The Fifth Language Skill
언어 습득의 최고봉은 언어의 공시성, 통시성 등의 문화적 맥락도 요구한다
이번에는 13문제 중에 세 문제 맞고 나가떨어졌다. 지문 이해에는 별 어려움이 없으나, IELTS라는 영미권 국가의 유학생들에게 필요한 이해 수준의 독해 지문이라서 여기저기 함정어가 많았다. 그래서 조금 더 신중하게 고려하지 않고 선택지를 고른 게 화근이었다. 어이됐든 내가 강조하고자 하는 것은 이 지문의 내용이 이미 필자가 앞서 게재했었던 대한민국 영어교육의 문제점에서 제기한 수기에서와 같은 맥락이라는 것이다.
글의 부제는 아래와 같다.
Culture is often left out of language courses, but some claim that it is the most important aspect of picking up a new language
첫 번째 문단부터 해부해보겠다.
Language learners and instructors know that four skills are needed to be able to communicate in any language: specking, listening, reading and writing. This is 'communicative approach' to language has long been the primary basis of second language information about culture may be provided to language learners, but the overwhelming emphasis is on the four skills and basic, mostly literal, communication. Of late, however, more emphasis is being placed on the fifth language skill of cultural communication, as more and more experts are stressing the importance of assimilating the culture associated with a language. In fact, this intercultural approach is now considered so essential that it cannot be avoided if learners hope to gain true command of any language.
언어 학습자와 강사들은 어떠한 언어에서의 의사소통이 가능하기 위해서는 네 가지의 기본 스킬이 필요하다는 것을 알고 있다. 말하기, 듣기, 읽기, 그리고 작문('쓰기'라고 직역하기에는 언어 학습에서의 쓰기와는 거리와 있어 보여 작문이라고 의역했다. -역주)이다. 이것이 의사소통적 접근법이라고 하는데, 이 글에서 강조하고자 하는 바는 상호 문화의 접근법(Intercultural approach)의 하나인 문화적 의사소통으로 분류되는 다섯 번째 언어 스킬이다. 지금은 이것이 영어를 가르치는 이들로부터 아예 필수 그 이상으로 여겨지고 있다면서 글의 발단을 이룬다.
The intercultural approach to language learning first attracted the attention of language experts after the publication of Louise Damen's Culture Learning:The Fifth Dimension in the Language Classroom. .... (중략) ....
루이즈 데이먼의 '문화 학습:언어 교수법에서의 다섯 번째 차원'이라는 책의 내용을 근거로 전체 지문의 내용을 개관하고 있고 문제의 유형은 (Y/N/NG)를 선택하는 것으로, 지문의 정보가 아닌 작가의 견해와 일치하는지를 묻는 형태이다. 그래서 단순히 지문과 선택지와의 팩트 체크가 아닌 글쓴이의 의도를 파악하는 것이 핵심인데, 정확하게 지문의 문장과 보기에서 묻는 문장을 서로 여러 가지로 패러프레이징(Paraphrasing)하는 연습이 안되어 있으면, 덫(쉽게 해석해버린 선택지)에 걸려들 수 있다.
다시 한번 강조하자면, 문제를 풀기 위한 핵심은 글의 '정확한 해석'이다. 창의성, 유연성, 자신의 배경지식과는 관계없다. 오히려 나처럼 이런 배경적 맥락으로 스스로 글을 써본 적이 있는 경험이 지문을 정확하게 이해하지 않고 독단적인 해석으로 인해 삼천포로 빠질 확률이 있는 문제 유형이다. 바로 '제 7 직관'이라는 책에서 언급한 것과 같이 '전문가의 함정'에 빠질 수 있는 독해 테스트이기에 영어 해석에 자신이 있다고 쉽게 쉽게 스키밍 해버리면 나처럼 3/13의 확률의 실점을 할 수 있다.
1번부터 묻는 문제는 아래와 같다. (틀린 문제 가운데 라인 그음.)
Questions 1-9
Do the following statements agree with the claims of the writer in Reading Passage?
YES if the statement agress with the claims of the writer
NO if the statement contradicts the claims of the writer
NOT GIVEN if it is impossible to say what the writer thinks about this
1. The communicative approach has ignored the cultural component of language. > No!
2. Under the four-stage model, a person can be fluent without cultural knowledge. -> N/G
3. Learning the four language skills is not sufficient for fluent communication. > Yes!
4. The categorisation of Big C and little c culture differs in countries around the world. > No!
5. Big C and little c culture are not unconnected although they represent different ideas. > N/G
6. Language students should be more interested in political issues. > N/G
7. Big C cultrue is the hardest to include in curricula. -> N
8. Labelling culture a 'fifth skill' implies that it is less important for education. > Y
9. Prioritising culture in a language course is not always possible. > Y
Questions 10 and 11
Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D.
10. Louise Damen's view of intercultureal approach implies that > D
A intercultural communication is absent in most language programmes.
B most native language speakers are incapable of teaching their own culture.
C culture and language are equally important but should be taught separately.
D language teachers must have expertise beyond the language itself.
11. According to the writer, what is necessary for making culture a priority in the classroom? >C
A a smaller student-to-teacher ratio
B longer working hours for teachers
C additional training for educators <- 'in-service training' 을 Paraphrasing
D development of new teaching materials
Questions 12 and 13
Complete the sentences below.
Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer.
12 Students from a simmilar culture to that of the ________________ have the best chance to succeed. -> target language! 맞췄다!!
13. A second language speaker can not appear to be an insider based solely on ____________. -> linguistic ability
.... (중략 이후) ....
In it, she outlined the need for both intercultural awareness and intercultural skill development, and put both of these aims under the umbrella term 'pragmatic ethnography.' The implication of Damen's intercultural approach is that native language skills and competence in the target language are insufficient for instruction and that educators must function more like experienced cultural guides who are trained observers and capable of facilitating effective intercultural communication.
In the cultural context of second language learning, a useful heuristic paradigm is a four-stage model of language acquistion that seperates understanding into four levels: tourist, survivor, immigrant, and citizen (Acton and Walker de Felix, 1995). Under this model, it is impossible for any person to acquire a citizen level of communicative competence if they do not have a thorough understanding of the myriad cultural aspects of language, and such an achievement is likely only for highly motivated students who are both willing to acculureate and are from a culture that is not extreame in its 'social distance' from the culture of the target language(Schumann, 1978).
Thus, it goes without saying that(=used to mean that something is obvious) the 'big four' language skills(말하기, 듣기, 읽기, 작문) alone are not always enough for a foreign speaker to fully master a second language or gain acceptance among a community of native speakers. Without cultural sensitivity and awareness, and a careful reflection of his or her own values, norms, and attitudes, a person's linguistic ability alone may not prevent the perception that they are an 'outsider'. To achieve status of an 'insider', he or she must learn to not only recognise and accept cultural differences but also to appreciate and value them.
빨주노초록색의 단어들이 앞서 문단에서 언급한 포괄적 용어인 'pragmatic ethnography'(실용적 민족지학)으로 귀결되는 이 글의 제목에 해당하는 '다섯 번째의 언어 스킬'이다. 이것이 바로 필자도 본인의 글에서 언급한 "언어가 기원하면서 지리학적으로 영향 받은 사용자의 습관과 사고방식 그리고 문화와 사회상의 변천에 따른 상식과 격에 따른 표현, 지방 색깔이 반영된 변종된 방언까지 이 모든 것을 아우를 수 있는 그 언어만의 고유성”과 일맥상통하는 해당 외국어를 익히는 데 있어서 대한민국인들이 가장 간과하는 언어의 기술이다.
But what culture should be taught in classrooms? For simplicity and convenicence, researchers refer to 'Big C' and 'little c' culture to distinguish the more formal elements of a culture from those that are encountered in less formal, everyday situations. Big C culture corresponds to the social, political, and economoic institutions of a given society as well as the great historical figures that contributed to the artisitic, literary, and scientific achievements of that society (National Standards in Foreign Language Education Project, 1996), while little c culture represents of a given culture consider necessary for daily life, including clothing, housing, food, transportation, etc.
Another way to look at it is that the former represents the 'elite' culture of high society, whereas the latter corresponds to the interests and activities of ordinary people. This does not mean there is no overlap at all, however, because even though citizens spend their time with mundane tasks like greeting people, working, or shopping, they are nonetheless interested in bigger issues, such as social stratification and economic policy, which directly impact their lives. It is generally the case that little c culture is the most absent in language curricula and the most difficult to include due to its continually changing nature.
Yet a problematic issue exists with the epithet 'fifth skill' itself, which suggests that culture is an 'added on' element to language learning rather than a fundemental one. Kramsch (1993) claims that culture is always in the background, right from day one, ready to unsettle the good language learners when they expect it least, making evident the limitations of their hard-won communicative competence, challenging their ability to make sense of the world around them. This axiomatic approach to culture as an intergral and inescapable part of communication underscores the importance of, and the challenges inherent in, language teaching.
Therefore, some educators think that culture could be viewed as the first, rather than primacy of culture is a noble goal, it is nonetheless hopeful thinking to assume that it can be easily prioritised in an curriculum or that teachers are generally capable of carrying it out. The language curriculum is already full as it is, and language teachers typically have very limited instruction time with any given student or group of students. Many educators are not trained to handle this burden and, thus, in-service training and faculty development would be neccessary to put culture at the centre of the language curriculum. The bottom line is that any 'fifth skill' time in the classroom will need to be supplemented by an enormously greater number of hours spent by the student immersing himself or herself in the culture of the target language 'in the real world'.
