internationalization of the u of r: implications for intercultural communication andrea sterzuk, phd...
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Part 1: The need for sameness in communicationTRANSCRIPT
Internationalization of the U of R: Implications for Intercultural Communication
Andrea Sterzuk, PhDFaculty of Education, University of Regina
October 3, 2011
Presentation OverviewPart 1: The need for sameness in
communication1. What is linguistic difference?2. Linguistic Othering
Part 2: Negotiating difference in communication
3. Intercultural communication4. Strategies for communication
The ideas of both Part 1 and Part 2 will be explored using interview data as well as literature.
Part 1: The need for sameness in communication
Globalization The 21st century has been described as a
time of globalization. Characteristics specific to globalized times
include: 1) a unified global market; 2) innovations in communication technology and 3) increased migration.
Lo Bianco, Liddicoat, and Crozet (1999), suggest that "we are in the midst of the greatest movement of populations of any time”
Internationalization of higher education Internationalization is an institutional
response to globalization. It is an ongoing, future-oriented,
multidimensional, interdisciplinary, leadership-driven vision that involves many stakeholders working to change the internal dynamics of an institution to respond and adapt appropriately to an increasingly diverse, globally focused, ever-changing external environment” (Ellingboe, 1998, p.199).
Internationalization of higher education Bartell (2003, p. 50) explains that the process of
internationalizing universities includes: 1. A curriculum review to ensure emphasis on
international dimensions of issues2. An increase of the proportion of students from
abroad including both developed and newly industrialized countries
3. Further development of the number and types of exchange programs, study abroad programs and internships so that Canadian students can experience other cultures
4. Enhanced utilization of diversity and international experience from faculty, students and the wider community.
Internationalization of higher education This presentation asks: What are the
implications of the internationalization of the University of Regina in terms of how we communicate effectively?
First though, let’s ask: Why does anything have to change?
Standard Language Cultures We live in what sociolinguist James Milroy
refers to as a standard language culture. “Certain languages, including widely used
ones such as English, French, and Spanish, are believed by their speakers to exist in standardized forms, and this kind of belief affects the way in which speakers think about their own language and about ‘language’ in general. We may say that speakers of these languages live in standard language cultures” (Milroy, 2001, p.531, emphasis in the original).
Standard Language Culture What kind of discourses circulate in standard language cultures?
There is such a thing as Standard English and I speak it. I don’t have an accent I want to get rid of my accent He has a thick accent She speaks a sort of broken English I speak English English, neutral English, regular English, proper English,
Standard English… Speaking one language is normal Native-speakers of a language know it best Kids get confused if they learn more than one language at a time My grandparents gave up their language My dad didn’t want me to get confused with more than one language so
he spoke to me only in English. I was having trouble in school so my teacher told my parents we should
speak English at home. My TA can’t speak English. He shouldn’t be running our labs.
Where do these ideas about language come from?
Nationalism & Standard Language Culture
The Education of New Canadians, Saskatchewan Dept of Education, 1919
Beliefs about language that accompany the production of homogeneity: A firm belief in Standard
English/correctness Linguistic Othering Suppression of alterity Legitimacy/Ilegitimacy of speakers of
English/ and Native-speakerism Silencing Resentment of linguistic difference Willingness/unwillingness to communicate
Features of Saskatchewan Englishes Think about the way that you perform English.
Try to pinpoint features of your English that mark you as someone from the area of Saskatchewan where you live. Consider:
Vocabulary Word order, sentence structure Verbs Accent and pronunciation What are some examples of these features?
Changing Nature of English
Due to the globalized state of the planet, English has become “a network of interrelated models” (Lo Bianco, 2000: 93).
English can be heard in places like the United Kingdom Canada, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, Singapore, and India, and multiple other places where it is learned as a foreign language.
Is Saskatchewan English the “proper English” at the centre of this network?
Changing Nature of English What this global reality, and the increased
migration and exchange that it brings, implies for a Canadian learning institution like the University of Regina is that Canadian Englishes co-exist alongside:1. other languages 2. world Englishes such as Nigerian or Indian
Englishes, an3. varieties of English spoken by second
language learners of English
Changing Nature of English Successful communication now has less to do
with acquiring features of idealized British or Canadian Englishes and, instead, requires what Canaragajah refers to as ‘multidialectal competence,’ part of which entails ‘passive competence to understand new varieties [of English]’ (2006, p.233).
The unified world system in which we live requires a different view of communication and of what it means to be a legitimate and competent speaker of English.
Internationalization of the U of R What are the experiences of students, faculty and
staff negotiating an increasingly linguistically diverse University of Regina?
My research set out to explore this changing reality, with a particular focus on language policy & standard language ideologies and the types of pedagogical practices that might result.
Two-year study (2009-2011) Interviewed 16 faculty and staff Interviewed 14 international students (2 of whom
were recent permanent residents) Four Faculties: Arts, Business Administration,
Engineering and Education
Research Assistant, February 23, 2010 “The Faculty of X receptionist got off the
phone and, in front of her colleagues and I, groaned and loudly proclaimed "I do not want to speak to anyone else who doesn't speak my language today!" For all she knew, I could have been a second language learner. This is going to be an interesting project, isn't it?”
Professor, July 18, 2011 R150 I noted in this past class that they, well,
this, uh, this—this Tuesday in the class, especially one of them from—the one who from Philippines, and I didn’t notice it until the last presentation actually and I hope—I hope not, like, it just happened that time, ‘cause it’s a group project they have been working on throughout the semester and they have to present their final kind of resource package, uh, to the whole class. And I noticed one of the student in the, you know, in the student group keep interrupting her, like, basically, cutting her short and…
Q151 Cutting off the Filipino girl?
R151 …cutting off the Filipino girl and kind of restate what’s happening and what—what she’s thinks the assignment is about. So I kind of—and I made note of that, uh, in their evaluation.
Q152 Okay, all right. Well, that’s interesting that that, uh, that you noticed that
R152 Mmhmm, yea, because she did that particularly more on the s—Filipino student because I think the Filipino student, she was trying to go to a little bit more detail and, like, she had done a lot of work about this project, like, she wanted to go into detail and the other student just keep interrupting her and jumping with her whenever her comments are…
Student, August 24, 2011 R82 It’s your weak spot and it’s like you can’t change it.
You can slowly but you can’t change it and it’s—if some—it’s like race. If somebody will tell you, “Okay, you’re black and you’re bad,” same “You have an accent, you’re bad.” You can’t do anything about it. Like somewhere back in time, you made decision to come to this country. Yea, you made decision, but I’m here. I have an accent; I can’t just change it, say, “Okay, I will start speaking with—with no accent now.” And it’s like, yea, it’s like race. You—you can’t change it and—and—and you feel offended if somebody, uh, if somebody criticise you for it.
Q83 Have you ever been criticised about your English?
R83 Yes.
Q84 Here at the U of R? R84 Here at U of R. Q85 Can you tell me more about that? R85 Yea, I was a—a student, I got couple remarks
like, “Learn to—to speak English first and—and then tell me what you think about subject.” Um…
Q86 In your cla—like those were classmates? R86 That was class during discussion, yea. Some
—sometimes, people are people. Some people are, uh, are not that sympathetic and—and they can—they can be cruel and tell you something.
Student, August 24, 2011 Uh, profs, uh, they were not patient. Sometimes
they were not patient enough. They—they give up couple times. I—I—th—they were not, like, they didn’t tell you but they—they act like, “Okay, I’ve got enough of it.” Like it’s nonsense. If you—you try to explain some—some—something new and you don’t have vocabulary for that, and you don’t have—take some time to explain, and prof, for example, can just give up, “Okay, I get it,” or “Kay, you’ll tell me later.”
Student, June 29, 2011 Q94 Is there any responsibility for the
native speakers that you interact with? Do they have responsibility, um, when they come into intercultural communication?
R94 This is very good one because my supervisor said to me, “You don’t have a problem about speaking. I understand. You can speak. This—the—not your responsibility. The responsibility is in the listener side, the audience. They have to understand you.”
Q95 What do you think of that?
R95 Oh, this is gonna be the problem. If I—I accept that idea but it’s not the whole because it’s like if that hap—that both side send a message—sender and message, listener have to adjust, have to learn…
Q96 Mmhmm. I agree. R96 …to each other. Q97 And is there any reason, in your
opinion, why the other side may not adjust? R97 Because the reason is that they have narrow
perspective and maybe narrowed, uh, societ—soc—society. They didn’t accept the idea of diversity.
Student, June 29, 2011 Q276 Don’t worry about that. Okay, umm
[pause] okay. So now I have a question for you. The University of Regina’s website explains that, kay, and this is a quote from the website, “with over sixty exchange agreements with over twenty countries, the University of Regina is truly an international community.” What do you think of that statement? [Long pause] Is the U of R an international…community?
R276 It’s can be in term of, uh, physical body, student represented here. It’s, yea. In term of, uh, the reality that people in—with professor and staff—university staff, I think most of my experience, that’s true, but just some.
Some people that I experienced, that is not very friendly. Not only—not just only me, but most of, uh, international, I cannot say that. Most of my friend who are international student experience this kind of people in the university. This not very friendly, not very international.
Q277 Not very friendly? R277 Yeah, not very friendly, not very… Q278 Like other students or staff or…? R278 Staff. Q279 Not friendly with international
students R279 Yeah, not friendly.
R280 Because, for example, not for example, the real situation is that she work at the, uh, reception for an office in the university. She is the first person that have to interact with Canadian, international student. Local or international student. But she doesn’t t—try to understand what her client contact her and try—try not to understand what is the purpose of student to be there with her.
Professor, March 22, 2010 Q278 What do you, can you, do you mind
saying, anecdotally, what are the kind of things that you hear?
R278 Uh, we, uh, for example, I—I—I—I, this is what I hear from the students. So, definitely take it, you need to take it with a grain of salt.
Q280 Grain of salt, yeah. R280 Uh, but, uh you can say that some—some
students tell me that, uh, no, this—this, uh, professor is basically not tolerant at all, at all, of the language…
He is very harsh and, uh, when it comes to speaking with him, sometimes he even does not relate, for example, that we are a little bit uh—uh—uh awkward and our, and our words are not that smooth. So that’s what they’ve told me sometimes…when we are at a frank setting in a sense.
Q283 Yea. R283 Uh—uh, but I take it all with a grain of salt
Student, April 6, 2010 Q45 And, have you ever, um, you mentioned
that you, uh, there have been some times when you had trouble understanding Canadians. Have you ever had the experience of Canadians saying, “I can’t understand you”?
R45 Mmhmm. That comes a lot. Um, well, I don’t speak English with a Canadian accent because I‘m not Canadian, right? So, I speak English in—in whatever accent I have and they’re like—an—and they’re like, “Um, I didn’t get that.” So I’m thinking, “Okay.”
Q46 [Laughter] R46 Um, uh—uh, well, it—it still happens,
though, as far as I’m concerned. Um, there is this kid in class and he was asking a—a—about my exams. I was asking him about his exams. We’re talkin’ about two different things. Okay, I—I understood him perfectly when I was answering his question and asking him something it was like—he was like, “I didn’t get that, I didn’t get that.” I’m thinking, “Okay,” [laughter].
Student, April 6, 2010 Q49 And what do you consider yourself? Do
you think of English as a second language or one of your first languages?
R49 Uhh, well, officially in Nigeria, they would say English first language. But, uh, I think practically it’s noth—it’s not correct because you discover that you only speak English in the school and in the offices. Back at home you speak something different. For me personally, I think, uh, officially, they’ll say English first language, but personally, I don’t think so. Particularly…
Q52…What would you—what would you say if someone asked you here?
R52 Here? Q53 H—here at the U of R, if somebody said… R53 Okay, let me give an instance of what happened in
class. Q54 Okay. R54 Uh, recently, uh, they gave us a group assignment
to do and it was a group of three. So, the leader of the team ask us to analyze this chapter. So, after the guy looked at it and he said, “Ah! Your ideas are great, but the grammar, it’s here.” [interviewee makes a gesture to demonstrate a low proficiency in grammar.] “Something else”[Laughter] So, I was shocked, I said “Wow! Uh, I managed to [inaudible at 6:05-6:07] structure did maintaining the—the idea that I had…”
Q55 So, another student said that to you? R55 Yea, yea. Q56 Okay. R56 Yea, another student said that to me. And,
uh, secondly, uh, because of the Pigeon language stuff we are used to in Nigeria, when you get the textbooks, it’s so difficult to comprehend, at once. You have to read it two tries, at least four times trying to get it. So, because of that, I was now looking at myself as a second speaker.
Q57 But in Nigeria, would you see—would you have seen yourself as a second language speaker?
R57 In Nigeria? No. Q58 No. R58 No, no. Q59 So it’s changed since you’ve been
here? R59 [In background] Yea, yea.
Student, March 30, 2010 Q169 Do you worry about your accent? Does
your accent bother you? R169 It does [laughter]. Q170 Yeah? Why do you think…? R170 Because, like, especially when I’m, like,
around all Canadians, I dunno why, it just—it just that feeling that I know, like, you’re different from the rest.
Q171 Do you think you’ll live in Canada for the rest of your life?
R171 Uh, yes, I think so.
Q172 Do you think you’ll get used to feeling different?
R172 Um, I think so [chuckles]. Q173 Uh-huh [pause]. When you imagine
being linguistically different for the rest of your life, how does that make you feel?
R173 I never thought of that, but I guess [laughter]…
Q174 [Laughter]. R174 …I dunno, like, I hope I’ll get used to it, like,
w—[pause] I’ll always have that, like, difference with, like, but it’s still, I dunno, I hope I’ll get used to it ‘cause I don’t have other choice. I can’t think of my accent for the rest of my life [laughter].
Part 2: Negotiating difference
in communication
Student, April 14, 2010 Q266 Okay. And that class that you took in the fall
where all twenty students were speaking English as a second language…did you get used to their accents? The ways that they were speaking English, did that become more normal for you?
R267 Yes, because almost seven or six of them were Chinese. I knew already Chinese accent. And three or four Indian so I knew already Indian accent, too. Russian, too, ‘cause some of them were Russian from Ukraine and countries like that, so almost all of the students I knew the…
Q268 So you’re used to their accents… R268 Yeah, I used to them.
Student, April 14, 2010 Q144 Hmm, okay, and so what do you think
the effect of, um, nobody in the class having English as a first language? What—what does that do to the kind of lang—English that gets spoken?
R144 [laughter] It’s kind of mixed because sometimes if your—if English is not your first language and you’re talking to another guy in the same situation, you make mis—make some mistakes and nobody understands, nobody knows you’re making some mistake.
Student, April 14, 2010 Q264 Do you think it’s possible to get used
to somebody’s accent? R264 Yes, I think it’s possible. Q265 Mmkay. R265 ‘Cause I have an experience talking to
person speaking, uh, English accent, British accent and at the first—in the first day I didn’t understand at all [chuckles] so I was trying to get used to that accent and it was good for me after all, after that.
Student, April 6, 2010 Q38 F—you’re gonna be—you’re gonna do
the whole degree here, okay. Um, how have people responded to your English? What have…?
R38 Mmm, okay, the first time I came, it’s just more like I—I know how to speak English as far as I’m concerned [laughter].
Q39 Well, yeah. R39 And, well, I would just say, um, i—i—it was—
it was just a matter of learning the, um, the whole, um, Cana—the Canadian style of English. It’s same English, right, but it’s used in a different way.
Student, August 15, 2010 You will notice that y—uh, when you are
international, and you have, for example, some, uh, a pro—a professor who is international, I—you can hear the words better than when he’s Canadian, I don’t know [chuckle]. Yea, because Canadian is just, it is maybe too fast or it is just I don’t know. The—but it’s—sometimes it’s easy for us, too. So that’s why you will find, also, a lot of students they are in the groups of people if they are not from the same area or same country, they are international with themselves and, uh, the—the [chuckle].
But, uh, of course with other, uh, students or with other—my coll—colleg—um, classmates, I’m—I am always talking—mostly I am talking English because when you have, for example, a friend from China, a friend from Pakistan, a friend from, uh, India, a friend from whatever, we have only one common language. This is English so we talk in English. If we—if we don’t understand [chuckle] what the word means, sometimes he don’t know the word in English and I don’t know the word in English but we try to describe it in different ways or, oh yea [chuckline].
Q183 I know what you mean. R183 [Laughter] And we don’t know—we don’t have
to find the exact words for this.
Professor, March 22, 2010 R62 Okay, so, I’m course supervising about, um,
uh, six students now. Q63 Okay. R63 And, uh, [pause] yea four of them are
international. Q64 Okay. And, um, where are they from?
What countries? R64 Uh Thy—uh—Thailand, uh, China, [pause]
and India. Q65 Indian. And, so, how would you
categorize their, um, English language abilities?
R65 Uh, students from India, um, speak and write, uh, perfect English.
Q66 Yeah. R66 Uh, sometimes, uh, we have some
communication difficult—I have some difficulties in communicating with Thai and Chinese students.
Q67 Mmhmm. R67 But, um, it’s not like a big deal. Q68 No. R68 We—we understand each other. Q69 And that’s the main goal, is
comprehension... R69 Yep.
What may multilinguals know about intercultural communication that monolinguals may have to explicitly learn?
OR How can you communicate effectively with
someone who doesn’t speak English as you do?
Intercultural Communication An effective communicator in the 21st century
should be able to: develop negotiation strategies assume difference in communication Make use of sociolinguistic and psychological
resources that will enable them to negotiate sociolinguistic difference.
Share the communication burden with their conversation partner(s).
Accents & Comprehensibility One of the first things most people notice when I speak
English is my accent. It is not uncommon for me to hear the questions, “Where are you from?” “Are you Mexican?” I am used to comments like “Your accent sounds nice.” During my second journey as a graduate student in the United States, I got used to hearing the phrase “Can you say that again?” Often, some people looked at me in a puzzled way, without saying a word, which made me feel worse than I did when having to repeat things to make myself understood. Many times, I thought to myself, “this person has a monolingual ear.” For me, a monolingual ear means somebody who belongs to a homogenous group affiliation, and who is not used to diversity or who is not willing to understand accents other than his or her own (Chacon, 2006: 56).
What can be done about Monolingual Ears? There is research that demonstrates that
becoming familiar with accents will help to overcome negative expectations of interlocuteurs who sound different from ourselves (Derwing, Rossiter & Munro, 2002; Gass & Varonis, 1984; Rubin, 1992).
Sociolinguistic Difference Turn-taking, Honorifics Discourse accent Non-verbal behaviour Requests Apologies Refusals ...
Sociolinguistic Difference Summary Speech acts such as requests, apologies, thank-
yous, refusals, greetings, introductions are:a) highly formulaic; b) speech-community specific, and c) largely automatic: we know how to apologize
appropriately to someone within our speech community but the rules are unknown to us.
d) contribute in significant ways to our opinions of others. If someone transgresses the norms of how to make a request, we make judgements about their character.
What can you do about sociolinguistic difference?1. It’s not possible to memorize all the
sociolinguistic differences in every speech community in the world.
2. Instead, when interacting with those who are linguistically different from ourselves, we can ask the following questions: Do I feel resentful of this student’s linguistic difference (accent, grammar, code-switching, differences in discourse behaviour)? Am I am making any judgments or assumptions about this student’s character, family, or background based on some aspect of their linguistic performance? Am I simply frustrated by communication breakdown? Is there something I can do to positively influence our interaction?
What about that other language stuff?What can I do about gaps between my vocabulary,
verbs, word order, and comprehensibility and that of my interlocuteur?
Slow down Leave spaces between your words Choose simple language. Avoid slang, jargon, and
acronyms. If a word seems unknown to your conversation partner, don’t repeat it again with increased volume, rephrase your utterance or choose another word. Be aware of features of your own variety of English and how you might adapt your speech. Example: half-ton = truck = pick-up = lorry
Try to anticipate the linguistic knowledge of your conversation partner. Example: They may not know “student union building” but they might recognize “Riddell Centre.”
What about that other language stuff? Make use of non-verbal cues: gestures, facial expressions.
Example: hold up fingers to show numbers. Point to contextual cues in your environment. Example: if
you’re telling them what time to be somewhere, point at your watch to contextualize your statement.
Scaffold the conversation in any way you can. Example: Write down numbers, new words, give brochures, write down websites, and encourage them to look up an unknown word in an electronic dictionary. Allow time. Intercultural communication sometimes requires this.
Be aware of your linguistic flexibility. Can you adjust your ear to their accent? Can you grab hold of a familiar word or a contextual clue that allows your ear to make that leap?
Conclusions Be patient with yourself and with your
interlocuteur. Communication is tough enough within homogenous speech communities even without adding linguistic difference to the mix.
Intercultural understanding really does improve with practice. Pay attention to your improvements & increased ease.
These are skills & strategies every human requires for life in the 21st century. The skills you develop will be of use to you in multiple ways.
Conclusions In spite of the changing nature of effective
communication, a monolithic native-speaker based model continues to be anecdotally described (by students, professors, and other members of the University community) as the norm in many of the University of Regina’s programs.
The University of Regina’s international focus needs to include communication policies that incorporate an understanding of the legitimacy of multiple world Englishes; other languages; local variations of English and effective communication strategies for globalized times.
Internationalization of the U of R – Implications for Inclusive Pedagogical & Institutional Practices (December 1)
What are the implications of internationalization in terms of approaches for teaching effectively?
