Exploring Evaluation On Intercultural Business Communication Materials

The research focuses on Intercultural Business Communication (IBC) materials evaluation. It explores the key concerns for IBC course in BE teaching, summarizes the compiling principles for IBC materials, evaluates published IBC materials based on the relevant principles, and provides suggestions on the compiling and revising of IBC materials. Three research questions are put forward:(1) what are the key concerns for IBC course in BE teaching?(2) What are the common compiling principles for IBC materials?(3) Can current IBC materials realize the compiling principles for IBC materials?The research adopts qualitative method, taking textbook analysis and interview as research instruments. Based on Hutchinson&Water materials evaluation model, the evaluation of IBC textbooks is expanded from four aspects:audience, aim, content and methodology. The teaching objective and the teaching philosophy are used as the evaluation basis to explore the compiling principles for IBC materials according to criteria for materials evaluation of Allan&Francis. A general search on published IBC materials is done.14IBC books are selected as the evaluation objects.The evaluation results reveal:the majority of the textbooks take BE major students as their target readers; the cultivation of intercultural communication competence (ICC) is increasingly emphasized in the teaching objectives; the coverage and classification of the content is not well arranged; some key modules are not presented in certain textbooks, nevertheless, each textbooks possesses their own characteristics in content, exercise and task design; some questions for discussion are actually exercise in nature and can not be used for discussion; some cases are short in length and without questions for discussion. While the design and task in newly published textbooks are more rationalized; a learner-centered approach is emphasized and used to guide IBC materials. Four teachers of IBC course in different universities are interviewed concerning their teaching practice in IBC course and opinions on IBC materials. Some suggestions are provided for compiling and revising of IBC textbooks.