Inquiry 5.1: LCS/PPS My relationship with language & culture
How do we benefit from learning other languages?
Language and Cultural Studies is founded on the fact that everyone has an individual relationship with language learning. Whether you are multilingual or monolingual, the aim of LCS is not about how good you are at languages - it's about being curious about the relationship you have with other languages and cultures. This is a mindset that will grow and change over a lifetime.
The following inquiry is also found in the Student Section: Inquiry 5.1 What is my relationship with language and culture? Students can explore this within discreet LCS or PPS lessons using LCS as a context to explore transversal skills. Either way is equally effective and the outcomes encourage students to make links between the learning outcomes for both courses. Reference to the inquiry design for both PPS and LCS are in hidden boxes so you can choose whether students should look at this in detail or the summary above this might well be enough.
You may explore this inquiry as part of your PPS course as you take different contexts you live and work in, and consider the skills you are developing there. Equally, this might be a stand-alone inquiry for your Language and Cultural Studies course. Furthermore, the discussion of culture and multiple perspectives develops critical thinking and intercultural understanding skills that are essential for the reflective project.
What is my relationship with language and culture?
As students you will collaborate to:
- explore aspects of all four concepts, particularly Identity and Perspectives
- consider the place of the Areas of Exploration in discussions
- use their learning journal to think reflectively and reflexively about experiences and insights from content and discussions
connect with the learning outcomes
The learning journal is a place to plan, explore and reflect on experiences and insights into the LCS course and the individual paths you will forge. More specifically you will:
- evidence the four learning outcomes
- provide the basis of discussion for the three review points over the CP course
- show consistent and sustained engagement.
More on LCS course design
| Learning outcomes | Concepts | Contexts | Content | Skills |
LO1: Articulate how personal identity is shaped by engaging with languages and cultures and diverse perspective LO2: Identify own strengths and aspirations, set personally relevant goals, and monitor their multilingual and intercultural learning through ongoing reflection LO3: Apply communication skills and understandings to various contexts LO4: Practise reflexivity and develop self-awareness as communicators within and across languages and cultures | Communication Identities Perspectives Power | Areas of Exploration: Career | Determined and co-created by teachers and students in Introductory unit and Areas of Exploration. | ATL Skill areas PPS, CE, and RP skills Interpersonal skills: communication Intercultural understanding: Reflection and reflexivity |
What is my relationship with language and culture?
As students you will collaborate to:
- Explore identity and perspectives as shared concepts with LCS
- Learning outcomes: develop and apply communication and thinking skills as well as intercultural understanding in different contexts (LO2, 3 and 4)
- Skill domains: potential to develop reflective, reflexive and critical thinking skills to build self and social awareness as well as empathy
| Learning outcome | Concepts | Contexts | Content | Skill domains |
| LO1—Develop and apply intrapersonal skills in a variety of contexts. LO2—Develop and apply communication and interpersonal skills in a variety of contexts. LO3—Develop and apply thinking skills in a variety of contexts. LO4—Develop and apply intercultural understanding in a variety of contexts. LO5—Demonstrate an awareness of the ethical implications of one’s choices and actions on self and others | Change Connections Identities Perspectives Systems Well-being | Personal life Informal learning Professional life CRS and DP courses Community engagement Language and Cultural Studies Reflective Project | Intrapersonal Interpersonal Thinking skills Change management & conflict mediation (also in Intrapersonal skills) Civic and social responsibility |
BBC Ideas: Do we think differently in different languages?[1]
The following video is a stimulus to get you considering what happens when we speak in different languages and how we feel. Maybe you are multilingual and can tap into that knowledge yourself. Perhaps you do not have access to multilingual knowledge everyone has experience and can empathise with the feeling of how speaking in different situations makes you feel.
THINK-PAIR-SHARE What are your first thoughts after viewing this? One thought, one question.
Now share with a partner or group
What connections do you personally make with the question and this video? What differences do you feel between the experiences in the video and your own context?
Presentation powerpoint.
This presentation takes you through key excerpts of the video to discuss as a class. In addition to this, or alternatively, you can access the excerpts in the following pdf and your teacher can put you in expert groups to discuss. Then you can reform into new groups with each excerpt of the document represented.
Alternative activity
Expert groups
Whatever the size of your class, you can jump into this learning protocol. By breaking up complex material into bitesize chunks to consider and then discussing it with your peers, you will find it easier to develop communication and critical thinking skills. You will be allocated a section each to discuss in detail. To help you with your discussion, try the following questions:
- What was new/surprising/interesting to you in your excerpt?
- Do you think language shapes your thoughts?
- How would you describe your main language to someone who does not know it?
Watch the following video paying particular attention to the benefits and drawbacks of this hypthesis
Finding out our commonalities rather than differences
One of the criticisms faced by the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis is that it presumes if a concept doesn't exist in a language, doesn't mean that concept cannot be understood in a culture. Let's look at an example.
German: schadenfreude
Dutch: leedvermaak Swedish: skadeglädje Norwegian/Danish: skadefryd Hungarian: káröröm
For example, in German, the word ‘schadenfreude’ means ‘enjoyment obtained from seeing or hearing about the troubles of others’[2]; fellow Germanic languages also have a one word counterpart as you see above. This does not have a common counterpart word in English and we use the German ‘Schadenfreude’ as a ‘loan word’ (as do other languages). Funnily enough, there is a word ‘epicaricacy’ that means something similar to schadenfreude but this is rarely known or used and instead we use the German and understand it as that word and understand the concept surrounding it.
Finding the connections
Take the language and culture you are specifically focusing on/considering focusing on in your LCS course. This could well be a language and culture you have already studied, been part of or it could be a brand new opportunity. Your mission is to create an artefact for your learning journal that explores the similarities between your language of instruction (English) and the language you are studying as well as draw out similarities in culture.
How could you respond?
A audio-visual presentation (5-10 mins) a short film (up to 5 mins) an audio presentation (5-10 mins) a magazine article (1-2 feature page) a vision board (physical - A3 size, digital equivalent)
Diverse languages of our interconnected world by Medium magazineLanguage and Cultural timeline
In this inquiry we have explored multilingualism and how language influences culture. It's good to use your learning journal to track how your attitudes and ideas are changing over the course of the CP. In terms of LCS, this can all add to your language and cultural portrait that you create and reflect on throughout the course.
Make a timeline of your school journey and mark on there key points of your language and intercultural understanding development. Start with when you started learning another language at school or speaking them at home but also consider trips abroad or when new members of your class joined from different cultures. Consider how you see multilingualism and intercultural understanding in your school environment and at home. Do your parents/caregivers speak more than one language? Do you have friends who speak more than one language at home? Did you have a particular teacher who inspired you? (or didn't!)
From your mindmap you can track how your understanding and attitudes towards languages has developed.
Look over your discussions, mindmaps and (LCS) learning journal work here over the course of your inquiry as well as your response to ‘Finding the Connections’ task.
Reflect on the role these skills played throughout your explorations; how did you use them? What new perspectives do you have on one/some/all of them? What role does intercultural understanding play?
Self-awareness Communication Empathy Social awareness
Share your response to the Action phase above where you created an artefact exploring the connections between your language and culture you are studying for LCS and your language of instruction. Invite feedback/give feedback using the ladder of feedback protocol.
DID YOU KNOW … This is great practice for the reflective project which will involve peer feedback at least twice through the process.
Look back over your learning throughout this inquiry and reflect on how you have explored one/some/all of learning outcomes connected with PPS and LCS
LO1—Develop and apply intrapersonal skills in a variety of contexts.
LO2—Develop and apply communication and interpersonal skills in a variety of contexts.
LO3—Develop and apply thinking skills in a variety of contexts.
LO4—Develop and apply intercultural understanding in a variety of contexts.
LO5—Demonstrate an awareness of the ethical implications of one’s choices and actions on self and others
LO1: Articulate how personal identity is shaped by engaging with languages and cultures and diverse perspective
LO2: Identify own strengths and aspirations, set personally relevant goals, and monitor their multilingual and intercultural learning through ongoing reflection
LO3: Apply communication skills and understandings to various contexts
LO4: Practise reflexivity and develop self-awareness as communicators within and across languages and cultures
Footnotes
1. BBC ideas, https://youtu.be/XINQvKbqzq0
2. https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/schadenfreude