L5: ACTIVITY 5.2

L5 -  Activity 5.2

1- How does I.C. relate to the use of a language as a lingua franca?

Lingua francas have appeared for commercial reasons but also for cultural, religious, diplomatic and administrative convenience. In addition, they are a way to exchange information between scientists and other scholars of different nationalities. That is the reason why, in order to avoid cultural mistakes, it is important to learn its culture: rules, norms and expectations. We can't master a language without mastering its culture. Besides, our interactions may be useless and fruitless without that necessary competence. For example, negotiations and politics are extremely related to intercultural competence because success depends on the ability of adaptation and respect. 

2- How would you include I.C. in your teaching of English as a global language?

We would teach the culture-specific concepts of perception, thinking, feeling, and acting because they are necessary to understand the language as a whole picture. We will prepare different activities, such as :

• Introducing culture: celebrations, traditions, beliefs...
• Preparing essays and readings about the foreign culture
• Discussing differences between our culture and the foreign one
• Showing respect and avoiding ethnocentrism 
• Preparing presentations about customs in different regions
• Creating contests about previous cultural knowledge 
• Using songs, films, series and literature to introduce culture