Teaching Culture In The Context Of Traditional Culture Of Learning

To conduct the teaching of culture effectively, first, a language teacher should examine the traditional culture of learning of himself/herself and his/her students. When teachers and students unconsciously comply to their traditional culture of learning, a particular mode of teaching culture which adapts itself to that culture of learning will be shaped.Confucianism is the mainstream of Chinese culture, and it has exerted great influence on traditional culture of learning that vests authority in teachers and values the accumulation of knowledge, while neglects the empowerment of learners. If teachers unconditionally comply to these value orientations when conducting cultural teaching, a knowledge-oriented mode will be the natural result. This mode has its limitations in dealing with the pluralistic and dynamic nature of culture and in cultivating cultural insight and cultural creativity in learners.The author holds that a language teacher should put much effort into not only theoretical research, but also teaching practice in which s/he should lay emphasis on the cultivation of learners' cultural insight and cultural creativity. The author firmly believes in the significance of humanistic education and holds that the target language and culture should be viewed as a new world shown for learners and be used to initiate learners to grow and develop into complete and integrated persons. In this new world, the clashes and conflicts between learner's native culture and foreign culture are used to create contexts in which learner's cognitive growth and personality development are initiated.The author adopts an empowerment-oriented mode and an interaction-based dialogic pedagogy in her teaching practice. Based on Kramsch's theory of "cultural reality/cultural imagination" and "the third place", the mode values critical thinking and aims to cultivate cultural insight and cultural creativity in learners. Learners who benefit from the mode and have gained a cognitive growth and a personality development will be competent in future intercultural communication. Besides, they will become empowered learners and approach "learning" in a more mature andrational way.The author creatively puts forward a multi-level dialogic framework. Dialogues take place at three levels and they are interdependent on each other and usually occur simultaneously.The author also cites some true cases of her cultural teaching practice to illustrate how she conducts cultural teaching, and to show how learners grow in the process.Besides, empowerment-oriented mode and dialogic pedagogy also present challenges to the traditional culture of learning, such as the value of accumulation of knowledge and teacher-student relationship. If a teacher can develop an insight into his/her culture of learning and creatively introduce new elements into it with the same critical mind s/he aims to cultivate in learners, it will be a big step forward in refreshing the traditional culture of learning.