ERIC Number: EJ1233693
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2019
Pages: 7
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: EISSN-1756-1221
EISSN: N/A
Interculturality and GTA Training in the Age of Globalization
Chalupa, Cynthia; Hoecherl-Alden, Gisela
Unterrichtspraxis/Teaching German, v52 n2 p223-229 Fall 2019
German, and increasingly French and Spanish, programs are by nature global because they attract graduate students and faculty from around the world. Most have studied the language and "big C" cultural products during their graduate studies, but they have not necessarily learned approaches for fostering intercultural communicative competence in the classroom. The demands of communication in the global age require not only that language learners examine cultural products and practices but also that they investigate the unique perspectives that underlie them. This need suggests that graduate teaching associates (GTAs) receive training in how to foster intercultural communicative competence and that the responsibility lies with language program directors to incorporate new aspects of teacher training into graduate student professional development. With that in mind, this conversation explores (1) how to promote interculturality within individual language programs that are characterized by global teaching staffs and (2) the training of GTAs on strategies for cultivating intercultural communicative competence in the classroom. Through added modules during pre-service orientations and ongoing professional training, graduate teaching associates can be better prepared to meet the needs of 21st century students.
Descriptors: German, Graduate Students, Teaching Assistants, College Second Language Programs, Communicative Competence (Languages), Cultural Awareness, Faculty Development, Teaching Methods, Program Administration, Foreign Students, Educational Strategies, Preservice Teachers, Intercultural Communication, 21st Century Skills, Global Approach
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A