ERIC Number: EJ1227093
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2019
Pages: 16
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0015-718X
EISSN: N/A
Making the Most of General Education Foreign Language Requirements
Barski, Ewelina; Wilkerson-Barker, Donna
Foreign Language Annals, v52 n3 p491-506 Fall 2019
Given that most postsecondary institutions have recognized the need to prepare interculturally competent undergraduates, this study used the Intercultural Development Inventory to measure the extent to which one group of undergraduate learners demonstrated increased intercultural competence after taking a first-semester foreign language (FL) course. Drawing on research on the role of culture in the FL curriculum and on intercultural competence development, the findings illustrate that (a) beginner-level language courses contribute minimally to students' intercultural competence development, and (b) FL departments need to substantially redesign their beginner-level curriculum if they hope to contribute in meaningful ways to their institution's intercultural, diversity, global learning, and/or 21st-century goals. The data suggest that in addition to re-envisioning the beginner and intermediate FL instructional sequence, universities need more robust FL requirements for general education.
Descriptors: Required Courses, Second Language Learning, Second Language Instruction, Undergraduate Students, Cultural Awareness, Introductory Courses, General Education, Outcomes of Education, 21st Century Skills, Teaching Methods, Role
Wiley-Blackwell. 350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148. Tel: 800-835-6770; Tel: 781-388-8598; Fax: 781-388-8232; e-mail: cs-journals@wiley.com; Web site: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2429/WileyCDA
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A