Teaching Russian Culture via English: Implications, Objectives and Challenges

Irina L Lebedeva

doi:10.22363/2618-897x-2020-17-4-535-541

Abstract

The article focuses on the issues related to the specifics of teaching the Russian Culture via English course introduced as a part of Masters in Linguistics degree program at the Faculty of Foreign Languages and Area Studies of Lomonosov Moscow State University (MSU) in 2016. The need for the course stems from the fact that the era of pluricentric English calls for a new type of globally competent and competitive Russian linguists, teachers, and teacher trainers of English able to express their national identity as well as to transmit, promote, and teach national culture through English functioning as a lingua franca, specifically, through the national variety of English, that is Russian English. The course aims at fostering students’ national self-awareness and enhancing their ability to reflect upon their own culture, culture of others as well as culture in general. The article also tackles such aspects as the course syllabus and objectives, its teaching techniques, and materials, as well as challenges that students might face.

Highlights

As has been discussed in the literature, the era of translingualism and transculturalism have made teachers, teacher trainers and educators of English aware of an array of new challenges closely related to teaching English as a vehicle of international and intercultural communication but rather as a means of transmitting and fostering national cultural identity [1]. This happened due to the noticeable shift in the landscape of English teaching we are witnessing both worldwide and in Russia: the shift from teaching English as a Foreign Language (EFL) based on the norms of British or American linguacultures to teaching English as an International Language (EIL) based on the pluricentric principles of World Englishes [2], imbedded in the theoretical framework of the three concentric circles designed by Braj Kachru back in the 1960s [3]
Despite the fact that the status of Russian English is still a subject of an ongoing domestic debate, most scholars agree on the existence of the Russian variety of English, which can be identified by a specific set of distinctive linguistic as well as non-linguistic features
The objectives of the course are as follows: to familiarize students with linguistic and extralinguistic aspects of Russian English as a variety within the English as an International Language paradigm; to develop skills vital for transmitting information about their country and culture during intra- and international communication; to strengthen overall knowledge in terms of national self-identification, history, culture, and lifestyles, as well as to foster their ability to reflect upon their own culture, cultures of others, and culture in general, while using English as a tool for education

Summary

Research Article

M. Lomonosov Moscow State University (MSU) 1 Leninskie Gory, bldg. The article focuses on the issues related to the specifics of teaching the Russian Culture via English course introduced as a part of Masters in Linguistics degree program at the Faculty of Foreign Languages and Area Studies of Lomonosov Moscow State University (MSU) in 2016. The need for the course stems from the fact that the era of pluricentric English calls for a new type of globally competent and competitive Russian linguists, teachers, and teacher trainers of English able to express their national identity as well as to transmit, promote, and teach national culture through English functioning as a lingua franca, through the national variety of English, that is Russian English. The article tackles such aspects as the course syllabus and objectives, its teaching techniques, and materials, as well as challenges that students might face. “Teaching Russian Culture via English: Implications, Objectives and Challenges”.

Научная статья

Introduction

Discussion

Conclusion