The Cultural
Experience
The framework for exposing learners to culture and its
four knowings helps learners and instructors to identify where we come
from culturally, and others to encounter and try to understand our culture.
Out of
the four knowings (knowing about, knowing
how, knowing why, and knowing oneself), it occurs to me that the most
important ones are knowing why and
knowing oneself. When people understand why others hold certain beliefs and
values, and why they have their customs, it’s easier for comprehension,
tolerance and fraternity to arise in a community with people from different
origins and cultures. That is crucial in our profession because ESOL instructors need to be prepared
to immerse themselves in cultures different from their own, and they need to be
tolerant with the cultural phenomena around them in order to do good work, and
have good rapport with their students.
One questions that I have is how cultural awareness and the
cultural framework fit or might be pertinent within EFL groups. I
think an answer for this might be that we can address teaching cultural
features of the societies students will most likely interact with in their
future lives.
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