From Intercultural Awareness to Global Awareness: The New Mission of Foreign Language Education

Abstract

Modern transportation and media technology revolution has broken down the geographical barrier, integrating different areas and countries, so that an immense global climate is shaped, pushing the development of varied intercultural communications. Given the above situation, Baker extended the conception of CA (Cultural Awareness), and proposed ICA cultivation (Intercultural Awareness) in language and culture education from the perspective of English as a lingua franca, emphasizing that cultural influences are likely to be varied, dynamic, and emergent. For a peaceful environment for mankind over the world, however, constructing a community of a shared future for mankind is becoming the world’s mutual object which is definitely beyond the reach of individual purpose-oriented ICA. Based on the new situation and new requirements, the key approach to achieving this new mission of foreign language education is to go beyond Baker’s theoretic limitation, fully probe into China’s foreign language education vision together with considering Fei Xiaotong’s cultural self-consciousness theory and Xi Jinping’s idea of constructing a community of a shared future for mankind, and further cultivate learners, Global Awareness (GA) in language and culture education which contains four aspects: recognition of and participation in global integration; identification and mutual appreciation of global excellent cultures; exploration and observation of global issues; responsibility and commitment to the harmonious development of human beings, society.