On Cultural Awareness Cultivation In Senior High School English Reading Teaching From The Perspective Of Key Competencies

Cultural awareness is the fundamental and symbolic element of English key competencies,which reflects the educational value orientation of English subject.However,in high schools,where there is great pressure to advance to higher education,teachers tend to excessively focus on grammar and vocabulary and neglect the infiltration of cultural awareness in reading teaching,which leads to the lack of cultivating English key competencies.In order to better implement the fundamental task of "fostering virtue through education" proposed by the new curriculum standards,it is particularly important to cultivate students’ cultural awareness in reading teaching.Therefore,from the perspective of key competencies,this study explores the following two research questions based on intercultural communication theory and humanistic educational theory.1.What is the overall level of students’ cultural awareness cultivation in senior high school English reading teaching and what are the features?2.What are the factors that affect the cultivation of senior high school students’ cultural awareness?In order to answer the questions mentioned above,through quantitative and qualitative analysis methods,236 students and 5 English teachers from Foshan No.1 high School of Guangdong were investigated using questionnaires and interviews,respectively.The study has the following findings:1.Senior high school students have a high level of cultural awareness development.The features of each dimension are as follows:(1)The level of the cultural knowledge dimension is fairly low.Students’ total mastery of cultural knowledge is inadequate.In terms of Chinese culture,students have a better understanding of traditional Chinese festivals,places of interest,and some English vocabulary with Chinese cultural connotations,but students lack knowledge of the general geography of China.In terms of British culture,most of the students only know the famous places in Britain,but they lack more profound cultural knowledge,such as British cultural customs.(2)The level of the cultural understanding dimension is relatively high.Teachers emphasize instilling in students a respect for their motherland’s culture and a proper grasp of cultural differences and the connotations of traditional Chinese festivals;students lack the ability to adjust their communication style according to cultural differences.(3)The level of the cultural identity dimension is rather high.Teachers focus on cultivating students’ appreciation for traditional culture and high confidence in their motherland’s culture;students have a sense of spreading the excellent culture of their motherland but still lack a clear understanding of the purpose and use of learning foreign languages.(4)The level of the cultural internalization dimension is comparatively high.Teachers focus on cultivating students to form positive values and have an open and inclusive international perspective;students have formed a preliminary awareness of public diplomacy but still lack the awareness of a community with a shared future for mankind.2.Factors that influence the cultivation of cultural awareness among senior high school students in English reading teaching include the following.(1)Teachers’ lack of cultural awareness,and consequently their lack of nurturing thinking,can directly impact students’ cultural awareness growth.(2)Students’ lack of cultural knowledge and their motivation to learn it can also significantly impact the development of cultural awareness.(3)The lack of cultural expansion in English reading classes makes it difficult for students to develop cultural awareness.Based on these findings,this study proposes some implications for developing students’ cultural awareness in senior high school English reading teaching.(1)For teachers,teachers should improve their own cultural awareness,intensify the teaching of cultural knowledge,enhance cultural teaching methods,and improve students’ cross-cultural communication skills and cultural confidence.(2)For students,students should enrich their cultural reserves,enhance their cultural knowledge,broaden their cultural horizons,develop the ability to explore cultural differences,and improve their intercultural communication skills.(3)For schools,schools should enrich cultural teaching resources and use various means to help teachers and students obtain cultural information in a real environment,establish an effective cultural knowledge examination system and improve cultural teaching conditions.