The Cultural Dimension of a Foreign Language Curriculum: A Comparative Study on Turkey and Russia

Ceren Isikli*
Gendarmerie and Coast Guard Academy, Modern Languages Department, Ankara, Turkey.
Periodicity:April - June'2021
DOI : https://doi.org/10.26634/jelt.11.2.17589

Abstract

This study investigates cultural standards in the context of foreign language teaching from the perspective of two countries: Turkey and Russia. It compared both countries in terms of how they treat culture in foreign language education. The purpose was to identify commonalities and differences in cultural standards between the two countries. During the analysis of curricular documents, three domains of cultural standards were identified for each country: (1) Foreign culture domain, (2) Home culture domain, and (3) Intercultural relations domain. Document analysis was conducted based on online database materials from two primary sources: the Ministry of National Education of Turkey and the Ministry of National Education of Russia. As this study demonstrated the educational policies of the two countries whilst steered towards the attainment of culture-related competencies of foreign language learners, it revealed some important differences in how they define cultural standards according to the three categories of cultural standard domains. As a result, it appears Russia's foreign language curriculum outweighs that of Turkey in the domain of home culture and intercultural relations References.

Keywords

Cultural Competence, Cultural Representation, Cultural Standards, Foreign Language Curriculum, Intercultural Awareness.

How to Cite this Article?

Isikli, C. (2021). The Cultural Dimension of a Foreign Language Curriculum: A Comparative Study on Turkey and Russia. i-manager's Journal on English Language Teaching, 11(2), 42-54. https://doi.org/10.26634/jelt.11.2.17589

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