Skkn strategies to teach lessons related to cultural diversity for 12th graders at nhu xuan high school

1 INTRODUCTION 1.1.Reasons to choose the topic: English, the most popular foreign language in Vietnam, has been taught from the early age (at the age of six or even younger) in most of schools throughout the country as a compulsory subject Thus, many Vietnamese, especially the young people, can speak English; however; not many of them have intelligible cultural knowledge Personally, I think that cultural gaps are one of the most important keys lead us to success in communicating genuinely and understanding the real world outside the classroom In order to use the language effectively, language teachers should realize that knowledge of the world's language and culture is increasingly important Language learners need to have mastery of not only the language itself but also the culture in which the language is used Therefore, it is suggested that language teachers should focus on the integration of culture in language classroom, which serves as a tool for helping students understand and appreciate other cultures Nowadays, in teaching and learning English as a foreign language in Vietnam, English has received a great deal of attention Nonetheless, English is learnt and taught in a non-native environment, students usually not have close contact with native speakers of English and have little opportunity to discover how these speakers think, feel, and interact with others That is the reason why they not feel confident enough to converse with English teachers or native speakers It proves everything clear that culture and language cannot be separated and the teaching and learning of a foreign language should always be a culturebased course So as to improve student's communicative competence, teacher should insert cross- cultural knowledge into the learning and teaching of English skills From my teaching experience, cultural challenges in English-class have become a great source of inspiration for my thesis, which deals with the problem: "Strategies to teach lessons related to cultural diversity for 12 th graders at Nhu Xuan High School” This study is, hence, to aim at treating cross-cultural characteristics into teaching English for the teacher and students at Nhu Xuan high school 1.2 Purpose of the research : The major aims of the study are as follows: - To investigate the teachers' and students' attitudes towards the importance of cross- cultural knowledge to the learning of a foreign language - To find out the attitudes of teachers and students at Nhu Xuan high school toward the importance of culture in learning English - To find out the effective ways of treatment cross-cultural characteristics into teaching English 1.3 Method of the research skkn - Gathering the information collected from reference books and the Internet - Conducting a survay, discussing for experiences from my colleagues - Giving tests for assessment - Gathering students’ results and evaluate 1.4 Objective and Scope of the research The typical research object that I have boldly applied in this topic is the students of class 12 A2 the participation of teachers who are currently teaching English at my school The research was carried out during the academic year 2021 – 2022 at Nhu Xuan High School CONTENTS 2.1 Theoretical basis of the problem Language teachers and students must have a certain awareness of the foreign culture and its effect on the language being taught and learned When developing cross-cultural awareness, both learners and teachers of a foreign language need to understand cultural differences Cultural differences play a very important part in teaching English Teachers often based on their activities to teach students how to use structures, expressions instead of those in the country they are working Although they should get students learn to speak English in the native ways, they should see that it is necessary to be more aware of the cultural differences, so that they can help students understand and use English in a native English country Students often meet intercultural encounters in schools which can lead to many perplexities For example, the students at Hanoi university complained about an American professor that their American teachers often eat bread and drink milk on the table of the teacher in break and she did not invite their students And the students felt that their teachers did not respect the students Or another example, an American lecturer thought that the students showed their opposition to the teachers from the first lesson, when the teacher gave questions, but no one raised their hand or gave ideas She did not understand that most Vietnamese students are unselfconfident We can see that the role of language in intercultural encounters applies entirely to the teaching situation Therefore, developing cross-cultural awareness in English foreign language classroom is an indispensable thing in teaching and learning foreign language Learning to understand a foreign culture should help students of another language to use words and expressions more skills fully and authentically; to understand levels of language and situational appropriate; to act naturally with persons of the other culture We need to understand that if we want our students to master another language, we have to help them become communicatively competent in that language as much as possible Namely, fluently English is not just to master of using grammatically correct words and forms but also knowing when to use them and under what circumstances That is the reason why culture is crucially skkn important in learning and teaching foreign language Interest in culture is linked to the intrinsic motivation of a learner Therefore, if the teacher can get the learner interested in the culture of the foreign language, then they will hopefully end up with more successful students When considering language learning, it is clear that the learning of both languages would have cultural goals, and that students would be learning these aspects of culture in a comparative process To achieve culture goals, often teacher must play a role in breaking down cultural barriers prior to initiating teaching-learning activities Student must be receptive to concept of learning about other cultures more than their own In Vietnam, the learners learning the foreign language has a great limit in communication Thus, the easiest way to begin teaching culture or raise students' awareness is to emphasize similarities and differences between members of students' s family, between schools and between cultures For foreign language students, language study seems senseless if they know nothing about the people who speak the target language or the country in which the target language is spoken 2.2.Practical basis of the problem The study is carried out with the participation of grade 12A2 forty three students at Nhu Xuan high school, most of whom are 17-18 years of age and 10 English teachers at Nhu Xuan high school During the years at secondary school, the students learnt the old textbook with curriculum concentrating on grammar They are almost beginners in English English because they were only exposed to the language in classroom before They had no chances to learn listening and English skills and the only knowledge they have is structures and theories of grammar Therefore, along with their difficulties in acquiring any effective language skills, a majority of the students did not have chances to know about what we call "culture" and "cross-culture" and how to use cross-culture knowledge into English skills The English teachers need to stimulate their curiosity about English -English cultures A survey was conducted to convey the attitudes of the teachers and learners towards the importance of culture in learning language The question is: - What you think of the role of culture in English learning? (Students) - What you think of the role of culture in English learning? (Teachers) skkn 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 60 42.5 37.5 40 students teachers 10 very important important rather important 10 not very important Figure 1: The students` perception of the role of culture in English learning In overview, it can be seen that the teachers and students at Nhu Xuan high school share different opinions that all of the teachers hold positive ideas about the position of culture in English language teaching With knowledge and experience, 100% of the teachers (60% suggests that culture is very important and 43% thinks culture is important) realize that cultural factors are very important to ELT Besides, students have clear difference 42% of the students consider cultural factors very important in English language teaching, 37.5 % of the students take it important 10% of the students think that culture is rather important in English language teaching The percentage of the students thinks culture is not very important is 10% It means that almost students are aware of the importance of the culture However, a small number of students take no care of the position of culture Therefore, it is easy to see that their English level is too low to use culture knowledge in learning English Solutions to the problems Suggestions for treatment of cross - cultural characteristics in the teaching English to grade 12A2 students of English at Nhu Xuan high school 2.3.1 Solution 1: To the teachers’ attitude Cultural differences of communication are a common cause of misunderstanding and can be a cause of discomfort in cross-cultural situations Therefore, the teachers' duty is to own basic understandings about language and culture When the awareness of culture is raised, the teachers will be able to plan, create and construct materials for effective English class Culture knowledge is very extensive, but students not know how to apply it to language learning, so the teachers must bring it to students and help them to master it Although nowadays, students play the centered role and the learner have a great role in the management of their learning, it does not mean that the students can decide everything, the teachers have to be good leaders to find out the suitable teaching methods and combine different approaches in a context The teachers should use formal and informal instructions indifferent situations It depends on context and particular classes skkn For the teachers, the attitudes towards culture in the teaching and learning of English skills are very important Firstly, they must upgrade intercultural knowledge by themselves To educate students towards intercultural learning after mastering cross-culture knowledge Eclectic methodology, an approach mixed with others, has been proved effective in the teaching and learning of foreign languages, but no matter what methodologies teachers use, they must encourage learners' active role in studying In the English skills, encouraging all the students in class to speak English and create a competitive atmosphere are very important The teachers should insert interesting cross-cultural activities into lessons to attract students to take part in Gradually, students will overcome their shyness when English English and feel more confident to give their own opinions on any issues From the first day of English classes, the teacher should prepare a cultural environment in their classroom There are many ways to create cultural environment The teachers can ask students to collect and bring the class objects related to some aspects of life in English-English countries These objects will help students develop their mental imagine about target language countries or another way, the teachers can ask each student to find a story related to culture of English-English skills They will have to tell their story in the next lesson Donn Byrne (1986) has ever said that "the teachers are like conductors in an orchestra" It means that the teachers work as actors with different roles They organize and monitor during the beginning activities while learners are carrying out their duty, teachers are stimulators The teachers must keep an eye on learners' remarks They should create a comfortable environment so that learners can speak out The teachers should pay attention to the way learners express themselves To Vietnamese learners, the Vietnamese culture has a significant influence on their study in general and learning English in particular Most of Vietnamese students are quite shy, as they not have a lot of chance to talk in front of the crowd so the teachers' the difficulties are to find out the way to motive the students and help them motivation, get over shyness and self-esteem issues When the learners have confidence, they will feel free to express their opinions during English activities There are many learners learning grammar and vocabularies very well, but when being asked to them present any topic, they are not fluent or not know how to verbalize This is due to the lack of cultural knowledge Therefore, teachers need to incorporate cultural knowledge and convey encoding values or messages from English to Vietnamese in their teaching In addition, teachers should know that culture classes not only help learners enrich vocabularies repertoire but also aid in using the newly acquired words Studying culture, a learner becomes familiarized with specific words in a given context Furthermore, one of the techniques in teaching and learning is to make use of the mnemonic Most of the cultural issues being concrete in nature skkn will be the pegs with which the new vocabulary associated Teachers apply the technique; the learners will associate a newly encounter word with an already acquired one leading to minimization of fossilization of potential misusage of such a new word 3.2.Solution 2: Enrich the students’ cultural background knowledge To have the comprehensive picture of the target culture from any angles, we need to give students different kinds of information This is to help them way they enrich their cultural knowledge The list below shows some possible sources of information, which can be used as materials for teaching culture * Video * Interviews * Newspapers * Guest speakers * CDs * Photographs * Reading * Souvenirs * Internet * Songs * Stories * Illustrations * Students' own information * Surveys * Literature In all sources of information, Internet is the most diversified source that covers all the other sources The development and spread of the World Wide Web has created many new possibilities for teaching culture It is unsurprising when the teachers and the students choose it as the favorite source of the cultural information In Vietnamese context, Hang's study (2004) shows that English and reading sections of textbooks are believed to have the richest content of crosscultural exchange The teachers always stick to these sections if they want to press on any typical or prominent cross-cultural issues During foreign language teaching process, depending on each lesson, each situation and students' level, the teachers should choose suitable kinds of crossculture information to insert into the teaching lesson For example, to enrich the background knowledge for students, when teaching unit 5: cultural diversity, teachers can show some videos or photos for students to be aware of some tradition identities in Japan: skkn skkn skkn In speaking skill, teacher can show some pictures about traditional costumes in some countries for students to make a guess skkn - In reading skill, teacher should supply some reading articles about culture and then have students play game “who is a millionaire?” to check their understanding Unusual Customs From Around the World Japan Etiquette is very important in Japan, from avoiding blowing your nose in public to how you greet people The correct use of chopsticks is something many Japanese people find essential to eating out, so it’s impolite to get it wrong To avoid any strange glares while enjoying a mountain of delicious sashimi, make sure that you don’t point them, play with them or stab them into your sushi Greece Instead of saving their teeth and placing them under a pillow for the tooth fairy to collect, Greek children’s teeth are thrown on to the roof of their homes This unusual tradition is thought to bring good luck for the family, as well as a healthy replacement tooth for the child! Norway Norwegians are another country big on cutlery etiquette, so it’s important to watch your table manners when calling at restaurants during your Fjord Cruise It may seem a bit extreme to you and I, but knives and forks are seen as a must when eating out, even with a sandwich! China - When dining with locals and exploring the city it’s tempting to give out gifts as a way of saying thank you But, remember to avoid giving them the following gifts: clocks, handkerchiefs, shoes and anything white or black They may seem like an innocent way of saying thank you for their lovely hospitality, but they’re each strongly associated with death and funerals An alternative gift to pass on to your new companions is delicious sweets or fresh tea - Foot binding in China: Young girls were compelled to go through the painful process of foot binding For almost a thousand years, the Chinese thought that small feet were marks of beauty and desirability among girls This perception caused the Chinese men and women to intentionally restrict the girls’ feet from growing bigger by binding them In the late 1943’s, this tradition was stopped because of the debilitating experience that young Chinese girls suffered from Thailand This is probably one of the more unusual customs to look out for, but it’s also a lot of fun – especially for your kids! Every November, in the town of Lop Buri, the locals dish up platters of fresh fruit, cakes and candy on top of tables that line the streets But these mouth-watering treats aren’t just for the people, they’re for the native Macaque monkeys to munch on This slightly bizarre but 10 skkn Sự mê tín Superstition (n) ə /ˌsuː.pəˈstɪʃ n/  Ex: Superstition still plays very important roles in daily life and activities of Vietnamese people Sự tiếp nhận biến đổi văn hóa Acculturation (n) /əˌkʌl.tʃərˈeɪ.ʃən/  Ex: Acculturation is a process of changing so that you become more like people from a different culture or making someone change in this way - Group Front card The other side of card Trao đổi văn hóa Cultural exchange /ˈkʌltʃərəl iksˈtʃeɪndʒ/ Ex: The first Singapore cultural Di sản văn hóa Cultural Heritage /ˈkʌltʃərəl ˈher.ɪ.tɪdʒ/ Ex:The organization is devoted to  preserving our cultural heritage Cultural Specificity Nét đặc trưng văn hóa /ˈkʌltʃərəl spesɪˈfɪsəti/ Ex: Trau Cau is one of Vietnamese cultural specificities 16 skkn Nét đặc trưng văn hóa Bản sắc văn hóa Cultural Identity /ˈkʌltʃərəl aɪˈden.tə.ti/ Ex: Some people believe that the most important feature of the cultural identity of a nation is the language Cultural Assimilation Đồng hóa văn hóa /ˈkʌltʃərəl əˌsɪməˈleɪʃn/ Ex: Cultural assimilation is when you adopt a culture as part of your own This usually happens when you move to another country, and sometimes even another state văn hóa Diffusion 4.Cultural The assessment of experimental results Tập of thequán research ə /ˈkʌltʃərəl /dɪˈfjuː.ʒ n/ solutions are applied at my school 4.1 Describe how the Ex: Cultural diffusion is At the first time of the thespread first term, a test is given to all students 12 A2 (43 of cultural beliefs and social activities students) to assess their English level and then the teachers apply cultural from oneinto group of people another activities lesson planstoat 12 A2 At the end of the first term, another test in culture is given to the same students to analyse their improvement 4.2 The results achieved The results are found different as follow: Marks Test 1(%) Test 2(%) Excellent(9.0: 10) 0(0%) (9.3%) Good (8.0: 8.9) (9.3%) (11.6%) Fair (7.0: 7.9) (11.6%) 11 (25.6%) Medium (5.0: 6.9) (11.6%) (18.6%) Weak (3.0: 4.9) 18 (41.9%) 10 (23.3%) Bad (1.0: 2.9) 11(25.6%) (11.6%) 17 skkn The change in students` test result after treating English culture-teaching activities into the teaching of English skills 50 40 30 Test Test 20 10 The change in students` test result after treating English culture-teaching activities into the teaching of English skills From the table, it is very easy to see that test gets higher results as compared with results of test After inserting cross-cultural knowledge into English teaching, cultural knowledge of the students improves distinctly From 0% of the student gets excellent mark in test 1, in test 2, 9.3% of the students get excellent mark Similarly, 9.3 % of the students get good marks in the test but it increases 11.6% in test 11.6% gets fair marks in test while in test 2, the number of students getting fair marks is more double (25.6%) and 11.6% gets medium marks in test but 18.6 % in test The remarkable thing here is the rate of students get weak marks and bad marks decreases sharply after applying cultural activities in English teaching 25.6% of the students get weak and bad marks in test but in test 2, only 11.6% This means the teaching methods mentioned above to be effective in English teaching at Nhu Xuan high school - Questionaire: Table 1: Treating cross-cultural characteristics into teaching and learning English is very useful ANSWER STUDENTS PERCENTAGE Strongly agree 30 70% Agree 13 30% Disagree 0 Strongly disagree 0 Total 43 100% Based on the table above, it shows that speaking club is useful for all the students which can be seen that 30 students (70%) strongly agree, and 13 students (30%) agree while none of them disagree or strongly disagree with the statement Thus, it can be concluded that all of students (43 students) agreed that the method is very useful 4.3 Adjustment, supplement applying the solutions 18 skkn Though the survey is conducted by a small population of students and teachers, it can help the author have a deeper insight into the situation of English learning and teaching From the result of questionnaires and tests, it is quite clear that treatment of cross-cultural characteristics into English lesson is beneficial and feasible The positive effects of cross-cultural integration on motivating student to communicate confidently as it is strongly approved by the majority of students who directly take part in the teaching and learning process First of all, all the students have realized the importance of cross-cultural knowledge in English learning and teaching They nearly have the same idea that cultural elements are inserted into the lesson, it makes them feel the lessons more interesting and more attractive Furthermore, the students are motivated if they have chance to understand about not only their own culture but also the culture of target language The students are supposed to be aware of cultural knowledge, the difference and similarities between cultures that helped them make progress in learning English and feel confident in using it The knowledge makes them love to learn English By way of consequences, the teaching of cultures should become an integral part of English teaching Secondly, the results of the questionnaires and tests have shown that we can not teach language and culture separately They have to be combined together as the cross-culture issues could be taught through the teaching and learning English skills s or another skills With a quiz or discussion used in prepost English, a motivating learning environment is created to regain their interest in learning and then help improve the English skills better Understanding culture of a country, learning the language of this country is very important as it helps foreign language learners communicate effectively in the target language Without the study of English-English cultures, English instruction is inaccurate and incomplete Thirdly, it can be clearly seen from the data analysis that English is a crucially important element to raise cross-cultural awareness Conversely, crosscultural knowledge helps students develop communicative competence more perfectively Lastly, nowadays with the development of technology and the Internet, we can access public libraries with enormous information with graceful images about culture of different countries Thus, there are no reasons for not taking advantage of such a useful and potential source of teaching material In summary, cultural understanding is very important in English foreign language Communication is the way to raise intercultural awareness However, a culture is so enormous that the teachers cannot cover everything Furthermore, the students cannot be expected to grasp everything about a culture What the teachers need to is to encourage students think about cross-cultural issues from various perspective without judging them CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS 19 skkn 3.1 Conclusion From the research as above it can be seen that teaching culture is very important in improving the language Most of teachers and students believed that culture plays an important role in their language learning We can not learn a foreign language well when we have no cultural knowledge of that country The learners understand that culture and language have inseparable relationship and teaching language is teaching culture In order to master a language, the linguistic learners need to understand the cultural context where language presides The students need to learn the correct and culturally acceptable way to address people Therefore, raising cultural knowledge and awareness by integrating cultures in language learning and teaching is vital The students will be interested in and have motivation in English learning process Understanding cross-cultural knowledge has been considered to be of great help to the teaching and learning of English skills First of all, the study reviewed some theoretical background including the definitions of culture, cross-culture, language, the knowledge of relationship between language and culture, goals and objectives for treatment of crosscultural characteristics in English teaching, Goals and objectives for treatment cross-cultural characteristics in English teaching Some considerations in raising students` cross-cultural awareness when teaching English as foreign language, and the definition of English skills , the position of English skills in English teaching, what type of culture should be taught in foreign language classes Secondly, the researcher has discovered some findings through questionnaires and tests The results of the survey have pointed out the positive attitudes of both teachers and students towards the important role of culture learning to English skills teaching and learning The study has already found the teachers and students' attitude of the culture activities applying in English teaching and learning Lastly, the author gives some suggestions for treatment cross- cultural characteristics into teaching of English in English to grade 12A2 students at Nhu Xuan high school 3.2.Recommendations a/ For English groups: Through these findings, we know that treating cross-cultural characteristics in a lesson is a performing art subject, the teachers always must be an excellent actor to make the performance successful The treatment of cross-cultural information in English lessons through cultural activities can fulfil the two purposes of foreign language education at the same time: one is improving reading skills and other is fostering cross-cultural knowledge b/ For school leaders: From the finding above, it can be said that culture and language are fundamentally intertwined Attempting to learn a language without learning its associated culture is to miss out on everything that makes the language unique, exciting and beautiful Culture is very important when 20 skkn studying a language Not only is it important for a student to be able to grammatically communicate with people, but also it is important for students to so in culturally acceptable ways In order to succeed at a language, a student must have a thorough understanding of the culture With the help of teachers, culture is incorporated in language learning This helps students gain the necessary knowledge in order to communicate successfully Hence, school leaders should continue to invest and modernize teaching equipment; buy more equipment and teaching supplies for teaching c/ For the Department of Education and Training: Support the organization of training sessions, promoting teachers on positive teaching methods to improve the quality of teaching The research is carried out in short time with a few of materials, and there will be many unavoidable shortcomings Therefore, I look forward to receiving many valuable comments from teachers and colleagues on my topic so that I could make it better Thank you very much! THE CONFIRMATION OF THE HEADMASTER COMMITMENT Thanh Hoa, May 12, 2022 I assure that this is my experience idea , not copy the content of the others Written by Do Thi Phuong Le Thi Chung 21 skkn REFERENCES Chu Quang Bình (2008), Thiết kế giảng Tiếng Anh 12, tập 1, Nhà xuất Giáo Dục Hoàng Văn Vân (2008), Tiếng Anh 12, 6/2008, Nhà xuất Giáo Dục Nguyễn Văn Dộ (2004), Tìm hiểu mối liên hệ ngơn ngữ văn hố, Nhà xuất Dại Học Quốc Gia Hà Nội Brooks, Nelson (1983), Teaching Culture in the Foreign Language Classroom, Foreign Language Annals, Volume 16, NewYork:ACTFL, Inc Brown H.D (1994), Teaching by principles, Englewood Cliff, NJ: Prentice Hall Burn and Yoyce, H (1997), Focus on English, Sydney: National Center for English language teaching and research Buttjes (1990), Teaching foreign language and culture : social impact and political significance, Language learning Journal Bygate Martin (1987), English, Oxford University Press Chaney, A.L and T.L Burk 1998, Teaching oral Communication in Grade K-8, Boston: Allyn and Bacon 10 Christopher Early (1993), Culture, self-identity and work, Oxford University Press, Inc 22 skkn EVIDENCE OF THE EFFICIENCY OF SOLUTIONS (attached) SỞ GD-ĐT THANH HOÁ TRƯỜNG THPT NHƯ XUÂN TỔ TIẾNG ANH ĐỀ KIỂM TRA MÔN: TIẾNG ANH – LỚP: 12 Thời gian làm bài: 35 phút (không kể thời gian giao đề) I Circle A, B, C, or D that best completes each sentence or as directed 1: Students are restrained from eating bananas prior to an exam for of failing 'like sliding on a banana skin' A cheer B fear C scare D anger 2: Regarding what food to avoid before taking an important examination, homophones and the shape of your food comes into A action B fact C reality D play 3: People often avoid eating squash, pumpkin, melon and peanuts before their exams because they suppose that it is a A no-go B so so C way out D bright side 4: When you first arrive in a foreign culture, often your first reaction is ….positive Everything seems exciting, different and fascinating A extremely B completely C tremendously D dramaticall 5: nowadaysis a choice people make on their own, but this has not always been the case in society A Marriage B Marital C Marriageable D Marrying 6: It was the that the fathers made the decision on whom their children were going to marry A religion B superstition C custom D fate 7: We are all too of traditions in our modern world, but they can have a very strong impact on us A dismissing B dismissal C dismissed D dismissive 8: Most young people nowadays believe in marriage – first comes love, then comes marriage A romantic B unique C contractual D arranged 9: Most Americans don't object being called by their first names A about B for C in D to 10: liked ao dai, kimono, hanbok help preserve a country's heritage and educate people about their history A National costumes B Tradition food C Traditions and customs D Folktales 11: People from Brazilian and North American cultures have different feelings about lateness Brazilians expect a person with status or to arrive late, while in the United States, lateness is usually considered to be disrespectful and unacceptable A prevalence B prestige C privilege D position 23 skkn 12: Americans believe in 'romantic' marriage - a boy and a girl are to each other, fall in love, and decide to marry each other A loved B handed C attracted D married 13: The custom of paying a bride price before marriage is still a part of many African cultures A well-established B well-advised C well-built D well-balanced 14: In modern times, although people still remain the custom of paying a bride price, it is occasionally quite small and its value is mainly A symbol B symbolize C symbolism D symbolic 15: Most weddings in Japan start with a religious in which usually only family members attend A anniversary B ceremony C celebration D bicentenary II Read the passage and choose the best answer In the traditional marriage, the man worked at a job to earn money for the family Most men worked in an office, a factory, or some other place away from the home Since the man earned the money, they paid the bills The money was used for food, clothes, the house, and other family needs The man made most of the decisions He was the boss In the traditional marriage, the woman seldom worked away from the house She stayed at home to care for the children and her husband She cooked meals, cleaned the house, washed the clothes, and did other housework Her job at home was very important In recent years, many couples continue to have a traditional relationship of the kind The man has a job and earns the money for the family The woman stays at home and cares for the children and the house Many Americans are happy with the kind of marriage But some other Americans have a different impression of marriage and family responsibilities There are two important differences in male and female roles now One is that both men and women have many more choices They may choose to marry or to stay single They may choose to work or stay at home Both men and women may choose roles that are comfortable for them A second difference in male and female roles is that within marriage many decisions and responsibilities are shared The husband and wife may choose to have children, or they may not If they have children, the man takes care of them some of the time, all of the time or not at all The woman may want to stay at home and take care of the children Or she may want to go to work Men and women now decide these things together in a marriage Many married people now share these decisions and the responsibilities of their families Which of the following is NOT true in the traditional marriage? A Men worked at a job to earn money for the family B The women made most of decisions C The woman stayed at home to care the children D The man paid the bills 24 skkn In recent years A young couples the traditional relationship B the woman has a job and earns the money for the family C the woman doesn’t stay at home and care for the children and the house D the role of men and women has begun to change Men and women may now choose all the following except to _ A marry or to stay single B work or stay at home C leave their jobs just because they have children D have their roles that are comfortable for them The following are all now true except A they may choose to have children or not B the man may take care of the children some of the time C the woman is the most important person in the house D the woman may want to go to work Which of the following is not true? A Everyone tries to get married B The man was the boss in the traditional marriage C The woman’s job at home was very important in the past D Many Americans still have a traditional marriage III Read the text below and choose the correct word for each space (1,25pts) Communication is an important part of any relationship Many of us are eager to share our experiences or emotions with our friends But when it’s our turn to lend a (an) (1) _, we soon become bored or are short of idea on how to respond and offer advice That’s because of what researchers call “listener burnout” Friend night talk to us endlessly, often complaining about the same old problems When we offer quick advice to fix the situation, we may be unconsciously trying to (2) ourselves from buyout However, good listeners overcome their natural tendency to solve the other’s problems hurriedly and to keep the conversation brief To be a good listener, you need to use “active listening” It starts with the real desire to help others and think through their feelings Don’t rush things You can start by putting your phone away and sitting close to your friend Let your facial expressions reject - what he or she is saying Whittler you are able to fully understand acknowledge the other person’s (3) by reflecting them back “That must be really hard for you” Use shun words or even sounds such as “yes”, “right”, and “hmm” to (4) _ the other person to continue Of course, a conversation can be extremely hard if the other person is too critical But don’t get defensive Effective listeners don’t block out negative criticism Instead, they listen and understand what the person is trying to convey (5) _ responding A shoulder B hand C ear D eye 25 skkn A forgive A suggestions A force A after B protect B purposes B remind B before C discourage C reponses C encourage C while - THE END - 26 skkn D prevent D feelings D convince D once SỞ GD-ĐT THANH HOÁ TRƯỜNG THPT NHƯ XUÂN TỔ NGOẠI NGỮ ĐỀ KIỂM TRA MÔN: TIẾNG ANH – LỚP: 12 Thời gian làm bài: 35 phút (không kể thời gian giao đề) - -I Circle A, B, C, or D that best completes each sentence or as directed 1: In most weddings in Japan, guests give the bride and groom goshuugi money in special envelopes A gift B present C reward D giving 2: Changes in attitudes, family values, generational status can occur in both the majority and minority cultures as the two interact; however, one culture dominates A rarely B typically C specially D uncommonly 3: On the flip side, the world wide of a couple of languages that have a large number of speakers has led to the death of several less popular languages A abortion B rejection C adoption D adaption 4: It is important to understand the culture religion of the country that you are travelling to and a little research before you leave will help A tremendously B dramatically C comparatively D violently 5: The custom of ancestors is a beautiful, rich, and colorful and joyful tradition in Vietnamese culture A praying B honoring C respecting D worshiping 6: are aware that a language becoming extinct does not necessarily mean that the people who spoke it have all died A Linguistic B Linguists C Language D Lingual 7: Why is culture important and how does it answer the question "what is Cultural ?” A identity B identify C identification D identical 8: Culture is the underlying of traditions and beliefs that help a person relate to the world around them A institution B foundation C organization D principle 9: Culture gives US a definite starting point when beginning to for our roots A find B look C search D seek 10: As a person has given up their cultural identity, they no longer can identify themselves with the things that were the most important things in their lives A at once B once C one time D for once 11: Since textsand ceremonies can seem confusing with no 27 skkn one there to guide, young people are supposed to find an expert willing to explain their significance A sacred B scared C religious D spiritual 12: It cannot be denied that global communications will become even more powerful in influencing our cultural identity A potentially B probably C likely D possibly 28 skkn 13: Accepting that changes are wiped out, destroyed or forgotten does not mean that we will allow everything to be A avoidable B unavoidable C stoppable D unstoppable 14: Once people have given up their heritage, traditional beliefs and other aspects of their native culture, they are about to lose their sense of A humor B responsibility C self D honesty 15: Although there are over fifty groups, we all use Vietnamese as the official language A ethnically B ethicize C ethnicity D ethnic Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet The reality of an interview is never as bad as your fears For some reason people imagine the interviewer is going to jump on every tiny mistake they (1) _ In truth, the interviewer is as keen for the meeting to go well as you are It is what makes his or her job enjoyable The secret of a good interview is preparing for it What you wear is always important as it creates the first impression So (2) neatly, but comfortably Make sure that you can deal with anything you are asked Prepare for questions that are certain to come up, for example: Why you want to become a nurse? What is the most important quality a good nurse should have? Apart from nursing, what other careers have you considered? What are your interest and hobbies? Answer the questions fully and precisely For instance, if one of your interests is reading, be prepared to talk about the sort of books you like (3) , not learn all your answers off (4) heart The interviewer wants to meet a human being, not a robot Remember, the interviewer is genuinely interested in you, so the more you relax and are yourself, the more (5) _you are to succeed A make B C perform D have A wear B dress C put on D have on A However B Although C Despite D Therefore A at B on C in D by A easy B possible C likely D probable Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C or D on your answer sheet Although speech is the most advanced form of communication, there are many ways of communicating without using speech Signals, signs, symbols and gestures may be found in every known culture The basic function of a signal is to impinge upon the environment in such a way that it attracts attention, as, for 29 skkn example, the dots and dashes of telegraph circuit Coded to refer to speech, the potential for communication is very great Less adaptable to the codification of words, signs also contain meaning in and of themselves A stop sign or a barber pole conveys meaning quickly and conveniently Symbols are more difficult to describe than either signals or signs because of their intricate relationship with the receiver's cultural perceptions In some cultures, applauding in a theater provides performers with an auditory symbol of approval Gestures such as waving and handshaking also communicate certain cultural messages Although signals, signs, symbols and gestures are very useful, they have a major disadvantage They usually not allow ideas to be shared without the sender being directly adjacent to the receiver Without an exchange of ideas, interaction come to a halt As a result, means of communication intended to be used for long distances and extended periods must be based upon speech To radio, television and the telephone, one must add fax, paging systems, electronic mail, and the Internet, and no doubts but that there are more means of communication on the horizon Which of the following would be the best title for the passage? A Signs and signals B Gestures C Communication D Speech What does the author say about speech? A It is necessary for communication to occur B It is the most advanced form of communication C It is dependent upon the advances made by inventors D It is the only true form of communication The word “it” in paragraph refers to _ A signal B Function C way D environment Applauding was cited as an example of _ A a sign B a gesture C a signal D a symbol 10 Why were the telephone, radio, and television invented? A Because people wanted to communicate across long distances B Because people wanted new forms of communication C Because people were unable to understand signs, signals, and symbols D Because people believed that signs, signals, and symbols were obsolete 30 skkn ... participation of grade 12A2 forty three students at Nhu Xuan high school, most of whom are 17-18 years of age and 10 English teachers at Nhu Xuan high school During the years at secondary school, ... English at Nhu Xuan high school 2.3.1 Solution 1: To the teachers’ attitude Cultural differences of communication are a common cause of misunderstanding and can be a cause of discomfort in cross -cultural. .. insert into the teaching lesson For example, to enrich the background knowledge for students, when teaching unit 5: cultural diversity, teachers can show some videos or photos for students to be