Intercultural competence as an aspect of the communicative ...
Intercultural competence as an aspect of the communicative ...
Intercultural competence as an aspect of the communicative ...
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<strong>the</strong> students for <strong>the</strong> most part found <strong>the</strong>se issues unrelated to l<strong>an</strong>guage instruction <strong>an</strong>d<br />
learning. This might be seen <strong>as</strong> a possible weak area in teaching <strong>of</strong> English at <strong>the</strong><br />
university level where fur<strong>the</strong>r work on ICC is still needed.<br />
The culture <strong>as</strong>similator used for <strong>the</strong> study w<strong>as</strong> developed fur<strong>the</strong>r <strong>an</strong>d c<strong>an</strong> be used<br />
<strong>as</strong> a teaching <strong>an</strong>d <strong>as</strong>sessment tool in <strong>the</strong> educational context. Since <strong>the</strong>re have not been<br />
<strong>an</strong>y techniques developed specifically for <strong>the</strong> Serbi<strong>an</strong> context, <strong>the</strong> culture <strong>as</strong>similator<br />
might provide <strong>the</strong> starting point for material development for our local purposes.<br />
Since no similar research h<strong>as</strong> been done in Serbia on <strong>the</strong> topic <strong>of</strong> ICC, <strong>the</strong> study<br />
gives a contribution to applied linguistics <strong>an</strong>d a signific<strong>an</strong>t first step in terms <strong>of</strong> <strong>of</strong>fering<br />
both <strong>the</strong> relev<strong>an</strong>t literature review <strong>an</strong>d <strong>the</strong> data for fur<strong>the</strong>r research.<br />
The mixed methods approach used in <strong>the</strong> study is not a preferred method <strong>of</strong> choice<br />
for applied linguistic research in Serbia, <strong>the</strong>refore <strong>the</strong> study shows <strong>the</strong> import<strong>an</strong>ce <strong>of</strong><br />
applying multiple perspectives to complex problems <strong>as</strong> <strong>the</strong>y c<strong>an</strong> provide a greater r<strong>an</strong>ge<br />
<strong>of</strong> divergent views.<br />
The study provided <strong>an</strong> insight into <strong>the</strong> functioning <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> ICC <strong>of</strong> probably <strong>the</strong> most<br />
import<strong>an</strong>t population – students, <strong>as</strong> future educators <strong>an</strong>d social agents, thus showing what<br />
<strong>as</strong>pects should be taken into consideration when educating students to be global citizens.<br />
6.2. Pedagogical implications<br />
There are several pedagogical implications for students at <strong>the</strong> university level that<br />
follow this study. Firstly, since m<strong>an</strong>y students would work directly with o<strong>the</strong>rs <strong>an</strong>d m<strong>an</strong>y<br />
<strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>m in education, it is essential that students have some intercultural training<br />
incorporated in <strong>the</strong>ir cl<strong>as</strong>ses – <strong>of</strong> a foreign l<strong>an</strong>guage or <strong>as</strong> a separate course. Stereotypical<br />
perceptions <strong>of</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r nations, in this c<strong>as</strong>e, Anglophone ones, are still present <strong>an</strong>d should be<br />
dissuaded, while at <strong>the</strong> same time one’s own culture should be explored <strong>an</strong>d <strong>an</strong>alysed.<br />
More specifically, for <strong>the</strong> English l<strong>an</strong>guage students, <strong>as</strong> most definitely future<br />
l<strong>an</strong>guage teachers, ICC training <strong>an</strong>d instruction would be invaluable for <strong>the</strong>ir improved<br />
teaching skills. The current practice at <strong>the</strong> English l<strong>an</strong>guage department in Niš h<strong>as</strong> shown<br />
that one elective course on ICC is not enough, especially since ICC is closely related to<br />
sociolinguistic <strong>an</strong>d pragmatic knowledge. As some authors show, <strong>the</strong> linguistic<br />
pr<strong>of</strong>iciency signals to interlocutors’ intercultural pr<strong>of</strong>iciency <strong>as</strong> well which is why IC<br />
misunderst<strong>an</strong>dings look graver <strong>an</strong>d more serious in <strong>the</strong>ir eyes.<br />
Even though <strong>the</strong> use <strong>of</strong> linguistic me<strong>an</strong>s w<strong>as</strong> not in <strong>the</strong> focus <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> study, a closer<br />
attention could be paid to <strong>the</strong> choice <strong>of</strong> linguistic functions <strong>as</strong> <strong>an</strong> additional step when<br />
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