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核心素养背景下高中英语教学中跨文化意识培养现状研究

发布时间:2023-05-25 11:34
Contents
Abstract i
摘 要 iii
Contents I
List of Tables IV
Chapter One Introduction 1
1.1Background of the Study 1
1.2Purpose and Significance of the Study 3
1.3Frame of the Thesis 5
Chapter Two Literature Review 7
2.1Related Concepts and Connotations 7
2.1.1Definitions and Connotations of Culture 7
2.1.2Definitions and Connotations of Cross-cultural Awareness 8
2.1.3Definitions and Connotations of Cross-cultural Awareness Identity   9
2.2Importance of Cultivating Cross-Cultural Awareness in English Teaching 11
2.3Principles of Cultivating Cross-Cultural Awareness in English Teaching 12
2.4Related Empirical Studies at Home and Abroad 13
2.4.1Research Abroad 13
2.4.2Research at Home 15
Chapter Three Research Methodology 18
3.1Research Questions 18
3.2Research Participants 18
3.3Research Instruments 19
3.3.1Students' Questionnaire 20
3.3.1.1Reliability Analysis of the Questionnaire 21
3.3.1.2Validity Analysis of the Questionnaire 21
3.3.2Test Paper on English Cultural Knowledge and Cross-cultural
Communicative Consciousness 22
3.3.3Classroom Observation Scale 23
3.3.4Teachers' Interview 23
3.4Data Collection and Analysis 23
Chapter Four Results and Discussion 24
4.1General Level of Students' Cross-cultural Awareness 24
4.1.1Attitude 24
4.1.2Cognition 27
4.1.3Value Orientation 29
4.1.4Basic Knowledge of English Culture 32
4.1.5Awareness of Cross-cultural Communication 39
4.2Implementation of Cultivating Students' Cross-cultural Awareness 46
4.2.1Frequency 46
4.2.2Teaching Contents 50
4.2.3Teaching Methods 52
4.3Factors Influencing the Cultivation of Students' Cross-cultural Awareness ...53
4.3.1Teacher Factor 53
4.3.2School Factor 59
4.3.3Student Factor 59
Chapter Five Conclusion 61
5.1Main Findings 61
5.2Pedagogical Implications 64
5.2.1From the Perspective of the English Teachers 64
5.2.2From the Perspective of the School 65
5.2.3From the Perspective of the Students 66
5.3Limitations of the Study 66
References 67
Appendix One Students' Questionnaire 70
Appendix Two Test Paper for Students 75
Appendix Three Classroom Observation Scale 79
Appendix Four Interview Outline for Teachers 80
List of Tables
Table 3.1 Background Information of Teachers 19
Table 3.2 Reliability Statistics of the Questionnaire 21
Table 3.3 Validity Statistics of the Questionnaire 21
Table 4.1 Results of Students' Questionnaires about Attitude 24
Table 4.2 Results of Students' Questionnaires about Cognition 27
Table 4.3 Results of Students' Questionnaires about Value Orientation 29
Table 4.4 Test Results of Students' Knowledge ofEnglish Culture 33
Table 4.5 Knowledge about Geography 33
Table 4.6 Knowledge about Politics 34
Table 4.7 Knowledge about Literary 35
Table 4.8 Knowledge about Celebrities 36
Table 4.9 Knowledge about History 37
Table 4.10 Knowledge aboutFestivals 37
Table 4.11 Material Cultural Knowledge about Religion, Education, and
Technology 38
Table 4. 12 Test Results of Students' Cross-cultural Communicative Level … 39
Table4.13UnderstandingofCultureLoadedWordsandProverbs … … … … … … ….40
Table 4.14 Understanding of Social Conventions 42
Table 4.15 Values between English-speaking Countries and China 43
Table 4.16 Daily Expressions in Communication 44
Table 4.17 TeacherA's Classroom Observation 46
Table 4.18 Teacher B's Classroom Observation 47
Table 4.19 Teacher C's Classroom Observation 48
Table 4.20 Teacher D's Classroom Observation 49
Table 4.21 The Interview Results of Teachers' Attitude 53
Table 4.22 The Interview Results of the Ways 54
Table 4.23 The Interview Results of Influence and Hinder 55
Table 4.24 Students' Views on Teachers' Cultural Teaching 57
Table 4.25 School's Factors Affecting the Cultivation of Cultural Awareness 59
Table 4.26 Students' Factors Affecting the Cultivation of Cultural Awareness 59
Chapter One Introduction
This chapter starts by presenting the research's background. In the second section, the significance and purpose of the study are discussed. And the thesis's framework is introduced in the final section.
1.1Background of the Study
The world's links are growing increasingly tighter as a result of the rapid trend of economic globalization. At the same time, tremendous changes have occurred in China's politics and the economy as a result of its rapid development. Global communication between individuals of different nationalities is growing increasingly close as a result of the implementation of the opening-up policy and the growth of the Internet. Therefore, cross-cultural communication is becoming more and more common, and the cultural traditions of various countries will also be shared with the world. From the perspective of values, Chinese culture takes harmony as the highest value pursuit and attaches importance to responsibility, obligation, and group, while western culture takes competition as the highest value pursuit and attaches importance to freedom, rights, and individuals. From the perspective of outlook on life, Chinese culture pursues the unity of body and mind, beauty and goodness, however, western culture focuses on individual happiness. From a world view, Chinese culture advocates organic connection and interdependence, while western culture emphasizes isolation, stillness, and the dichotomy of subject and object. In such a setting, how to boost students' cross-cultural understanding during the English learning process has sparked significant concern. Culture is a dominant and restrictive factor because it can influence people's values, beliefs, conventions, and ways of thinking. In real life, our behavior and thoughts will be affected and restricted by culture. People pay more and 1
more attention to culture nowadays. Culture is the source of strength for the country to establish self-confidence and maintain tenacious vitality. Emphasizing the relevance of cultural soft power on a regular basis is critical to national growth. The collision and exchange of national cultures are unavoidable in the context of the ongoing development of multiculturalism. Language acquisition activities contribute to an individual's cultural understanding and identification. Individuals develop cultural consciousness and thinking consciousness through the guiding of values and the practice of learning behavior, which has a practical impact on individual cultural life. Improving the ability to understand other countries' cultures is a major aspect that can not be ignored in cultivating and educating students in our schools. On the premise of "not forgetting the original", we should also "absorb foreign". In the process of self-development, culture also needs to absorb and learn from other cultures. Therefore, while continuing to emphasize the importance of our own national culture, we should also have a global vision, absorb and learn from the excellent culture of other countries to cultivate cross-cultural awareness. We are supposed to communicate with other countries in a more efficient and equal way, so as to promote the development and prosperity of the country through cultural exchanges and cooperation.
In fact, as early as 1979, an article called global vision available published by Hanvey, talked about cross-cultural awareness as a kind of thinking consciousness that can be learned. This consciousness often helps human beings find the ideological and diversity of other cultures in the world, and find the unique and easily neglected parts of their mother tongue culture by comparing their indigenous culture with other cultures. This definition can be divided into four levels. The first level is usually aware of the obviously visible part on the surface of the culture. This awareness is shallow and often forms prejudice. The second layer is usually aware of the nonobvious part of the deep layer of culture, and the usual way of understanding is to experience the cultural conflict. The third level is usually aware of the deep-seated part of the culture and can use explanation to understand the characteristics of the 2
culture. On the fourth level, the conscious participant will understand the target culture from the perspective of the holder of the target culture. It can be seen from these four levels that the first three belong to the cognitive level of cross-cultural awareness, and participants can be able to identify, understand, and differentiate the differences and similarities between domestic and international cultures.
At present, the infiltration of culture can be seen everywhere in senior high school English class, and the extension of culture is everywhere. The obstacles to language learning are not only new words and language structures but also the cultural background knowledge and cultural differences between China and foreign countries. Traditional English instruction frequently focuses solely on language structure and form, ignoring the penetration of cultural consciousness and the transmission of cultural knowledge. Therefore, it is urgent to improve students' cross-cultural awareness in senior high school English teaching. Therefore, it is an urgent task for China's English education to cultivate modern international talents with cross-cultural awareness, which is not only in line with the characteristics of language but also the need to reform the current situation of English teaching. The purpose of cross-cultural education is to promote students' understanding and respect for human differences between different cultures through education and recognize the value of cultural differences. Respecting cultural differences can help students form a correct attitude towards the cultures of various nationalities in the world. And only by learning English to understand the different cultures can students cultivate their cross-cultural consciousness.
1.2Purpose and Significance of the Study
Economic globalization has hastened the arrival of the information age and the gradual frequency of cross-cultural communication activities. Consequently, the cultivation of students' cross-cultural awareness has become an important topic in
English teaching.
On the one hand, cross-cultural awareness is a necessary quality to correctly express semantics and accurately express views and positions. If students do not have cross-cultural awareness, they are prone to communication barriers and even communication misunderstandings. From this perspective, it can be seen that cultivating students' cross-cultural awareness plays a very important role in English teaching. Educators should scientifically penetrate the culture of English-speaking countries to ensure that students really understand and master the cultural differences between different countries in the fields ofpolitics, economy, science, and technology.
On the other hand, the current situation in China is composed of differences, including ethnic differences, natural differences, national differences, language differences, and cultural differences. Different countries and regions have different historical development experiences, customs, and habits. The mixture of various factors finally forms a cultural society with mutual characteristics. The communication activities of people under different cultural and social backgrounds also form different cross-cultural communication. Being able to think from the perspective of the other's culture is essential in cross-cultural communication. Based on the current background of globalization, cultural integration has become a trend. As a result, cross-cultural awareness is becoming increasingly crucial. The development of cross-cultural understanding has become a focal point of modern education and is even regarded as the basis to ensure the exchange of people all over the world. Relevant studies have found that language errors are not the main factor leading to communication difficulties. Communication errors, which are more fatal than language errors, make cultural errors. The problems such as unsmooth sentences and inaccurate expression caused by language errors can be alleviated through the rapid development of the modern Internet and the language skills of listeners. However, cultural errors may directly lead to language understanding obstacles and misunderstandings between two communicators, so the cultivation of cross-cultural awareness is vital in English teaching.
The cultivation of cross-cultural awareness has a significant impact on the development of China's future education. Firstly, for a multi-ethnic country such as China, cross-cultural education helps to solve the misunderstandings caused by cultural differences. Secondly, increased foreign exchanges are beneficial to the mutual understanding of Chinese and Western cultures as a result of reform and opening up. In the international community, the maintenance of China's image as a majestic country depends more on the improvement of national quality and respect for other countries' cultures. Thirdly, education is the media of various cultures. School education can effectively strengthen the harmonious coexistence of different cultures. Due to the guiding role of education in social development, educators should pay attention to cultural content, gradually reduce the existing cultural discrimination in teaching and get rid of blind cultural worship. Finally, cross-cultural education helps students' thorough development, cultivate students' cultural inclusiveness, and make students become a person with efficient communication ability.
The cultivation of cross-cultural awareness is indeed a problem worth studying for educators. In the new era of interdependence and blending of different cultures, the new communication mode makes people realize that it is imperative to cultivate cross-cultural awareness.
1.3Frame of the Thesis
The study includes the following five chapters.
The first chapter primarily provides the background, significance, and framework of the thesis.
The second chapter is devoted to a review of the literature. This chapter is divided into two sections. The first section contains definitions of terminology such as culture and cross-cultural awareness, as well as associated concepts and meanings. The second part is a collection of linked empirical studies on English cross-cultural awareness both at home and abroad.
The research design is covered in Chapter 3. Research questions, basic information on research participants, research instruments, data collecting, and data analysis are all covered in this chapter.
The fourth chapter contains the results and comments. The results of students' questionnaires, the average score on a test paper about English cultural knowledge, classroom observation results, and instructor interviews are all available in this chapter.
The fifth and last chapter is the finale. The author primarily states the key findings of the research questions in this chapter. This chapter also contains some effective ways to improve students' cultural awareness in English.
Chapter Two Literature Review
In order to better understand the related concepts and connotations of cross-culture, the author consulted a lot of literature and made a summary. In this chapter, it mainly includes related concepts and connotations, and related empirical studies abroad and at home.
2.1Related Concepts and Connotations
2.1.1Definitions and Connotations of Culture
The term "culture" has always been the core topic of research in various disciplines, and it is also one of the most controversial and difficult terms to reach consensus in hundreds of years. The concept of "culture" involves sociology, psychology, anthropology, political science, and other principles. There are more than 200 expressions of its concept, but the more authoritative and systematically summarized concept comes from the 164 cultural definitions listed in American researchers Kroeber and Kluckhorn's work Culture: A Critical Review of Concepts and Definitions. The essence of culture refers to history, geography, customs, traditional customs, tools, lifestyle, religious beliefs, literature, and so on in the context of ethnic groupings. An American sociologist pointed out that culture has normative meaning, that is, cultural phenomena include all human behaviors obtained through learning. Culture is the shared achievement of human society. The common product should not only include values, language, and knowledge but also cover the category of material objects.
The interpretation ofthe concept of"culture" in modern western academic circles
is based on the basic concept of culture advocated by Taylor, Hurd, and Clem, which
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reveals the diversity of culture. As agreed by Taylor, people will be branded with the cultural brand of regional and ethnic factors in different ways: "every country has its core values about happiness, just as every sphere has its center of gravity." Taylor put forward the concept of dynamic culture for the first time, abandoning the previous view of cultural stillness. The particularity, ethnicity, and sociality of culture play an indispensable role in the construction ofits identity through the dynamic development of language, historical changes, the change of system, and the stable inheritance of values.
2.1.2Definitions and Connotations of Cross-cultural Awareness
Cross-cultural awareness is the ability to understand our own culture and foreign culture through objective comparison. This is the appreciation and understanding of cultural diversity. Cultivating cross-cultural awareness is often accompanied by learning a new language and contacting a new culture. This contact reveals "the similarity and diversity of cultures" (Irving, 1986). Samovar and Poter (1988) also proposed that" in order to correctly understand a culture, we must seriously grasp its world outlook, activity direction, national essence, self-cognition, and social composition. " The test factors published by Dodd in 1995 are more complex. He demonstrates that "cultural roots, cultural attributes, material culture, economic composition, kinship, political system, social regulation, art, language, stability, and religious system are all the factors we should grasp in understanding culture." All of this demonstrates that developing cross-cultural awareness is a gradual process of cultural penetration and transfer from cognition to emotion.
Cross-cultural awareness, according to Hanvey (1979), is the capacity to comprehend and recognize cultural diversity. He separates cross-cultural awareness into four stages based on the sensitive cognition of participants in cross-cultural dialogue. The first one, one can identify those novel and superficial cultural characteristics. Secondly, one can identify the incredible cultural characteristics opposite to its own culture, and cultural conflicts often occur at this time. Thirdly, one 8
is able to accept the culture of others through understanding and analysis. Fourthly, the most advanced level of cross-cultural awareness, capable of achieving cultural identity. However, individuals must also be able to demonstrate "empathy" and "cultural assimilation."
The cross-cultural communicative competence model of Chen Guoming and Starosta (1998) has a great impact on the study of cross-cultural consciousness. They pointed out that "cultural consciousness refers to the cultural understanding that affects people's thinking and behavior, which includes the common and different understanding of human behavior under the cultural model. They demonstrate that "cross-cultural awareness is a cognitive problem in cross-cultural communication, which refers to the understanding of cultural habits that affect people's thinking and action. Cross-cultural awareness emphasizes that people form changes in their cognition of the world around them through their understanding of their own culture and others' culture. They divide cross-cultural awareness into self-awareness and cultural awareness.
Hu Wenzhong and Gao Yihong (1997) pointed out in the Social and Cultural Ability Model Map that what people usually call "cross-cultural consciousness" is the capacity to comprehend alternative culture. Participants with higher cultural understanding have perceptual empathy and rational insight ofthe new culture.
2.1.3Definitions and Connotations of Cross-cultural Awareness Identity
Cultural identity is people's confirmation of their own cultural groups and their own identity. People belonging to the same culture will have the same or similar cultural ideas, values, cultural symbols, and thinking patterns. Cultural identity is often the basis of national identity, social identity, and national identity. However, with the increasingly close communication between people with different cultural backgrounds in the world, a single cultural identity can no longer explain the current extensive communication, and cross-cultural identity emerged as the times require.
Epstein's (2009) cross-cultural identity theory is based on constructivism. He demonstrates that if identity is determined only by the race, religion, and ideology of the learners' community, some cultural conflicts will often occur. Identity construction does not necessarily mean the relationship between unilateral and bilateral relations. There is a third possibility, that is, "cross-culture" (transcultural). This theory advocates that identity construction should be liberated from its own local culture. And it should surpass its cultural fortress, and cross a variety of cultures through contact with different cultures. It can be seen that cross-culture emphasizes openness and advocates the "self-sufficiency" of culture itself. Therefore, it needs to interact with other cultures to make up for the defects of its own culture.
Zea et al. (2003) defined cultural identity as the sense of attachment and belonging of ethnic minorities to their mother tongue community culture and the mainstream community culture of the host country, as well as the behavioral tendency based on this sense ofbelonging. In the interaction ofthe above two different cultures, identity also gradually integrates.
Robert et al. and Phinney (1999) pointed out that cultural identity is learners' identity to their own community, which is mainly reflected in learners' sense of attachment and belonging to their own community. Cultural identity and ethnic identity mainly focus on the behavioral tendency of identity construction, however, value identity involves a deeper layer.
Cross-cultural identity is to maintain an open and inclusive attitude, identify with the cultures of other countries and nationalities, recognize differences, eliminate prejudice, far surpass the traditional cultural identity. Cross-cultural identity is more in line with the needs of the current world. The construction of cross-cultural identity can not completely eliminate cultural conflicts but can alleviate contradictions. It can enable both sides to understand contradictions with a more open and inclusive attitude, so as to reduce cultural conflicts.
2.2Importance of Cultivating Cross-Cultural Awareness in English Teaching
Today's world is no longer the era of carriage and correspondence in ancient times. The wave of globalization has put forward new requirements and challenges to English learners. China has more and more close contacts and exchanges with countries all over the world. Sometimes there will be inevitable mistakes, contradictions, and conflicts that occur as a consequence of cultural differences. As a result, learning a language necessitates not just the acquisition of language skills such as vocabulary and grammar, but also an understanding of the cultural specific sense. That is, we must learn more cross-cultural knowledge and enhance cross-cultural awareness. The necessity of cultivating cross-cultural awareness in English teaching should be paid more attention to.
Lippmann, W (1922) first proposed that "stereotype" refers to people's simplified views of members of another nation or country. For example, people often say “French are romantic, and Americans are exocentric”. These cultural stereotypes may limit our understanding to one or two prominent dimensions, hinder our thoughts of other equally important aspects, make us unaware ofthe objective cultural differences, and lead to the failure of cross-cultural communication. Both cultural transfer and stereotype are caused by people's lack of sensitivity to each other's social, linguistic, and cultural differences in cross-cultural communication.
In the process of cross-cultural communication, in many cases, both sides of communication will encounter some obstacles. The reason for communication failure is often not because one side lacks understanding of the other side's language grammar and its structure, but lacks understanding of the other side's cultural knowledge. Wolfson demonstrates that when communicating with a foreigner, native speakers are often more tolerant and understanding of non-native people's pronunciation and grammatical errors. On the contrary, violations of conversation norms are often considered rude.
Therefore, in the basic stage of English learning, if students understand the differences between different cultures in the world and cultivate their cross-cultural awareness, they can consciously avoid pragmatic failures caused by cultural transfer and stereotypes in cross-cultural communication.
2.3Principles of Cultivating Cross-Cultural Awareness in English Teaching
Cross-cultural awareness, that is, when communicating in English, we should not only maintain the local culture but also fully understand other cultures. In the process of English application, cross-cultural awareness is an important ability, so teachers are required to pay more attention to the cultivation ofit.
Halliday (1978) pointed out that there should be cultural infiltration in English teaching. First of all, in English teaching culture, the presumption of appropriateness should be implemented, that is, teachers should choose appropriate teaching contents and appropriate teaching methods. Due to the wide range of cultural content, it is difficult for teachers to cover all cultural concepts with their students in a single class period. So teachers are required to teach the cultural content which closely related to the language. Moreover, teachers should adopt appropriate teaching methods in culture teaching to make students understand the culture in the article and improve students' language application ability at the same time.
Secondly, in English culture teaching, teachers should guide students to compare English national culture with local culture and find the differences between Chinese and Western culture. Through comparison, students can deepen their understanding of the culture of English speaking countries, understand the differences between diverse countries in value orientation, thinking mode, and aesthetic taste, and avoid the formation of ethnocentrism, that is, to measure and demand others by their own standards, so as to improve their cross-cultural communication ability.
Thirdly, teachers should follow cognitive principles in English culture teaching. Teachers should also pay attention to cultivating students' ability to excavate, summarize and analyze the target culture, so as to master the differences and characteristics between China and the Western countries in values, life customs, and so on.
Finally, in English culture teaching, the principle of absorption is to "critically absorb the culture in the language, that is, absorb the beneficial part of the culture and make it gradually become a part of the local culture”. In English culture teaching, teachers should conduct students to critically view the culture of Western countries.
2.4Related Empirical Studies at Home and Abroad
2.4.1Research Abroad
As a part of foreign language teaching content, the cultivation of cross-cultural awareness has a long history from the beginning of foreign language teaching. However, cultivating cross-cultural awareness, whether through literary appreciation, cultural background introduction, or communicative teaching methods, has traditionally been viewed as a secondary or even optional goal. Not to mention the clear formulation of cultural teaching objectives and systems, the specific compilation of cross-cultural teaching materials, and the effective testing of cultural knowledge. However, it is gratifying that since the 1980s, with the increasing frequency of cross-cultural communication activities in various countries, the status of cross-culture teaching in foreign language teaching has been gradually legalized and increasingly recognized and valued by the world, especially in the United States and Europe.
In the middle of the 20th century, the Western foreign language teaching community began to realize the importance of the cultivation of cross-cultural
awareness. Fries is the leader who discussed the importance of cross-culture teaching first and the relationship between language teaching and cross-culture teaching.
Lado, an American linguist, noted in the 1950s and 1960s that cross-cultural teaching should be included in foreign language instruction. Simultaneously, he proposed a basic framework for cultural comparison and argued that cultural differences should be compared and referenced in foreign language education. And he stressed the importance of social and cultural knowledge in learning foreign languages.
The relationship between foreign language instruction and cross-cultural teaching began to attract attention in the field of linguistics in the 1960s and 1970s when sociolinguistics and applied linguistics developed as a mature system. The notion of cross-cultural communication competency was first proposed by American sociolinguist Hymes. Furthermore, during this time period, the cross-cultural communicative teaching approach was developed, which considerably aided the creation of communicative material in foreign language instruction. At that time, the Kennedy Administration of the United States sent a large number of peace troops abroad, and for these people stationed abroad all year round, cross-cultural communication has become an urgent and unavoidable reality. In order to carry out cross-cultural communication smoothly, cross-cultural training came into being, which promoted the formation of cross-cultural communication. All of these provide some practical and valuable reference materials for the implementation of cross-culture teaching.
Foreign language teaching, in the 1970s, focused on the development of cross-cultural communicative competence and clearly included culture as a content area for foreign language instruction. The majority of foreign language teachers and students realized that the only way to genuinely improve cross-cultural communicative competence is to improve social language and cultural competence. Intercultural communication is a new field that explores both cross-cultural spoken and nonverbal communication. It also investigates the content of culture and 14
communication, as well as the cultural elements that obstruct cross-cultural communication. The establishment of cross-cultural communication causes a significant transformation in foreign language teaching, provides a wealth of information for cross-cultural teaching in foreign language teaching, and hence becomes the foundational subject of cross-cultural teaching. In the 1970s, intercultural communication was generally acknowledged.
In the 1980s, the cultivation of cross-cultural awareness became prosperous with the proposal of UNESCO.
With the advancement of cross-cultural communication study in the 1990s, the prominent role of culture teaching in foreign language teaching has been determined by American education departments and authoritative entities involved in teaching research. The United States Department of Education changed its national standards for foreign language teaching in 1996, determining the primary importance of cross-cultural instruction in foreign language instruction. In the United States, cross-cultural teaching has steadily risen to the top of the priority list for foreign language education, and this tendency has extended to international.
In the 21st century, cross-cultural teaching has been widely advocated in many countries.
2.4.2Research at Home
Luo Changpei proposed a strong correlation between language and culture in the 1950s, emphasizing the role of culture in language.
China started to embrace a reform and liberalization strategy in the 1970s, and a considerable number of foreign language teachers were transferred abroad for further academic study. During their actual interactions with local residents, they found how difficult it is to communicate without knowing the target country's cultural background. They began to pay attention to the issue of cultural variables in foreign language education and study the relationship between language and culture after they 15
returned home. People are gradually paying increasing emphasis to cross-cultural teaching as a result of frequent international exchanges and foreign policy reform.
Intercultural communication was introduced as a discipline in China in the 1980s and quickly developed. Many studies and monographs on cross-cultural communication were published during this time, primarily exploring cross-cultural disparities in foreign language education and the relationship between language and culture. Hu Wenzhong explained the role of cross-cultural communication in English learning from different angles. These theories provide a fuller view of the influence of culture in language and open a new door for cross-cultural communication to become a discipline and start formal teaching. Jia Yuxin demonstrates a multi-level cultural analysis and comparison of society, culture, communicative behavior, and nonverbal communicative behavior from the perspective of communicative ethnology, pragmatics, and other related disciplines, and elaborates on the concept of cross-cultural communicative competence based on a large number of facts and data analysis. It is vital to improving learners' sensitivity to cultural differences. And this is essential in developing learners' insight into communication misunderstandings in cross-cultural communication, as well as the achievement of English teaching's underlying purpose. English Syllabus for Full-time Senior Middle Schools (first draft) in the 1990s (1993) clearly pointed out that while learning, we should improve our understanding and comprehension of foreign language countries, as well as deal with the relationship between language education and cross-cultural teaching in a correct and reasonable manner. The theoretical position of cross-cultural teaching in foreign language education has been established, and the cultural analysis model, cultural teaching skills, and cultural assessment methodologies are well-known in the field.
In the 21st century, the Senior High School English Curriculum Standard(2017)
further elaborates all aspects of cross-cultural communication awareness, as well as
the principles of transnational communication and the relationship between language
and culture. "Cultural consciousness" has long been one of the five teaching
objectives. The curriculum standard clearly puts forward that cultural consciousness
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should be taken as a part of cultivating students' comprehensive ability. Since then, cultivating cultural awareness has become a key component of foreign language instruction in middle schools. This is becoming more of a focus for academics and English teachers. It may be claimed that the development of cultural consciousness has entered a new epoch and stage.
Now, more and more people realize that in English teaching, we should vigorously strengthen the teaching of social and cultural background knowledge, and finally make learners have cross-cultural awareness and communicative competence. Driven by the new curriculum standards, the teaching of growing students' cross-cultural awareness in senior high school English classrooms has particular theoretical and practical conditions at the moment.
Chapter Three Research Methodology
In order to investigate the current situation of cross-cultural awareness cultivation in senior high school English classrooms, research questions, research participants, research instruments, and data collection and analysis are included in this chapter.
3.1Research Questions
The paper mainly studies the following three research questions through questionnaire survey, cultural test papers for students, observation, and interview for teachers of a senior high school.
(1)What is the general level of senior high school students' cross-cultural awareness in terms of students' mastery of cross-cultural knowledge, attitude, cognition, and value orientation towards cross-cultural awareness?
(2)How do English teachers in senior high school cultivate students' cross-cultural awareness in their English teaching?
(3)What are the factors that influence the cultivation of senior high school students' cross-cultural awareness?
3.2Research Participants
In this study, 135 students and 4 teachers were selected from the second-grade students of the senior high school. The author randomly distributed 135 questionnaires and 135 test papers in the second grade of senior high school. The main reasons why they are chosen to complete the survey consider the following two factors. Firstly, the senior two students have already adapted to the learning style and teachers' teaching mode after one year's study, and their reading level is higher and
more representative than grade one students. Secondly, compared with senior three students, senior two students have more time to finish the survey. Moreover, they do not have too much psychological burden and pressure and have a strong willingness to cooperate. Among them, a total of 135 valid questionnaires were recovered, with a 100% recovery rate. 135 valid test volumes were recovered, and the recovery rate was also 100%. At the same time, the author has practiced in the school for 6 months and is very familiar with the school spirit construction, environmental atmosphere, equipment, and facilities, as well as teachers' teaching methods. Therefore, the current situation survey is more convincing.
In addition, there are four English teachers in this survey, including three female teachers and one male teacher. The author observed and interviewed the four English teachers in senior two. They all have been teaching for more than 15 years. Among them, 2 teachers received master's degrees and 2 teachers received bachelor's degrees. The basic information of teachers is as follows.
Table 3.1 Background Information ofTeachers
Teacher Gender Educational
Background Age Teaching years Class
TA Female Master Degree 41 20 Class16 and 17, Senior two
TB Female Master Degree 38 16 Class20 and 21, Senior two
TC Female Bachelor Degree 52 35 Class22 and 23, Senior two
TD Male Bachelor Degree 44 23 Class18 and 19,Senior Two
 
3.3Research Instruments
In this thesis, research instruments mainly include the students' questionnaire, test paper, observation scale, and teachers' interview.
3.3.1Students' Questionnaire
According to the questionnaire on cross-cultural awareness devised by Liu Xiaoying (2016) in A Study of Cultivating Cross-cultural Awareness in Senior High School English Class, the requirements of English cultural awareness in English Curriculum Criteria for Regular High School (2017) and the principles of questionnaire method of foreign language teaching written by Qin Xiaoqing and Wen Qiufang, the author designed a questionnaire called English Cross-culture Awareness Questionnaire on the current situation of senior high school students.
The questionnaire is measured by the five-point Likert Scale and mainly contains two parts. The first part is divided into the following three dimensions: cross-cultural awareness attitude(1-6, 6 questions in total), cross-cultural awareness cognition, (7-14, 8 questions in total), and cross-cultural awareness value orientation(15-21, 7 questions in total). The second part mainly analyzes the factors affecting the cultivation of cross-cultural awareness from three aspects of English teacher, school, and student, with a total of 11 questions(22-31,10 questions in total).
The first dimension is cross-cultural awareness attitude. It refers to students' evaluation and behavior tendency of cross-cultural awareness on the basis of their own morality and values, including their degree of interest, their attitude to cross-cultural awareness, and the way they access cross-cultural awareness knowledge.
The second dimension is cross-cultural awareness cognition. It means that students learn cross-cultural awareness knowledge through psychological activities, such as the formation of concepts, perceptions, judgments, or imagination. This dimension has two main functions: one is to judge students' understanding of their own mastery, and the other is to judge students' understanding of the purpose of English culture learning.
The third dimension is cross-cultural value orientation. When confronted with inconsistencies and disputes, it refers to the students' basic value position, value
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attitude, basic value orientation, and relations between Chinese and Western cultural differences based on their own values.
3.3.1.1Reliability Analysis of the Questionnaire
In order to ensure the reliability of the questionnaire, the author tested the reliability of the questionnaire and the results are shown in Table 3.2. It is generally believed that Cronbach a should be higher than 0.7 (Qin Xiaoqing, 1999). After testing, it can be seen from the data in Table 3.2 that the reliability value of this questionnaire is 0.941, which is high and has excellentreliability.
Table 3.2 Reliability Statistics of the Questionnaire
Cronbach's Alpha N ofItems
.941 32
 
3.3.1.2Validity Analysis of the Questionnaire
In order to ensure the validity of the questionnaire, the author tested the validity of the questionnaire by the KMO and Bartlett spherical tests. It is generally believed that the lowest value can not be lower than 0.6 and the closer the KMO is to 1, the better the data are for factor analysis. (Qin Xiaoqing, 1999). According to Table 3.3, the KMO Coefficient is 0.922 and the spherical test of Bartlett's is significant (P < 0.05). All these show that the results are available.
Table 3.3 Validity Statistics of the Questionnaire
Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin Measure of Sampling Adequacy 0.922
Bartlett's Test of Sphericity Approx. Chi-Square 2998.887
df 528
Sig. .000
3.3.2Test Paper on English Cultural Knowledge and Cross-cultural Communicative Consciousness
The test paper mainly comes from the Investigation of Cross-cultural Awareness in English Teaching of Senior Middle Schools Under the New Curriculum written by Qiang Yan (2012) and A Study of cultivating Cross-cultural Awareness in Senior High English Class under the New Curriculum Students (2012) written by Wang Meiping.
The test paper is divided into two parts. The first part is the basic knowledge of English-speaking countries' culture (questions1-15), including geographical knowledge, political knowledge, literary knowledge, famous figures, historical events, festival knowledge, material cultural knowledge about religion, education, and technology The second part is the awareness of cross-cultural communication (questions 16-32), including culture-loaded words and proverbs, social conventions, social values, and students' expression of daily communication terms. The test paper has 32 questions and a total score of 32 points. The total score for English cultural understanding is 15 points, and the total score for cross-cultural communication awareness is 17. There is only one correct option for each question. Each student answers anonymously. Students will get one point if they answer correctly, and no point if they answer wrong. The author checks each question after finishing the exam paper and calculates the average score, maximum score, and minimum score for each dimension. In addition, the author will count the correct rate for each task and analyze the data. If the average score of these 135 students on the English cultural knowledge test is greater than 9, we may assume that their level of English cultural knowledge is rather high, and if the average score is less than 9, we can assume that their grasp of English cultural knowledge is inadequate. Similarly, if the average score of 135 students on the cross-cultural communication consciousness test is greater than 10, we can assume that the students' cross-cultural communicative awareness is high. If the average score is less than ten, it indicates that the participants' cross-cultural communicative awareness is limited.
3.3.3Classroom Observation Scale
In order to better observe how do English teachers in senior high school cultivate students' cross-cultural awareness in their English teaching, the researcher designed an observation scale (Appendix Three). Analyze and study this problem by listening, observing carefully, and recording the situation of each class.
3.3.4Teachers' Interview
In order to understand teachers' attitudes, the way teachers combine English teaching with the cultivation of students' cross-cultural awareness, the author conducted an interview. The interview is mainly qualitative research. What's more, the results of the interview also provide relative advice for the cultivation of students' cross-cultural awareness. The author translated the dialogue in the recording onto paper.
3.4Data Collection and Analysis
Firstly, on November 5, 135 student questionnaires and 135 test papers for students were distributed. They were recycled once the students completed them in the allotted time and given over to the class's English teacher. Secondly, through the design of the scale and classroom observation, the researcher made detailed records and analyses. Thirdly, four English teachers were interviewed, and the researcher recorded the questions separately. Finally, all the data were collected and analyzed by the researcher. The frequency distribution and effective percentage of each part ofthe questionnaire were calculated by descriptive statistics. Calculate and count students' test scores with Excel and other tools. The interview record was changed from recording to writing.
Chapter Four Results and Discussion
This chapter will analyze the results of students' questionnaires from 3 aspects, students' scores in the test paper, classroom observation, and teachers' interview content. And this chapter will also discuss the factors that influence the cultivation of senior high school students' cross-cultural awareness.
4.1General Level of Students' Cross-cultural Awareness
4.1.1Attitude
Generally speaking, what kind of attitude determines what kind of result, and attitude is the prerequisite for all beginnings. Students' attitudes towards cross-cultural awareness will affect students' learning effect and behavior choice to a certain extent. Therefore, the results of the first part of the questionnaire are mainly used to test students' attitudes towards cross-cultural awareness and conduct in-depth research from the perspectives of interest and motivation. The results are shown in Table 4.1.
Table 4.1 Results of Students' Questionnaires about Attitude
Questions The ratio of students' choices %)
A B C D E
You are interested in learning about the culture of English-speaking countries. 25.19 51.22 16.03 6.67 1.52
You think mastering English culture knowledge is beneficial to English achievement. 42.75 33.19 18.32 4.58 1.16
You like your teacher to speak more about English culture in English class. 55.88 32.06 4.50 5.34 2.21
You think language is closely related to culture. 24.43 40.46 16.03 9.92 9.16
After class, you will take the initiative to find ways to broaden your English cultural knowledge. 24.43 47.33 16.03 3.82 8.4
You understand cultural diversity and compare Chinese and foreign cultures with respect and 33.59 30.53 22.9 6.87 6.11
 
tolerance.
 
(A=completely agree, B=comparatively agree, C=not sure, D=generally disagree, E= completely disagree)
Table 4.1 shows that 76.41% ofthe students agree that cultural knowledge in English is important to them. 25.19% of the students are extremely interested in cultural knowledge, whereas 51.2% of the students are comparatively interested in culturalknowledge. Only 8.19% of students exhibit a low interest in culture, and only 1.52% of the students are completely uninterested in English cultural knowledge. Another 16.03% ofthe students are not sure. Therefore, more than two-thirds ofthe students are still interested in English cultural knowledge, which shows that most students generally have a positive attitude and strong interest in English culture.
In the second question, 75.94% of the students believe that mastering more English cultural knowledge is conducive to the improvement oftheir grades, and only 5.74% believe that understanding English cultural knowledge is useless. This shows that students have a high cognitive level and can feel that their grades can be improved after understanding more English cultural knowledge. That means most students have a strong motivation tendency to learn English cultural knowledge.
In the third question, 87.94% ofthe students like their English teachers to speak more English culture in class. A total of7.75% ofthe students don't like the teachers to speak English culture at all. This problem reflects that most students have a strong interest in learning English cultural knowledge. They prefer and want their teachers to speak more about relevant knowledge.
As we all know, the learning of a language and culture are inseparable. In the third question, 64.89% ofthe students think that cultural knowledge is closely related to language learning. However, 19.08% ofthe students think that language and culture have little relationship, and 16.03% ofthe students don't know whether language and culture have a direct relationship. To learn a language well, it is indispensable to understand the profound cultural connotation behind it. At the same time, students
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should realize the importance of cultural learning. Only by understanding certain cultural knowledge can they learn the language better.
The fourth question mainly explores whether students have the subjective initiative to acquire and broaden English cultural knowledge in their spare time. To some extent, positive performance helps students overcome difficulties and obstacles in the process of language learning. It is also very important whether they can actively solve the cultural obstacles and actively expand their cultural knowledge. The results show that about 71.76% of the students actively broaden the learning ways and channels of English cultural knowledge after class. Most of the students have the motivation and attitude to actively learn cultural knowledge, however, 12.24% of the students do not actively find ways to increase English cultural knowledge, and 16.03% of the students are not sure. The proportion of students with negative and positive attitudes is higher than that of students who are not interested, which shows that in addition to interest and attitude, there are other factors that affect students to broaden and find English cultural knowledge in their spare time.
Different countries have their own different and unique cultures, which lead to the birth of cultural diversity. Whether we can understand that culture is diverse, and respect and tolerate different cultures is also an important dimension of attitude. In the last question of this part, 64.12% of the students can understand cultural diversity and treat Chinese and foreign cultures with respect and inclusiveness, but 22.9% of the students are uncertain and 12.98% of the students can't do it. Teachers should try to guide students to recognize the diversity of cultures and treat the cultures of different countries with an inclusive attitude.
Generally speaking, in the dimension of attitude, most students are interested in English cultural knowledge, have higher motivation and initiative to learn English cultural knowledge, and have good subjective initiative. Moreover, most students hope that teachers can speak more English cultural knowledge and take a positive attitude towards the learning of English cultural knowledge. Therefore, teachers should create a relaxing and harmonious English learning atmosphere, stimulate 26
students' interest in learning, and pay attention to the comparison and explanation of Chinese and foreign cultural knowledge in the process of teaching, so as to enhance students' cultural confidence and enthusiasm in learning the language.
4.1.2Cognition
Students' understanding of their own mastery and their understanding of the purpose of English culture learning can be judged in this dimension. The results are shown in Table 4.2.
Table 4.2 Results of Students' Questionnaires about Cognition
Questions The ratio of students' choices (%)
A B C D E
Your understanding degree ofwestern culture in high school English textbooks. 5.19 29.69 26.03 30.69 8.40
Your understanding degree of the achievements and contributions of major famous people in English-speaking countries. 3.66 22.75 27.56 36.87 9.16
Your understanding degree of the politics and economy of English-speaking countries. 29.69 20.61 25.27 12.98 11.45
Your understanding degree of the major mass media in English-speaking countries. 6.87 9.92 24.43 39.69 19.08
Your understanding degree of the similarities and differences between Chinese and western people's lifestyles. 14.43 25.88 30.61 20.69 8.40
Your understanding degree of the similarities and differences between Chinese and western people in behavior and social intercourse. 12.14 16.56 39.85 27.63 3.82
Your understanding degree of the customs of western culture. 17.56 26.56 19.08 29.92 6.87
Your understanding degree of the current important and popular events in the western culture. 35.11 31.3 12.21 10.69 10.69
(A=completely understand, B=comparatively understand, C=generally
 
understand, D=a little understand, E= barely understand)
As can be seen from Table 4.2, in question 1, only 5.19% of the students have a complete understanding of British and American cultural knowledge, 29.69% of the students have a good understanding, and 26.03% of the students have a basic understanding. 30.69% of the students know little, and even 8.40% of the students don't know at all. In general, the proportion of students with weak understanding is the highest, which shows that students only know a little about the cultural knowledge in textbooks, and they need teachers to explain and interpret the cultural connotation and significance in depth.
In the second question, only 3.66% of the students fully understand the achievements and contributions made by famous people in English-speaking countries. 22.75% of the students comparatively understand it, and 27.56% of the students basically understand. However, 36.87% of the students only understand a little about it, and even 9.16% know nothing about it. The highest proportion is a little understanding, which shows that students do not know enough about the achievements and contributions of famous figures.
Political unity and economic prosperity are the premise and foundation of a country's stability. Therefore, it is very important to understand the politics and economy of various countries. The third question mainly examines whether students understand the politics and economy of English-speaking countries. The data show that only 29.69% ofthe students know this very well, 20.61% ofthe students know it better, and 25.27% ofthe students basically know it. However, 12.98% ofthe students know it slightly, and even 11.45% of the students know nothing about it. In this question, the proportion of students who choose to completely understand and relatively understand is very large. As various disciplines are inseparable, the reason for this phenomenon may be that students have learned about the political and economic policies of English-speaking countries in politics and history, so students have a better understanding.
Media plays an important role in cultural centralism and cultural integration. It can even continuously strengthen a country's ideology. Therefore, understanding the
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mainstream media is also an indispensable link in the cognition of cultural consciousness. The survey results show that only 6.87% of the students completely understand, 9.92% of the students comparatively understand, 24.43% of the students basically understand, 39.69% of the students understand a little, and even 19.08% of the students barely understand. In this dimension, the proportion of students who choose to barely understand is the largest, which shows that students know very little about the mainstream media in English-speaking countries and basically have no channel to obtain this knowledge.
4.1.3Value Orientation
When confronted with or coping with contradictions, conflicts, and relationships between Chinese and Western cultural differences based on their own values, value orientation refers to the students' basic value stance, value attitude, and basic value perspective. The results are shown in Table 4.3.
Table4.3 Results ofStudents'Questionnaires about Value Orientation
Questions The ratio of students' choices (%)
A B C D E
In the process of learning English, you can realize the differences between Chinese and English cultures. 25.19 38.17 13.79 7.63 12.21
When you learn English idioms and proverbs, you will try to understand their cultural connotation. 32.82 33.59 15.27 7.63 10.69
You can learn from excellent Chinese and foreign cultures and cultivate healthy aesthetic taste and moral emotion. 25.95 41.22 12.98 11.45 8.40
In the context of global culture, you know that foreign language learning should not only understand foreign cultures but also strengthen the understanding and recognition of national and national cultures. 35.19 46.56 9.92 4.58 0.74
You can treat western culture scientifically and dialectically through understanding Chinese 17.56 48.09 15.27 8.4 10.69
and western traditional culture
In the context of globalization, through the study of excellent Chinese and foreign cultures, you can feel your sense of social responsibility to the country and people 27.48 35.88 16.79 9.92 9.92
You will be able to comprehend the essence of excellent Chinese and foreign cultures, as well as develop a proper worldview and morals. 25.19 40.46 12.21 9.16 12.98
(A=completely agree, B=comparatively agree, C=not sure, D=generally disagree, E= completely disagree)
 
As we can see in Table 4.3, in the first question, 63.36% of the students can aware of the cultural differences between China and English-speaking countries in the process of learning English, 13.79% of the students hold an uncertain attitude, and 19.57% of the students have no awareness of cultural differences. In other words, more than half of the students can clearly perceive that different cultures have different connotations and meanings. As a teacher, it is very necessary to help them understand and learn the knowledge content brought by differences after they have recognized these cultural differences
In the second question, a total of 67.41% of the students will try to understand the cultural connotation when learning English idioms and proverbs, 15.27% of the students hold an uncertain attitude, and 18.32% of the students are not interested in English idioms. It is obvious that the data of this question corresponds to the first question in the attitude dimension. More than half of the students are interested in learning English culture, so idioms must be included. Just like primary school students learning idioms at the beginning, there are also many expressions of idioms and slang in English. but the expression in English is very different from that in Chinese. Therefore, as a teacher, we should strengthen our own cultural connotations. When we encounter the expression of idioms in English, we can explain the connotation and allusions for students, so as to further promote students' interest in English learning.
In the third question, a total of 67.17% of the students believe that they can cultivate healthy aesthetic taste and moral emotion by absorbing excellent Chinese and foreign cultures; 12.98% of the students are uncertain; 19.85% of the students thought that the study of Chinese and foreign excellent culture is not helpful to the cultivation of aesthetic taste and moral emotion. The data clearly shows that most students believe that learning and absorbing Chinese and foreign cultures is conducive to the cultivation ofaesthetic taste and moral emotion, which also reflects the function of culture in shaping personality. With the vicissitude and development of the times, the inheritance of culture always requires us to extract its essence and discard its dross. Whether in the West or the East, there are many different cultures, which is the expression ofcultural diversity. However, with the progress of science and technology, on the one hand, we must fiercely preserve the wonderful traditional culture; on the other hand, we must screen and absorb the best culture to the greatest extent. As a teacher, we should strengthen the guidance for students to establish correct cultural values and value orientation, and cultivate students' healthy aesthetic interest and moral emotion by explaining Chinese and foreign excellent culture.
In the fourth question, a total of 81.75% of the students believe that they can make it clear that foreign language learning should not only understand foreign cultures but also strengthen their understanding and recognition of their own and national cultures. 9.92% of the students were uncertain, and only 5.32% of the students thought they can not. The characteristic of culture is diversity. Different countries have different cultures and values. Teachers should guide students to treat different cultures with an inclusive and respectful attitude. In addition to learning foreign excellent culture, we should also strive to learn and carry forward our own excellent culture. It is very important to help students correctly understand the connotation differences between different cultures and establish students' correct cultural values and value orientation.
In the fifth question, a total of 65.65% of the students believe that by understanding Chinese and western traditional culture, they can treat western culture
scientifically and dialectically. 15.27% of the students are uncertain, and 19.09% of the students can't do it. As a teacher, we should not only improve students' cultural sensitivity but also guide students to treat western culture with tolerance, respect, science, and dialectics.
In the sixth question, a total of 63.36% of the students can feel their sense of social responsibility to the country and the people through the study of Chinese and foreign excellent culture. 16.79% of the students are uncertain, and a total of 19.84% of the students can not do it. As a spiritual force, excellent culture can be transformed into the material force in the process of people's understanding and transforming the world and has a profound impact on social development. This type of effect can be seen not only in individual progress but also in the history of nations and countries. Advanced and healthy culture not only plays a great role in promoting social development but also can stimulate students' sense of social responsibility to the people of the country. As a teacher, we should strengthen the input of students' excellent culture and cultivate their sense ofsocial responsibility.
In the last question of this dimension, 65.65% of the students can comprehend the essence and connotation of Chinese and foreign superb culture and establish a correct world outlook and values. 12.21% ofthe students are uncertain, and a total of 22.14% of the students can't do it. Establishing a correct world outlook and values is the premise of correctly looking at the world. Teachers should improve students' cultural literacy, make students feel that the world is beautiful, positive, and upward, and urge them to establish a correct world outlook and values.
In general, it can be seen from the data that most students have an active and positive value orientation towards Chinese and foreign cultures. As a teacher, we should actively guide students, help students understand profound cultural connotations, and establish correct cultural values.
4.1.4Basic Knowledge of English Culture
The first part of the test paper is the basic knowledge of English culture. In this
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part of the paper, there are fifteen questions. The results of students' knowledge of English culture are shown in Table 4.4.
Table 4.4 Test Results of Students' Knowledge of English Culture
Part 1 Number of topics The Average Score The Highest
Score The Lowest
Score
Students' Score of English
Cultural Knowledge 15 6.10 13 1
 
The full score of this part is 15. Among the students' scores, the average score is 6.10, the highest score is 13, and the lowest score is only 1.
The first part of the test volume is the basic knowledge of English culture, including geographical knowledge, political knowledge, literary knowledge, famous figures, historical events, festival knowledge, religious knowledge, educational knowledge, and scientific knowledge.
1-3 is entitled geographic knowledge, and the data of this part are as follows:
Table 4.5 Knowledge about Geography
Question Choices N Accuracy(%)
1. The statue of Liberty is in . A*. New York 87 64.5
B.London 11 8.16
C.Washington 27 20.01
D. California 10 7.42
2. The capital city of Canada is . A. Montreal 23 17.03
B*.Ottawa 65 48.15
C.Vancouver 44 32.60
 
 
D. New York 3 2.22
3. There are A*. 50 31 22.96
states in the U.S.A.
B. 52 59 43.71
C. 48 31 22.96
D. 32 14 10.31
 
These three questions are mainlyto test students' mastery ofthe basic knowledge of geography in English-speaking countries. The title with the highest accuracy rate is Title 1, and the accuracy rate has exceeded 60%, which is 64.5%. More than half of the students know that the statue of liberty is in New York. The correct rate of the second question is 48.15%, and nearly half of the students know that Ottawa is the capital of Canada. Relatively speaking, the correct rate of the third question is low, and only 22.96% of the students know that there are 50 states in the United States. But in general, the accuracy ofthe first three questions is relatively high, which shows that students have a good grasp of geography knowledge of English-speaking countries as a whole.
The two questions in the second part mainly investigate the students' judgment on the political situation of English-speaking countries. The results are shown in the following Table 4.6:
Table 4.6 Knowledge about Politics
Question Choices N Accuracy(% )
4. The United Kingdom's
Parliament is made up of . A. the Sovereign, the House of Lords and the House of Commons 46 34.07
B*. the House of Lords and the
House ofCommons 28 20.74
 
 
C. the House of Lords and the Senate 44 32.60
D. The Senate and the House of
Commons 17 12.59
5. The American Congress is made up of . A*.the House of Representatives and the Senate. 48 35.50
B. the Senate and the Cabinet. 29 21.50
C. the House of Commons and the Lords 29 21.50
D. the Senates and the President 29 21.50
 
It is obvious from Table 4.6 that only 20.74% of students know that the British Parliament includes the house of Lords and the house of Commons. The accuracy of question 5 is slightly higher than that of question 6, but only 35.5% of the students know the answer of this question. The data clearly show that students' understanding of political knowledge in English-speaking countries is not as good as geographical knowledge.
The two questions in the third part are about the famous literary knowledge of English-speaking countries to investigate students' understanding of literary knowledge. The results are shown in the following Table 4.7:
Table 4.7 Knowledge about Literary
Question Choices N Accuracy(%)
6. The writer of The Tale of A. Voltaire 17 12.59
Two Cities is . B. William Shakespeare 44 32.59
 
C. Jane Austen 22 16.30
 
D*. Charles Dickens 52 38.52
7. is an American writer
who won the Nobel Prize of Literature. A. Franzis Fitzgerald 28 20.74
B*. William Faulkner 38 28.15
C. Walt Whitman 38 28.15
D. Henry James 31 22.96
 
In these two questions, 38.52% ofthe students know that the author ofthe tale of two cities is Charles Dickens, and only 28.15% of the students know William Faulkner won the Nobel Prize of literature. It shows that students know little about literature in English-speaking countries.
The fourth part is about the students' mastery ofthe knowledge offamous people in English-speaking countries. The results are shown in the Table 4.8 below:
Table 4.8 Knowledge about Celebrities
Question Choices N Accuracy(%)
8. Who delivered the famous speech "I have a dream"? A. Bill Clinton 15 11.11
B. Barack Hussein Obama 16 11.85
C. George Washington 23 17.04
D*. Martin Luther King 81 60.00
9. Norman Bethune worked in the First World War in A*. Canada 18 13.33
B. China 29 21.48
C. U. S 40 29.63
D. U. K. 48 35.56
 
In these two questions, 60% of the students are aware that Martin Luther King Jr.
gave the iconic "I have a dream" speech, while only 13.33% of the students know
36
Norman Bethune worked in the first World War in Canada. There is a big difference between the correctness of the two questions, which indicates that some students have heard or studied the famous speech "I have a dream".
The fifth part is a topic about the historical knowledge of English-speaking countries. The results are shown inTable 4.9 below:
Table 4.9 Knowledge about History
Question Choices N Accuracy(%)
10. is the Independence
Day of the United States of America. A. September 4 24 17.78
B. June 6 20 14.82
C*. July 4 60 44.44
D. June 4 31 22.96
 
As can be seen from Table 4.9, 44.44% of the students know the date of American Independence Day. In other words, nearly half of the students understand this aspect, which shows that the students have a good grasp of the situation.
Table 4.10 Knowledge about Festivals
Question Choices N Accuracy(%)
11. Halloween is a western A. Mid-autumn Day 21 15.56
festival similar to__ in B. Spring Festival 19 14.07
China. C*. Ghost Festival 85 62.96
D. the Double-Seventh Day 10 7.41
12. Thanksgiving Day is A. The first Saturday in October 18 13.33
every year. B.The fourth Thursday in October 25 18.52
 
 
C*.The fourth Thursday in
November 79 58.52
D.The first Saturday in November 13 9.63
 
These two questions examine the famous festivals in English-speaking countries, Halloween and Thanksgiving Day. The accuracy of these two questions is very high. In question 11, 62.96% of the students know Halloween is a western festival similar to the ghost festival in China. In question 12, 58.52% of the students know the date of Thanksgiving Day. It is obvious from the accuracy that students are very interested in and understand the festivals in English-speaking countries.
The seventh part is the material cultural knowledge of English speaking countries, including religion, educational system, and scientific and technological knowledge. The results are as follow.
Table 4.11 Material Cultural Knowledge about Religion, Education, and
Technology
Question Choices N Accuracy(%)
13. In America, which religion has the most supporters? A*. Christianity 58 42.96
B. Judaism 25 18.52
C. Islam 31 22.96
D. Buddhism 21 15.56
14. An American student will spend in high school. A. 2 years 12 8.89
B. 3 years 73 54.07
C*. 4 years 36 26.67
D. 5 years 14 10.37
15. The first U.S moon landing rocket called . A. Challenger 27 20.00
B. Deep Impact 25 18.52
C*. Apollo 55 40.74
D. Mercury 28 20.74
 
As can be seen from Table 4.11, 42.96%, that is, nearly half ofthe students know that Americans mainly believe in Christianity. However, due to the different educational system regulations between China and foreign countries, the educational system of American high schools is different from that of China. Only 26.67% of students know that the school system of American high school is four years, so most students (54.07%) choose three years. In addition, 40.74% ofthe students know that Apollo was the first American lunar rocket. The questions in this part are partial to common sense, and the students' mastery is quite different.
4.1.5Awareness of Cross-cultural Communication
Table 4.12 Test Results of Students' Cross-cultural Communicative Level
Part 2 Number oftopics The Average Score The Highest Score The Lowest Score
Students' Score of
Cross-cultural Awareness 17 8.23 13 3
 
The second part (16-32) of the test paper is the score of cross-cultural communication awareness level. The full score of this part is 17. Among the students' scores, the average score is 8.23, the highest score is 13, and the lowest score is only 3. The overall average score is slightly higher than thatofthe first part.
And the second part includes students' understanding of culture-loaded words and proverbs, students' understanding of social conventions, students' social values, and students' expression of daily communication terms.
The same objects have radically distinct cultural connotations in different countries due to their different histories, geography, and social systems. To communicate effectively with English-speaking individuals, we must first understand what each thing and image signifies in other countries. Therefore, questions 16-20 mainly test students' understanding of culture-loaded words and proverbs. The results are shown as follow.
Table 4.13 Understanding of Culture Loaded Words and Proverbs
Question Choices N Accuracy(%)
16. In western countries, bats
are considered to be . A. a sign of fortune 24 17.78
B*. a sign of misfortune 73 54.07
C. a sign of happiness 22 16.30
D. a sign of high social status 16 11.85
17. will bring
misfortune and disaster according to western conventions. A. A white elephant 22 16.30
B*. A black cat 63 46.67
C. A black dog 33 24.44
D. A white dog 17 12.59
18. In western countries, owl means . A*.a wise guy 56 41.48
B. the sign of bad luck 33 24.44
C. the sign of good luck 38 28.15
D. the sign of happiness 8 5.93
19. is a number
supposed to bring bad luck in American culture. A. 3 28 20.74
B .8 35 25.93
C*. 13 66 48.89
D. 6 6 4.44
20. There is a proverb saying A. everyone has lucky days 41 30.37
"Every Jack has his Jill", it B. everyone has his own habits 40 29.63
means . C. Jack and Jill are good friends 15 11.11
D*. the lovers finally get married 39 28.89
 
In Chinese traditional culture, bats are symbols of good luck and happiness. We often say that "five blessings (bats) are near the door". However, in the eyes of foreigners, bats represent misfortune and bad luck. It can be seen from the data that 54.07% of the students know that bats represent different cultural connotations between Chinaand theWest. However, only 46.67% of the students know that black cats also represented misfortune in the West. What's more, Chinese traditional culture believes that the owl's cry is not good, and it often acts at night. It is often regarded as an "ominous bird" and an unlucky symbol. In ancient books, it is also called a strange bird as a symbol of bad luck and death. However, in western culture, the meaning of owl is very different from that of Chinese people. It usually represents wisdom. Only 41.48% ofthe students understand this. In addition, 48.89% ofthe students know that 13 is a number proposed to bring bad luck in American culture. Only 28.89% ofthe students know the true meaning of the proverb "every jack has his Jill".
It can be seen that the meanings of many load words and proverbs in China and the West are completely different or even diametrically opposite. If students do not have this kind of knowledge reserve, it will seriously affect their reading level and the development of cross-cultural communication ability. Therefore, as a teacher, we should strengthen the explanation ofload words and proverbs.
Different countries have different social regulations, that is to say, the established rules are different in different countries. Only by understanding the social statutes of other countries can we better communicate with each other. The results of students'
understanding of society are shown in Table 4.14:
Table 4.14 Understanding of Social Conventions
Question Choices N Accuracy(%)
21. Except for , everyone
drives on the left side ofthe road. A.Chinese 44 32.59
B. Americans 31 22.96
C. Frenchmen 31 22.96
D*. Englishmen 29 21.49
22. In America, the biggest meal of the day is . A. breakfast 16 11.85
B. lunch 34 25.19
C.brunch 26 19.26
D*. dinner 59 43.70
23. is the topics that
English-speaking countries don't like to ask. A.Weather 13 9.63
B. Personal hobby 37 27.41
C*. Age 72 53.33
D. Workplace 13 9.63
 
Question 21 shows that only 21.49% of the students know that only the British drive on the left side of the road among all the options. In question 22, in the cultural concept of the Chinese people, the attitude towards three meals is " to eat breakfast well, to eat lunch enough, and to eat supper less". However, in English-speaking countries, it is different. Western culture believes that dinner is the most luxurious meal after work. There are only 43.70% ofthe students understand this. In addition, more than half (53.33%) of the students know that age is the topic that English-speaking countries don't like to ask.
Values is a kind of orientation or thinking for people to identify things and distinguish right from wrong. Questions 24-27 mainly test students' values between 42
English-speaking countries and China. Thedataare shown in theTable 4.15 below:
Table 4.15 Values between English-speaking Countries and China
Question Choices N Accuracy(%)
24. Chinese is the world's most powerful and beautiful language. A. Yes 100 74.07
B. No 35 25.93
25. When it comes to treating visitors, the Chinese are more passionate than the Westerners. A. Yes 96 71.11
B. No 39 28.89
26. It is a waste of money to run for the head of government in western countries. A. Yes 68 50.37
B*. No 67 49.63
27. What kind of thought do Americans advocate? A.heroism 38 28.15
B*. individualism 66 48.89
C. collectivism 25 18.52
D. socialist 6 4.44
 
From questions 24-25, 74.07% of the students and 71.11% of the students believe Chinese is the world's most powerful and beautiful language, and Chinese people are more enthusiastic about treating visitors than westerners. It can be seen from the title that most students like Chinese culture very much. Although there is no obvious right or wrong between the two questions, we can find that most students have ethnocentric views and are used to judging the values of another country with their own values. Due to different cultural values, students tend to choose values consistent with them. This may lead to the failure of cross-cultural communication. In
question 26, half of the students, that is, 50.37% of the students think that the presidential election is a waste of money. In fact, in the tradition and culture of the Western presidential election, this is a conventional rule. In addition, 48.89% of the students, nearly half of the students know that the United States advocates individualism.
In general, as a teacher, we should make students respect and accept the differences in social values in each country according to the theory of cross-cultural communication.
The last part mainly tests whether students understand some common communicative expressions. The results are shown inTable 4.16 below:
Table 4.16 Daily Expressions in Communication
Question Choices N Accuracy(%)
28. You will when you give
answers in a class with a foreign teacher. A*.not stands up 48 35.56
B. stand up immediately 55 40.74
C. wait a minute and then stand up 32 23.70
29. You greet your foreign teacher on your way to school: . A.Good morning, teacher. 31 22.96
B*.Good morning, Mr. Smith. 81 60.00
C.Hi,Mr. Smith, where are you going? 23 17.04
30. Assume you and Li Hua have never met before
-Li Hua: I'd like to take this A*. I'm Todd Smith. It's nice to meet you. 100 74.07
B. I'm Todd Smith. How 13 9.63
 
 
opportunity to introduce myself. My name is Li Hua. old are you?
C. How are you? 18 13.33
D. Oh, here is my card. You can have a look. 4 2.97
31. Suppose your friend and you are discussing the weather -Your friend: It's so cold today. A*.Yes,isn'tit? 52 38.52
B. Please put on my coat. 37 27.41
C.You are so weak. 20 14.81
D. Shall we go back? 26 19.26
32. Suppose your friend calls you and your name is Jim.
-Your friend: Hello. Is Jim there? A*.This is Jim. Who's speaking, please? 89 65.93
A. This is the right number. 25 18.52
C.I'm afraid I won't be free 9 6.66
D. There's no hurry. 12 8.89
 
35.56%, 60%, 74.07%, 38.52% and 65.93% ofthe students can choose the right one respectively. We should strengthen the guidance and training of students' daily language expression, which is also the premise and foundation of normal communication.
The English curriculum standard for senior high school students (2017) puts forward three requirements on English cultural awareness. The primary goal is for students to comprehend the fantastic culture and build proper ideals. The second level aims to teach students how to recognize their own interior spirit and how to build proper ideals. The final level is for students to be able to absorb the culture and have appropriate values. But most students are still at the first level according to the results gained. Therefore, we should strengthen the theoretical research on English cross-cultural awareness and help students improve their English cross-cultural awareness.
4.2Implementation of Cultivating Students' Cross-cultural Awareness
According to the author's findings from a survey of students' questionnaires and test papers, the current state of students' English cultural awareness is low. So do teachers consciously integrate the cultivation of cross-cultural awareness with ordinary teaching? And how do teachers combine English teaching with the cultivation of students' cross-cultural awareness? On this basis, the author conducted a large number of classroom observations by designing an observation scale. The purpose of the class observation is to monitor the teachers' actual teaching scenario when it comes to cultivating students' cross-cultural awareness from four different perspectives: whether the cross-cultural awareness cultivation behavior occurs, the cultivating frequency, the teaching content, and the methods of teaching. The results and analyses of class observation of 4 teachers are as follow:
4.2.1Frequency
Table 4.17 to Table 4.20 show whether the cross-cultural awareness cultivation behavior occurs and the frequency, the teaching contents, and method of 4 teachers respectively.
Table 4.17 TeacherA's Classroom Observation
The content of observation The Real Situation of Class
The first class The second class The third class
Whether the
cross-cultural
awareness yes yes yes
 
 
cultivation behavior occurs
Frequency 3 2 1
Teaching
content 1.The teacher explains the distinction between American English and British English.
2.Ask students whether they prefer American English or British English.
3.Comparison of differences between Chinese and foreign idioms. 1.The teacher asks the students ifthey are interested in the Louvre.
2.An introduction to the location and construction time of the Louvre. The teacher explains the meaning ofthe American proverb “Loose lips sink ships”
Methods Situational teaching method.
Role-play the conversation: one student speak American English and another speak British English Import the topic of Louvre by question and answer method and then play a video through multimedia about it. The teacher directly teach and explain the meaning of knowledge point
 
 
Table 4.18 Teacher B's Classroom Observation
The content of observation The Real Situation ofClass
The first class The second class The third class
Whether the cross-cultural awareness cultivation behavior occurs no yes no
Frequency 0 1 0
 
 
Teaching
content null A brief introduction to the Louvre null
Methods null Ask students what can they see from the video after playing a video about Louvre. null
 
 
Table 4.19 Teacher C's Classroom Observation
The content of observation The Real Situation of Class
The first class The second class The third class
Whether the cross-cultural awareness cultivation behavior occurs no yes yes
Frequency 0 2 1
Teaching
content null 1.Introduce famous foreign literary classics and ask students what foreign literary classics do they like
2.Explain the author's information and cultural background of Twenty Thousand Leagues under the sea Discuss the recent hot issue that how to treat different cultures among different countries.
 
 
Table 4.20 Teacher D's Classroom Observation
The content of observation The Real Situation ofClass
The first class The second class The third class
Whether the cross-cultural awareness cultivation behavior occurs no yes yes
Frequency 0 2 1
Teaching
content null 1.How to organize the small talk and which topic do you like to talk about with your friends?
2.Do you know which topic can't appear in the small talk when you talk with an American? Thanksgiving Day in the exercise book.
Methods null Situational teaching method and role-play the conversation. Direct explanation method
 
As we can see from Table 4.17, there is the input of cross-cultural awareness by teacher A in all three classes. The frequencies are respectively three times, twice, and once. It can be seen from Table 4.18 that cross-cultural awareness cultivation behavior occurs only once in the second class of teacher B. Teacher C provides cross-cultural awareness input in the second and third grades, as shown in Table 4.19. The frequency is double that of the first and just once that of the second. Teacher D's contribution to cross-cultural awareness in the second and third classes may be observed in Table 4.20. The frequencies are twice and once respectively.
Generally speaking, from the observation results, although each teacher has behaviors related to the cultivation of cross-cultural awareness, the amount and level of cultural knowledge reserves are diverse among different teachers, and the frequency is also different. Teachers with high cultural knowledge reserves will perform more cross-cultural awareness teaching behaviors. However, in general, the four teachers have 13 cross-cultural awareness cultivated behaviors in the 12 classes' observation, and on average, each teacher has only 1.08 cross-cultural awareness cultivated behaviors in one class. This frequency is inadequate, which can not well cultivate students' cross-cultural awareness.
4.2.2Teaching Contents
In terms of teaching content, in the first class, teacher A explained the differences between British English and American English in the textbook and compared the differences between Chinese and English idioms. In the second class, teacher A explained which country the Louvre is in and the carving art of this country and asked the students whether they like statues or not. However, the teacher did not explain the differences between China and the West in art. In the third class, “loose lips sink ships” is an American proverb that appeared when checking exercise books. Instead of ignoring the proverb, teacher A explained it carefully. Through the data, we can see that teacher A has a rich cultural heritage, and the cultural explanation runs through
the whole class like a line.
Teacher B only played a video about the Louvre before the formal explanation of the text, and the introduction problem was not specific enough and did not arouse the students' in-depth thinking. During the observation, it can be clearly felt that the students were confused and their interest in reading had not been mobilized. In this case of no preparation and no cultural background introduction, the classroom effect was poor and the students' enthusiasm was not high. The classroom observation of teacher B is in sharp contrast to that of teacher A. Enough to see the importance of cultural knowledge and cultural background explanation.
In the second lesson of teacher C, the teacher did two cross-cultural input of students. Before explaining Twenty Thousand Leagues under the sea, teacher C introduced the cultural background knowledge and the author's information. However, when reading the author's name, the teacher made a mistake. Therefore, teachers should constantly strengthen the study of cultural knowledge.
In the second class of teacher D, after the students understood the meaning of small talk, the teacher created a situation for the students: if you have a small talk with an American, what topic is more sensitive and can't be said. And then teacher D let the students make up a dialogue and role play after they knew it is not convenient for them to communicate the topics such as age and income. The students' enthusiasm was very high and the classroom effect was excellent. In the third class, teacher D met “Thanksgiving Day” when he was checking exercises. Although this festival had no impact on problem-solving, teacher D explained the time and activities of Thanksgiving Day.
Through analysis, we can find that enriched teaching content can make the classroom atmosphere and students become active. The relationship between language and culture is inseparable. It is essential to explain cultural knowledge in ordinary English teaching. Because cultural knowledge and cultural background can arouse students' interest in culture, only on the premise oftheir interest will they deeply think about cultural differences. Therefore, whether teachers can select appropriate cross-cultural awareness cultivated materials and contents is the key to cultivating students' cross-cultural awareness.
4.2.3Teaching Methods
As we can see from the four tables, teacher A is good at using multimedia tools reasonably, skillfully stimulating students' interest in learning English with situational teaching method and question and answer method. The classroom atmosphere is very active, and students' learning attitude is particularly positive. Compared with teacher A, teacher B's classroom method is relatively single, using only the question and answer method. Therefore, the classroom performance of teacher B is in sharp contrast to that of teacher A. The class atmosphere is depressed and the class effect is poor. Teacher C can mobilize students' existing knowledge and experience by using multimedia to play pictures so that students can recall foreign classics they have read, so as to arouse their interest in reading and learning. In the third class, the teacher raises the thought-provoking question during the group discussion in the post-reading. The students respond warmly, raise their hands actively, express their views in different ways. Finally, the teacher summarizes, and guides students to treat different cultures with respect and helps students establish correct cultural values. The teaching effect is great and the students are very active. Teacher D enlivens the classroom atmosphere through situational teaching method and role-play the conversation. The students are very active and perform well in class.
Through analyzing the classroom observation scales of the above four excellent teachers, we can find there are many ways and methods to cultivate students' cross-cultural awareness, such as using multimedia, students' discussion, teachers' explanation, etc. Different teaching methods and contents will make the classroom atmosphere diverse. Among all the methods, the situational teaching method and the role-playing method are the two most popular teaching methods.
4.3Factors Influencing the Cultivation of Students' Cross-cultural Awareness
4.3.1 Teacher Factor
This section focuses on the findings of teachers' interviews and students' questionnaires. The report discusses the interview's results from three perspectives: the teachers' attitude towards cultivating cross-cultural awareness, the ways of cultivating students' cross-cultural awareness, the influence and hinder of the cross-cultural awareness on students. The following analysis is also carried out from these three aspects.
Table4.21 The Interview Results of Teachers'Attitude
Teachers Q1 :Do you think it is necessary to integrate cultural teaching into English teaching and cultivate students' cross-cultural awareness? Why?
Teacher A Be very necessary. This is one of the key competencies of students proposed in the curriculum standard, and it is also the need for our new curriculum standard and the basic national policy of reform and opening up. At the same time, teachers should guide students to treat different cultures with an open and inclusive attitude and make students become knowledgeable persons.
Teacher B Be especially important. Language itself is a carrier of spreading culture. The first purpose of learning a language is to learn a kind of culture, and the second is to learn knowledge. Culture contains humanistic knowledge and all kinds of common sense, so learning culture is very important. In addition, language should be put under the framework of culture for dissemination and learning. After all, language is just a tool. We should achieve the goal of spreading culture through
 
 
language.
Teacher C Be very necessary. Learning different cultures is conducive to students' learning and can improve students' academic performance. Especially in terms of idioms, if students do not understand idioms and the connotations, they will never understand the subjects of reading comprehension. The more cultural knowledge the students know, the more smoothly they answer the questions.
Teacher D Be necessary. Cultivating students' cross-cultural awareness is the goal of the new curriculum standard, and learning cultural connotations can improve students' interest in English learning.
 
WecanseefromTable4.21,whenitcomestopromotingstudents'cross-cultural awareness, all of the teachers' responses are consistent. They all believe that cultivating students' cross-cultural awareness is crucial and important. There are basically three reasons why they think so. The first one is that it is the requirement of curriculum standards, the second one is that the learning of cultural knowledge can improve students' academic performance and interest in English learning, and the third one is that the relationship between language and culture is intimate.
 
Table 4.22 The Interview Results of the Ways
Teachers Q2 : What links or measures do you take to cultivate students' cross-cultural awareness in daily English teaching?
Teacher A Increase reading materials, such as reading literary classics; put forward more relevant questions, and conduct more group discussions; input videos during the introduction, and guide students to analyze cultural phenomena.
Teacher B Mainly through the unit teaching. Cultural awareness is integrated into and transmitted to students when learning the theme meaning of each unit. For example, reading classics allows students to naturally accept the influence of culture in the process from the initial understanding to the final perception.
Teacher C When checking the exercise book, if I meet the cultural knowledge such as the proverb in the exercises, I will postpone the cultural connotation and teach the knowledge and stories to the students.
Teacher D Tell students the cultural background knowledge before interpreting the article, and use a variety of teaching methods, such as role-play and group discussion, to cultivate students' cross-cultural awareness.
 
It can be seen from Table 4.22, the above methods to cultivate students' cross-cultural awareness are as follows.
The first one is to read more famous classics and accept the influence of culture from literary works. The second one is that if encountered the culture-loaded words and proverbs when dealing with exercises, the words should be told to the students rather than ignored. The third one is to use a variety of teaching methods, such as role-play and group discussion, to stimulate students' interest in learning cultural knowledge. Generally speaking, the teaching method is relatively simple.
Table 4.23 The Interview Results ofInfluence and Hinder
Teachers Q3 : What are the biggest obstacles and difficulties affecting your cross-cultural awareness teaching? And what are your suggestions for
improving the current situation?
Teacher A The restriction of the college entrance examination system. There are few subjects in the final examination.
The teacher's own knowledge reserve and experience are insufficient.
Teachers should constantly improve their knowledge reserves, dabble in cultural knowledge and participate in training.
Teacher B At present, students have less understanding of culture, the cultural heritage is not strong enough, and some students are not interested in cultural learning, so students can only learn the knowledge passively.
Culture is the soul of a country and nation, which requires the country and society, including schools, to work together for cultural advocacy.
Teacher C The teacher is not knowledgeable enough. Sometimes the teacher can't tell the cultural connotation without searching for the information.
The time of a semester is too short to teach cultural knowledge.
Students themselves should consciously understand more cultural connotations and cultural awareness, so as to improve their understanding of language and culture.
Teacher D Students' own cultural knowledge reserve is poor, and the content taught by teachers in one semester is not enough.
Students should strengthen the study of cross-cultural awareness in their spare time.
 
It can be seen from Table 4.23, the influence and hinder of cross-cultural awareness on students are as follows.
First of all, time is limited and there are not many cultural knowledge questions in the college entrance examination. Some teachers think it is not necessary to spend
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too much time teaching. Secondly, teachers' own cultural knowledge reserves are limited and need to continue to learn and improve. Finally, students have no time and channels to learn cultural knowledge, and their mastery of cultural knowledge is insufficient.
In addition, the results and analysis of questionnaires are as follow:
Table 4.24 Students' Views on Teachers' Cultural Teaching
Questions The ratio of students' choices %)
A B C D E
You think your English teacher attaches importance to the teaching of English culture. 42.97 21.88 17.19 9.38 8.59
Before the lecture, your English teacher will introduce the background cultural knowledge of the article to help you better understand the article. 28.91 33.59 21.09 7.81 8.59
Your English teacher will use multimedia, such as pictures, music, movies, etc, to supplement cultural knowledge. 39.84 24.22 17.19 10.94 7.81
Your English teacher will contact Chinese culture and compare it with the culture of English speaking countries to supplement cultural knowledge 11.41 26.56 17.97 37.03 7.03
You can learn enough cultural knowledge in the current English class 17.56 18.09 15.27 38.4 10.69
Your English teacher will encourage you to learn more knowledge about western culture in your spare time. 27.48 35.88 16.79 9.92 9.92
(A=completely agree, B=comparatively agree, C=not sure, D=generally disagree, E= completely disagree)
 
As we can see in Table 4.24, a total of 64.79% A total of 64.79% of students believe that their English teachers place a high value on teaching English culture, 17.19% of the students are uncertain, and 17.97% of the students think that their English teachers do not pay attention to it. It can be analyzed from the data that more than half of the teachers attach great importance to the teaching of cultural knowledge, while some teachers do not attach importance to it. A total of 62.5% of the students
agree that their English teacher will introduce cultural background knowledge before the lecture, 21.09% of the students are uncertain, and a total of 16.4% of the students disagree. A total of 64.06% of the students agree that their English teachers will use multimedia to supplement English cultural knowledge, 17.19% of the students are uncertain, and a total of 18.75% of the students disagree. To sum up, we can see that more than half of the teachers will introduce cultural background knowledge before teaching the text through multimedia means. However, only 37.97% of the students agree that their English teachers will contact Chinese culture and compare to the culture of English-speaking countries to supplement cultural knowledge. 17.97% of the students are uncertain, and 44.06% of the students disagree. It shows that teachers basically only talk about superficial knowledge similar to cultural background, and teachers' explanation is not enough when involves cultural knowledge of Chinese and English cultural differences and connotations. Only 35.65% of the students think they can learn enough English cultural knowledge in the English classroom, 15.27% of the students are uncertain, and 49.09% of the students think the English cultural knowledge learned in the classroom is not enough. In addition, 63.36% of the students agree that their English teachers will encourage them to learn more western culture knowledge in their spare time, 16.79% of the students are uncertain, and 19.84% of the students do not think so. The last two questions show that the time of class is very limited. Most teachers sometimes don't have much time to talk about cultural knowledge, so teachers encourage students to use their spare time to study by themselves.
Generally speaking, teachers' explanation is not enough when involves cultural
knowledge of Chinese and English cultural differences and connotations. What's
more, teachers have no time to explain English cultural knowledge due to limited
classroom time, so students can not learn enough English cultural knowledge in class.
What's more, some teachers do not pay enough attention to cultivating students'
cross-cultural awareness, which is embodied in the simplification of teaching mode.
teachers still focus more on improving students' performances and achievements
58
during the process of teaching. As a result, although students can successfully pass the exam, however, the level of cross-cultural awareness has not been improved.
4.3.2School Factor
Table 4.25 School's Factors Affecting the Cultivation of Cultural Awareness
Questions The ratio of students' choices (%)
A B C D E
Schools or classes often organize cultural awareness cultivation activities 5.63 12.66 17.19 53.59 10.93
Your school attaches importance to the creation of an English cultural atmosphere 8.59 18.91 14.06 40.94 17.50
(A=completely agree, B=comparatively agree, C=not sure, D=generally disagree, E= completely disagree)
 
It can be seen from Table 4.25, a total of 64.52% of the students disagree with their schools or classes that usually organize cultural awareness cultivation activities, of which 10.93% completely disagree. 17.19% of the students hold an uncertain attitude, and only 18.29% of the students agree. In addition, 58.44% of the students disagree with their school attaches importance to the creation of an English cultural atmosphere. 14.06% of the students hold an uncertain attitude, and only 27.50% agree. These two questions demonstrate that the school does not prioritize the development of cross-cultural awareness among students and rarely hold activities that can make students experience the learning atmosphere of English culture and put themselves in a real communication environment.
4.3.3Student Factor
Table 4.26 Students' Factors Affecting the Cultivation of Cultural Awareness
Questions The ratio of students' choices %)
A B C D E
You don't have much time and energy to learn relevant cultural knowledge by yourself after class 42.19 31.88 7.19 9.38 9.38
In the process of learning English, you will pay attention to the combination of culture and language knowledge. 5.47 7.81 10.94 46.88 28.91
(A=completely agree, B=comparatively agree, C=not sure, D=generally disagree, E= completely disagree)
 
It can be seen from Table 4.26, a total of 74.07% of the students think they don't have much time and energy to learn relevant cultural knowledge after class. 7.19% of the students are uncertain, and only 18.76% of the students think that time is sufficient. Senior two students are under pressure to take the college entrance examination. They don't have much time to learn cultural knowledge after class. In addition, only 13.28% of students can pay attention to the combination of culture and language knowledge in the process of learning English. 10.94% of the students are uncertain. Another 75.79% of the students could not do it. It shows that students' own cultural knowledge reserve is poor, the foundation of literary level is weak, and they need to be continuously improved. In a word, students do not pay enough attention to cross-cultural knowledge and have no time to learn relevant knowledge. In the context of exam-oriented education, some students believe that the learning of English cross-cultural knowledge is not helpful to their college entrance examination results. They are unwilling or have no time to learn English cross-cultural knowledge.
Chapter Five Conclusion
From the students' questionnaire survey, students' cultural test, and classroom observation results, there is still a gap between the existing state of English cross-cultural awareness cultivation in senior high school and the goals set forth in the English Curriculum Standards (2017). As a result, cultivating students' English cross-cultural awareness is crucial. In the fifth chapter, the author lists some main research findings and puts forward corresponding suggestions according to the research results.
5.1 Main Findings
The major conclusions of the current state of students' English cultural awareness, the current situation of teachers' cultivation, and influencing variables are as follows, according to the concrete analysis and discussion in chapter four. (1) The majority of high school students recognize the significance of cultural awareness and have a positive attitude toward cross-cultural awareness of English. According to the results of 135 student questionnaires, almost 70% of students have a favourable opinion toward cultural knowledge of English-speaking nations, and they believe that cultivating English cultural awareness is conducive to English learning. Most students acquire English cultural information for their personal development based on their own interests and internal drive. However, due to the limited spare time and great learning pressure, students have few opportunities to learn English culture. At the moment, senior high school students have a rather low level of cross-cultural awareness. Furthermore, students' English cultural knowledge reservoir remains weak, with the average score falling below the normal average level. What's more, the average score of students' cross-cultural awareness is not high, and they are less
sensitive to different cultures between Chinese and western countries. In order to solve these problems, students need to accumulate and improve gradually in the process of English learning and communication.
(2) Teachers can cultivate their students' cross-cultural awareness in a variety of ways, such as the usage of multimedia, group discussion, and so on. Besides, situational teaching method and role-playing method are very practical in cross-cultural teaching. However, teachers' teaching method is relatively single, the integration of English teaching and students' cross-cultural awareness is insufficient, and the combination of language learning and cross-cultural awareness is also not enough.
(3) The teacher, the student, and the school are the primary variables influencing the cultivation of cultural awareness according to the results of the survey. From the perspective of English teachers, firstly, the level of the cross-cultural awareness of teachers is inferior and the knowledge system is incomplete. On the one hand, most English teachers have not studied cross-cultural knowledge comprehensively and systematically, so they lack systematic cross-cultural teaching concepts. On the other hand, most English teachers' understanding of western culture comes from written materials and lack practical experience in cross-cultural communication. Therefore, they are unable to explain cross-cultural related knowledge in depth and systematically. Secondly, some teachers are unconcerned with cultivating their students' cross-cultural awareness, which is embodied in the simplification of teaching mode. Due to the long-term influence of exam-oriented education, the teaching model adopted has not changed greatly, and the classroom indoctrination teaching mode still exists. Even with the help of multimedia, teaching is only a simple copy of the content of teaching materials with insufficient innovation. Moreover, at present, teachers still focus more on improving students' performances and achievements during the process of teaching. As a result, although students can successfully pass the exam, however, the level of cross-cultural awareness has not been improved. Finally, teachers' understanding of teaching materials is not thorough enough, and teachers' 62
cross-cultural elements need to be enriched. In senior high school English teaching, teaching materials are the main teaching tools for teachers. Many teachers focus too much on vocabulary, grammar, sentence patterns, and other knowledge points, but they do not excavate enough cross-cultural elements in the teaching materials, which makes the cultural elements behind the knowledge points of the teaching materials unable to give full play to their full educational value and affects the sustainable development of students. From the perspective of the school, on the one hand, the school has not established a learning atmosphere for English cultural exchange and created a real communication environment. English teaching must be finally implemented into the communication environment. One of the most effective ways is to create a real communication environment so that students can master cross-cultural awareness in practice. However, schools rarely hold activities that can make students experience the learning atmosphere of English culture and put themselves in a real communication environment. On the other hand, the school lacks the training and development of teachers' cross-cultural knowledge. Moreover, the arrangement of teaching tasks is not reasonable. The English teaching courses in senior high school are arranged based on examination-oriented education, and there is no specific teaching arrangement for the cultivation of cross-cultural awareness, which makes it difficult to carry out personalized cultivation according to the characteristics of each student in the classroom. And it is also easy to cultivate a good English learning atmosphere, which directly leads to difficulty in the effective cultivation of cross-cultural awareness. From the perspective of students, first of all, the quality of students is uneven. Due to students' different learning attitudes and interests in English, there are also obvious differences in English learning achievements. Students generally lack the ability of autonomous learning. They are used to being forced to learn. This kind of phenomenon makes it difficult for teachers to cultivate students' cross-cultural awareness. Secondly, students lack ways to learn and understand cross-cultural knowledge. The sources of students' understanding of foreign culture is
limited and misleading. As a result, students' understanding of foreign culture is not all-inclusive. Finally, students do not pay enough attention to cross-cultural knowledge and have no time to learn relevant knowledge. In the context of exam-oriented education, some students believe that the learning of English cross-cultural knowledge is not helpful to their college entrance examination results. They are unwilling or have no time to learn English cross-cultural knowledge.
5.2Pedagogical Implications
According to the above investigation and analysis of the factors restricting the cultivation of cultural awareness, the author mainly gives some specific improvement countermeasures from the aspects of school, teacher, and student.
5.2.1 From the Perspective of the English Teachers
Teachers of English should increase their knowledge base, as well as their professional abilities and beliefs. If teachers want to enhance their cross-cultural awareness, they must first increase their cultural awareness in the profession. On the one hand, teachers should show solicitude for the cultivation of cultural awareness. Only teachers with a good cultural accumulation possession can they be transmitted to students. On the other hand, teachers can improve their cultural knowledge, consciously build their cross-cultural awareness, and provide a solid foundation for developing students' cross-cultural awareness by using the Internet, books, and other resources. Since traditional education emphasizes the teaching of grammar and vocabulary, the relative teaching methods and teaching strategies are relatively single. Furthermore, the approaches for promoting cross-cultural awareness are insufficiently skilled and comprehensive. Therefore, to stay up with the trends, teachers need actively master some cultural teaching approaches and teaching methodologies actively.
Moreover, English teachers should constantly enhance their cultural professional 
views and effectively execute cross-cultural awareness cultivation in the classroom. Teachers should integrate this goal with language skills such as listening, speaking, reading, and writing and cultivate students' cross-cultural communication ability. English cross-culture learning can be used in practical life, rather than only in exams. Therefore, teachers must be aware of the importance of cultivating cross-cultural awareness and its benefits to English learning. Teachers should also firmly believe that the integration of cultural teaching and language teaching can promote the thorough development of students.
What's more, in order to prevent the dryness of cultural teaching, teachers should use flexible and various cultural teaching approaches to boost students' interest in English learning and stimulate students' subjective initiative in autonomous learning. Therefore, teachers need to adopt appropriate teaching methods in combination with their own teaching style and students' actual situation.
5.2.2From the Perspective of the School
On the one hand, the school should give full play to its positive role and strengthen teacher cultivation. It is imperative to strengthen the training of teachers and deeply implement the concept of the new curriculum reform. Firstly, the school should strengthen the training of teachers' cultural literacy. The school can invite university professors to give lectures, and purchase books on cross-cultural awareness for teachers. Secondly, the school should reinforce teachers' ability in the usage of multimedia. In order to make full use of modern multimedia technology for more efficient and interesting teaching for students in class, the school can invite professionals in multimedia to conduct multimedia training for teachers, such as how to use multimedia to design ppt courseware, how to search more resources they want.
On the other hand, the school should develop more activities related to English
culture to create a good cultural learning atmosphere. The school can also organize
students to watch English movies with the theme of cultural differences between
65
China and western country in class. These activities can not only develop students' English communication and expression skills but also increase their interest in English culture.
5.2.3From the Perspective of the Students
The cultivation of cross-cultural awareness is a subtle process, which can not be achieved overnight. It needs the unremitting efforts of both sides of teaching and learning. On the one hand, students should adjust their mindset when it comes to studying cultural knowledge. Students need to understand why they are learning English and accept cultural knowledge with differing viewpoints. Moreover, Students should change the traditional concept of "everything for the exam" and establish the concept that language and culture are inseparable.
On the other hand, Students should make extensive use of the Internet in order to have a better understanding of English culture. The Internet provides students with a wealth of knowledge that is both informative and convenient.
5.3Limitations of the Study
This paper has some restrictions due to personal abilities and time constraints. To begin with, the survey sample is insufficient; the number of teachers and students is inadequate. And the survey is only conducted for one grade of a high school, which is not representative; Secondly, the design of the test paper is not comprehensive and scientific enough and needs to be improved. Thirdly, the breadth and depth of research need to be strengthened. For example, the factors affecting the cultivation of cross-cultural awareness should be more detailed and deepened.
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