Glocalisation: Developing Students’ Language and Intercultural Competence through a Multicultural
Language Arts Programme in KS2
NET Section, CDI, EDB
(Project Code: NT1221)
This Photoby Unknown author is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND.
What can you see from these
images?
Students have to be ready to work with people of different cultures.
a. How teachers can support students to develop intercultural competence?
b. How language learning can play a part in
developing students into global citizens?
Diversity in Children’s Books
Percentage of books depicting characters from diverse backgrounds
2015 2018
White 73.3% 50%
Animals /
Other 12.5% 27%
Other Cultures 14.2% 23%
Statistics compiled by the Cooperative Children's’ Book Centre. School of Education. University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Relationship between Language and Culture
Language is a part of a culture, and culture is a part of the language; the two are intricately interwoven so that one cannot separate the two without losing the significance of either language or culture.
Brown (2007)
Literature that is multicultural provides students with opportunities to reflect on their own cultures (mirrors) and examine other ways of perceiving the
world (windows). Specific cultures explored must be examined through multiple viewpoints that investigate their unique, diverse, and universal characteristics …
Harvard Educational Review
Questions to Ponder
• How to create opportunities for
students to gain authentic exposure to other cultures through literature?
• How to orient students to explore a variety of cultural themes and gain different perspectives?
• How to support students’ inquiry into other cultures and facilitate
intercultural communication and
understanding?
Roles of Language Arts in Our Curriculum
English Language Education Key Learning Area Curriculum Guide (Primary 1 – Secondary 6) (2017)
Language arts materials which deal with universal issues can be used as resources for simulating activities to enable students to develop positive values, think from different perspectives and make thoughtful and reasonable judgements (p.36)
… to guide students to consider and accommodate diverse views, remove bias, re-prioritise choices and show respect for multiculturalism, but also to provide them with opportunities to practise the language skills in meaningful contexts … (p.36)
Stories, fairy tales, legends, humor, jokes,
sayings, proverbs and
idioms collect and
preserve culture, the
wisdom of nations, their
customs and ways of life.
Qualities Needed for the 21st Century
The 6C's
• Creativity
• Collaboration
• Critical think & problem solving
• Communication
• Character Education
• Citizenship
Michael Fullan
Framework for 21st Century Competencies (Singapore)
• Self-Awareness
• Self-management
• Social Awareness
• Relationship Management
• Responsible Decision-Making
• Civic Literacy, Global Awareness and Cross-cultural Skills
• Critical and Inventive Thinking
• Communication, Collaboration and Information Skills
Ministry of Education, 2014
Seven Learning Goals of Primary Education
https://www.edb.gov.hk/en/curriculum-development/7-learning-goals/primary/index.html
Update Version in ELCG 2017
To enable students to
• know how to distinguish right from wrong, fulfil duties as members in the family, society and the nation, and show acceptance and tolerance towards pluralistic values
• Understand their national identity and be concerned about society, the nation and the world, and to fulfil their role as a responsible citizen
• develop an interest in reading extensively and cultivate a habit of reading
• actively communicate with others in English and Chinese (including Putonghua)
• develop independent learning skills, especially self-management skills and collaboration skills
• master the basics of the eight Key Learning Areas to prepare for studying in secondary school
• lead a healthy lifestyle and develop an interest in aesthetic and physical activities and an ability to appreciate these activities
Project Objectives
Explore
• explore the links between language and culture and how these can foster students’
intercultural understanding and develop their awareness in becoming global citizens;
Develop
• develop students’ literacy skills, positive values and intercultural competence;
Enhance
• enhance teachers’ capacity to integrate language arts rich in cultural elements into the
school-based English language curriculum to broaden students’ understanding of the world;
Collaborate
• collaborate with teachers to design English learning activities that promote critical thinking, creativity and cultural awareness and that include multimodal and multigenre resources; and
Create
• create learning communities through the use of different online platforms to allow students
to share their knowledge, ideas and learning outcomes at their own pace.
1: Needs analysis and
consensus building
2: Choose a theme
3: Work together to plan the unit 4: Implement
the unit 5: Review
and reflect on the unit
planned
6: New planning
cycle
Project
Design
Skills
Attitudes
V alue s
Knowledge
What do we expect students to know?
Intercultural Competence
Recognise culture
Develop respect
Empathise with others Reflect on
intercultural experiences
Step in, Step out,
Step back!
Respect
Openness
Curiosity
Inquiry
Develop self awareness
Develop cultural specific knowledge
Grasp of global issues and trends
Viewing the world
from different
perspectives
#THINK
Strategies
#T heme
#H igher order thinking skills
#I ntercultural understanding
('Step in, Step out and Step back')
#N avigation
#K nowledge of English Language (Experiencing stories,
appreciating different styles,
interpreting themes)
Example 1 – What would you wish for?
Places introduced:
Greece, Hong Kong, India, Ireland, Israel, Japan, Scandanavia, Sweden, USA …
Cross-curricular Link:
General Studies Values Education:
Respect for others
3D models of different objects to be used to make wishes are shown to arouse student interest
Team Reading Activity
Students read extensively on different inputs and share with their teammates
Students view the multimodal
resources Reading: Story
of the Sausage Nose
Students write down their wish to be put on the wishing tree Viewing how people make wishes around the world
Students conduct research on different ways of making wishes around the world
Example 2 – Food for Thought
Empathy map
Arousing interest Going global Identifying
challenges Proposing solutions
Act Now Empathising
with others
Places introduced:
Hong Kong, India, Mali, USA, Japan …
Cross-curricular Link:
General Studies, Maths, Music Values Education:
Care for others
Multimodal Texts
Students learn more about the topic through the multimodal texts about different cultures.
Students explore ways to respond to issues in order to build a better world.
Students participate in different activities to activate their prior knowledge. They can choose an activity that suits their learning styles.
Students empathise
with people from different cultures. They try to
interpret issues from different perspectives.
Example 3 – Festivals around the World
T, H, I, N, K
T, H, I ,K T, H, I, N, K
T, N, K
Cross-curricular Link:
Arts & General Studies Values Education:
Respect for others
T, H, I, N
Places introduced:
Hong Kong, India, Mexico, Spain, Thailand …
1. Develop self-awareness:
Travel passport
4. Reading extensively:
multi-modal and multigenre texts
