Week 1 and 2

MULTILITERACIES
Week 1 & 2 – Cultural Literacy Skills in Context and

Technology
Watch this video
 What is multiculturalism
 In your grps – discuss what do you think the

students are trying to say .
 Now watch this video – Compare your answers

to what is discussed in this video
What is multiculturalism?
 Multiculturalism is a word that describes a

society where many different cultures live together.
In a multicultural society, there is not an official
(decided by the people in charge) culture that every
person must be a part of. Instead, all cultures are
respected as much as each other.
 the belief that different cultures within a society

should all be given importance
As a descriptive term it refers to cultural
diversity where two or more groups with
distinctive beliefs/cultures exist in a society.
• It can also refer to government policy as a formal
recognition of the cultural distinctiveness of
particular groups.
• It implies a positive endorsement of cultural
diversity
Concept of Multiculturalism
 What does multiculturalism mean?
 In sociology, multiculturalism is the view that
cultural differences should be respected or even
encouraged. Sociologists use the concept of
multiculturalism to describe one way of
approaching cultural diversity within a society. ...
(eg: Malaysia has often been described as
a multicultural nation. – why?)
 Any other countries that you can think of?
 In your grps quickly discuss , what do you think
‘Cultural Literacy’ means?
Cultural Literacy
 Culture includes our whole system of beliefs,
values, attitudes, customs, institutions and social
relations.
 Hawkes (2001) reasoned that culture is the
fourth pillar of sustainability, the glue that holds
the social, environmental and economic pillars
steadfast.
 Cultural literacy is important both to individuals
and to the society they live in. As an individual,
your cultural literacy will help you to successfully
interact with people from diverse backgrounds
Look at this video. What do you think
is happening here?
 Video
Why is it happening?
Historical Background
 Knowing the historical context of the reading or

image
Symbolism

 Understanding common cultural symbols

Idioms/Sayings

 Knowing the meaning of common words
and phrases
I’m going to quit smoking cold turkey
You should take the bull by the horns
 He has taken more responsibilities as he
couldn’t say ‘no’ to his boss. I think he has bitten
more than he can chew, and he’ll struggle to handle
them all.
 Give 2 examples of idioms/sayings

Allusions
 Knowing common literary or cultural

references
He’s such a Romeo
That Scrooge didn’t even leave a tip
What would a viewer need to know to
understand this ad?
Check for Understanding

What does cultural literacy mean?
a. The information that well-educated people know
b. A common body of shared knowledge
c. The ability to read works in multiple
languages
d. Knowing who Snooki is
 Cultural literacy includes cultural competence
but adds to it the ability to critically reflect on,
and if necessary bring about change in, one's
own culture.
 It also includes the ability to analyse the
behaviours of dominant cultures in relation to
other cultures, for instance, the impact of
globalization or cross-cultural partnerships on
local cultures around the world
 An important skill for dealing with cultural
diversity is cultural competence, which
Chrisman (2007:69) defines as ‘attitudes,
practice skills, and system savvy for cross
cultural situations’.
 The central thrust of most cultural competence
work involves individuals’ flexibility and
capability to properly assess and treat all people
respectfully and in a suitable manner
appropriate to their culture.
Cultural Literacy
 "To teach a foreign language is to teach a foreign culture.

Learning a new language entails new ways of thinking,
feeling, and expression.
 Thus, familiarity with the target language culture is
inevitably a must for both the teachers and the students.
“To teach a foreign language is also to teach a foreign
culture, and it is important to be sensitive to the fact that
our students, our colleges, our administrators, and, if we
ive abroad, our neighbors, do not share all of our cultural
paradigms.”( Englebert 2004, 37)
 The key concept in cultural literacy is familiarity.

CROSS CULTURE
 Cross cultural communication focuses on how

people from different cultures, background,
beliefs and communities
communicate across different cultures
WHAT IS SEEN IN A CULTURE ?
What is Cross Culture Awareness
 Cultural Awareness is the foundation of

 communication and it involves the ability of
standing back from ourselves and becoming
aware of our cultural values, beliefs and
perceptions.
Why Cross Culture
Communication is important ?
 Globalization: Cross border movement of people, goods and data
brings more and more cultures into contact with one another and
increases the potential of cross culture communication.
 Business Opportunities
 ◦ Job Opportunities
 ◦ Improves the contribution of employees in a
diverse workforce
 ◦ Sharing of views and ideas
 ◦ Talent improvisation
 ◦ An understanding of diverse market
Cross cultural awareness : - avoid
miscommunication, biasness,
Local culture awareness
Local culture awareness : Hofstede(1980):’

national culture had a major impact on an
employee’s work-related values and attitudes. In
fact, it explained more of the differences than
did age, gender, profession or position in the
organization’
Cultural literacy skills
 Eg: Within every society there are differences in wealth,
power, social status, prestige and human rights. Power
distance is used to measure the extent to which a society
accepts the unequal distribution of power.
 Communication in high power-distance countries is
often one-way, from the top down. For example,
Americans working in Singapore, a high power-distance
country, often notice that their Singaporean
counterparts are extremely hesitant to speak up in
meetings or question managers about decision making.
Let’s recap -Causes of misunderstandings
 Cultural ignorance and insensitivity - trying

to apply your behavioral standards to that of
other culture .
 Lack of awareness of different societal
lifestyle practices – misunderstandings or
conflicts regarding particular matters such as
not accepting food, due to a cultural dietary
practice or religious belief
 Language – Your friendly new British neighbor
you've met in the corridor said that you should come
over for a coffee some time – so why did they look
surprised when you turned up at their doorstep the
next afternoon.
 What they actually mean : Your friendly British
neighbor was just being polite – "let's do something
some time" is a just an expression, bearing as much
weight and actual intention behind it as the notorious
"hi, how are you". If they really did want to invite
you for a coffee, they would have made a date.
Local culture awareness
If you go to an American’s home, you will

probably be offered something to eat or
drink
 If you refuse the first time, you will probably
be offered again.
 You will probably not be offered more than
three times.
Reactions by people from other cultures
Arabs are taught to refuse again and again.

When they visit American homes, they
often leave confused and hungry
 An Arab visited an American home and was
served some delicious sandwiches. The
hostess offered him seconds, but he refused.
The hostess didn’t repeat the offer and so he
had to sit there looking at the delicious
sandwiches.
Tutorial tasks
 In groups – Discuss
 1. Benefit of multicultural in Malaysia
 2. Challenges of multiculturalism in Malaysia
 3. Discuss 6 Ways Teachers Can Foster Cultural
Awareness in the Malaysia Classroom
 Discuss strategies for effective cross cultural
communication
Let’s Listen

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MULTILITERACIES

Week 1 & 2 – Cultural Literacy Skills in Context and

 In your grps – discuss what do you think the

 Now watch this video – Compare your answers

 Multiculturalism is a word that describes a

 the belief that different cultures within a society

 Knowing the historical context of the reading or

 Give 2 examples of idioms/sayings

 Knowing common literary or cultural

 "To teach a foreign language is to teach a foreign culture.

 The key concept in cultural literacy is familiarity.

 Cross cultural communication focuses on how

 Cultural Awareness is the foundation of

Local culture awareness : Hofstede(1980):’

 Cultural ignorance and insensitivity - trying

If you go to an American’s home, you will

Arabs are taught to refuse again and again.

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