Intercultural Communicative Competence in Foreign Language Classroom

Abstract

In recent years there has been a growing interest in the cultural dimension of foreign language education, and teachers today are expected to promote the acquisition of intercultural competence in their learners. This study presents an analysis of viewpoints in the development of intercultural competence in the English as foreign language teaching classroom in Iran. Intercultural competence, as acknowledged as the key component of foreign language studies, increases the need to adapt teaching methods and materials to raise learners’ intercultural awareness. The following research problem is formulated: do English as foreign language learners’ attitudes become more positive due to the impact of intercultural learning and how they benefit from the impact of intercultural learning in their attitude and overall language proficiency. Based on the study carried out in two intact classes at Iran Language Institute with 48 intermediate language learners, the results indicated that practices in intercultural competence develop their positive attitudes about their culture and target language culture and it motivates them to develop their overall language competence.