Guided Practice: What is Culture Like?

READING/LISTENING

 

On a website www.bbclearningenglish.com you can read and listen to a series of talks about culture and how it affects us. It explores some of the major differences between cultures and looks at what happens when people from different cultures meet and communicate. The series is presented by Marc Beeby. You can download the scripts of these talks free of charge or listen to the talks online.

 

Exercise 1. Read and listen to Part 1 of the series about culture on the website www.bbclearningenglish.com. You can use the link http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/webcast/tae_whoonearth_archive.shtml

Exercise 2. In pairs take turns to answer the questions.

1. What is a stereotype?

2. Do we see the world in a different way from people with a different cultural background? Give an example from the text.

3. What gives us an opportunity to come into contact with people from different cultures?

4. How can we avoid cultural misunderstanding and the possibility of conflict?

5. What is intercultural communication?

6. What examples of cultural misunderstanding can you find in the text?

7. Why is it important to study culture and intercultural communication?

 

VOCABULARY

 

Exercise 3. Match the words with their definitions.

culture	the events in the past that explain why something has happened in a particular way
to affect	to do something that produces an effect or change
stereotype	a situation, an event, etc. that makes it difficult for you to do or achieve sth
intercultural communication	to talk to each other
background	the ideas, beliefs, customs that are shared and accepted by people in a society
misunderstanding	a fixed idea or image of what a particular type of person or thing is like
obstacle	the opinions and feelings that you usually have about something
attitude	the process by which people of different cultures exchange information or express their thoughts and feelings
encounter	a problem caused by someone not understanding a situation correctly
to interact	allowing people to do, say, or believe what they want without criticizing them
tolerant	an occasion when you meet someone, especially in an unplanned or unexpected way

 

Exercise 4. Using the Internet resource http://www.amazon.com find a book Intercultural Communication for Business (Managerial Communication) by James S. O'Rourke and Elizabeth A. Tuleja. Read the Table of Contents (pp. vii-xi) and answer the question: What aspects of intercultural communication does the book cover?

 

Exercise 5. Translate the book description. Is this book useful for your studies? Why?

 

INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION FOR BUSINESS, Second Edition, examines the basis for culture, reviewing the work of social scientists, cultural anthropologists, and global managers on this emerging topic. Definitions of culture, issues of cultural change, and how cultures adapt are included, along with practical examples, case studies, and illustrations of how cultural issues are managed both domestically and internationally. Throughout the text, emphasis is placed on understanding eight dimensions of culture: context, identity, learning, environment, change, time, authority, and achievement. The text begins by providing a foundation for understanding cultural perceptions and stereotypes, and then focuses on understanding frames of reference; language codes, symbols, and context; and verbal and non-verbal communication. Next, it highlights issues of cultural identity regarding individual and collective identity, and examines the effects of culture on power and authority. Finally, it provides practical applications for intercultural communication.

 

http://www.amazon.com

 

Exercise 6. From the book Intercultural Communication for Business (Managerial Communication) read and translate the chapter devoted to the definitions of culture (p. 5). Answer the questions.

1. How many definitions of culture are in common use?

2. What does Edward T. Hall say about culture?

3. How does Fons Trompenaars define culture?

4. What is Geert Hofstede's analogy of culture?

5. How do anthropologists C.Kluckhohn and F.Strodbeck construct their definition of culture?

GRAMMAR

Grammar Revision: Tenses

Exercise 7. Using online grammar reference resources (for example, http://real-english.ru) read about the tenses of the English verb. You can use the following link: http://real-english.ru/crash/lesson5.htm

Exercise 8. Choose the correct form of the verb, explain why other forms are inappropriate.

1. The world (gets/is getting/was getting) smaller nowadays.

2. Increasing cultural awareness (means/mean/has meant) to see both the positive and negative aspects of cultural differences.

3. When the Venezuelan president (had come/came) to Spain for an official visit he (has come/came) to the king and hugged him.

4. The women I (was working/ had worked/has worked) with asked me if I'd like to do 'Ikebana'.

5. How (do we act/we act) in different situations?

6. What (happens/does happen/happened) when we interact with people from other cultures?

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