to six-year-old children. The data on the social, economic, and cultural factors of the family environment, parental reading literacy, parental knowledge…

The Language of Man. Book 6.

Science.gov (United States)

Littell, Joseph Fletcher, Ed.

This textbook, book 6 of "The Language of Man" series, covers semantics, the language of politics, language and race, the language of advertising, and the origins and growth of the English language. The material analyzed comes from many sources (advertisements, newspaper articles, poems, parodies) and attempts to demonstrate the effect of the…

Japanese Language and Culture: 9-Year Program Classroom Assessment Materials, Grade 4

Science.gov (United States)

Alberta Education, 2008

2008-01-01

This document is designed to provide assessment materials for specific Grade 4 outcomes in the Japanese Language and Culture Nine-year Program, Grades 4-5-6. The assessment materials are designed for the beginner level in the context of teaching for communicative competence. Grade 4 learning outcomes from the Japanese Language and Culture…

The Role of Cultural Understanding and Language Training in Unconventional Warfare

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Beleaga, Constantin

2004-01-01

.... After examining some situations in which United States and British forces carried out counterinsurgency operations, the author reveals that ground troops with foreign-language skills and cultural...

The place of Germanic language and culture in Freud's discovery of psychoanalysis between 1895 and 1900.

Science.gov (United States)

Anzieu, D

1986-01-01

Freud's self-analysed dreams between 1895 and 1900 point out: His attachment to his German mother tongue and the use of its peculiarities to represent certain polymorphous perverse fantasies of childhood (voyeurism, masochistic mostly); the recourse to living foreign languages (English and French mostly) to name the parts of the self both left alive and foreign to the consciousness; the use of Latin and Greek words to constitute one scientific universal language fitting to the knowledge of the unconscious. For Freud, the German culture is the culture to which he belongs; the antique Mediterranean culture being the culture of reference. It allows him to get free from the motherly symbiosis and to discover the Oedipus complex. The variety of languages and cultures is necessary to the preconscious activity of the psychoanalyst to whom it provides 'intermediate ideas'.

A Cross-Cultural Investigation of Gender-Bound Language Use in Turkish and English Plays: Implications for Foreign Language Education

Science.gov (United States)

Genc, Zubeyde Sinem; Armagan, Kiymet Selin

2018-01-01

The aim of the study is to investigate gender-bound language use in Turkish and English languages and to identify the differences and similarities across cultures and genders in the plays with family and social themes. Four English and five Turkish plays were chosen randomly for comparison. The number of words in the plays were taken into…

The language policy and cultural building in the Tuvan People's Republic

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ivanna V. Otroshenko

2015-10-01

Full Text Available Article is devoted to the role of the Mongolian language in Tuvan official sphere, education and mass-media during the initial years of Tuvan People’s Republic. Author investigates into the disputes of language choice for the Tuvan educational institutions and the issue of the Tuvan written language creation (1920’s. It proves that the lingual and educational spheres’ modernization had been influenced by the trends in the USSR language policy as well as the decision of Soviet diplomacy and Comintern to lead Tuva gradually out of the Mongolian influence. Article reveals the unknown and little-known facts of cultural and educational development of the Tuvan People’s Republic.

East meets West: The influence of language and culture in clinical education.

Science.gov (United States)

Ladyshewsky, Richard

1996-01-01

The marketing of education in South East Asia has become big business for Australian Universities. Physiotherapy programs are not exempt from this marketing push, with increases in foreign student enrollment becoming commonplace. This raises numerous opportunities and dilemmas for those involved in physiotherapy clinical education. This action research project investigated the influence of language and culture on clinical education practices. Nine South East Asian undergraduate physiotherapy students and 11 clinical instructors were involved in this qualitative research project. A variety of issues were identified which have important ramifications for academics and clinical instructors. Cultural membership, issues of authority and respect, and language proficiency were identified as having a direct influence on the clinical education process. Strategies for dealing with these cross cultural teaching and learning challenges are discussed.

Enhancing student schematic knowledge of culture through literature circles in a foreign language classroom

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Graham-Marr Alastair

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Improving student understanding of a foreign language culture is anything but a peripheral issue in the teaching of a foreign language. This pilot study reports on a second year required English course in a university in Japan that took a Literature Circles approach, where students were asked to read short stories out of class and then discuss these stories in class. Although students reported that they did not gain any special insights into the target language culture presented, they did report that reading fiction as source material for classroom activity helps with the acquisition of a vocabulary set that is more closely associated with lifestyle and culture. The results suggest that further study is warranted. Procedures of this pilot study are described and interpreted in the context of the English education system in Japan.

The Teleodynamics of Language, Culture, Technology and Science (LCT&S

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Robert K. Logan

2013-02-01

Full Text Available Logan [1] in his book The Extended Mind developed the hypothesis that language, culture, technology and science can be treated as organisms that evolve and reproduce themselves. This idea is extended by making use of the notion of teleodynamics that Deacon [2] introduced and developed in his book Incomplete Nature to explain the nature of life, sentience, mind and a self that acts in its own interest. It is suggested that language, culture, technology and science (LCT&S like living organisms also act in their own self-interest, are self-correcting and are to a certain degree autonomous even though they are obligate symbionts with their human hosts. Specifically, it will be argued that LCT&S are essentially teleodynamic systems, which Deacon defines as “self-creating, self-maintaining, self-reproducing, individuated systems [2] (p. 325”.

Review of Pütz et al., eds: Cognitive Sociolinguistics: Social and Cultural Variation in Cognition and Language Use

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Kim Ebensgaard

2015-01-01

Positive review of Cognitive Sociolinguistics: Social and Cultural Variation in Cognition and Language Use (2014)......Positive review of Cognitive Sociolinguistics: Social and Cultural Variation in Cognition and Language Use (2014)...

Race, money and medicines.

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Bloche, M Gregg

2006-01-01

Taking notice of race is both risky and inevitable, in medicine no less than in other endeavors. On the one hand, race can be a useful stand-in for unstudied genetic and environmental factors that yield differences in disease expression and therapeutic response. Attention to race can make a therapeutic difference, to the point of saving lives. On the other hand, racial distinctions have social meanings that are often pejorative or worse, especially when these distinctions are cast as culturally or biologically fixed. I argue in this essay that we should start with a presumption against racial categories in medicine, but permit their use when it might prolong lives or meaningfully improve health. Use of racial categories should be understood as an interim step; follow-up inquiry into the factors that underlie race-correlated clinical differences is important both to improve the efficacy of clinical care and to prevent race in itself from being misunderstood as a biological determinant. If we pursue such inquiry with vigor, the pernicious effects of racial categories on public understanding can be managed. But perverse market and regulatory incentives create the danger that use of race will be "locked-in," once drugs or other therapies are approved. These incentives should be revisited.

Developing Culturally Competent Health Knowledge: Issues of Data Analysis of Cross-Cultural, Cross-Language Qualitative Research

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Jenny Hsin-Chun Tsai

2004-12-01

Full Text Available There is a growing awareness and interest in the development of culturally competent health knowledge. Drawing on experience using a qualitative approach to elicit information from Mandarin- or Cantonese-speaking participants for a colorectal cancer prevention study, the authors describe lessons learned through the analysis process. These lessons include benefits and drawbacks of the use of coders from the studied culture group, challenges posed by using translated data for analysis, and suitable analytic approaches and research methods for cross-cultural, cross-language qualitative research. The authors also discuss the implications of these lessons for the development of culturally competent health knowledge.

The Potential of Dual-Language Cross-Cultural Peer Review

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Ruecker, Todd

2011-01-01

This article explores the potential of dual-language cross-cultural peer review and how it improves on traditional monolingual and monocultural peer review. Drawing on scholarship related to international exchange programmes, peer review, and two-way immersion programmes in the United States as well as data collected while facilitating the…

Within-person changes in the structure of emotion: the role of cultural identification and language.

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Perunovic, Wei Qi Elaine; Heller, Daniel; Rafaeli, Eshkol

2007-07-01

This study explored the within-person dynamic organization of emotion in East-Asian Canadian bicultural individuals as they function in two cultural worlds. Using a diary design, we examined under what conditions their emotional structure resembles that of Westerners or that of East Asians. As predicted, when these bicultural individuals identified with a Western culture or had recently spoken a non-Asian language, their positive and negative affect were inversely associated. When they identified with an Asian culture or interacted in an Asian language, this inverse association disappeared. This study shows that as bicultural individuals identify and communicate with members of one or the other cultural group, they may adopt a culturally congruent phenomenology, including a distinct affective pattern.

Investigating the attitudes towards learning a third language and its culture in Polish junior high school

OpenAIRE

Kiermasz, Zuzanna

2014-01-01

It is believed that attitudes to languages and culture tend to affect achievement in foreign language learning (Baker, 1997). Thus, this factor may be seen as crucial when it comes to the discrepancies in attainment in different languages learnt by the same students. Therefore, it seems vital to investigate variation in attitudes towards both learning L2 together with the approach to the L2 culture and the corresponding issues with respect to L3. Nevertheless, the general at...

Nation Building, English as an International Language, Medium of Instruction, and Language Debate: Malaysia and Possible Ways Forward

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Phan Le Ha

2013-10-01

Full Text Available In this article, we discuss Malaysia's major language policies surrounding Bahasa Malaysia and English as medium of instruction (MOI since its independence. We show how issues involving a national language vis a vis English are shaped by different ethnic and social groups' competing views regarding these languages. We argue that the language debate in Malaysia is largely an emotive one that carries a historical baggage which no one is yet ready to discard and until such time, it will continue to represent a nation divided by nationalism, race-based politics and globalisation. However, we also interpret the Malaysian government's termination of English as the MOI in certain key school subjects starting in 2012 as not necessarily an arbitrary rejection of English but as a positive move, given the many problems associated with the over-reliance on English in education and language policies throughout Asia. We, thus, see the most recent act known as 'To Uphold Bahasa Malaysia & To Strengthen the English Language' (MBMMBI as a necessary, firm, strategic and timely response by the Malaysian government to globalisation, nation building, the increasing international role of English, and the pressure to produce knowledge and maintain national cultural identity in today's world.

Unpacking Race, Culture, and Class in Rural Alaska: Native and Non-Native Multidisciplinary Professionals' Perceptions of Child Sexual Abuse

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Bubar, Roe; Bundy-Fazioli, Kimberly

2011-01-01

The purpose of this study was to unpack notions of class, culture, and race as they relate to multidisciplinary team (MDT) professionals and their perceptions of prevalence in child sexual abuse cases in Native and non-Native rural Alaska communities. Power and privilege within professional settings is significant for all social work professionals…

Metaphor, language, and culture Metáfora, linguagem e cultura

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Zoltán Kövecses

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Culture and language are connected in a myriad ways. Proverbs, rules of turn-taking in conversations, pronouns of power and solidarity, background knowledge to the understanding of conversations, politeness, linguistic relativity, the principle of cooperation, metaphor, metonymy, context, semantic change, discourse, ideology, print culture, oral culture, literacy, sociolinguistics, speech acts, and so forth, are just some of the concepts in which we find obvious connections between culture and language. Several disciplines within the language sciences attempt to analyze, describe, and explain the complex interrelations between the two broad areas. (For a brief and clear survey, see Kramsch 1998. Can we approach this vast variety of topics from a more unified perspective than it is traditionally done and currently available? The present paper focus on such possibilities.A cultura e a língua estão conectadas numa miríade de formas. Provérbios, regras de tomada de turnos na conversação, pronomes indicativos de poder e solidariedade, conhecimento prévio para o entendimento de conversas, polidez, relativismo linguístico, o princípio a cooperação, metáforas, metonímias, contexto, mudança semântica, discurso, ideologia, cultura impressa, cultura oral, letramento, sociolinguística, atos de fala, além de outros, são apenas alguns dos conceitos nos quais encontramos conexões óbvias entre cultura e língua. Várias disciplinas das ciências linguísticas tentam analisar, descrever e explicar as interrelações complexas entre estas duas grandes áreas. (Para uma revisão breve e clara, consultar Kramsch 1998. Será que podemos abordar esta vasta variedade de tópicos de uma perspectiva mais unificada do que tem sido tradicionalmente feito e está geralmente disponível? O presente artigo enfoca tais possibilidades.

English Language Teaching in Indonesia: A Continuous Challenge in Education and Cultural Diversity

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M. Marcellino

2008-01-01

Full Text Available The linguistic situations and conditions in Indonesia are quite complex by their own natures as more than seven hundred vernaculars with their various dialects from a great number of ethnic groups have been used as media of communication in the country.  Accordingly, the success of English teaching in Indonesia cannot be freed from the students' cultural backgrounds, values, customs, and beliefs as well as the political standpoint of the government regarding this foreign language. English language teaching has then undergone more than four changes in its curriculum since the country's independence and brought no significant impact upon the learning outcomes. This study reveals the substantial unconstructive influence of the students' cultures and the non-conducive language environment affecting their language acquisition.  Other aspects related to the teachers' performance and class preparations equally contribute to the ineffective classroom interactions.  This study offers some practical suggestions to cope with those problems.

English Language Teaching in Indonesia: A Continuous Challenge in Education and Cultural Diversity

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M. Marcellino

2006-01-01

Full Text Available The linguistic situations and conditions in Indonesia are quite complex by their own natures as more than seven hundred vernaculars with their various dialects from a great number of ethnic groups have been used as media of communication in the country. Accordingly, the success of English teaching in Indonesia cannot be freed from the students’ cultural backgrounds, values, customs, and beliefs as well as the political standpoint of the government regarding this foreign language. English language teaching has then undergone more than four changes in its curriculum since the country’s independence and brought no significant impact upon the learning outcomes. This study reveals the substantial unconstructive influence of the students’ cultures and the non-conducive language environment affecting their language acquisition. Other aspects related to the teachers’ performance and class preparations equally contribute to the ineffective classroom interactions. This study offers some practical suggestions to cope with those problems.

Teaching Culture and Identifying Language Interference Errors through Films

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Argynbayev, Arman; Kabylbekova, Dana; Yaylaci, Yusuf

2014-01-01

This study reflects intermediate level learners' opinion about employing films in the EFL classroom for teaching culture and avoiding negative language transfer. A total of 63 participants, aged 21-23, took part in the experiment in the Faculty of Philology at Suleyman Demirel University in Almaty, Kazakhstan. During the experiment the subjects…

Adult Learners' Perceptions of the Significance of Culture in Foreign Language Teaching and Learning

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Brooks-Lewis, Kimberly Anne

2014-01-01

Is learning about culture important when learning a foreign language? One would think that after its long history in the field of foreign language teaching this question had been answered with a resounding "yes". However, I saw little evidence of this in the classroom when I returned to the university to learn a foreign language or when…

Language Personality in the Conditions of Cross-Cultural Communication: Case-Study Experience

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Davidovitch, Nitza; Khyhniak, Kateryna

2018-01-01

The article is devoted to the problem of identification of a language personality's traits under conditions of cross-cultural communication. It is shown that effective cross-cultural communication is revised under globalization and increasingly intensive social interactions. The results of the authors' research prove that it is possible to develop…

French Cuisine in the Classroom: Using Culture to Enhance Language Proficiency.

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Abrate, Jane E.

1993-01-01

French cuisine offers a valuable resource for creating culture-based contexts for language use in the classroom. Suggestions and ideas are presented for incorporating food-related activities in the French class. (VWL)

The Arabic Language Fog of War: Exploring Iraq War Veterans’ Motivations to Study Arabic Language and Culture Post-Deployment

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Dr. Jennifer Nichols

2014-01-01

Full Text Available This article describes research into Iraq War Veterans studying Arabic at the college level post-deployment. What is it about their exposure to the language and culture that motivates them to study the language after serving in Iraq? Few research studies exist in the area of Veterans’ education, a federally recognized minority. The study’s purpose was to explore Iraq war veterans’ language learning motivations and described their experiences, through the use of qualitative research methodology and the development of case study narratives. Results indicate that understanding the Veteran experience can foster a diversity-friendly, inclusive environment in the critical language classroom. There are broader implications for veteran higher education, other Less Commonly Taught Languages, alternative pedagogies, non-traditional student education, K-12, foreign language education policy, foreign relations, diversity & equity in the classroom, and national security.

A language based on analogy to communicate cultural concepts in SETI

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Musso, Paolo

2011-02-01

The present paper is a synthesis of three presentation given by myself at the Toulouse IAC 2001 ( Analogy as a tool to communicate abstract concepts in SETI), the Bremen IAC 2003 ( From maths to culture: towards an effective message), and the Vancouver IAC 2004 ( Philosophical and religious implications of extraterrestrial intelligent life). Its aim is to find a way to make our cultural concepts understandable to hypothetical extraterrestrials (ETs) in a SETI communication. First of all, I expose the reasons why I think that analogy could be a good tool for this purpose. Then, I try to show that this is possible only in the context of an integrated language, using both abstract symbols and pictures, also sketching two practical examples about some basic concepts of our moral and religious tradition. Further studies are required to determine whether this method could be extended to the higher-level abstract concepts in the other fields of our culture. Finally, I discuss the possible role of mathematics, logic and natural science in the construction of an analogy-based language for interstellar messages with a cultural content and a possible way of managing this matter from a social point of view.

A Brief History of Language and Cultural Specialists in the State of Montana--Class 7 Testing

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Littlebear, Richard E.

2017-01-01

In 1995, the Montana Office of Public Instruction supported the Class 7 Indian language and culture specialist license to allow experts in Indigenous languages/cultures identified and certified by their respective tribal nations, to teach in K-12 public schools. This article uses the example of a Class 7 certification process on the Northern…

The "Human Colour" Crayon: Investigating the Attitudes and Perceptions of Learners regarding Race and Skin Colour

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Neeske Alexander

2017-07-01

Full Text Available Some coloured and black learners in South Africa use a light orange or pink crayon to represent themselves in art. Many learners name this colour “human colour” or “skin colour”. This is troublesome, because it could reflect exclusionary ways of representing race in images and language. This case study, conducted with two schools in the Western Cape, investigated Grade 3 learners’ attitudes and perceptions regarding race and skin colour through art processes and discussion. The aim was to promote critical engagement with race in Foundation Phase educational contexts. Suggestions include changing the language used to describe skin colour, just recognition and representation of races in educational resources and the promotion of critical citizenship education. This research indicates the need to create practical curriculum guidelines to discuss race issues in the South African classroom.

Towards culturally competent health care: language use of bilingual staff.

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, M; Noble, C; Matthews, C; Aguilar, N

1998-01-01

The presence of diverse language skills within health staff provides opportunities to better meet the needs of a multicultural population. A cross-sectional survey of all staff within the South Western Sydney Area Health Service was undertaken to compare language skills with population needs and examine the context of language use. Thirty-one per cent of staff (n = 964) were bilingual or multilingual, with the predominant languages spoken being Tagalog (Filipino), Cantonese, Hindi, Spanish, Vietnamese and Italian. Thirty-seven per cent of bilingual staff used their language skills at least weekly, predominantly in situations of simple conversation and giving directions. Bilingual staff are a valuable resource for the organisation and the presence of a similar overall proportion of bilingual and bicultural staff may engender tolerance and adaptability in providing care to a diverse population. However, supply does not directly match community demand. This mismatch will continue unless recruitment is focused towards identified language groups. The high proportion of staff who rarely used their language skills (37%) may be due to lack of opportunity or limited need, and suggests that further research needs to examine service models that locate bilingual workers close to client need. This study takes a crucial first step towards realising equitable and culturally appropriate care utilising the principles of productive diversity.

Race, populations, and genomics: Africa as laboratory.

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Braun, Lundy; Hammonds, Evelynn

2008-11-01

Much of the recent debate over race, genetics, and health has focused on the extent to which typological notions of race have biological meaning. Less attention, however, has been paid to the assumptions about the nature of "populations" that both inform contemporary biological and medical research and that underlie the concept of race. Focusing specifically on Africa in the 1930s and 1940s, this paper explores the history of how fluid societies were transformed into bounded units amenable to scientific analysis. In the so-called "Golden Age of Ethnography," university-trained social anthropologists, primarily from Britain and South Africa, took to the field to systematically study, organize, and order the world's diverse peoples. Intent on creating a scientific methodology of neutral observation, they replaced amateur travelers, traders, colonial administrators, and missionaries as authoritative knowledge producers about the customs, beliefs, and languages of indigenous peoples. At the same time, linguists were engaged in unifying African languages and mapping language onto primordial "tribal" territories. We argue that the notion of populations or "tribes" as discrete units suitable for scientific sampling and classification emerged in the 1930s and 1940s with the ethnographic turn in social anthropology and the professionalization and institutionalization of linguistics in Western and South African universities. Once named and entered into international atlases and databases by anthropologists in the U.S., the existence of populations as bounded entities became self-evident, thus setting the stage for their use in large-scale population genetic studies and the contemporary reinvigoration of broad claims of difference based on population identification.

Review of Pütz et al., eds: Cognitive Sociolinguistics: Social and Cultural Variation in Cognition and Language Use (2014)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Kim Ebensgaard

2015-01-01

Positive review of 'Cognitive Sociolinguistics: Social and Cultural Variation in Cognition and Language Use'.......Positive review of 'Cognitive Sociolinguistics: Social and Cultural Variation in Cognition and Language Use'....

Cultural and climatic changes shape the evolutionary history of the Uralic languages.

Science.gov (United States)

Honkola, T; Vesakoski, O; Korhonen, K; Lehtinen, J; Syrjänen, K; Wahlberg, N

2013-06-01

Quantitative phylogenetic methods have been used to study the evolutionary relationships and divergence times of biological species, and recently, these have also been applied to linguistic data to elucidate the evolutionary history of language families. In biology, the factors driving macroevolutionary processes are assumed to be either mainly biotic (the Red Queen model) or mainly abiotic (the Court Jester model) or a combination of both. The applicability of these models is assumed to depend on the temporal and spatial scale observed as biotic factors act on species divergence faster and in smaller spatial scale than the abiotic factors. Here, we used the Uralic language family to investigate whether both 'biotic' interactions (i.e. cultural interactions) and abiotic changes (i.e. climatic fluctuations) are also connected to language diversification. We estimated the times of divergence using Bayesian phylogenetics with a relaxed-clock method and related our results to climatic, historical and archaeological information. Our timing results paralleled the previous linguistic studies but suggested a later divergence of Finno-Ugric, Finnic and Saami languages. Some of the divergences co-occurred with climatic fluctuation and some with cultural interaction and migrations of populations. Thus, we suggest that both 'biotic' and abiotic factors contribute either directly or indirectly to the diversification of languages and that both models can be applied when studying language evolution. © 2013 The Authors. Journal of Evolutionary Biology © 2013 European Society For Evolutionary Biology.

Feminism, peer culture, gender and race: a reflection on being a black girl

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Raíssa Francisco Santos

2018-05-01

Full Text Available The objective of this article is to discuss studies on the production of children's cultures, highlighting the importance of the role of black girls in pre-school and show how affected they are by racist and sexist relationships in pre-school, legitimized by the capitalist system. From the studies of Kimberly Crenshaw (1989, Helena Hirata (2014, Angela Davis (1982, Lélia Gonzales (1984 and Fernandes (1989 we will provide the historical scope for the subject as inter-relations and processes of the interaction between power relations and categories such as class, race, gender and identity. Racial struggle, a class struggle, and gender equality must all come together in the struggle for the transformation of society.

Ewe (for Togo): Communication and Culture Handbook. Peace Corps Language Handbook Series.

Science.gov (United States)

Kozelka, Paul R.

This handbook, concerning the Ewe language and culture of Togo, presents classroom activities that require the learner to exchange messages in a way that is appropriate to the cultural context. These activities are presented in 30 lessons containing both basic and supplementary material that deal with situations and topics which will be useful to…

Culture Influence on the Perception of the Body Language by Arab and Malay Students

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Marzieh Gordan

2013-11-01

Full Text Available Intercultural communication is applied for communicating with each other among the different cultures and traditions. It highlighted the problems which faced by different communities and organizations, the problems which are natural to the person like when the people face to new culture or tradition even the religious issues. So intercultural communication here is seeking for an answer between the different nations that how they communicate with each other when they face some problems in their tradition and culture. This one highlights how the people encode a message and how they interpret a message to each other.  So here in this paper interaction is between students of Arabs and Malays from National University of Malaysia and it deals with their body language especially hand gestures. This paper is based on the Micheal Byram theory of language. In this quantitative research some questions will distribute among the students and the similarities and differences between their sign languages will be highlighted.

From language classroom to clinical context: the role of language and culture in communication for nurses using English as a second language: a thematic analysis.

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O'Neill, Fiona

2011-09-01

This study explores the experiences of internationally educated nurses using English as a second language, recruited by advanced economies to supplement diminishing local workforces, as they progress from language learning programs to clinical settings. Understanding the journey these nurses experience as language learners and professionals highlights ways in which they could be better supported in their adaptation and integration into the Australian workforce. By means of semi-structured interviews, the nurses' narratives were explored and documented. Thematic analysis was used to interpret their experiences as they move from the English language classroom to the clinical setting. The participants had all completed studies in English as a second language in Australia and had experienced working in Australian as part of a competency based assessment program. At the time of the study, conducted in South Australia, six of the nurses had met the English language requirements of the Nurses Board of South Australia and had started working as Registered Nurses in Australia. Four participants were still to reach the mandatory English requirements, among whom three were to return to their home countries due to visa restrictions, and continue their efforts to attain the English language proficiency requirement. There were six female participants and four male. Five participants were Indian, four Chinese, and one, Nepalese. In exploring their experiences, themes of identity and belonging, safety and competence and adapting to new roles and ways of communicating are revealed. In their own words, these nurses reveal the challenges they face as they concurrently manage the roles of language learners and professionals. The journey from language classroom to clinical setting is a process that goes beyond the notions of language proficiency; these nurses are constructing new cultural and professional identities. Bridging the gap between preparation and practice involves making

Native Language as a Core Value which creates the Cross-Cultural Identity

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JERZY NIKITOROWICZ

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Th e thesis which is undertaken in this article applies to a native language (the language of the family and home as the leading (primary value of creating a crosscultural identity. To justify this argument, the author refers to his own research and literature in this area. Th ere are many references to the theory of cultural relativism by Sapir-Whorf and the theory of core values by Jerzy Smolicz. Th e author demonstrates, notices, and highlights that the personal and group identity, analysed in terms of evolutionary (processual, based on the values which are recognised and respected in the family, are shaping and developing cross-cultural identity. Th e more we recognize, respect and accept your native (family and home identity, the more we are likely to make an eff ort to get to know the Other and his culture.

Battles and Borders. : Perspectives on Cultural Transmission and Literature in Minor Language Areas

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Broomans, Pieternella; Jensma, Goffe; Jiresch, Esther; Klok, Janna; van Elswijk, Roald

2015-01-01

Battles and Borders. Perspectives on Cultural Transmission and Literature in Minor Language Areas is about literature on the fringes of Europe. The authors all discuss the often unique ways in which literary history and cultural transfer function in peripheral and central regions against the

Children's Faithfulness in Imitating Language Use Varies Cross-culturally, Contingent on Prior Experience

Science.gov (United States)

Klinger, Jörn; Mayor, Julien; Bannard, Colin

2016-01-01

Despite its recognized importance for cultural transmission, little is known about the role imitation plays in language learning. Three experiments examine how rates of imitation vary as a function of qualitative differences in the way language is used in a small indigenous community in Oaxaca, Mexico and three Western comparison groups. Data from…

Influence of race/ethnicity on genetic counseling and testing for hereditary breast and ovarian cancer.

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Forman, Andrea D; Hall, Michael J

2009-01-01

Risk assessment coupled with genetic counseling and testing for the cancer predisposition genes BRCA1 and BRCA2 (BRCA1/2) has become an integral element of comprehensive patient evaluation and cancer risk management in the United States for individuals meeting high-risk criteria for hereditary breast and ovarian cancer (HBOC). For mutation carriers, several options for risk modification have achieved substantial reductions in future cancer risk. However, several recent studies have shown lower rates of BRCA1/2 counseling and testing among minority populations. Here, we explore the role of race/ethnicity in cancer risk assessment, genetic counseling and genetic testing for HBOC and the BRCA1/2 cancer predisposition genes. Barriers to genetic services related to race/ethnicity and underserved populations, including socioeconomic barriers (e.g., time, access, geographic, language/cultural, awareness, cost) and psychosocial barriers (e.g., medical mistrust, perceived disadvantages to genetic services), as well as additional barriers to care once mutation carriers are identified, will be reviewed.

El Dinero [Money]: A Culture Unit for Foreign Language Classes.

Science.gov (United States)

Enwall, Beverly

This curriculum guide offers materials designed to acquaint students with aspects of Hispanic culture and language. Situations, pattern practices, visual aids, dialogues, games, literary passages, and authentic media advertisements, all closely revolving around the concept of "El Dinero" (Money), are employed to this end. Suggestions for…

Persistence in Japanese Language Study and Learners' Cultural/Linguistic Backgrounds

Science.gov (United States)

Matsumoto, Masanori

2009-01-01

Motivational characteristics of students learning Japanese as a foreign language at universities in Australia were investigated to find out what affecting factors are closely related to their intentions for continuing/discontinuing their study. The results showed that students' cultural/linguistic backgrounds have a significant impact on their…

Variation in Second Language Learners' Strategies among Non-Native English Speakers from Three Language/Culture Backgrounds

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Ebsworth, Miriam Eisenstein; Tang, Frank Lixing; Razavi, Nikta; Aiello, Jacqueline

2014-01-01

This study explored the effects of cultural and linguistic background, L2 proficiency, and gender on language learning strategies for 263 college-level learners from Chinese, Russian, and Latino backgrounds. Data based on the SILL (Oxford, 2001) revealed that Russian students used significantly more strategies than the Chinese students in three…

FORMATION OF CROSS-CULTURAL COMPETENCE OF FOREIGN STUDENTS IN THE PROCESS OF LEARNING UKRAINIAN AS A FOREIGN LANGUAGE

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Галина Дідук-Ступ'як

2015-12-01

Full Text Available The article is devoted to the problem of formation of cross-cultural competence of foreign students in the process of learning Ukrainian as a foreign language. Theoretical and pragmatic ways of intercultural communication methods for speakers of a foreign language in four types of speech activity have been substantiated. There have been determined linguistic and didactic principles of learning the Ukrainian language as a foreign language using authorial technology of interaction of different approaches that promotes the development of effective cross-cultural competence of foreign students. The main components of the innovative technology of work with foreign language audience have been characterized; a system of tasks and exercises aimed at mastering linguistic, socio-cultural and pragmatic competences has been set. There have been determined linguistic and methodical problems of comparative methodology, which authoring technology LTIRP with the usage of authentic texts is based on. Traditional and new forms, methods and techniques of teaching foreign students in the process of formation of cross-cultural competence have been considered.

Language, History and Culture in Bessie Head's "a Question of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Through the interrelationship between language culture and history we have established homosexuality and other forms of perversions in Bessie Head's A Question of Power; Sethe's infanticide in Toni Morrison's Beloved, and Amoo's murder of his wife and his scarifying of his daughter in Sembéne Ousmane's Tribal Marks.

Exploring the Impact of Culture- and Language-Influenced Physics on Science Attitude Enhancement

Science.gov (United States)

Morales, Marie Paz E.

2016-01-01

"Culture," a set of principles that trace and familiarize human beings within their existential realities, may provide an invisible lens through which reality could be discerned. Critically explored in this study is how culture- and language-sensitive curriculum materials in physics improve Pangasinan learners' attitude toward science.…

Language, Culture and Ethnicity: Interplay of Ideologies within a Japanese Community in Brazil

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Sakuma, Tomoko

2011-01-01

This dissertation is a sociolinguistic study of the ideologies about language, culture and ethnicity among Japanese immigrants and descendants in Brazil (hereafter, Nikkeis) who gather at a local Japanese cultural association, searching for what it means to be "Japanese" in Brazil. This study focuses on how linguistic behaviors are…

Cross-linguistic and cross-cultural effects on verbal working memory and vocabulary: testing language-minority children with an immigrant background.

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de Abreu, Pascale M J Engel; Baldassi, Martine; Puglisi, Marina L; Befi-Lopes, Debora M

2013-04-01

In this study, the authors explored the impact of test language and cultural status on vocabulary and working memory performance in multilingual language-minority children. Twenty 7-year-old Portuguese-speaking immigrant children living in Luxembourg completed several assessments of first (L1)- and second-language (L2) vocabulary (comprehension and production), executive-loaded working memory (counting recall and backward digit recall), and verbal short-term memory (digit recall and nonword repetition). Cross-linguistic task performance was compared within individuals. The language-minority children were also compared with multilingual language-majority children from Luxembourg and Portuguese-speaking monolinguals from Brazil without an immigrant background matched on age, sex, socioeconomic status, and nonverbal reasoning. Results showed that (a) verbal working memory measures involving numerical memoranda were relatively independent of test language and cultural status; (b) language status had an impact on the repetition of high- but not on low-wordlike L2 nonwords; (c) large cross-linguistic and cross-cultural effects emerged for productive vocabulary; (d) cross-cultural effects were less pronounced for vocabulary comprehension with no differences between groups if only L1 words relevant to the home context were considered. The study indicates that linguistic and cognitive assessments for language-minority children require careful choice among measures to ensure valid results. Implications for testing culturally and linguistically diverse children are discussed.

Locating the global: culture, language and science education for indigenous students

Science.gov (United States)

McKinley, Elizabeth

2005-02-01

The international literature suggests the use of indigenous knowledge (IK) and traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) contexts in science education to provide motivation and self-esteem for indigenous students is widespread. However, the danger of alienating culture (as knowledge) from the language in which the worldview is embedded seems to have been left out of the philosophical and pedagogical debates surrounding research and comment in the field. This paper argues that one of the main ways in which indigenous knowledge systems will survive and thrive is through the establishment of programmes taught through indigenous languages so that a dialectal relationship between language and knowledge is established that continues to act as the wellspring. The article concludes by reviewing the situation in Aotearoa New Zealand with respect to the indigenous population, Maori, and the recent science education initiatives in te reo Maori (Maori language).

Race in Supervision: Let's Talk About It.

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Schen, Cathy R; Greenlee, Alecia

2018-01-01

Addressing race and racial trauma within psychotherapy supervision is increasingly important in psychiatry training. A therapist's ability to discuss race and racial trauma in psychotherapy supervision increases the likelihood that these topics will be explored as they arise in the therapeutic setting. The authors discuss the contextual and sociocultural dynamics that contributed to their own avoidance of race and racial trauma within the supervisory relationship. The authors examine the features that eventually led to a robust discussion of race and culture within the supervisory setting and identify salient themes that occurred during three phases of the conversation about race: pre-dialogue, the conversation, and after the conversation. These themes include building an alliance, supercompetence, avoidance, shared vulnerability, "if I speak on this, I own it," closeness versus distance, and speaking up. This article reviews the key literature in the field of psychiatry and psychology that has shaped how we understand race and racial trauma and concludes with guidelines for supervisors on how to facilitate talking about race in supervision.

Conceptualising the impact of culture and language upon hospitality service management

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Tabari, Saloomeh; Wilson, Jonathan; Ingram, Hadyn

2016-01-01

Purpose:\\ud The purpose of this paper is to explore the nature and definitions of culture and its relationship to language and cultural sensitivity in hospitality management services. \\ud \\ud Design/methodology/approach: The paper takes the form of a critical literature review followed by a phenomenological exploratory pilot study, using template analysis.\\ud \\ud 
Findings:\\ud Previous studies indicate that the more individuals understand and embrace notions of intercultural sensitivity, then...

Untangling cultural inheritance: language diversity and long-house architecture on the Pacific northwest coast

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Jordan, Peter; O'Neill, Sean

2010-01-01

Many recent studies of cultural inheritance have focused on small-scale craft traditions practised by single individuals, which do not require coordinated participation by larger social collectives. In this paper, we address this gap in the cultural transmission literature by investigating diversity in the vernacular architecture of the Pacific northwest coast, where communities of hunter–fisher–gatherers constructed immense wooden long-houses at their main winter villages. Quantitative analyses of long-house styles along the coastline draw on a range of models and methods from the biological sciences and are employed to test hypotheses relating to basic patterns of macro-scale cultural diversification, and the degree to which the transmission of housing traits has been constrained by the region's numerous linguistic boundaries. The results indicate relatively strong branching patterns of cultural inheritance and also close associations between regional language history and housing styles, pointing to the potentially crucial role played by language boundaries in structuring large-scale patterns of cultural diversification, especially in relation to ‘collective’ cultural traditions like housing that require substantial inputs of coordinated labour. PMID:21041212

Autonomous Language Learning in Africa: A Mismatch of Cultural Assumptions.

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Sonaiya, Remi

2002-01-01

Questions the global validity of the autonomous method of language learning, which has origins in the European and North American traditions of individualism. Raises the question of appropriateness of the cultural content of educational materials that are alleged to be suitable for global dissemination, with special reference to the Yoruba world…

Language Features and Culture Features on Short Message

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

王佳

2013-01-01

Mobile phone is regarded as“the fifth media”after newspaper,radio,TV and the Internet.The mobile phone short message further highlights the importance of written signs in communication.“The thumb revolution”is eagerly anticipating one kind of trend by the hand replace of mouth,sound substitute for the quiet around us. My paper will analyze the language features and the culture features of mobile phone short messages which are written in Chinese and English.

Foreign Culture Awareness Needs of Saudi English Language Majors at Buraydah Community College

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Alsamani, Abdul-Aziz Saleh

2014-01-01

Although many EFL learners have a command of internalized foreign language knowledge, they may have difficulty using this knowledge in different contexts. This is due to many interacting factors affecting their performance, mainly lack of target culture awareness. This study intended to identify the cultural aspects suitable to be integrated into…

Giving a Virtual Voice to the Silent Language of Culture: The "Cultura" Project.

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Furstenberg, Gilberte; Levet, Sabine; English, Kathryn; Maillet, Katherine

2001-01-01

Presents a Web-based, cross-cultural, curricular initiative entitled, "Cultura," designed to develop foreign language students' understanding of foreign cultural attitudes, concepts, beliefs, and ways of interacting and looking at the world. Focuses on the pedagogy of electronic media, with particular emphasis on the ways the Web can be used to…

The Infusion of Language, Regional, and Cultural Content into Military Education: Status Report

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2011-01-01

cultural awareness and the opportunity to examine cultural and moral relativism in the context of how others perceive us, with a special focus on...Learning Concept for 2015, 20 January 2011, TRADOC PAM 525-8-2, p. 11 10 Discussed at the DoD “Language and Culture Summit: A Strategic Imperative...Function. The Air Force’s approach to LRC emphasizes the concept of “Cross- Cultural Competence” (3C). In the Flight Plan, 3C is defined as “the

The challenge of linguistic and cultural diversity: Does length of experience affect South African speech-language therapists’ management of children with language impairment?

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Southwood, Frenette; van Dulm, Ondene

2015-01-01

Background South African speech-language therapists (SLTs) currently do not reflect the country's linguistic and cultural diversity. The question arises as to who might be better equipped currently to provide services to multilingual populations: SLTs with more clinical experience in such contexts, or recently trained SLTs who are themselves linguistically and culturally diverse and whose training programmes deliberately focused on multilingualism and multiculturalism? Aims To investigate whether length of clinical experience influenced: number of bilingual children treated, languages spoken by these children, languages in which assessment and remediation can be offered, assessment instrument(s) favoured, and languages in which therapy material is required. Method From questionnaires completed by 243 Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA)-registered SLTs who treat children with language problems, two groups were drawn: 71 more experienced (ME) respondents (20+ years of experience) and 79 less experienced (LE) respondents (maximum 5 years of experience). Results The groups did not differ significantly with regard to (1) number of children (monolingual or bilingual) with language difficulties seen, (2) number of respondents seeing child clients who have Afrikaans or an African language as home language, (3) number of respondents who can offer intervention in Afrikaans or English and (4) number of respondents who reported needing therapy material in Afrikaans or English. However, significantly more ME than LE respondents reported seeing first language child speakers of English, whereas significantly more LE than ME respondents could provide services, and required therapy material, in African languages. Conclusion More LE than ME SLTs could offer remediation in an African language, but there were few other significant differences between the two groups. There is still an absence of appropriate assessment and remediation material for Afrikaans and African

The challenge of linguistic and cultural diversity: Does length of experience affect South African speech-language therapists' management of children with language impairment?

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Southwood, Frenette; Van Dulm, Ondene

2015-02-10

South African speech-language therapists (SLTs) currently do not reflect the country's linguistic and cultural diversity. The question arises as to who might be better equipped currently to provide services to multilingual populations: SLTs with more clinical experience in such contexts, or recently trained SLTs who are themselves linguistically and culturally diverse and whose training programmes deliberately focused on multilingualism and multiculturalism? To investigate whether length of clinical experience influenced: number of bilingual children treated, languages spoken by these children, languages in which assessment and remediation can be offered, assessment instrument(s) favoured, and languages in which therapy material is required. From questionnaires completed by 243 Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA)-registered SLTs who treat children with language problems, two groups were drawn:71 more experienced (ME) respondents (20+ years of experience) and 79 less experienced (LE) respondents (maximum 5 years of experience). The groups did not differ significantly with regard to (1) number of children(monolingual or bilingual) with language difficulties seen, (2) number of respondents seeing child clients who have Afrikaans or an African language as home language, (3) number of respondents who can offer intervention in Afrikaans or English and (4) number of respondents who reported needing therapy material in Afrikaans or English. However, significantly more ME than LE respondents reported seeing first language child speakers of English, whereas significantly more LE than ME respondents could provide services, and required therapy material, in African languages. More LE than ME SLTs could offer remediation in an African language, but there were few other significant differences between the two groups. There is still an absence of appropriate assessment and remediation material for Afrikaans and African languages, but the increased number of African

Race, Ideology, and Academic Ability: A Relational Analysis of Racial Narratives in Mathematics

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Shah, Niral

2017-01-01

Background/Context: There is evidence that race affects students' learning experiences in mathematics, a subject typically thought of as "race-neutral" and "culture-free." Research in psychology and sociology has shown that racial narratives (e.g., "Asians are good at math") are pervasive in U.S. culture and play a…

Language Usage and Culture Maintenance: A Study of Spanish-Speaking Immigrant Mothers in Australia

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Mejía, Glenda

2016-01-01

This article discusses the usage of the Spanish language by Hispanic mothers with their children, their views on language maintenance and culture within their bilingual families and their opinions on the benefits of bilingualism in a globalised world. Drawing upon detailed case studies of 16 native Spanish-speaking mothers married to…

Cultures of Abuse: ‘Sex Grooming’, Organised Abuse and Race in Rochdale, UK

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Michael Salter

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Revelations of organised abuse by men of Asian heritage in the United Kingdom have become a recurrent feature of international media coverage of sexual abuse in recent years. This paper reflects on the similarities between the highly publicised ‘sex grooming’ prosecutions in Rochdale in 2012 and the allegations of organised abuse in Rochdale that emerged in 1990, when twenty children were taken into care after describing sadistic abuse by their parents and others. While these two cases differ in important aspects, this paper highlights the prominence of colonial ideologies of civilisation and barbarism in the investigation and media coverage of the two cases and the sublimation of the issue of child welfare. There are important cultural and normative antecedents to sexual violence but these have been misrepresented in debates over organised abuse as racial issues and attributed to ethnic minority communities. In contrast, the colonialist trope promulgating the fictional figure of the rational European has resulted in the denial of the cultural and normative dimensions of organised abuse in ethnic majority communities by attributing sexual violence to aberrant and sexually deviant individuals whose behaviours transgress the boundaries of accepted cultural norms. This paper emphasises how the implicit or explicit focus on race has served to obscure the power dynamics underlying both cases and the continuity of vulnerability that places children at risk of sexual and organised abuse.

L'experience suedoise en matiere d'enseignement des languages-cultures d'origine (The Swedish Experience in the Field of Language and Culture Education for Migrants.

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Cabau-Lampa, Beatrice

2000-01-01

Examines the constituent features of the Swedish educational mileau, and the different issues surrounding the implementation of education in language and culture for migrants. Expounds the new perspectives according to which this education was conceived in the Swedish context of the 1990s, that is the reorganization of the teaching and learning…

Interactions of Cultures and Top People of Wikipedia from Ranking of 24 Language Editions

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Eom, Young-Ho; Aragón, Pablo; Laniado, David; Kaltenbrunner, Andreas; Vigna, Sebastiano; Shepelyansky, Dima L.

2015-01-01

Wikipedia is a huge global repository of human knowledge that can be leveraged to investigate interwinements between cultures. With this aim, we apply methods of Markov chains and Google matrix for the analysis of the hyperlink networks of 24 Wikipedia language editions, and rank all their articles by PageRank, 2DRank and CheiRank algorithms. Using automatic extraction of people names, we obtain the top 100 historical figures, for each edition and for each algorithm. We investigate their spatial, temporal, and gender distributions in dependence of their cultural origins. Our study demonstrates not only the existence of skewness with local figures, mainly recognized only in their own cultures, but also the existence of global historical figures appearing in a large number of editions. By determining the birth time and place of these persons, we perform an analysis of the evolution of such figures through 35 centuries of human history for each language, thus recovering interactions and entanglement of cultures over time. We also obtain the distributions of historical figures over world countries, highlighting geographical aspects of cross-cultural links. Considering historical figures who appear in multiple editions as interactions between cultures, we construct a network of cultures and identify the most influential cultures according to this network. PMID:25738291

Interactions of cultures and top people of Wikipedia from ranking of 24 language editions.

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Young-Ho Eom

Full Text Available Wikipedia is a huge global repository of human knowledge that can be leveraged to investigate interwinements between cultures. With this aim, we apply methods of Markov chains and Google matrix for the analysis of the hyperlink networks of 24 Wikipedia language editions, and rank all their articles by PageRank, 2DRank and CheiRank algorithms. Using automatic extraction of people names, we obtain the top 100 historical figures, for each edition and for each algorithm. We investigate their spatial, temporal, and gender distributions in dependence of their cultural origins. Our study demonstrates not only the existence of skewness with local figures, mainly recognized only in their own cultures, but also the existence of global historical figures appearing in a large number of editions. By determining the birth time and place of these persons, we perform an analysis of the evolution of such figures through 35 centuries of human history for each language, thus recovering interactions and entanglement of cultures over time. We also obtain the distributions of historical figures over world countries, highlighting geographical aspects of cross-cultural links. Considering historical figures who appear in multiple editions as interactions between cultures, we construct a network of cultures and identify the most influential cultures according to this network.

Variation in Second Language Learners' Strategies among Non-Native English Speakers from Three Language/Culture Backgrounds

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Ebsworth, Miriam Eisenstein; Tang, Frank Lixing; Razavi, Nikta; Aiello, Jacqueline

2014-01-01

This study explored the effects of cultural and linguistic background, L2 proficiency, and gender on language learning strategies for 263 college-level learners from Chinese, Russian, and Latino backgrounds. Data based on the SILL (Oxford, 2001) revealed that Russian students used significantly more strategies than the Chinese students in three…

Impact of Race Versus Education and Race Versus Income on Patients' Motivation to Participate in Clinical Trials.

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Kurt, Anita; Kincaid, Hope; Semler, Lauren; Jacoby, Jeanne L; Johnson, Melanie B; Careyva, Beth A; Stello, Brian; Friel, Timothy; Smulian, John C; Knouse, Mark C

2017-12-26

Our study investigates whether levels of motivation and barriers to participation in clinical trials vary with patients' education and income. A self-administered survey asked outpatients to rank potential influential factors on a "0" to "4" significance scale for their motivation to participate in clinical trials. Principal component analysis (PCA), analysis of variance (ANOVA), Kruskal-Wallis, and Mann-Whitney U tests analyzed the impact of race, education, and income on their motivation to participate. Analysis included 1841 surveys; most respondents had a high school education or some college, and listed annual income motivation scale 1 scores (p = .0261). Compared with their counterparts, subjects with less education/lower income ranked monetary compensation (p = .0420 and p motivator. Minorities and patients with less education and lower income appear to be more influenced by their desire to please the doctor, the race and sex of the doctor, and the language spoken by the doctor being the same as theirs. For all races, education appeared to have a direct relationship with motivation to participate, except for African-Americans, whose motivation appeared to decline with more education. Income appeared to have an inverse relationship with motivation to participate for all races.

Response to Marie Paz Morales' ``Influence of culture and language sensitive physics on science attitude achievement''

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Cole, Mikel Walker

2015-12-01

This response to Marie Paz Morales' "Influence of culture and language sensitive physics on science attitude achievement" explores the ideas of culturally responsive pedagogy and critical literacy to examine some implications for culturally responsive science instruction implicit in the original manuscript.

Podcasts as a Learning Tool: German Language and Culture Every Day

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Schmidt, Johannes

2008-01-01

Podcasts provide a straightforward opportunity to stay connected with language, culture, and recent events of German-speaking countries. Podcasts offer clearly articulated, authentic material that can be automatically and regularly delivered to your computer and classrooms; continuously exposing students and teachers to German. This article…

Implicit Race/Ethnic Prejudice in Mexican Americans

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Garza, Christelle Fabiola; Gasquoine, Philip Gerard

2013-01-01

Implicit race/ethnic prejudice was assessed using Spanish- and English-language versions of an Implicit Association Test that used Hispanic/Anglo first names and pleasant/unpleasant words as stimuli. This test was administered to a consecutive sample of Mexican American adults residing in the Rio Grande Valley region of Texas of whom about…

Culture and Risk Communication. A Report about the Farmworker Association of Florida

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Martha Kuhnhenn

2017-12-01

Full Text Available In this field report, I give an account of my research trip to the Farmworker Association of Florida in Central Florida near the area of Lake Apopka (U.S.. This non-governmental association works to empower and improve farmworkers’ living and working conditions. The field trip is embedded in my research on risk communication with a special focus on the risks of herbicides. This issue is closely linked to political, cultural and racial factors. Hence, I argue, risk communication must consider culture as a contextual key factor and should embrace a critical perspective. Such a perspective is culturally appropriate and addresses issues of race and language as well as socio-economic status

Selected English-Language Bibliography of Interest for Hungarian Cultural Studies: 2013-2014

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Louise O. Vasvári

2015-01-01

As the above title indicates, because of the publication schedule of Hungarian Cultural Studies this bibliography straddles 2013-2014, covering the period since the publication in Fall of 2013 of last year’s bibliography in this journal. Each year’s bibliography is supplemented by earlier items that were only retrieved recently. Although this bibliography series can only concentrate on English-language items, occasional items of particular interest in other languages may be included.      ...

The problems of intercultural communication: didactic considerations for teaching languages

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Małgorzata Spychała

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The coexistence of different nations, races i.e. cultures in the same social space that could be a country, a village or even a company is already a fact. Nowadays, not taking into account the tools of intercultural communication may result in damaging every communicative act. We believe that there is a necessity for revising and explaining the concepts related to the subject of intercultural communication from the perspective of foreign language teaching. In this article we will discuss such concepts as: interculturalism, transculturation, acculturation, integration, identity, etc. We will also look into the origin of intercultural communication. All these reflections will bring us closer to the intercultural competence which, in our opinion, students of foreign languages, i.e. intercultural speakers, should possess. In conclusion, we present the main objectives of the Common Frame of Reference for the Languages of the Council of Europe (2002 with regard to intercultural education.

Islam and its Influence on the Kazakh Culture and language

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Galina T. Yedgina

2013-01-01

Full Text Available After The Republic of Kazakhstan has got its independence we can observe intensive revival of the national culture and traditional religion as well as increasing of religiousness level of the population. So, studying of the Islamic development in our country is necessary nowadays, because it may help to comprehend specific character of social, political, historical and cultural features. The Koran is unique, it is the first written literary monument of the rise of Islam period and a code of moral, religious, civil, political and legal regulations. At the beginning of 8-th century Islam became the prevailing religion in our region due to its monotheism ideas. Since that time we can notice the development and prosperity of the Moslem Arabic culture which has influenced the social, economic, political and cultural life in Central Asia and Southern Kazakhstan. After Islam had been declared a new state religion, the Arabic language, script and literature became an integral part of the culture, and it is no doubt that the culture of local population was enriched greatly after the Arabic invasion

The Analysis of Cultural and Intercultural Elements in Mandarin as a Foreign Language Textbooks from Selected Malaysian Public Higher Education Institutions

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Fong, Chan Suet; DeWitt, Dorothy; Leng, Chin Hai

2018-01-01

Language cannot be taught outside the culture of the society. A foreign language learner needs to learn the context and the cultural elements to avoid conflicts and misunderstanding arising from differing values, beliefs, and customs. Hence, foreign language instruction needs to emphasise intercultural communicative competence and include cultural…

L'apprentissage d'une langue etrangere comme ouverture culturelle (Second Language Learning as a Cultural Opportunity).

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LeBrun, Monique

It has been suggested that the learning of a second language is not only a practical matter, as is commonly emphasized in discussion about language teaching, but is equally an experience of cultural initiation, particularly through the appreciation of literary texts in that language. The first part of this paper reviews educators' ideas about…

Culture and language differences as a barrier to provision of quality care by the health workforce in Saudi Arabia.

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Almutairi, Khalid M

2015-04-01

To identify, synthesize, and summarize issues and challenges related to the culture and language differences of the health workforce in Saudi Arabia. A comprehensive systematic review was conducted in May 2014 to locate published articles. Two independent researchers in consultation with several experts used 4 electronic databases (ISI Web of Knowledge, Science Direct, PubMed, and Cochrane) to scrutinize articles published from January 2000 - March 2014. Each of the studies was given a quality assessment rating of weak, moderate, or strong, and was evaluated for methodological soundness using Russell and Gregory's criteria. The online literature search identified 12 studies that met the inclusion criteria. Lack of knowledge of non-Muslim nurses or culture in Saudi Arabia, difficulties in achieving cultural competence, and culture shock were documented as cultural difference factors. Issues in language difference include the clarity of language use by health care providers in giving information and providing adequate explanation regarding their activities. The available information provided by this review study shows that there is a communication barrier between patients and health care workers such as healthcare workers demonstrate low cultural competency. Despite the fact that the government provides programs for expatriate healthcare workers, there is a need to further improve educational and orientation programs regarding the culture and language in Saudi Arabia.

The Bubbling Cauldron. Race, Ethnicity, and the Urban Crisis.

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Smith, Michael Peter, Ed.; Feagin, Joe R., Ed.

The essays in this collection provide a background for discussions about multiculturalism, cultural politics, and urban crises by illustrating the ways in which race is still a central source of meaning, identity, and power and why it is intensifying as a category, rather than diminishing. Selections include: (1) "Putting 'Race' in Its…

Race in Play: Understanding the Socio-Cultural World of Student Athletes

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James, Carl E.

2005-01-01

Dr. Carl E. James is well known for his work in the area of the Sociology of Sport. Race in Play is on the continuum of his earlier research in the sociology of sport, and youth, race, and education. James takes the reader on an edifying walk through the structural, institutional community which supports and sustains sports, at the same time…

Networks, narratives and territory in anthropological race classification: towards a more comprehensive historical geography of Europe's culture.

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McMahon, Richard

2011-01-01

This article aims to integrate discourse analysis of politically instrumental imagined identity geographies with the relational and territorial geography of the communities of praxis and interpretation that produce them. My case study is the international community of nationalist scientists who classified Europe's biological races in the 1820s-1940s. I draw on network analysis, relational geography, historical sociology and the historical turn to problematize empirically how spatial patterns of this community's shifting disciplinary and political coalitions, communication networks and power relations emerged, were structured, persisted, changed, interacted and disappeared. I focus especially on core-periphery relations. I argue that if local historical spatial patterns affect those of later phenomena, geographies like that of European integration should be understood in the context of Europe's complex historical cultural geography. Unlike discourse deconstruction alone, this complementary relational de-essentialization of geography can identify large-scale, enduring associations of cultural patterns as well as cultural flux and ambiguity.

Teaching American Culture in France: Language Assistants' Identity Construction and Interculturality

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Dargent-Wallace, Anne

2013-01-01

This study investigates the identity and interculturality development of English-language teaching assistants through their perceptions of their experiences living and working in France. The study is framed using Bourdieu's (1979, 2000) notions of habitus and cultural capital, and draws from Byram's (2000) "intercultural mediator" and…

Barriers of Culture, Networks, and Language in International Migration: A Review

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Zhiling Wang

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Along with the increasing pace of globalization, recent decades faced a dramatically increase in international migrant flows as well. Compared to the flows of trade, capital and knowledge, we observe that contemporaneous complex institutional differences, historical backgrounds, and individuals' diverse socio-demographic characteristics make the migrant workers' choice of destination arguably much more uncontrollable. This study shows that migration is in a complex way intertwined with culture, networks and language, (i by reviewing related studies on the barriers of culture, networks and language in international labor mobility, and (ii by exploring missing gaps and prospective avenues for research. Nowadays, the migration pressure on Europe and the United states has created substantial challenges, leading to an urgent need to address the economic assimilation and social integration of migrants. Against this background, we emphasize that these non-economic factors have played an increasingly critical role in shaping international migration and its future socio-economic consequences for destination countries.

Response to Marie Paz Morales' "Influence of Culture and Language Sensitive Physics on Science Attitude Achievement"

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Cole, Mikel Walker

2015-01-01

This response to Marie Paz Morales' "Influence of culture and language sensitive physics on science attitude achievement" explores the ideas of culturally responsive pedagogy and critical literacy to examine some implications for culturally responsive science instruction implicit in the original manuscript. [For "Influence of…

Race categorization and the regulation of business and science.

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Lee, Catherine; Skrentny, John D

2010-01-01

Despite the lack of consensus regarding the meaning or significance of race or ethnicity amongst scientists and the lay public, there are legal requirements and guidelines that dictate the collection of racial and ethnic data across a range of institutions. Legal regulations are typically created through a political process and then face varying kinds of resistance when the state tries to implement them. We explore the nature of this opposition by comparing responses from businesses, scientists, and science-oriented businesses (pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies) to U.S. state regulations that used politically derived racial categorizations, originally created to pursue civil rights goals. We argue that insights from cultural sociology regarding institutional and cultural boundaries can aid understanding of the nature of resistance to regulation. The Food and Drug Administration's guidelines for research by pharmaceutical companies imposed race categories on science-based businesses, leading to objections that emphasized the autonomy and validity of science. In contrast, similar race categories regulating first business by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and later scientific research sponsored by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) encountered little challenge. We argue that pharmaceutical companies had the motive (profit) that NIH-supported scientists lacked and a legitimate discourse (boundary work of science) that businesses regulated by the EEOC did not have. The study suggests the utility of a comparative cultural sociology of the politics of legal regulation, particularly when understanding race-related regulation and the importance of examining legal regulations for exploring how the meaning of race or ethnicity are contested and constructed in law.

Bayley-III: Cultural differences and language scale validity in a Danish sample.

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Krogh, Marianne T; Vaever, Mette S

2016-12-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate cultural differences between Danish and American children at 2 and 3 years as measured with the developmental test Bayley-III, and to investigate the Bayley-III Language Scale validity. The Danish children (N = 43) were tested with the Bayley-III and their parents completed an additional language questionnaire (the MacArthur-Bates CDI). Results showed that scores from the Danish children did not differ significantly from the American norms on the Cognitive or Motor Scale, but the Danish sample scored significantly higher on the Language Scale. A comparison of the Bayley-III Language subtests with the CDI showed that the two measures correlated significantly, but the percentile score from the CDI was significantly higher than the percentile score from the Bayley-III Language subtests. This could be because the two instruments measure slightly different areas of language development, or because the Bayley-III overestimates language development in Danish children. However, due to the limitations of the current study, further research is needed to clarify this issue. © 2016 Scandinavian Psychological Associations and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Selected English-Language Bibliography of Interest for Hungarian Cultural Studies: 2014-2015

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Louise O. Vasvari

2016-01-01

Full Text Available As the above title indicates, because of the publication schedule of Hungarian Cultural Studies this bibliography straddles 2014-2015, covering the period since the publication in the fall of 2014 of last year’s bibliography in this journal. Each year’s bibliography is supplemented by earlier items, which were only retrieved recently. Although this bibliography series can only concentrate on English-language items, occasional items of particular interest in other languages may be included. For a more extensive bibliography of Hungarian Studies from about 2000 to 2010, for which this is a continuing update, see Louise O. Vasvári, Steven Tötösy de Zepetnek, and Carlo Salzani. “Bibliography for Work in Hungarian Studies as Comparative Central European Studies.” CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture (Library (2011:  http://docs.lib.purdue.edu/clcweblibrary/hungarianstudiesbibliography.

Modeling Coevolution between Language and Memory Capacity during Language Origin

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Gong, Tao; Shuai, Lan

2015-01-01

Memory is essential to many cognitive tasks including language. Apart from empirical studies of memory effects on language acquisition and use, there lack sufficient evolutionary explorations on whether a high level of memory capacity is prerequisite for language and whether language origin could influence memory capacity. In line with evolutionary theories that natural selection refined language-related cognitive abilities, we advocated a coevolution scenario between language and memory capacity, which incorporated the genetic transmission of individual memory capacity, cultural transmission of idiolects, and natural and cultural selections on individual reproduction and language teaching. To illustrate the coevolution dynamics, we adopted a multi-agent computational model simulating the emergence of lexical items and simple syntax through iterated communications. Simulations showed that: along with the origin of a communal language, an initially-low memory capacity for acquired linguistic knowledge was boosted; and such coherent increase in linguistic understandability and memory capacities reflected a language-memory coevolution; and such coevolution stopped till memory capacities became sufficient for language communications. Statistical analyses revealed that the coevolution was realized mainly by natural selection based on individual communicative success in cultural transmissions. This work elaborated the biology-culture parallelism of language evolution, demonstrated the driving force of culturally-constituted factors for natural selection of individual cognitive abilities, and suggested that the degree difference in language-related cognitive abilities between humans and nonhuman animals could result from a coevolution with language. PMID:26544876

Developing a Materialist Anti-Racist Approach to Language Activism

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Flores, Nelson

2017-01-01

The aim of this paper is to propose a materialist anti-racist approach to language activism. This approach combines Joshua Fishman's pioneering work on language activism with critical race theory and the recent materialist turn in applied linguistics. A materialist anti-racist approach to language activism, positions language policy within broader…

Cultural phylogeography of the Bantu Languages of sub-Saharan Africa.

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Currie, Thomas E; Meade, Andrew; Guillon, Myrtille; Mace, Ruth

2013-07-07

There is disagreement about the routes taken by populations speaking Bantu languages as they expanded to cover much of sub-Saharan Africa. Here, we build phylogenetic trees of Bantu languages and map them onto geographical space in order to assess the likely pathway of expansion and test between dispersal scenarios. The results clearly support a scenario in which groups first moved south through the rainforest from a homeland somewhere near the Nigeria-Cameroon border. Emerging on the south side of the rainforest, one branch moved south and west. Another branch moved towards the Great Lakes, eventually giving rise to the monophyletic clade of East Bantu languages that inhabit East and Southeastern Africa. These phylogenies also reveal information about more general processes involved in the diversification of human populations into distinct ethnolinguistic groups. Our study reveals that Bantu languages show a latitudinal gradient in covering greater areas with increasing distance from the equator. Analyses suggest that this pattern reflects a true ecological relationship rather than merely being an artefact of shared history. The study shows how a phylogeographic approach can address questions relating to the specific histories of certain groups, as well as general cultural evolutionary processes.

Overcoming Language and Cultural Barriers in School: Helping Hispanic Students Acquire Success in Elementary School

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Ivey, Pauline S.

2011-01-01

Research shows that Hispanic second language students are not as successful as their English-speaking peers in school. The problem is in part due to several factors: curriculum deliverance in a foreign language, cultural differences, and family/school disconnect. Current census reports reveal that Hispanic populations in the United States, and…

EFL Learners' Home Culture Attachment and their Attitudes towards English Language Learning: A structural equation modeling approach

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Zahra Sharifi Feriz

2017-10-01

Full Text Available The purpose of the present study is to examine home culture attachment construct and its underlying variables among Iranian English as Foreign Language learners as well as their attitudes towards English language learning. Pearson correlation is used with a sample of 411 English major university students from different provinces in Iran, mainly Khorasan Razavi, Khoran Jonoubi and Sistan Baluchestan participated in this study. As for the quantitative phase of data collection, the study employed home culture attachment and attitude towards English language learning questionnaires. The reliability and validity of these questionnaires are reported. A home culture attachment model and an attitude model are also developed and tested using structural equation modeling. The results suggest that all three subscales of attitudes (emotional, behavioral, and cognitive are positive and significant predictors of students' western attachment. From three subscales of attitude, only behavioral attitude is negative and significant predictors of students' religious attachment. In addition, Iranian attachment is influenced by cognitive attitudes and emotional attitudes. Besides, cognitive attitude is a positive and significant predictor of students' cultural attachment. It is also found that, artistic attachment is influenced by behavioral attitudes and emotional attitudes. Finally, the pedagogical implications are discussed in light of foreign language achievement.

The Banality of Exhibitionism and the Building a Culture of Hate in Digital Society

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Marcos AntonioMadeira De Mattos Martins

2016-10-01

Full Text Available The digital society brought the man full of technology and connectivity functions, creating agility to exchange information. With the ability to share your privacy in the social network, the selfie culture began to be used as a form of trivialization of exhibitionism.Virtual conflicts was created a community of users that discriminate people by color, race, ethnicity, religion and expression of thoughts, crerating a culture of hatred, intolerance. The moral values of the digital society are weakened by sharing habit of language that shows the trend of disregard for the principle of human dignity.

Caucasian infants scan own- and other-race faces differently.

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Andrea Wheeler

2011-04-01

Full Text Available Young infants are known to prefer own-race faces to other race faces and recognize own-race faces better than other-race faces. However, it is entirely unclear as to whether infants also attend to different parts of own- and other-race faces differently, which may provide an important clue as to how and why the own-race face recognition advantage emerges so early. The present study used eye tracking methodology to investigate whether 6- to 10-month-old Caucasian infants (N = 37 have differential scanning patterns for dynamically displayed own- and other-race faces. We found that even though infants spent a similar amount of time looking at own- and other-race faces, with increased age, infants increasingly looked longer at the eyes of own-race faces and less at the mouths of own-race faces. These findings suggest experience-based tuning of the infant's face processing system to optimally process own-race faces that are different in physiognomy from other-race faces. In addition, the present results, taken together with recent own- and other-race eye tracking findings with infants and adults, provide strong support for an enculturation hypothesis that East Asians and Westerners may be socialized to scan faces differently due to each culture's conventions regarding mutual gaze during interpersonal communication.

Genetic biasing through cultural transmission: do simple Bayesian models of language evolution generalize?

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Dediu, Dan

2009-08-07

The recent Bayesian approaches to language evolution and change seem to suggest that genetic biases can impact on the characteristics of language, but, at the same time, that its cultural transmission can partially free it from these same genetic constraints. One of the current debates centres on the striking differences between sampling and a posteriori maximising Bayesian learners, with the first converging on the prior bias while the latter allows a certain freedom to language evolution. The present paper shows that this difference disappears if populations more complex than a single teacher and a single learner are considered, with the resulting behaviours more similar to the sampler. This suggests that generalisations based on the language produced by Bayesian agents in such homogeneous single agent chains are not warranted. It is not clear which of the assumptions in such models are responsible, but these findings seem to support the rising concerns on the validity of the "acquisitionist" assumption, whereby the locus of language change and evolution is taken to be the first language acquirers (children) as opposed to the competent language users (the adults).

Cultural and social change of foreign students in Indonesia: The influence of Javanese Culture in Teaching Indonesian to Speakers of Other Languages (TISOL)

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Saddhono, Kundharu

2018-03-01

Teaching Indonesian to Speakers of Other Languages (TISOL) program is increasingly in demand by people in various parts of the world. Foreign students learn a lot of Indonesian language in major cities in Indonesia. The purpose of this study is to explain the cultural and social changes of foreign students in Indonesia, especially in Java, which is following TISOL program. This study focused on the influence of Javanese culture on foreign students studying Indonesian in Java. Research method used is descriptive qualitative with ethnography approach. This research was conducted in TISOL program organized by in Central Java, East Java, and Yogyakarta. Sources of data used are documents and informants. The sampling technique used is purposive sampling. Purposive sampling is considered more capable to obtain complete data in the face of various realities. Data collection techniques are done by reviewing documents or records using content analysis techniques. Other techniques used are interview techniques with some students and lecturers to get data about the factors that affect the cultural and social changes of foreign students in Indonesia. Also, interviews were also conducted with teachers to request a different process in TISOL. The most common way used to improve validity in qualitative research is the triangulation technique. In this study used triangulation theory, triangulation method, and review of informants. The results show that using Javanese culture is very influential in the cultural and social changes of foreign students in Indonesia. Students become more enthusiastic and active in responding to learning in TISOL that is influenced by Javanese culture. The change comes from internal and external students. This change helps foreign students to understand Indonesian language and culture more comprehensively.

SOCIOLINGUISTIC AND CULTURAL CHARACTERISTICS OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES IN THE MULTINATIONAL STATE

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Irina Ivanovna Skachkova

2013-11-01

Full Text Available In the context of globalization and increasing international cooperation in different spheres of life the issue of national security and economic prosperity of nations is becoming increasingly urgent.Purpose: Consideration of sociolinguistic and cultural characteristics of the functioning of foreign languages in a multinational state, the example of the United States.Methodology: We used general scientific methods: analysis and synthesis, comparison, generalization, systematic approach.Results: It is concluded that foreign languages in a multinational state, such as the U.S., are studied through active actions of government, public and educational institutions, and the main purpose of language learning is to maintain national security and economic competitiveness in the international arena.Practical implications: The results of the work may be used both in linguistic theory, and sociolinguistics.DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.12731/2218-7405-2013-7-51

On the development of scientific terminology in African languages ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The real development of individual languages and the purposeful cultivation of language pride necessarily accentuate races and ethnical differences, which are contrary to the ideal of nation-building. Consequently, languages are subtly denied acknowledged constitutional rights in practice, which will impact negatively on ...

Can a Successful ESL Teacher Hold Deficit Beliefs of Her Students' Home Languages and Cultures?

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Hertzog, Lisa

2011-01-01

In this article the author explores the seeming contradictions between the successful teaching practices of an English as a Second Language teacher and the deficit beliefs she expressed toward her students' home languages and cultures. This teacher believed her students were smart and capable, and she held herself accountable for her students…

Data on multicultural education and diagnostic information profiling: Culture, learning styles and creativity.

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Maseleno, Andino; Hardaker, Glenn; Sabani, Noraisikin; Suhaili, Nabilah

2016-12-01

This article contains data related to multicultural education and diagnostic information profiling preliminary findings. It includes the responses of 253 students. The data consists of six sections, i) culture: race, ethnicity, language and identity; ii) learning preferences: physiological and perceptual; iii) cognitive learning styles: physical, emotional and mental; iv) creativity skills and problem solving skills; v) motivation; and vi) students' background knowledge. The data may be used as part of data analytics for specific personalized e-learning platform.

Race and TESOL: Introduction to Concepts and Theories

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Kubota, Ryuko; Lin, Angel

2006-01-01

The field of teaching English to speakers of other languages (TESOL) brings people from various racialized backgrounds together in teaching, learning, and research. The idea of race, racialization, and racism are inescapable topics that arise in the contact zones created by teaching English worldwide and thus are valid topics to explore in the…

Cross-Cultural Adaptation and Initial Validation of the Stroke-Specific Quality of Life Scale into the Yoruba Language

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Akinpelu, Aderonke O.; Odetunde, Marufat O.; Odole, Adesola C.

2012-01-01

Stroke-Specific Quality of Life 2.0 (SS-QoL 2.0) scale is used widely and has been cross-culturally adapted to many languages. This study aimed at the cross-cultural adaptation of SS-QoL 2.0 to Yoruba, the indigenous language of south-western Nigeria, and to carry out an initial investigation on its validity. English SS-QoL 2.0 was first adapted…

Culture éducative, culture méthodologique et apprenants d'une langue-culture lointaine

OpenAIRE

サガズ, ミシェル; Sagaz, Michel

2016-01-01

It has long been recognized that we cannot separate culture and language (cultural and linguistic dimensions) when speaking of teaching and learning foreign languages. But, in this context, it seems that the notion of culture is related, exclusively or largely, to the culture which is linked to the language being studied by students (arts, popular culture, everyday life culture, etc.). This article highlights the fact that other aspects of culture should be taken into account in the intercult...

The Spanish Foreign language teaching for specific purposes in The Formation of Physical Culture Professional

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Liliana Valdés-Aragón

2012-09-01

Full Text Available This work is the result of an ended research about the Spanish foreign language teaching for specific purposes, that contains a proposal of theoretic methodological model based on interactive communicative tasks for speaking skills development in the students academic discourse, who are preparing as future professionals of Physical Culture. The model is derived of the dialectical materialistic interpretations of the interaction and the communication from diverse dimensions (philosophical, psychological, sociological, pedagogic and linguistic and it constitutes a theoretical contribution. In making of this work were used procedures and research techniques like oral records that facilitated to know the students' interlanguage and it was directed to check in what measure a correct use of the language was made. The contribution to Spanish's teaching as a foreign language for professional goals in the physical culture area, reflected in this work, precise the components of the teaching learning process and the teachers' and students' functions in an interactive process. It allows the students to express their ideas with correction and property making use of the scientific style and transactional functions of the language to be able to define, to describe, to argue, to synthesize, to narrate, to debate, among others. The making of a tasks program used in Spanish's teaching as foreign language, constitutes the practical contribution of the research carried out, as well as the application of the model in other courses of foreign languages for professional goals. The work in general sense is a professional experience directed to solve educational problems, particularly those related with the abilities of the Physical Culture professional of the country and the institution in question, where its results were applied during several courses.

Scientific psychology within the Chinese language and cultural context.

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Shen, Heyong

2006-01-01

The Scientific Psychology that was founded by Wilhelm Wundt appeared in China in the late nineteenth century. The scholars translated the name of psychology into Chinese as Xin-Li-Xue, for which the meaning of the words looks like "heartology," i.e., "the study of the heart." In Chinese, the same core structure related to "heart" (Xin) is found in most of the terms of psychology, such as emotion, thinking, will, forgetting, and memory. By translating Xin as "heart" instead of "mind," we maintain an embodied approach to understanding the "principles of the heart." Through a historical approach to the influence of Western psychology, a cultural analysis of the meaning of the term psychology in Chinese, and a focus on the meeting of Eastern and Western psychology, we can witness the significance of psychology in the Chinese language and cultural context. I will use three parts to present psychology in the Chinese cultural context: the origins of Chinese psychology, from a historical approach; the meaning of "psychology" in Chinese, using a cultural analysis; and the meeting of Eastern and Western psychology, focusing on the development and future.

The role of metrology in mediating and mobilizing the language and culture of scientific facts

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Fisher, W. P., Jr.; Stenner, A. J.

2015-02-01

The self-conscious awareness of language and its use is arguably nowhere more intense than in metrology. The careful and deliberate coordination and alignment of shared metrological frames of reference for theory, experiment, and practical application have been characteristics of scientific culture at least since the origins of the SI units in revolutionary France. Though close attention has been focused on the logical and analytical aspects of language use in science, little concern has been shown for understanding how the social and historical aspects of everyday language may have foreshadowed and influenced the development and character of metrological language, especially relative to the inevitably partial knowledge possessed by any given stakeholder participating in the scientific enterprise. Insight in this regard may be helpful in discerning how and if an analogous role for metrology might be created in psychology and the social sciences. It may be that the success of psychology as a science will depend less on taking physics as the relevant model than on attending to the interplay of concepts, models, and social organization that make any culture effective.

Students Learn about Chinese Culture through the Folktale "Yeh-Shen": Emphasizing Figurative Language Interpretation

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Palmer, Barbara C.; Sun, Lingzhi; Leclere, Judith T.

2012-01-01

This article will analyze the figurative language that reflects Chinese traditional society and culture in "Yeh-Shen." The authors will consider both the figures of speech and the figures of thought (to include symbolism) that provide insight into an understanding of the Chinese culture through a reading of "Yeh-Shen." This analysis can be used by…

The complex association of race and leaving the pediatric emergency department without being seen by a physician.

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Harrison, Blair; Finkelstein, Marsha; Puumala, Susan; Payne, Nathaniel R

2012-11-01

This study examined the influence of race and language on leaving the emergency department (ED) without complete evaluation and treatment (LWCET). This retrospective, case-cohort study examined LWCET among patients discharged home from 2 EDs between March 2, 2009, and March 31, 2010. Race and language were obtained by family self-report. We also explored wait time to see a physician as an explanation of racial disparities. One thousand two hundred eighty-five (1.7%) of 76,931 ED encounters ended in LWCET. Factors increasing LWCET were high ED activity, low acuity, and medical assistance (MA) insurance. American Indian, biracial, African American, and Hispanic races were also associated with higher odds of LWCET among visits by MA insurance patients compared with those of white patients on private insurance. Restricting the analysis to visits by MA insurance patients, only American Indian race was associated with LWCET compared with white race. Visits by patients using an interpreter or speaking a language other than English at home had lower odds of ending in LWCET. Sensitivity analyses in subgroups confirmed these findings. We developed a measure of ED activity that correlated well with wait time to see a physician (correlation coefficient = 0.993; P language, and insurance status interact to form a complex relationship with LWCET. Medical assistance insurance status appears to account for much of the excessive instances of LWCET seen in nonwhites. After restricting the analysis to MA insurance patients, only visits by American Indian patients had higher odds of LWCET compared with whites on MA insurance. Wait time to see a physician did not explain racial differences in LWCET.

Management of Meloidogyne incognita race 3 and Macrophomina phaseolina by fungus culture filtrates and Bacillus subtilis on chickpea

OpenAIRE

Siddiqui, Z.A.; Mahmood, I.

1995-01-01

#Bacillus subtilis$ et des filtrats de culture des champignons #Aspergillus niger, Curvularia tuberculata$ et #Penicillium coryophilum$ ont été utilisés, seuls ou en combinaison, comme traitement de semences pour protéger le pois chiche contre une maladie racinaire complexe associant le nématode "Meloidogyne incognita$ race 3 et le champignon #Macrophomina phaseolina$. D'une manière générale, les traitements à l'aide de ces quatre agents, seuls ou en combinaison, accroissent le poids sec et l...

Race in Conflict with Heritage: "Black" Heritage Language Speaker of Japanese

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Doerr, Neriko Musha; Kumagai, Yuri

2014-01-01

"Heritage language speaker" is a relatively new term to denote minority language speakers who grew up in a household where the language was used or those who have a family, ancestral, or racial connection to the minority language. In research on heritage language speakers, overlap between these 2 definitions is often assumed--that is,…

The dynamic interplay among EFL learners’ ambiguity tolerance, adaptability, cultural intelligence, learning approach, and language achievement

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Shadi Alahdadi

2017-01-01

Full Text Available A key objective of education is to prepare individuals to be fully-functioning learners. This entails developing the cognitive, metacognitive, motivational, cultural, and emotional competencies. The present study aimed to examine the interrelationships among adaptability, tolerance of ambiguity, cultural intelligence, learning approach, and language achievement as manifestations of the above competencies within a single model. The participants comprised one hundred eighty BA and MA Iranian university students studying English language teaching and translation. The instruments used in this study consisted of the translated versions of four questionnaires: second language tolerance of ambiguity scale, adaptability taken from emotional intelligence inventory, cultural intelligence (CQ inventory, and the revised study process questionnaire measuring surface and deep learning. The results estimated via structural equation modeling (SEM revealed that the proposed model containing the variables under study had a good fit with the data. It was found that all the variables except adaptability directly influenced language achievement with deep approach having the highest impact and ambiguity tolerance having the lowest influence. In addition, ambiguity tolerance was a positive and significant predictor of deep approach. CQ was found to be under the influence of both ambiguity tolerance and adaptability. The findings were discussed in the light of the yielded results.

Latina/o Pre-Service Teachers' Use of Language and Culture while Assisting Children in Mathematics

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Vomvoridi-Ivanovic, Eugenia

2009-01-01

Guided by symbolic interactionism and cultural historical activity theory this study investigated how four bilingual Latina/o pre-service teachers use language (Spanish and English) and culture, defined as social practices, as instructional resources in mathematics. The setting of the study was an after-school bilingual mathematics program, namely…

Puerto Rico: Race, Ethnicity, Culture, and Physics Teaching

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González-Espada, Wilson J.; Carrasquillo, Rosa E.

2017-09-01

It was a pleasant surprise to see Gary White's call for papers on race and physics teaching. We definitely think that the physics teaching and learning of students from diverse and minority backgrounds is an important issue to discuss, especially given the fact that bias and discrimination are common experiences in the lives of many Latinx, including school-age children and college students.

Figuring Futures: Early Asian American Mixed-Race Literature

OpenAIRE

Poulsen, Melissa Eriko

2015-01-01

This dissertation examines figurations of Asian mixed race during the long period of Asian exclusion and enforced anti-miscegenation in the United States, when racial mixing was legally proscribed. During this time of U.S. expansion into Asia, and of unprecedented Asian immigration into the United States, such proscription helped maintain normative white identity while rendering the Asian American mixed-race body illegible, making cultural production one of the few sites where Asian American ...

Ethnic Tourism: A Case Study of Language and Culture Preservation of the Bateq Indigenous Group of Orang Asli in Peninsular Malaysia

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Che Lah Salasiah

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Malaysia provides ethnic tourism which is related to the more popularly known as nature or eco-tourism where an indigenous or traditional group of people who live in this environment will interact with and provide services to the tourists who would like to experience ethnic tourism. Ethnic tourism refers to travel motivated by the search for the first hand, authentic and sometimes intimate contact with people whose ethnic and/or cultural background is different from the tourists. Tourists are also driven by the desire to see some of the threatened cultures that may soon disappear through assimilation into the nation’s majority. This paper aims to explore ethnic tourism as a preservation strategy for language and culture in a selected community of Bateq Orang Asli group in Peninsular Malaysia in relation the language and cultural preservation of this community. An in-depth interview, a qualitative research technique, was selected as a method of data collection. The multimedia data was also collected including the recordings of the indigenous languages, still pictures and videotapes of the indigenous and cultural activities. The findings of this study show that the Bateq Orang Asli groups have preferences of their languages even though there is a pattern that a high number of lexical items have been borrowed from Malay. Language shift among younger speakers is also becoming a trend. In terms of the preservation of cultural heritage, the Bateq Orang Asli are still very positive about keeping their practices and lifestyles. The involvement of Bateq Orang Asli in promoting ethnic tourism in the surrounding areas near their settlements has contributed to their language and cultural preservation.

Plasticity of Human Spatial Cognition: Spatial Language and Cognition Covary across Cultures

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Haun, Daniel B. M.; Rapold, Christian J.; Janzen, Gabriele; Levinson, Stephen C.

2011-01-01

The present paper explores cross-cultural variation in spatial cognition by comparing spatial reconstruction tasks by Dutch and Namibian elementary school children. These two communities differ in the way they predominantly express spatial relations in language. Four experiments investigate cognitive strategy preferences across different levels of…

Culturally Competent Social Work Research: Methodological Considerations for Research with Language Minorities

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Casado, Banghwa Lee; Negi, Nalini Junko; Hong, Michin

2012-01-01

Despite the growing number of language minorities, foreign-born individuals with limited English proficiency, this population has been largely left out of social work research, often due to methodological challenges involved in conducting research with this population. Whereas the professional standard calls for cultural competence, a discussion…

European MEDIA Programme: the role of 'language' and 'visual images' in the processes of constructing European culture and identity.

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Bozić-Vrbancić, Senka; Vrbancić, Mario; Orlić, Olga

2008-12-01

Questions of diversity and multiculturalism are at the heart of many discussions on European supranational identity within contemporary anthropology, sociology, cultural studies, linguistics and so on. Since we are living in a period marked by the economic and political changes which emerged after European unification, a call for a new analysis of heterogeneity, cultural difference and issues of belonging is not surprising. This call has been fuelled by the European Union's concern with "culture" as one of the main driving forces for constructing "European identity". While the official European policy describes European culture as common to all Europeans, Europe is also-seen as representing "unity in diversity". By analysing contemporary European MEDIA policies and programs this article attempts to contribute to a small but growing body of work that explores what role "language" and "visual images" play in the process of constructing European culture and supranational European identity. More specifically, the article explores the complex articulation of language and culture in order to analyse supranational imaginary of European identity as it is expressed through the simple slogan "Europe: unity in diversity". We initially grounded our interest in the politics of identity within the European Union within theoretical frameworks of "power and knowledge" and "identity and subjectivity". We consider contemporary debates in social sciences and humanities over the concepts of language", "culture" and "identity" as inseparable from each other (Ahmed 2000; Brah 1996, 2000; Butler 1993, Derrida 1981; Gilroy 2004; Laclau 1990). Cultural and postcolonial studies theorists (e.g. Brah 1996; Bhabha 1994; Hall 1992, 1996, among others) argue that concepts of "culture" and "identity" signify a historically variable nexus of social meanings. That is to say, "culture" and "identity" are discursive articulations. According to this view, "culture" and "identity" are not separate

Cultural competency: providing quality care to diverse populations.

Science.gov (United States)

Betancourt, Joseph R

2006-12-01

The goal of this paper is to define cultural competence and present a practical framework to address crosscultural challenges that emerge in the clinical encounter, with a particular focus on the issue of nonadherence. English-language literature, both primary and reports from various agencies, and the author's personal experiences in clinical practice. Relevant literature on patient-centered care and cultural competence. There is a growing literature that delineates the impact of sociocultural factors, race, ethnicity, and limited-English proficiency on health and clinical care. The field of cultural competence focuses on addressing these issues. Health care providers need a practical set of tools and skills that will enable them to provide quality care to patients during a brief encounter, whatever differences in background that may exist. Cultural competence has evolved from the gathering of information and making of assumptions about patients on the basis of their sociocultural background to the development of skills to implement the principles of patient-centered care. This patient-based approach to cross-cultural care consists of first, assessing core cross-cultural issues; second, exploring the meaning of the illness to the patient; third, determining the social context in which the patient lives; and fourth, engaging in negotiation with the patient to encourage adherence. Addressing adherence is a particularly challenging issue, the determinants of which are multifactorial, and the ESFT (explanatory/social/fears/treatment) model--derived from the patient-based approach--is a tool that identifies barriers to adherence and provides strategies to address them. It obviously is impossible to learn everything about every culture and that should not be expected. Instead, we should learn about the communities we care for. More important, we should have a framework that allows us to provide appropriate care for any patient--one that deals with issues of adherence

Counseling Spanish-speaking patients: Atlanta pharmacists' cultural sensitivity, use of language-assistance services, and attitudes.

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Muzyk, Andrew J; Muzyk, Tara L; Barnett, Candace W

2004-01-01

To document the types of language-assistance services available in pharmacies and the perceptions of pharmacists regarding the effectiveness of these services, and to measure the attitudes toward counseling Spanish-speaking patients and cultural sensitivity of pharmacists. Cross-sectional assessment. Metropolitan Atlanta, Ga. Registered Georgia pharmacists residing in metropolitan Atlanta. Mailed survey, with repeat mailing 2 weeks later. 38 survey items measuring demographic and practice-site characteristics, types of language-assistance services available with an assessment of the effectiveness of each measured on a nominal scale, and attitudinal items concerning counseling of Spanish-speaking patients and pharmacists' cultural sensitivity using a 5-point Likert-type response scale. Of 1,975 questionnaires mailed, 608 were returned, a 30.8% response rate. Nearly two thirds of the pharmacists had recently counseled a Spanish-speaking patient, but only one fourth of those respondents considered their interactions effective. Nearly all pharmacists, 88.0%, worked in pharmacies with language-assistance services. Of seven types of these services, a mean of 2.19 were available in pharmacies, and the majority of pharmacists (84.4% or more) identifying a service considered it to be effective. The pharmacists were neutral about counseling Spanish-speaking patients (mean = 2.94) and indifferent toward other cultures (mean = 3.28); however, they agreed they had a responsibility to counsel Spanish-speaking patients, and they believed that use of language-assistance services would constitute a reasonable effort to counsel these patients. Pharmacists have an opportunity to address barriers to communication with the Spanish-speaking population through use of language-assistance services and educational measures within the profession.

Wendy's, the Potato Head Kids, and Me: Dealing with Sexist Representations in Language and Culture or, Un-wrapping the Hamburger.

Science.gov (United States)

Dickel, Michael

If sexism, inherent in the fabric of the culture of human society, produced sexist language, then sexist language no doubt helps reinforce and teach sexism to the users of that language. Language feeds back the sexism, sexism feeds back through language. Treating symptoms of disease alone will not eliminate the disease, but may help, while…

The Attitudes of Iranian EFL Learners toward Cross-Cultural Factors in Language Learning

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farzaneh javdani

2009-10-01

Full Text Available The cultural background in language teaching has, for a number of reasons, recently moved to the foreground. Broadly speaking, there has been a shift in emphasis in course design from a pre-occupation with form to an interest in content. This article describes the results of a survey designed to elicit the views of students on what language teaching should be about. 400 students learning English in Kish-Language Institute, Kashan branch were chosen as participants of the study based on their proficiency level (Starter, Elementary, Intermediate and Advanced in order to answer the questionnaire. Each question was designed in the form of a five point Likert Scale. The results were analysed using Binomial and MANOVA Tests. The obtained Results in this study indicate that except for Elementary level, other levels favoured bilingual/bicultural teacher. In relation to varieties of English, American English was liked most by Intermediate and Advanced students. All students had an overall positive attitude towards the native speaker pronunciation and finally the most favoured course contents were revealed to be science and social facts, students’ past experiences, English/American Literature along with culture of other countries.

THE INFLUENCE OF LANGUAGE COMPETENCE, WRITING COMPETENCE, AND CULTURAL COMPETENCE ON PRODUCING A SUCCESSFUL WRITING

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Hermanto Hermanto

2008-11-01

Full Text Available Writing is a skill derived from a long way of learning and exercises. Different from other language skills, writing is considered the difficult language skill to acquire since it involves many aspects of linguistics, social, and writing knowledge and conventions. There are at least three important elements of writing useful to produce a good piece of composition, language competence, writing competence and cultural competence. This paper shows the influence of these three elements in order to produce good, readable, communicative, and successful writing

Data on multicultural education and diagnostic information profiling: Culture, learning styles and creativity

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Andino Maseleno

2016-12-01

Full Text Available This article contains data related to multicultural education and diagnostic information profiling preliminary findings. It includes the responses of 253 students. The data consists of six sections, i culture: race, ethnicity, language and identity; ii learning preferences: physiological and perceptual; iii cognitive learning styles: physical, emotional and mental; iv creativity skills and problem solving skills; v motivation; and vi students’ background knowledge. The data may be used as part of data analytics for specific personalized e-learning platform.

From Picturebook to Multilingual Collage: Bringing Learners’ First Language and Culture into the Pre-school Classroom

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Emma McGilp

2014-11-01

Full Text Available This paper discusses a project with a small group of children learning English as an a language (EAL at a pre-school in Scotland. The project however could be replicated across the globe, in any classroom with a diverse range of learners, with particular benefit to minority and newly arrived migrant children. At the project’s core was the aim to bring the children’s first language and culture into the classroom, drawing in particular on Cummin’s (1984 Common Underlying Proficiency model, which asserts that knowledge of one language can assist learners in their acquisition of another. The project used multicultural picturebooks to validate the learner’s experiences and culture, and then called on parents’ funds of knowledge to make the children’s first language visible in the classroom. This joint working between the children, parents and the pre-school culminated in the production of a multilingual collage – a prominent display that recognises the value of the children’s first language in the classroom, builds bridges between home and school and is reflective, and proud, of an increasingly multilingual Scotland.

Language policy and cultural strategy: joint task of the main social patterns

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Ana Delia Barrera Jiménez

2010-09-01

Full Text Available The individual and social need to preserve and defend our mother tongue as part of a holistic culture, requires as an essential condition to learn about the responsibility for society as a whole and particularly for each speaking subject, which presupposes a language policy to disseminate whose essence is not there behind the doors of the Royal Academy of Language, voice of the rapid development of communication as a linguistic phenomenon par excellence. In this regard, this study focuses, with the certainty that in the hands of all is "to secure" the part that corresponds to each one.

From the Advent of Multiculturalism to the Elision of Race: The Representation of Race Relations in Disney Animated Features (1995-2009

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Eve Benhamou

2014-08-01

Full Text Available As one of the most powerful purveyors of entertainment in the world, the Disney company has produced blockbuster films, including animated features that have enjoyed enduring popularity. Reflecting and shaping to some extent American popular culture and ideology, they have left vivid images in our memory. Arguably, one of Disney’s most ubiquitous symbol is the beautiful white princess. The representation of race relations in Disney films has always been problematic, sometimes sparking heated debates: non-white characters were either absent or stereotypically portrayed. Nonetheless, in parallel with the advent of multiculturalism in the 1990s, a series of films have foregrounded a new approach on these portrayals, the most notable being Pocahontas (1995, Atlantis (2001, and The Princess and the Frog (2009. In this article, I will examine the evolution of the representation of race, focusing on the film texts and their historical and cultural context, production history, and critical reception. I will argue that the apparent messages of tolerance and promotion of multiculturalism were accompanied and slowly replaced by a colour-blind erasure of race.

The elephant in the room: Dialogues about race within cross-cultural supervisory relationships.

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White-Davis, Tanya; Stein, Emma; Karasz, Alison

2016-05-01

For centuries, the concept of race, a uniquely pervasive social construct, has often complicated dialogue and interactions between groups of people. This study assessed perceptions and attitudes of faculty and trainees with varied racial backgrounds within graduate medical and psychology programs. Self-reported responses addressed potential barriers and facilitating factors required for meaningful conversations about race. A brief 18-question survey was developed and administered electronically to three professional and academic Listservs within a large metropolitan city in northeast United States. Quantitative and qualitative analysis were conducted using SPSS Statistical Software and Text analyzer. Results revealed that among participants (N = 57) a majority experienced cross-racial supervision, and more than half indicated engaging in conversations about race within supervision. Respondents endorsed lack of comfort and lack of opportunity/time as significant barriers to discussing race within supervision. When race-related dialogues occurred, a majority of supervisees and supervisors found it beneficial. Most Supervisors of Color(a) actively initiated these conversations in supervision, while White supervisees endorsed the least benefit from these conversations. Contrary to our expectations, few respondents endorsed limited training as a barrier. The current study revealed cross-racial dialogues about race may be occurring frequently in supervisory relationships. Supervisees of Color reported benefiting from these dialogues, in contrast to their White counterparts, who endorsed the least benefit. Lack of comfort in supervisory relationships appears to be a significant barrier to having these conversations. Therefore, it is important for supervisors to create supervisory relationships emphasizing safety and comfort. Directions for future research are discussed. © The Author(s) 2016.

Language, Culture, and Power: Intercultural Bilingual Education among the Urarina of Peruvian Amazonia.

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Dean, Bartholomew

1999-01-01

The Peruvian national indigenous federation established a bilingual, intercultural teachers' training program to counter stereotypes of indigenous people portrayed in the authoritarian, monolingual Spanish national curriculum, and to enhance language preservation, ethnic mobilization, and cultural survival. A complementary transitional bilingual…

JAVANESE CULTURAL WORDS IN LOCAL NEWSPAPERS IN CENTRAL JAVA AS A LANGUAGE MAINTENANCE MODEL

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Deli Nirmala

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Javanese cultural words are the linguistic units which are very specific to Javanese culture and society. This article aims at describing what Javanese cultural words that are found in the local newspapers, what they represent, and why they are used in the local newspapers in Central Java. Non-participant observation is used to present the data for analysis, continued with page-filing and note-taking techniques. Referential, reflective-introspective, and abductive inferential methods are used to analyze the data. The result indicates that the Javanese cultural words found in the local newspapers represent festivals, rituals, Javanese ways of life, social activities, actions, feelings, thoughts, behavior, and experiences. The words become the indicators that the journalists of the local newspapers in Cental Java have positive attitudes toward Javanese words. This becomes a model for language maintenance of Javanese. This implies that the words are stored in the long-term memory, that become mental image, which are used when needed by the user for communication. The existence of the concepts residing in the mind will make the Javanese language maintenance possible, which is supported by the attitudes of the Javanese.

Discussing empirical research on the language and culture relationship to inform English as an additional/foreign language pedagogy and teacher education

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Gloria Gil

2016-07-01

Full Text Available Abstract In spite of the existence of a substantial body of theoretical literature that deals with the intersection of language and culture in the field of English as a foreign/additional (EA/FL language teaching and learning, there are very few empirical studies that investigate this issue with real teachers and learners. Therefore, the objective of this paper is to review some of those empirical studies with a view to informing additional/foreign language pedagogy and teacher education.  For that, the paper, first, summarizes some of the main theoretical issues by discussing the different ways in which the relationship of language and culture has been subjacent to EA/FL pedagogies. Then, the paper shows that there are three different types of language-and-culture-related empirical studies: on coursebooks, on teacher cognition, and on classroom interaction and teacher cognition. A review of these types of studies is made by discussing their main findings. Finally, the paper brings about some implications for the field from the findings of the empirical studies and proposes some topics for further research. Key-words: Culture and language relation. English as an additional/foreign language. Empirical studies.   Resumo Apesar da existência de uma vasta literatura teórica que lida com a interseção entre língua e cultura na área de ensino e aprendizagem do inglês como língua adicional/estrangeira (LA/E, existem poucos estudos empíricos que investigam essa questão com professores e alunos reais. Portanto, o objetivo deste trabalho é revisar alguns desses estudos empíricos com o intuito de contribuir com a pedagogia e a formação de professores de inglês como LA/E. Para isso este trabalho, em primeiro lugar, resume algumas das principais questões teóricas, discutindo as diferentes maneiras em que a relação entre língua e cultura tem subjazido às pedagogias do Inglês como LA/E.  Em seguida, o trabalho mostra que há três tipos

On the Origin of Hobbes’s Conception of Language: The Literary Culture of English Renaissance Humanism

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Sergio H. Orozco-Echeverri

2012-12-01

Full Text Available Hobbes' education in the literary culture of English Renaissance humanism has been overlooked as an important tradition in understanding his position in Early Modern Philosophy. Against the traditional readings of Hobbes' conception of language as a sequel to Medieval nominalism, I will argue that Hobbes' education in the literary culture of Renaissance humanism and his subsequent developments in this tradition would have allowed him to consider philosophical problems raised by new science in an original way and, thus, to introduce his innovative conception of language as the core of his solution to the problem of social and natural orders.

Hispanic Faces: An Exploratory Study of How University-Level Spanish Language Instruction Impacts Perceptions of Hispanics

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de Gordon, Maria Teresa; McDonough, Colleen; Palmerio-Roberts, Ramona

2016-01-01

Immigration and globalization have dramatically changed the ethnic landscape of the United States, yet stereotypes about race continue to exist. Foreign language classrooms are at the heart of teaching about diversity. We investigated whether undergraduates (with varying exposure to Spanish language education) could accurately identify the race of…

Carrying a Baby in the Back: Teaching with an Awareness of the Cultural Construction of Language.

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Holme, Randal

2002-01-01

Shows how culture is encoded in the everyday conceptual metaphors speakers take for granted. Describes the way these encodings differ across languages as "semantic relativism" and argues that language teachers need to be aware of this phenomenon to understand their learners' interlanguage and to help them recognize the internal structure of the…

Integrating Foreign Languages and Cultures into U.S. International Business Programs: Best Practices and Future Considerations

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Sacco, Steven J.

2014-01-01

This paper describes the importance of foreign languages and cultures and their integration into U.S. international business programs. The author juxtaposes globalization strategies of European and American business schools and highlights pre-university foreign language study in Europe and the U.S. The paper goes on to describe model U.S.…

School Meaning Systems: The Symbiotic Nature of Culture and "Language-In-Use"

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Abawi, Lindy

2013-01-01

Recent research has produced evidence to suggest a strong reciprocal link between school context-specific language constructions that reflect a school's vision and schoolwide pedagogy, and the way that meaning making occurs, and a school's culture is characterized. This research was conducted within three diverse settings: one school in the Sydney…

The Cooperative Principle: Is Grice’s Theory Suitable to Indonesian Language Culture?

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Agnes Herawati

2013-05-01

Full Text Available Article discussed how native speakers of Indonesian observed Grice’s maxims. One hundred conversations contributed in live talk show from varied Indonesia television channels were analysed. The results show that Grice’s maxims are fulfilled in many conversations. Nevertheless, in other situations, two kinds of non-fulfilment of the maxims are observed. First, the speaker deliberately exploits a maxim, which is suitable to Grice’s theory. Second, the speaker fails to observe but does not exploit a maxim, which leads to some interpretations of the cultural patterns of the Indonesian language: communicative politeness, high context culture and the needs of harmony in communication that are considered as the manifesting of Indonesian culture.

Why I Write So Many Books About Race

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Naomi Zack

2016-12-01

Full Text Available I relate how my life has intersected with my work in philosophy, both before and after a twenty-year absence from academia. Motivations for engaging in Philosophy of Race may be different from other projects because the subject itself is urgent and the philosopher may be a person of color. I describe the development of my own writing in this subfield, from ontological issues in the philosophy of science to moral issues in political philosophy and cultural criticism. The first addressed the biological reality of human racial taxonomy and the second has been about the inadequacy of treatments of race in the history of philosophy and injustice in contemporary social constructions of race.

DEVELOPMENT OF ECOLOGICAL CULTURE OF STUDENTS IN THE PROCESS OF INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE

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L. M. Andryukhina

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Introduction. High level of ecological culture in modern society is the most important condition of self-preservation and sustainable development of a human civilization. The processes of globalization force to consider environmental problems with a support on polycultural practice, to take into account national and regional peculiarities in their integrity. Thus, there is the need of the international cooperation not only at the government level, but also at the levels of expert communities, separate groups of society and citizens of the country. Moreover, ecological culture is constantly highlighted in numerous studies, materials and documents of the international forums, summits and conferences of the UN and UNESCO. The aim of this publication is to present the authors’ didactic complex of development tools of ecological culture of students, and to show the potential of teaching foreign languages (on the example of French for students’ ecological culture formation by means of development of cross-cultural communicative competence.  Methodology and research methods. Culturological approach has been chosen as a key approach for creation of integrative model of development of ecological culture. The methods involve: the system-based analysis of the content of ecological education; generalization of the theory and practice of implementation of the international strategies of ecological culture development and the analysis of efficiency of the pedagogical technologies intended for this purpose; modeling of the process of formation of ecological culture of students. The diagnostics of components of students’ ecological culture has been performed by means of internal questioning, observation, and comparative analysis of group interactions. Also, pedagogical ascertaining experiments, methods of pedagogical design for forms of the educational environment organization, design of the educational programmes, and methods of graphical

Teaching Culture and Language through the Multiple Intelligences Film Teaching Model in the ESL/EFL Classroom

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Yeh, Ellen

2014-01-01

This paper will demonstrate how to enhance second language (L2) learners' linguistic and cultural competencies through the use of the Multiple Intelligences Film Teaching (MIFT) model. The paper will introduce two ideas to teachers of English as a Second/Foreign Language (ESL/EFL). First, the paper shows how L2 learners learn linguistic and…

Language Contact.

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Nelde, Peter Hans

1995-01-01

Examines the phenomenon of language contact and recent trends in linguistic contact research, which focuses on language use, language users, and language spheres. Also discusses the role of linguistic and cultural conflicts in language contact situations. (13 references) (MDM)

Gun Cultures or Honor Cultures? Explaining Regional and Race Differences in Weapon Carrying

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Felson, Richard B.; Pare, Paul-Philippe

2010-01-01

We use the National Violence against Women (and Men) Survey to examine the effects of region and race on the tendency to carry weapons for protection. We find that Southern and Western whites are much more likely than Northern whites to carry guns for self-protection, controlling for their risk of victimization. The difference between Southern and…

Schizophrenia, culture and neuropsychology: sensory deficits, language impairments and social functioning in Chinese-speaking schizophrenia patients.

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Yang, L; Chen, S; Chen, C-M; Khan, F; Forchelli, G; Javitt, D C

2012-07-01

While 20% of schizophrenia patients worldwide speak tonal languages (e.g. Mandarin), studies are limited to Western-language patients. Western-language patients show tonal deficits that are related to impaired emotional processing of speech. However, language processing is minimally affected. In contrast, in Mandarin, syllables are voiced in one of four tones, with word meaning varying accordingly. We hypothesized that Mandarin-speaking schizophrenia patients would show impairments in underlying basic auditory processing that, unlike in Western groups, would relate to deficits in word recognition and social outcomes. Altogether, 22 Mandarin-speaking schizophrenia patients and 44 matched healthy participants were recruited from New York City. The auditory tasks were: (1) tone matching; (2) distorted tunes; (3) Chinese word discrimination; (4) Chinese word identification. Social outcomes were measured by marital status, employment and most recent employment status. Patients showed deficits in tone-matching, distorted tunes, word discrimination and word identification versus controls (all pneuropsychology and language among Mandarin-speaking schizophrenia patients. As predicted, patients were highly impaired in both tone and auditory word processing, with these two measures significantly correlated. Tonally impaired patients showed significantly worse employment-status function than tonally intact patients, suggesting a link between sensory impairment and employment status outcome. While neuropsychological deficits appear similar cross-culturally, their consequences may be language- and culture-dependent.

Race walking gait and its influence on race walking economy in world-class race walkers.

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Gomez-Ezeiza, Josu; Torres-Unda, Jon; Tam, Nicholas; Irazusta, Jon; Granados, Cristina; Santos-Concejero, Jordan

2018-03-06

The aim of this study was to determine the relationships between biomechanical parameters of the gait cycle and race walking economy in world-class Olympic race walkers. Twenty-One world-class race walkers possessing the Olympic qualifying standard participated in this study. Participants completed an incremental race walking test starting at 10 km·h -1 , where race walking economy (ml·kg -1 ·km -1 ) and spatiotemporal gait variables were analysed at different speeds. 20-km race walking performance was related to race walking economy, being the fastest race walkers those displaying reduced oxygen cost at a given speed (R = 0.760, p < 0.001). Longer ground contact times, shorter flight times, longer midstance sub-phase and shorter propulsive sub-phase during stance were related to a better race walking economy (moderate effect, p < 0.05). According to the results of this study, the fastest race walkers were more economi cal than the lesser performers. Similarly, shorter flight times are associated with a more efficient race walking economy. Coaches and race walkers should avoid modifying their race walking style by increasing flight times, as it may not only impair economy, but also lead to disqualification.

Using Photostory, MovieMaker and Voki to Motivate Danish Upper Secondary Students to Learn German Language and Culture

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Pals Svendsen, Lisbet; Mondahl, Margrethe; Faizi, Ahmad Zaki

2014-01-01

Foreign language and culture learning suffers from a bad image in Danish Upper Secondary schools and German is not an exception. It means that the majority of Danish Upper Secondary school students are not particularly interested in learning the language. Therefore, intrinsic motivation plays...... which was conducted on the basis of semi-structured focus group interviews with n=50 high school students and n=2 high school teachers shows that the ICT tools Photostory, MovieMaker and Voki indeed have an influence on students’ perceived intrinsic motivation in connection with German language...... a pivotal role in German language and culture learning in Denmark. One didactic initiative proposed to remedy the lack of intrinsic motivation is the introduction of various ICT (Information and Communication Technology) tools. This is the background for the research described in this article. Our study...

When Culture Implies Deficit: Placing Race at the Center of Hmong American Education

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DePouw, Christin

2012-01-01

There is a need for a critical race analysis of Hmong American education that places race and racism at the center of analysis, highlights Whiteness as property and recognizes the fluid and situated racialization of Hmong American students. Majoritarian explanations of inequities in Hmong American education often describe Hmong American student…

A Social Work Program's Experience in Teaching about Race in the Curriculum

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Phan, Phu; Vugia, Holly; Wright, Paul; Woods, Dianne Rush; Chu, Mayling; Jones, Terry

2009-01-01

Teaching about race, racism, and oppression presents higher education programs with complex challenges. This article reports on the experiences of a new MSW program in designing a gateway "race, gender, and inequality" course. Embracing a theoretical base of culturally competent practice and solutions to the inherent difficulties of discussing…

Special Operations Forces Language and Culture Needs Assessment: Immersion Training

Science.gov (United States)

2010-11-01

in TL Listen in TL Train or teach other in TL Conduct business negotiations in TL Use TL to maintain control Use TL to persuade people Use informal... teach what you’re going to do, you do a practical exercise where they’re integrating, the person’s integrating what you just taught them in a...1990). Investigating fluency in EFL : A quantitative approach. Language Learning, 3, 387– 417. Owens, W. (2010). Improving cultural education of Special

She Is My Language Broker: How Does Cultural Capital Benefit Asian Immigrant Children in the United States?

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Md-Yunus, Sham'ah

2011-01-01

Cultural capital benefits Asian immigrant children when they become language brokers. This skill can also benefit their parents and families in the United States. Language brokering may shape and possibly enhance students' academic performance and can further children's linguistic and academic achievement. (Contains 2 figures and 1 table.)

Language, culture and emotions: exploring ethnic minority patients' emotional expressions in primary healthcare consultations.

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De Maesschalck, Stéphanie; Deveugele, Myriam; Willems, Sara

2011-09-01

This study explores ethnic minority patients' expression of emotional cues and concerns in primary healthcare, and examines relationships with patient, provider and consultation attributes. 191 video-recorded consultations were analyzed using the VR-CoDES. Patients were interviewed before the consultation. Generalized Estimating Equations models (GEE) were used to test for associations. Psychosocial versus bio-medically oriented encounters contained significantly more cues (p≤0.05). Patients with poor versus good language proficiency expressed significantly less cues (p≤0.001). No significant correlations were found with patients' cultural values, patients' or physicians' gender or the presence of an interpreter. Female patients express more concerns (p≤0.05), female physicians have a higher number of concerns expressed by patients (p≤0.02). This study shows that independent of physician and diagnosis, patients' language proficiency has a more important impact on the number of cues expressed by the patient than cultural difference. Medical schools and Continuing Medical Education should focus on training programs for recognizing and handling linguistic barriers between physicians and patients. Patient education programs should encourage patients who experience language barriers to open up to physicians. In situations where language is a barrier, physicians and patients should be encouraged to use interpreters to enhance the expression of emotions. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

A Language Socialization Approach to Uzbek Language Learning

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Baburhan Uzum

2013-08-01

Full Text Available Using an ethnographic case study design, this study investigates language learners' socialization into the cultural values of Uzbek language. Informed by a language socialization theoretical framework, the study focuses on the classroom routines and interactions that socialize students into certain social values through mini-lectures that are beyond the linguistic objectives of the curriculum. The research questions addressed are: What social values are being taught implicitly or explicitly? What cultural values are students being socialized into? What constitutes valuable cultural knowledge as claimed by the teacher? In the audio and video recorded observation data, a selected excerpt of typical classroom interactions is analyzed adopting discourse analysis methods. The findings of the study could be implemented in teacher education programs and in designing textbooks and curriculum for less commonly taught languages.

’The Italian Color’: Race, Crime Iconography and Dubbing Conventions in the Italian-language Versions of Scarface (1932

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Carla Mereu Keating

2016-02-01

Full Text Available In the early 1930s the crime film Scarface: The Shame of a Nation (1932, USA, dir. Howard Hawks stirred censorship controversies in the United States because of its gritty portrayal of criminality and violence. Debates over crime, race and immigration proliferated in the North-American press and finally led to Italian-American pressure groups to call out for the film’s boycott because it ‘offended the Italian nation and people’ and vilified immigrant communities. Archival historical research in AVT has revealed how film versions have frequently been cut and dialogues ideologically manipulated to suit political agendas, commercial interests and dominant sexual and religious moralities. Indeed the translation of films has often served too many masters, suffering direct or indirect censorship intervention whenever a film defied existing societal taboos. My contribution aims to offer a diachronic perspective on the reception of Scarface lo sfregiato in Italy. It will look at the film’s Italian-language translation and re-translations for cinema, television and DVD, prepared by different hands and re-voiced by different actors during a span of fifty years (1940-90s. From the textual and contextual analysis of the film’s different Italian editions, it will be possible to trace significant ideological shifts in the reception of Italian-American crime iconography and in the language used to communicate it.

Support like a walking stick: parent-buddy matching for language and culture in the NICU.

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Ardal, Frida; Sulman, Joanne; Fuller-Thomson, Esme

2011-01-01

(1) To explore the experience of non-English-speaking mothers with preterm, very low birth weight (VLBW) infants (,1,500 g); and (2) to examine mothers' assessment of a peer support program matching them with linguistically and culturally similar parent-buddies. An exploratory, qualitative analysis based on grounded theory. A convenience sample of eight mothers from four of the most prevalent non-English-speaking cultures (Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, and Tamil) in an urban Canadian-teaching hospital. Non-Anglophone mothers' experience and support in the NICU. Study mothers experienced intense role disequilibrium during the unanticipated crisis of preterm birth of a VLBW infant; situational crises owing to the high-tech NI CU environment and their infant's condition; and developmental crises with feelings of loss, guilt, helplessness, and anxiety. Language barriers compounded the difficulties. Parent-buddies helped non-English-speaking mothers mobilize their strengths. Culture and language are important determinants of service satisfaction for non-English-speaking mothers. Linguistically congruent parent-to-parent matching increases access to service.

Purification of phytotoxic metabolites from culture filtrate of Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense gcv 01210 (race 1

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Nayanci Portal

2011-04-01

Full Text Available Panama disease, caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense, is considered a destructive disease of economic importance in the genus Musa. The culture filtrates of the pathogen have been used to differentiate cultivars, but have not been identified metabolites involved in the differential response. The aim of this study was to purify phytotoxic metabolites present in the culture filtrate of Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense GCV [01210] Race 1 for further chemical characterization. We used a culture filtrate of 15 days of incubation. The phytotoxic activity was tested with a leaf bioassay on the susceptible cultivar ‘Gros Michel’ and resistant ‘FHIA 01’. The organic extract was extracted and fractionated. It was partitioned with organic solvents of rising polarity and found the complexity of each of the fractions by TLC. The metabolites were purified by flash column chromatography. Two compounds were purified from the culture filtrate of the pathogen which not only differed in color (blue and pale yellow, but also in polarity. Fractions B (containing blue compound and E (containing yellow compound produced significant differences in lesion area between resistant and susceptible cultivar. These results are not conclusive but, it is the basis for the identification of compounds involved in the differential response of Musa spp. cultivars to the culture filtrate of Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense. Key Words: phytotoxic activity, chromatography, organic extract, Panama disease, plantains and bananas

Acquisition of a bodily-tactile language as first language

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ask Larsen, Flemming

2013-01-01

Language acquisition in the bodily-tactile modality is difficult to understand, describe, and support. This chapter advocates a reinterpretation of the gestural and idiosyncratic bodily-tactile communication of people with congenital deafblindness (CDB) in terms of early language acquisition...... towards Tactile Sign Language (TSL). The access to participation in complex TSL culture is crucial for language acquisition. We already know how to transfer the patterns of social interaction into the bodily-tactile modality. This is the fundation on which to build actual linguistic participation. TSL...... as a first language is presently a theoretic possibility. We need more research on how to accommodate TSL to language Development and on how to fit TSL into participation in complex cultural activities....