The Ministry of Higher and secondary education of the Republic of Uzbekistan

§ 1.2. THE ROLE OF INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE TEACHING

“Education gives us the chance to understand that we are all tied together as citizens of the global community, and that our challenges are interconnected.” — Ban Ki-moon, UN Secretary-General.

Contemporarily, the role of interaction among nations are increasing in education and in social life as well. This is why we are learning and teaching cultures of other countries in order not to stay back globalization.
Every day, international, national and local news confront us with a world where intolerance, preconceptions, ignorance and fear of differences sometimes are the common denominators. This is seen through violent attacks in Europe and Asia, and in every point of the world, schools where we encounter families who dress, eat, think or pray in a way we aren’t used to. Children and teenagers, with their innate curiosity, ask who they are, why they act like that, and why these differences exist. In many cases they may laugh at those who are different, and in the worst scenario, they may isolate or discriminate against students who come from different backgrounds, cultures or religions. Teachers and parents face such situations more and more frequently — and they must be ready to provide answers and take actions to address these challenging situations.
That’s why educational institutions have a key role in developing intercultural and global competences of our students. These competences, explains Darla Deardoff, executive director of the Association of International Education Administrators, a U.S. professional organization based at Duke University, give individuals “the targeted knowledge, skills and attitudes that lead to visible behavior and communication that are both effective and appropriate in intercultural interactions.”
Here are three ways intercultural learning improve schools:
Intercultural competence helps students become more empathetic and flexible.
Intercultural learning programs in the classroom allow students to seize opportunities that diversity offers and learn how to interact in a global, diverse and challenging world. Most programs focus on skills like empathy and flexibility. Empathy helps us understand others and see the world from their perspective, as well as to be sensitive to their needs. Flexibility focuses on knowing how to behave in changing environments, dealing with a wide range of social situations and being able to adapt using appropriate behaviors.
Intercultural learning also establishes a more creative and healthy learning environment where students learn to accept and respect differences, and work with and support classmates who are different. In these classes students also learn about themselves and their culture as a first step to comprehend cultural complexity.