language education and culture

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Integrating Language and Culture: How to Do ItAuthor(s): Linda M. Crawford-Lange and Dale L. LangeSource: Theory into Practice, Vol. 26, No. 4, Teaching Foreign Languages (Autumn, 1987), pp.258-266Published by: Taylor & Francis, Ltd.Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/1476837

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LindaM. Crawford-LangeDale L. Lange

ntegrating anguage n d C u l t u r e

o w t o

Foreign language educators have long accepted

intellectuallythat language and culture are essen-

tially nseparable.Seelye (1984), forexample, avows

that without a culturalcontext a word has no mean-

ing. Brooks (1964) advises that linguisticcharac-

teristics should be viewed as culturalelements andthat culture learning requires the vehicle of lan-

guage. Further,language teachers have come tounderstand culture in its anthropologicalsense asa proper domain of instructionin language classes

(Brooks, 1968; Nostrand, 1974; Seelye, 1984).

Despite the intellectualacceptance of the unionof languageandculture,culturestudy remains argelyperipheralboth in textbooks and in the classroom.

Two explanations may account for this second-class status. First,teachers feel inadequate in their

knowledge of the foreign culture. They sense a

pressure to dispense culturallyaccurate informa-

tion, but they have only limited and time-bound

experiences in the foreign culture.

Second, teachers may not have been ade-

quately trained in the teaching of culture.They arefamiliarwith a varietyof culture-teachingstrategies,

butthey do not know how to integratethe strategiesinto a systematic study of culture, nor how to

integrate culture study with language learning.Un-

der these circumstances, it becomes easy to rel-

egate culturestudy to Fridayafternoon or to "notes

culturelles,"thus limiting t to facts and information.

LindaM. Crawford-Langes directorof InstructionalSup-port Services, Osseo Area Schools, District279, Osseo,MN;Dale L. Lange is professor of education at the Uni-versity of Minnesota.

Moreimportantto an understandingof culturethan the collection of facts is an appreciation ofculture as a constellation in a continual process of

change, brought about by the participants in theculture as they live and work. Culture s inseparablefrom language and therefore must be included in

language study; culture is in the act of becomingand therefore should be taught as process.

The integrative learning process discussed inthis article promotes the unified teaching of lan-

guage and culture and focuses on culture as proc-ess. More

specifically,this

process:1. makes the learning of culture a requirementin

language programs;2. integrates language learningand culture earning;3. addresses the affective as well as the cognitive

domains;4. considers culture as a changing variable rather

than a static entity;5. exemplifies that participantsin the culture are

the authors of that culture;6. relates to the native culture;and

7. relieves the teacher of the burden ofbeing

theculturalauthority.

Under this process orientation, goals for student

learning broaden. Students acquire: (a) skill to re-form perceptions of culture on the basis of new

input, and (b) the abilityto interact successfully innovel cultural situations.

The integrative language/culture earningproc-ess is more fully described in an earlier article

(Crawford-Lange& Lange, 1984). The purpose of



the present article is to brieflydescribe the processand then to consider its implementation.

The Integrative Language/CultureLearning Process

The integrative language/culture learningproc-ess draws upon several sources for its definition

(Crawford,1981; Freire,1973; Jorstad, 1981; Lange,1979; Stern, 1983). The process incorporateseightstages. The first five are largely teacher directed,

dealing mainlywith the presentation of cultural he-matic material, verbalization of perceptions, and

development of language. The final three stagesare student directed, relating mainlyto the use of

language, matters of culturalawareness, and dem-onstration of language/culture proficiency.

In practice, these stages may not fall in se-

quence, may overlap, and may or may not all beincluded in a particularunit of study. The process

and its stages offer a framework for teacher de-cision makingregarding ntegratedlanguage/culturestudy, not a prescriptive formula. The benefit ofcareful attention to the process may rest primarilyin the stimulationof alternative thinking.

Stage 1: Identification of a CulturalTheme

Cultural themes are provocative concerns orissues related to the values of either the native or

targetculture,or both. The strongerthe relationshipto the learners' situation, the more powerful the

theme will be. For example, the concept of em-ployment in and of itself may not be a theme, butthe issue of the availabilityof employment for ad-olescents in a depressed area may well be. Con-cerns of caring for the aged may be a motivatingtheme for middle-aged students or retirees but ir-relevant to high school sophomores. While sportsmay be includedas a topic inthe text, considerationof the pros and cons of communityversus school-based organizationof adolescent sports ina district

facing budget cuts may providea more provocativelearningexperience.

Identification of a cultural theme indicates ashift in the manner in which the teacher looks attextbook units. Inaddition o notingthe grammaticalstructures presented, equal importanceis given to

examining the material to determine if a culturaltheme is apparent. If a unit includes readings on avisit to the doctor's office, a tripto the pharmacy,and alternative medicine, for example, the teacher

may present the unit to the students in terms ofits medical content. Attitudes toward alternative

medicinein both the native and target culturesmayprovoke the most discussion and thought, andtherefore be identifiedas the theme. While gram-matical content is introducedin support of cultural

content, students enter the unitmorefrom the pointof view of culture than from grammar. Culturalthemes may be identified on the basis of studentinterest and other resource materials as well as

from the basic text.

Stage 2: Presentation of CulturalPhenomena

Phenomena represent occurrences of the cul-turaltheme. Phenomena are presented to students

by means of pictures, bulletinboarddisplays, slides,overhead transparencies, films and filmstrips,vid-

eotapes, videodisks, audiotapes, and writtentexts.Other devices, such as culture capsules and clus-

ters, simulations,role plays, critical ncidents,mini-

dramas, and the like, may also be used to presentcultural

phenomenain the

target languagewhen

the proficiency of students is appropriate to thetask.

Forexample, copies of disciplinecodes or laws

governing expulsion from school are phenomenarelating to school discipline. Registration booklets

listing graduationrequirementsare phenomena as-sociated with the issue of requiredversus elective

subjects in the native and target cultures. Sampletests, reportcards, and grade books serve as phe-nomena of student evaluationand grading systems.

Teachers who have such resources available

frequently incorporate them at the end of units.Here they are incorporatedat the beginningof theunit and form the basis for defining perceptions ofthe native and/or target cultures.

Stage 3: Dialogue (Target/NativeCultures)

Dialoguefocuses on: (a) descriptionof the phe-nomena presented (Whatoffenses are listed in the

disciplinecode? What punishments are given?), (b)analysis of the thematic features (Inwhat ways dothe punishments relate to the offenses? How are

parents involved? Is there evidence of student input

into the discipline code?), and (c) reaction to it interms of one's own culture (How does the targetculture discipline code compare with the disciplinepolicy of this school? How well do consequencesrelate to offenses in each? Which do you feel isthe more severe? The more effective? Whichwould

you ratherhave as your school code? Why?What

problemsare inherentin each? Whatadvantages?).The end product of this dialogue is a written

statement, most likely in English to begin with,

VolumeXXVI,Number 259



including both the students' initial perceptions of

and reactions to the cultural theme. For example,a statement in relation to attitudes toward alter-native medicine in French and United States cul-tures might read:

The attitude of the French toward alternativemedicine seems to be open/liberal/superstitious/

weird.In

my opinion, that attitude is healthy/stupid/dangerous/curious.The attitude of Americans toward alternative

medicine seems to be negative/changing/con-servative/wise. Inmy opinion,that attitude is nar-

row/better/closed/overly cautious.

These initial statements are necessarily sim-

plistic, particularly f writtenin the target language.The second statements written at the end of the

process are expected to be more sophisticated asa result of the cultural investigation and languagedevelopment. Statements can be written individ-

ually,in pairs or small groups, or as a whole class.Throughout this dialogic stage, teachers may

guide students with questioning techniques, ac-

cepting the students' perceptions even if the per-ceptions are "wrong." In beginning languageclasses, this dialogue will likelybe conducted in thestudents' native language. Use of the target lan-

guage will increase as language proficiency in-creases. A thesis of this integrativeprocess is thatculture is important enough to include even if in

the native language. The time given to establishingcultural meaning in this way will have a positive

effect not only on student motivation,but also onlanguage development (Lange & Davis, 1985).

Stage 4: Transitionto Language Learning

As the desire to know more about the cultureis developed in Stage 3, language needs becomeevident. Teacher and students together ask: What

language functions,notions, structures,syntax, reg-isters, and general vocabularyare requiredto dealwith the cultural theme? This transition may be

accomplished by questioning students about lan-

guage needs they may perceive or by examiningavailable resource materials. For example, if yougot into trouble in a Spanish school, how would

you address your interrogator?What terms for of-fenses and consequences do you need to know?If a Spanish exchange student got into trouble in

your school, what do you need to know in orderto explain to himor her the disciplinaryprocedures?If the theme entails soliciting or giving opinions,students can brainstormand discuss various ways

260 Theory ntoPractice

of fulfillinghose functionsin Englishas preparationfor learningways forcommunicating hose functionsin the target language. Examination of resourcematerial may indicate a need to learn a certain

irregularverb or tense.Two concepts should be clear from the above

discussion. First, the teacher makes the students

consciously aware of the connection between the

cultural theme and the linguistic content. Second,the textbook ceases to be the dictator of the cur-riculum.Teachers may integrate grammarlessonsfrom several units as they fit the cultural materialratherthan moving throughthe book frombeginningto end.

Stage 5: Language Learning

The textbook can serve as a source of the

language material to be presented and practicedand it can also suggest opportunities to use lan-

guage forcommunication.Further,inguisticcontentidentifiedin the earlier stages can be incorporatedwith the text material.Identifiedvocabularycan, for

example, be inserted intopatterndrills.Anidentified

structure,not includedin the currenttext unit, canbe studied using materialfrom another unit. Eval-uation of the conceptual control of language struc-ture(Heilenman&Kaplan,1985) would occur duringthis stage. (Evaluationof language proficiencyoc-curs in the final stage.)

Stage 6: Verificationof Perceptions

(Target/Native Cultures)Inthis stage, students examine resources, us-

ing the language they have learned, in order to

develop, confirm,or modifytheir initialperceptions.The end productof this stage is a second statementof perception which is more sophisticated linguist-ically and culturally.For example, in relationto thetheme of attitudes toward alternativemedicine, stu-dents may produce a statement like the followingafter examining both native and target cultureresources:

Ingeneral, the French attitude toward alternativemedical treatments, homeopathy in particular,seems to be fairlyopen. Not every Frenchpersonagrees, but a growing number of French are

seeking alternative medical treatment.

Americans, in general, are more cautiousabout alternative medicine. Homeopathy, for ex-

ample, is not widely available. However, Ameri-cans also seem to be more open than before toalternative treatments. For example, both acu-



puncture and chiropractic are increasinglyavailable.

Examinationof resources may includeprintma-

terial (magazine/newspaper articles, letters, ency-clopedia entries), visual media (such as slides oradvertisementswhich students analyze eitherorallyor in writing),audiotapes of interviews or discus-

sions, and human resources (communitymembers,exchange students, people who have visited the

target culture).Differentstudents may pursue dif-

ferent aspects of the theme depending on interest,and differentsources may be investigated depend-

ing on language ability.The various pieces of in-

formationare brought ogether,described, analyzed,viewed in a broad perspective, and compared to

the original perception(s).After dialogue, students

formulate their new perception(s) as describedabove.

This investigation of resources can take place

parallel or subsequent to language learning andcould take the form of homework assignments,projects, or group work. In addition to the benefitsof exploring the cultural theme in greater depth,this stage provides students with a locus for im-

mediately applyingthe language they have learned.While most of our current language curriculaare

strong on presentation and practice of language,they falter in supporting language use. This inte-

grated manner of teaching language and culture

supplies a content for language use.

Stage 7: CulturalAwareness

As listed in the introduction o this article, the

goals of the integrative process would have stu-dents gain facilityin re-formingculturalperceptionson the basis of new inputand interactingsuccess-

fully in novel cultural situations. Achievement ofthese goals requires that students are consciousof the process they are using and can verbalizetheir understandingof culture. This consciousnessand understandingwillbe available to them in laterlife and transferable to other circumstances.

Questions the teacher might ask to stimulatethis transfer include:Why are there cultural differ-ences? What effects have geography, time, and

people had on culturalevolution?Are there different

patterns indifferentregions? What differences existbetween the target and native cultures? Does the

target culture influence the native culture and viceversa? If your culturalperceptions changed duringthis unit,what caused them to change? Ifyou wentto the target culture, how might your perception

change still further?Where wouldyou look for inputto informyour perception? While stated generallyhere, the questions would more properlybe spec-ified to the particular heme under study.

Stage 8: Evaluation of Language andCulturalProficiency

Languageand culturalproficiencyare examined

together and evaluated globally. Language profi-ciency should be examined for function, content,and accuracy alongthe linesdescribedinthe ACTFL

(AmericanCouncilon the Teaching of ForeignLan-

guages) ProficiencyGuidelines 1986). Cultural val-uation should be oriented more to process than to

discrete cultural points: Is the behavior demon-

strated by the student appropriate and completewithin the frameworkof the resources examined

by the student and the perceptions expressed?

Groupevaluation techniques incorporatedinto co-

operative learning Johnson &Johnson, 1975) wouldbe useful for assessment of culturalproficiency.

Examples of such language/cultureevaluationsare:

1. In pairs, students create a dialogue, basedon differentsituations given by the teacher, where

they visit a pharmacist or doctor to be treated foran illness. The pairs role play the dialogue to otherstudents. Those students must decide if the treat-ment administered is within the context of tradi-tional or alternative medicine and why. Students

would also be requiredto

respond as to their per-sonal preferencesfor treatmentand why. This lattertask can be done in writingas well.

2. Students intervieweach other on their per-sonal perceptions of school discipline in the targetand native cultures, contrasting both. (These in-terviews can be recorded for classes to use asresources in subsequent years.)

3. Students receive a theme-related text that

they have not previously read. They can (a) statethe main idea and supporting propositions and (b)indicate how the new information relates to and

informs the individual'smost recent perception ofthe culturaltheme. These writingtasks can resultin a short originalarticle and articles can be pub-lished and shared withother classes. They can alsobe used as resources for other classes.

The integrative language/culture earningproc-ess as implemented through the eight stages de-scribed approaches the seven criteria established

earlier,as well as the two goal statements. Imple-mentation of the process involves adjustments in

VolumeXXVI,Number4 261



both teaching and learning styles. Issues of imple-mentation constitute the content of the followingsection.

Implementation

Changing direction in an established field is

always difficult;t is especially difficult n education.Second

languageeducation is no different.Students

and teachers expect to learn and teach grammar.When the expectations are different,such as withan integrative language/culture learning process,there are always questions of how to proceed.Some of those questions are addressed here.

How should I begin to deal with the process?The development of an entire curriculumwithoutsome experience of the problems and successesof this integrated approach would be unwise. In-

stead, teachers could begin with one or two units,each a couple of weeks in length, in one or twocourses

they teach, probablyno more. This

ap-proach gives them an opportunity to familiarizethemselves with a differenttype of curriculumand

approach to learning. Students need that kind ofintroductionas well because theirs is also a different

role, one of more input and of a higher level of

thinking.Teacher familiarizationndexperience withthe integrativeprocess is importantbefore an ex-tensive curriculum s attempted.

Should the integrativeprocess be used withalllevels of students? This question has no clear-cutanswer. Beginning students, who are developinginitial

competencein the second

language,focus

on the process in English. They need to become

proficient nusing the process since it requiresmorethan memorizingverb tables and adjectiveendings.As competence in the language and the processbuilds, more and more of the discussions are heldinthe target language. Certainly tudents withmore

competence in the language willbe able to accessmore ideas in the target language both because

they have such competence and also because theyare aware of the process and the kinds of questionsthey need to ask of the materialswith which theywork. In the

longrun, the answer to the

questionrests with teachers. Are they willingto risk a dif-ferent direction in second language education withtheir students? We recommend that the processbe integrated with any level of instruction in asecond language.

Where can I find materials? Materials for the

integrative language/culture process abound; we

only have to know how to locate and organize them.The location of materials for the target culture is


always problematic,but resolvable over time. Some

anticipationof themes and the projected materials

needed provides an awareness of what is required.A survey of the communityand the school can

turn up undiscovered speakers and those ac-

quainted with the culture who can relate to thethemes. A subscriptionto a single target languagenewspaper or magazine can provide advertise-

ments, pictures, and a wide variety of textual ma-terials on the topics chosen. Relatives, friends,students, and teachers can be instructed to collect

pictures,records,tape-recordings,posters, and texts

of all kinds on the chosen themes. Sometimes,materials on a topic may already exist within thetext being used, or in related published materialssuch as culturecapsules, assimilators,and clusters,or in audiomotor units, minidramas, and criticalincidents.

Teachers may have also prepared role plays

or simulations romtheirexperiences with the theme.Community resources should not be overlooked:

Rotary, Lions, Kiwanis,educational travel groups,ethnic school and community groups, multinational

corporations and trade centers, and exchangegroups are examples. Materialson the same themein the native culture are probably not difficult tofind since they are more readily available to bothstudents and teachers. It is not necessary, however,to have all possible materials available to the class.The class will analyze those materials that theyhave and recognize that their perceptions of the

culturemay change as theyfindadditional esources.How can I find cultural themes? Sources of

themes includeexistent text materials, "universal"

components of culture, and the students them-selves. Students know their interests and desiresfor learning. This input is valuable and should betaken into consideration. It contributes to studentmotivation in the pursuitof language competence.

Texts have many unexplored aspects of cul-

ture, simply because the authors do not have the

luxury to be complete. In a recent presentation(Crawford-Lange& Lange, 1985), we explored the

topic of L'Hom6opathie s an element of alternativemedicinein Frenchculture. We were able to providea depth of experience with several differentkindsof materials that the textbook itself could not pro-vide in four paragraphs (Bragger & Rice, 1984).Even a cursory examination of textbooks can un-cover a significant numberof themes that can betreated in depth. And this statement is not to con-demn authors.



Several lists of culture components are avail-

able. Cleveland, Craven, and Danfelser (1979) look

at aspects of culture that tend to unite rather than

separate people; they may be called universal as-

pects for that reason. Each theme is composed of

sub-themes. For example, materialculture is com-

posed of the following sub-themes: food, clothingand adornment of the body, tools and weapons,

housing and shelter, transportation, personal pos-sessions, household articles. This list has eightother themes: the arts, play, and recreation; lan-

guage and nonverbal communication;social orga-nization; social control; conflict and warfare;economic organization;education; world view. Us-

ing this list, a teacher can examine the complete-ness with which materials or curriculumdeal with

culture and what needs to be added to the curric-

ulum.Itmay also help inorganizingcultural hemes.As described under Stage 1, culturalthemes

are more powerfulwhen they specify a provocative

concern or issue that relates to the learners thanwhen they merely list a topic for study. In consid-

ering a theme, a teacher might wonder:

* What humanproblemis present or impliedby this

topic?* What is the more interestingquestion to be asked

of this topic?* In what way(s) does this topic relate to my

learners?* In what way(s) does this topic represent similar-

ities to/differences from the native culture?

In this way topics become framed as themes:

Topic Possible Theme(s)Education Financialresources available to college

students in the native and target cul-

tures, includingattitudes toward paren-tal responsibilityfor college education.Student achievement and placement inrelation to socioeconomic status in na-tive and target cultures.

Careers Expectations for career/job opportuni-ties for males and females in native and

target cultures.

Unionization, its economic effects andrelative influences on native and targetcultures.

How can I organize materials?Havingcollected

materials,how does one organize them for instruc-tion? Bragaw, Loew, and Wooster (1981) have de-vised a plan that helps. Built on a scheme of"universals of culture," they show how materialsfor a yearly curriculumof cultural topics can be

organized with a drop file. Materialsfor such a file

include the following,as examples:

* Newspaper,magazine, and

journalarticles* Literatureof all

genres

* Slides* Letters, diaries* Filmstrips* Audio/videotape

interviews* Movies

* Posters* Role plays* Simulations* Culturecapsules,

assimilators

* Videotapes of TVprograms

* Realia of all kinds* Documents of a wide

variety (historical,political, personal)

The drop file is organized accordingto the cultural

plan for the year. The initialorganizer is by topic,withtargetand native cultureas majorsubheadings.When the materials become extensive, they can be

organized by furthersubtopics. Such a scheme, orone adapted by the individual eacher, helps make

resources and materialsaccessible to both teacherand students.

What can I do with these materials? Thesematerials are largely authentic in nature. They arenot the typically graded or specially prepared ma-terials found in texts. Students should not be re-

quired to understand every spoken word, nor

comprehend every written word. Assignments re-lated to current student competence can be de-

veloped inthe language learningphase so that theywillknow how to process text. Here are some ideas:

1. Provide materials on topics familiar tostudents.

2. Organize texts for listening or reading from

greater to less familiarityto help students buildconfidence that an understandingof authentic ma-terials is possible.

3. Choose materials that illustratethe contentwith pictures, charts, definitions,and explanations.Such devices can help students comprehend the

language.4. Keep in mindthat exercises with recall pro-

tocols and questions relatingto the general intentand direction of the texts direct students towardwhat they comprehend;exercises on the structureof texts, according to their intents and purposes,provide another key to comprehension.

5. At initial tages of implementing his process,student activities with authentic text should be re-lated to specific, accomplishabletasks that teachershave worked out priorto their assignment.

6. Some, many, and maybe all of the authenticmaterials of the language learning stage can be




incorporated into Stage 6, "verificationof percep-tions," until students buildsome confidence in their

ability to comprehend oral and written text. Once

that confidence has been built,encourage studentsto explore as many sources as possible.

What time requirements are necessary? More

time will be devoted to culturalinquiry using this

processthan in traditional urricula.

Students,either

as individualsor small groups, will need time for

culturalexploration both in and out of class. Thistime spent on culturestudy allows the developmentof language proficiencywithina purposefulcontext.

Students learn what they are taught and what

they spend time on. If we stress the grammaticalsyllabus, students willbasically earngrammar.Whatwe need is a balanced curriculumwithcultureserv-

ing as the content of language use. Then, culture

provides the glue for the ability to use language.As a result time is then directed not toward com-

petence in structureonly, but toward language useand cultural understanding, our two most stated

goals.How can student progress best be measured?

As already indicated in the description of the proc-ess, assessment of student progress takes placein two ways, through achievement measures thatare well known by every teacher, particularly n

Stage 5, and by proficiency oriented activities.Achievement measures can continue to focus onthe discrete and the not so discrete elements of

language: sounds, letters, structures, syntax, vo-

cabulary,and how they are put together. Proficiencyoriented activities must, however, be rated by a

pre-established set of criteriaupon which studentsknow they willbe judged. A rating system for theevaluation of proficiency in Stage 8 should be es-tablished priorto completion of the activity. Then,students know on what they are being judged andcan better understand the given rating.

How can Iprepare myself to use this process?Teachers interested in working with this process

recognize they are taking a risk.They are flauntingthe traditionof 2500 years (Kelley, 1969) of lan-

guage teaching which has focused on the structureof language, almost to the exclusion of its use. Thefirst ingredient, then, is the ability to take risks.

Interested risk-takers can prepare themselves byattending workshops and other sessions on cultureat both regional and national meetings of languageteachers organizations.

Further, some colleges and universities offer

regular courses and summer session workshopsdevoted to the teaching of culture in the second


language classroom. For example, the Universityof Minnesota offers a regular course during theacademic year entitled "Teaching Culture:Theoryand Application."Teachers need to seek out suchresources. Of course, a trip to the country wherethe language is used is invaluable as an aid. Theteacher can collect manyof the materialsnecessaryif the

programhas

alreadybeen

conceptualized.What experiences with this integrative lan-

guage/culture process can I draw on? Several ex-

amples can be found of those who have taken the

risk, some of which are more formal than others.Wallerstein 1983) has developed a series of modellessons in English as a second language aroundthe kind of problems that face new immigrantstothe United States. The themes of these lessonsare: autobiography(Whoam I?),the family,cultureand conflict, neighborhoods, immigration,health,work,and money. The language used is appropriate

to the contexts. The activities relate the problemsof new arrivalsin the United States with the kindsof authenticlanguage they willencounter. The prob-lems are real ones. Their resolution is the subjectof the activities for the units. These units are ex-cellent examples of the basic concepts behind the

process defined above.In another context, in Venezuela, and for an-

other purpose, the preparationof teachers of Eng-lish as a foreignlanguage, Salcedo (1985)describes

changes in language competence as the result ofa 15-week, non-intensive course that focused only

on cultural learning. Basically, the course empha-sized extensive reading and discussion of compar-isons of American and Venezuelan cultures.Students' language proficiencies were tested bothbefore and after the course by means of oral in-terviews and analysis of compositions. The resultsindicatedthat students' languagecompetence made

significant gains while they concentrated formallyonlyon culturalmattersthroughreadingandwriting.

The results of this study, althoughthe numbersare small and must be interpretedcautiously, sug-gest that the use of language to pursue cultural

content is appropriate. Again, although this studyis not a directexaminationof the process described

here, the study focuses on the central issue of the

integration of language and culture in languagestudy.

Crannell personalcommunication,July7, 1986)describes the inclusion of a unit in first-year(highschool) French in a suburban, upper midwesternschool district on school disciplinewhichspecificallyused the eight-stage process described in this ar-



ticle. Students used a varietyof resources, includingresponses to their letters to a school in France,Frenchexchange students, and authentic schedulesand other documents. Student evaluations of this

culturally riented unitwere basicallypositive (Cran-nell, 1986): Students said they would like to par-ticipateinothersuch units;they liked the interactionwith the French students they interviewed; hey did

not like some of the texts and activities; they feltthe time devoted to the unit might have been too

long. But the evaluations also showed that students

really want to use and enjoy using the languagewhen given an opportunity. Those opportunitiescome with instructionof this nature where languageis used as a tool to learn about others.

Conclusion

We have presented a rationale and an eightstep process for the integration of language and

culture in the second language classroom. Thatprocess is not necessarily commensurate with theusual approaches to language learning. Our intentfor the process is to focus as much on the use of

language as on its learning because learning a

language in the usual sense is an unmotivating,unrewarding,and sterile experience.

No clearly worn path of experience is availableto draw upon for developing a more integratedcurriculum.1Manyof the concepts we present hereare new; they challenge some of the most currentinstructionalapproaches to language learning.The

process is not a method but a different way ofthinkingabout learning and teaching in a momentwhen language teachers are still searching for the

"Holy Grail" Higgs, 1984).Inadditionto the rationaleand theoreticalpres-

entation of the process for the integration of lan-

guage and culture, we have also discussed the

implementation of this process. We have offeredanswers to the kind of questions that are most

frequently asked about the integrative language/cultureprocess. Howshould one begin? Should the

process be used with all levels of students? Where

can materials be found? What can such materialsprovide to students? What culturalthemes are ap-propriate to these materials? What time require-ments are necessary to implement such acurriculum? How can student progress best bemeasured in such a process oriented curriculum?What experiences with this process can teachersdraw upon? While these questions have no defin-itive answers, the examples provide directions to-ward potential solutions.

The process described in this article s dynamic;it needs discussion, dialogue, and modification.Itis in the implementation hat the relation of theoryto practice will take place.

Note

1. Stern(1983),however,provides ome direction n adescriptionf the integrationf languageuse, knowledge

about anguage, ulture,nd anguageearnings thefourcontentsof languageprograms.

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