Intercultural Communication – Page 10

Eurovision

Eurovision Baku 2012 (Source: i3.mirror.co.uk) This year’s Eurovision Song Contest has come and gone with Sweden crowned the winner for 2012, also taking the title of Australia’s unofficial winner (over…

Kerry Taylor-LeechJune 1, 2012

English as a global language

Global toys in a local world

Recently, I had occasion to visit a toy store in Isfahan to buy a present for my seven-year-old cousin, who had invited me to his birthday party. Grand, impressive and…

Vahid ParvareshMay 25, 2012

Language learning

Is bilingualism impolite?

I’m chatting in English to a medical student from Germany who is visiting Sydney, Australia, and we’ve already talked about how I lived in Germany for a while and speak…

Hanna TorshMay 15, 2012

Language learning

Japanese women on the move

Thank you, Ingrid, for drawing my attention to this interesting online forum, Language on the Move, and videos, Japanese on the Move. Based on empirical research on transnational Asian women in London,…

Youna KimMay 10, 2012

Multilingual histories

Yiman does not have a word for ‘massacre’

Memorial to Yiman leader Bilba at Wallumbilla (Source: Goodbye Bussamarai) On October 27, 1857, a group of Aboriginal Australians, members of a group known as Yiman carried out a massacre:…

Ingrid PillerApril 27, 2012

English as a global language

Globalisation and nationalism

Many things have changed in Australia since I first came here in the mid-1990s. One of these is a noticeable increase in displays of national ardour: for instance, there is…

Ingrid PillerApril 20, 2012

Language learning

Japanese lessons learnt from Velcro tape

"Velcro on one pocket coming away at the edge. Please repair and bring back tomorrow for checking." This was the note I had dreaded from my son’s teacher. The Velcro…

Angela Turzynski-AzimiApril 13, 2012

Erosion caused by rabbits in a gully in South Australia

Language in Australia

Southern Alienation

Erosion caused by rabbits in a gully in South Australia I’ve spent this morning decorating Easter eggs and making origami Easter bunnies with my child. Tomorrow I’m going to host an Easter egg hunt and in…

Ingrid PillerApril 7, 2012

News

Intercultural Communication Conference

ZUEL, WuhanIntercultural Literacy, Communication, and Competence in the Context of Multiculturalism Nov 16-18, 2012, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan, China The Foreign Languages School of Zhongnan University of…

Zhang Jie 张洁March 22, 2012

English as a global language

Intercultural grocery shopping

It is now widely agreed that human beings have moved into a phase of modernity in which they have to tackle the extreme dynamism in modern institutions and provide an…

Vahid ParvareshFebruary 11, 2012

Intercultural communication

مردها، زبان انگلیسی و رومانسِ بین المللی

Persian version of Lachlan Jackson's award-winning blog post about interlingual relationships. Translated by مطهره سامری (Motahare Sameri) "وقتی پای عشق به میان می آید ژاپنی ها محبوب ترین موجودات روی کره ی…

Vahid ParvareshNovember 15, 2011

Language learning

Reading ‘Culture Shock’ in Isfahan

In the past three decades attention has shifted from communicative competence to discourse as a frame for understanding the challenges faced by language learners. Yet, the question of how stereotyping…

Vahid ParvareshOctober 12, 2011

Intercultural communication

I don’t know how to ride a donkey!

One of the most bizarre experiences I had during my stay in Australia was being asked by a European housemate whether it was difficult to ride a donkey. Huh?! How…

Vahid ParvareshAugust 9, 2011

Multilingual histories

Intercultural communication and imperialism

Sir John Bagot Glubb (1897-1986) Many people tend to think that multilingual and intercultural communication skills are not only useful skills to have but are also somehow morally superior. Multilingual…

Ingrid PillerJuly 16, 2011

Language at work

Not knowing English good for business?

Japanese stop sign The current global orthodoxy holds that learning English is good: individuals who know English are supposed to have an advantage in the job market and countries with…

Ingrid PillerJune 27, 2011

Intercultural communication

Desire to know more

Intercultural Communication by Ingrid Piller I recently moved to Bangkok to take up a position as Lecturer at the Graduate School of English (GSE) at Assumption University of Thailand. Established…