Four Skills, Grammar and Culture Too? The Case and Place for Culture in the English Language Classroom

While most language teaching theorists and practitioners agree that the primary focus ofEnglish language teaching should be on helping students develop communicativecompetence, there has been a small but growing chorus of voices suggesting thatcommunicative competence cannot be achieved by focusing solely on the development ofcommunicative skills in speaking, listening, reading, writing, grammar, and conversationmanagement. The necessary communicative skills and linguistic knowledge that arewoven through the fabric of communicative competence must be colored and strengthenedby and through the teaching of culture. This paper will argue that communicativecompetence is incomplete without culture knowledge, awareness of the impact of cultureon communicative events, and the development of a non-judgmental attitude towardsculture differences. This paper will discuss the importance of developing these threeessential pillars of intercultural communicative competence and suggest classroomactivities teachers may wish to incorporate when introducing their students to the role ofculture in communication.