If I could tell you one thing to help you this upcoming school year, it would be to incorporate themes of interculturality in your classroom. I know–what even is “interculturality”? But trust me, it’s not as inaccessible as it sounds. In fact, it’s completely within your reach.
This is something I’ve emphasized in my previous conferences, and I’m excited to share it with you because I want all of you to have access to these powerful concepts. So, let’s dive in.
What is Interculturality?
Interculturality is something that many experts, including those at ACTFL, believe is essential for student success in a world language classroom. It’s about making connections and comparisons between the products, practices, and perspectives (PPP) of different cultures. Understanding these connections helps students gain a deeper perspective of the target culture they are studying.
It’s about more than just verb drills and vocabulary. It’s about understanding how to interact with people from different cultures in a meaningful and respectful way. Isn’t that what we ultimately want for our students?
Why is Interculturality Important?
Including intercultural elements in your classroom makes the learning experience more relevant and engaging for students. When you bring in aspects of their identity and home culture, students become curious about how it relates to what they are learning.
This approach not only ignites curiosity but also motivates students to learn. I’ve seen classrooms completely transform into zones of curiosity and I want that for you too!
How to Get Started
Start small. Learn about your students. Each year, I administer a survey to gather meaningful responses from my students. I’ve created an editable survey available on Teachers Pay Teachers so you can customize it to fit your needs. Whether your school is conservative or liberal, you can adjust the questions to make them appropriate for your context. The goal is to gather quality data that you can use to inform your instruction and create an intercultural environment.
Real-World Examples
In my diverse school, I discovered from my survey that many students were fans of K-pop. I researched and found that K-pop has a significant following in Latin America, with many songs in Spanish. Introducing this in class fascinated my students and made the cultural connections more tangible.
I share many projects that I use in my class in my TpT store that show students that we are more alike than we are different. When studying a language, you’re entering another culture. You become a guest, and hopefully, you get adopted into that culture.
Resources and Support
Be sure to explore my resources to see how they can fit into your classroom. Here is My Cultural Calendar of resources that might be helpful for your intercultural classroom!
How It Works: Simply click on any image, tile, or link within the calendar to access the wealth of resources. Whether you’re looking to enhance your lesson plans or simply want to infuse more culture into your classroom, this calendar is your go-to resource. (Original blog post: CLICK HERE)
Calendar of Major Hispanic Celebrations/Themes for the Classroom by Allison PerrymanIf you need help creating resources, I encourage you to start with what you know and build from there. Here are two sources that you can refer to (as I do) for help in creating your own resources too!
- ACTFL Can-Do Statements: https://www.actfl.org/uploads/files/general/Resources-Publications/Novice-Can-Do_Statements.pdf
- Social Justice Standards for the World Language Classroom: https://www.learningforjustice.org/sites/default/files/2021-11/LFJ-2111-Social-Justice-Standards-Anti-bias-framework-November-2021-11172021.pdf
If you need any assistance or have questions, feel free to email me at hola@theculturalclassroom.blog. I’m here to support you every step of the way. Let’s make this school year unforgettable by fostering a culturally fluent classroom together mi gente hermosa!
Un abrazo grandote,
Allison
