ATTITUDES OF EFL INSTRUCTORS TOWARDS INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE: A TURKISH FOUNDATION UNIVERSITY CASE

Abstract

The purpose of this research study is to find out the extent of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers’ awareness towards Intercultural Communicative Competence (ICC), to draw attention to the importance of culture teaching and investigate opinions and culture related classroom practices of English Language Preparatory Program instructors working in a foundation university in İstanbul. Culture teaching has drawn considerable amount of attention over the past decades since an important aspect of learning a foreign language is to learn its culture. In a world where non-native speakers vastly outnumber native speakers, gaining an intercultural perspective of the language is an indispensable part of language learning. However, there seems to be a lack of culture integration in EFL classrooms. Thus, this study aims to explore the extent of EFL teachers’ cultural awareness. The study was carried out with 50 EFL instructors working at an English Language preparatory program in a foundation university in İstanbul. The study employed triangulation approach during the data collection process. The quantitative data were obtained through two questionnaires while the qualitative data were gathered through semi-structured interviews administered to 10 instructors. The findings of the study reveal that instructors do not have a comprehensive understanding of ICC and its components. Even though participants show positive attitudes towards culture teaching, they are partly aware of ICC as a skill. Moreover, they cannot allocate enough time for intercultural skills due to syllabus and curriculum constraints. This research aims to illustrate the relationship between culture and language through the researchers’ perspectives, along with the benefits of culture teaching in EFL classrooms, also offers critical insights into language instruction, investigating teacher views on culture teaching. Therefore, it makes a significant contribution to the current research on ICC. Based on the findings, the study recommended fostering culture teaching through incorporating a cultural variety in EFL classrooms