CALLing out culture: the interplay between language, technology and culture

Introduction

Culture is a complex concept which is manifested in various aspects of our life. Culture and language are interconnected and interdependent as culture shapes the language and is also shaped by the language. Thus, the relationship between language and culture has become a trend from the early scholars’ investigations (Quine, 1980; Sapir, 1962; Wittgenstein, 1980) to recent ones (Grosjean, 2019; Kroon & Swanenberg, 2019).

Researchers (See Jiang, 2000) suppose that language and culture are intricately interwoven, and separating them is impossible. Wei (2005) also stated that language acts as a carrier of culture. In this vein and with a focus on language education, many researchers argued that language teaching, in a sense, is culture teaching (Gao, 2006), labeling language teachers as culture teachers (Wang, 2008). The necessity of teaching culture is more emphasized through the paradigm shift from linguistic competence to communicative competence in language education. The guest editor believes that teaching culture should be at the heart of language education, which stimulates communicative competence that leads to successful language learning.

Many scholars believe that language education should include learning about the target culture as well. For example, Tomalin (2008) highlighted that language education should include teaching the target language a) cultural knowledge, b) cultural values, c) cultural behavior, and d) cultural skills, which emphasizes the significant role of culture in language education. The fifth language skill, culture, makes the learner competent in the target language society to cope with people’s beliefs, values, and norms. In other words, to function successfully in socio-cultural contexts (Halliday, 1975) and real-life situations, learners should utilize social rules of language use which need awareness of the target language social context.

However, creating a situation in which language learners can practice culture in real and natural environments is challenging. Therefore, language teachers usually look for innovative ways to integrate culture into their teaching. Thanks to its global nature and endless resources, Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL) can potentially act as a vehicle for practicing culture in language classes. However, the affordability of CALL for teaching culture alongside the target language is still under-researched.

In this vein, the guest editor of this special issue is interested in drawing language researchers’ attention to how CALL can be incorporated into language education and to: a) implement new approaches, methodologies, and content in teaching and learning culture, b) introduce new cross-cultural and intercultural approaches, c) increase teachers’ and students’ cultural competence, intercultural awareness, global citizenship and understanding, d) repurpose available materials and content to teach culture, e) upskill teachers through teacher education and professional development programs to successfully meet students’ cultural demands, and f) practice teaching cultural knowledge, values, behavior, and skills.

 

References:

Gao, F. (2006). Language is culture – On intercultural communication. Journal of Language and Linguistics, 5(1), 58-67.

Grosjean, F. (2019). A journey in languages and cultures: The life of a bicultural bilingual. Oxford University Press.

Halliday, M. A. K. (1975). Learning how to mean. In E. H. Lenneberg & E. Lenneberg (Eds.), Foundations of language development: A multidisciplinary approach (pp. 239-265). Academic Press.

Jiang, W. (2000). The relationship between culture and language. ELT journal, 54(4), 328-334.

Kroon, S., & Swanenberg, J. (Eds.). (2019). Chronotopic identity work: Sociolinguistic analyses of cultural and linguistic phenomena in time and space. Multilingual Matters.

Quine, W. V. (1980). From a logical point of view: Nine logico-philosophical essays. Harvard University Press.

Sapir, E. (1962). Culture, language and personality. University of California.

Tomalin, B. (2008). Culture - the fifth language skill. British Council. http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/think/articles/culture-fifth-language…

Wei, Y. (2005). Integrating Chinese culture with TEFL in Chinese classroom. Sino-US English Teaching, 2(7), 55-58.

Wittgenstein, L. (1980). Culture and value. (Translated by P. Winch). Chicago University Press.

Wang, X.-Y. (2008). Reflection on the notion of culture teaching. US-China Foreign Language, 6(1), 49-53.

 

Further Readings:

Tafazoli, D., Gomez Parra, M. E., & Huertas-Abril, C. A. (Eds.) (2018). Cross-cultural perspectives on technology-enhanced language learning. IGI Global. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-5225-5463-9

Tafazoli, D., & Romero, M. (Eds.) (2016). Multiculturalism and technology-enhanced language learning. IGI Global. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-5225-1882-2

 

List of Topic Areas:

Articles will be sought to draw language researchers’ attention to how CALL can be incorporated into language education and to:

a) implement new approaches, methodologies, and content in teaching and learning culture,

b) introduce new cross-cultural and intercultural approaches,

c) increase teachers’ and students’ cultural competence, intercultural awareness, global citizenship and understanding,

d) repurpose available materials and content to teach culture,

e) upskill teachers through teacher education and professional development programs to successfully meet students’ cultural demands, and

f) practice teaching cultural knowledge, values, behavior, and skills.

 

Submission Information:

Submissions are made using ScholarOne Manuscripts. Registration and access are available at:  https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/jfme

Author guidelines must be strictly followed. Please see:  https://www.emeraldgrouppublishing.com/journal/jme#author-guidelines

Authors should select (from the drop-down menu) the special issue title CALLing out Culture: The Interplay Between Language, Technology and Culture at the appropriate step in the submission process, i.e. in response to “Please select the issue you are submitting to”. 

Submitted articles must not have been previously published, nor should they be under consideration for publication anywhere else, while under review for this journal.

 

Key Deadlines:

Abstract submission deadline: 5 February 2023

Please email abstracts to [email protected]

Submission opens: 1 September 2022

Article submission deadline: 30 September 2023