Foreign Languages Research Proposal: A Key Bridge for Cultural Understanding in an Increasingly Globalized World

Introduction

Globalization has made the world a global village. Every day, people traverse different countries for business, health, academic, and tourist reasons. Therefore, people from diverse cultural and language backgrounds interact daily. Because of this, global efforts aimed at ensuring that people from different backgrounds easily understand each other exist in many countries. One of such efforts is teaching of foreign languages in learning institutions (Akkaya et al., 2018; Hamid & Nguyen, 2016). For instance, in the United States, there has been increased interest in the teaching of Chinese in educational institutions (Ma et al., 2017; Ruan et al., 2015). Chinese language education in the United States has a long history- with the first school being traced to San Francisco in 1886 (Li, 2015). It is crucial to explore the extent to which teaching of the Chinese language has been implemented in the United States, its barriers, and practical solutions to ensure its success.

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Save 25%

Research Questions

The research questions guiding the proposed study include:

• What are the factors that affect the success of Chinese language teaching and learning in the United States?
• What are the barriers that hinder successful teaching and learning of Chinese language in the United States?
• What strategies could help address barriers associated with Chinese language teaching and learning in the United States?

Research Objectives

The following objectives will guide the proposed study:

• To understand the factors that affect the success of Chinese language teaching and learning in the United States.
• To explore barriers that hinder successful teaching and learning of Chinese language in the United States.
• To examine the strategies that can be used to address barriers associated with Chinese language teaching and learning in the United States.

Statement of the Problem

Globalization and increasing flow of trade between the United States and China have made the two countries dependent on each other for economic growth (Handley & Limao, 2017). The increased economic activities between the two countries further imply that their citizens regularly communicate with each other. Effective communication can only be achieved if two parties involved in the dialogue are capable of understanding each other. Spoken language is a crucial part of the conversation. Therefore, both countries have focused efforts to ensure that their citizens are taught a foreign language. This has led to the teaching of Chinese as a second language in the United States (Sharma, 2018; Sun & Shouse, 2016). The success of the CFL is crucial in boosting trade and communication between citizens o both countries. Therefore, efforts should be made to understand factors that affect the success of Chinese language teaching and learning, barriers that hinder successful teaching of the language, and strategies could help address the obstacles. Consequently, the proposed study is aimed at addressing these areas.

Literature Review

The teaching of Chinese as a second language in the United States is not an easy undertaking as empirical studies have reported numerous challenges affecting the teaching and learning in different contexts. In one of these studies, Yue (2017) sought to explore the challenges faced by the Chinese as a foreign language (CFL) teachers in classroom instruction. Yue (2017) established that native Chinese teachers are faced with a conflict between their values and beliefs system, as experienced back in their home country, and the American values system. Specifically, teachers have noted that lecture method of teaching employed in their home country was not effective in the United States as the students found it boring and led to behavioural problems among the students and loss of students (Chu et al., 2015).

It has also been found out that CFL teachers face pedagogical challenges (Diaz, 2016). Because of the differences in China and the United States educational system, native Chinese teachers noted that they lacked professional knowledge would make them succeed in K-12 teaching (Yue, 2017). Moreover, the learning of Chinese as a second language in the United States is hindered by linguistic challenges (Shum et al., 2016). Specifically, teachers reported that the unique linguistic features of Chinese language intimidated learners and their parents and thus made it difficult for teachers to sustain and attract new students to the program. In agreement with Yue (2017), Moloney and Xu (2015) noted that all foreign language teachers of Chinese should seek to find new pedagogical identities and best practice that can improve their learners' understanding of various aspects of the language.

Moreover, socio-cultural challenges have slowed down the expansion of Chinese language education in the United States (VanPatten & Williams, 2014). Even though some of the native teachers reported that they were trying to embrace the American culture, they had difficulty relating and responding to their learners as they could not understand excited them and what would motivate them to learn the Chinese language (Yue, 2017). In support of these findings, Wu (2017) reported that teachers' classroom practices in the teaching of a foreign language are mediated by understandings of the culture of the students. Specifically, Wu (2017) noted that teachers have do not have an in-depth knowledge of the United States sociocultural and educational expectations and practices. Because of the differences in sociocultural backgrounds of a native speaker of the language (teacher) and the students, teachers have difficulty understanding learners' classroom behaviors and their expectations.

Similarly, Liao et al. (2017) noted that the teaching of CFL is hindered by cultural differences between the students and the teachers, teachers' background, and school context. Sociocultural challenges were found in a wide range of problems in managing classrooms (Liao et al., 2017). To address the socio-cultural challenge, Poole (2015) emphasized that language learners should be helped to develop sociocultural competence related to the foreign language. Additionally, they should be helped to develop communication strategies, actional competence and stylistic competence (Poole, 2015).

Significance of the Study

The proposed study is significant because it adds to the currently existing empirical knowledge regarding the teaching and learning of Chinese as a second language in the United States. First, to understand the factors that affect the success of Chinese language teaching and learning in the United States. The identification of these factors will provide teachers and other educational stakeholders to develop effective strategies aimed at improving students' language learning outcomes. For instance, if it is established that students' poor learning of the Chinese language is linked to ineffective pedagogical techniques, then second language curriculum developers can develop socio-culturally appropriate pedagogical methods.

The findings of the proposed study will also inform the design of more effective teaching training programs, especially on CFL, aimed at ensuring that students achieve competency in CFL classrooms. For instance, if poor language learning outcomes are attributed to sociocultural differences between the students and the teachers, then teachers should be trained to attain sociocultural competence. This will enable them to understand their students better and develop effective strategies aimed at improving their motivation towards learning of the foreign language as well as improved management of their classrooms.

Research Methodology

The proposed study will utilize qualitative research methodology. Specifically, a phenomenological research design will be used to understand the teaching and learning of Chinese as a second language in the United States. Phenomenological research design is aimed at understanding participants' experience of a phenomenon of interest to the study. Phenomenology was chosen because it gives an in-depth description of the issue being explored. The data collection will involve the use of face-to-face interviews comprised of open-ended questions. Such questions are appropriate because the respondents are not limited to their responses. Instead, they are given enough room to express their opinions regarding each of the issues.

The phenomenological research study is best addressed using purposive sampling. In this sampling approach, the participants are recruited to the study based on the possession of characteristics or attributes capable of addressing the research question, the aim of the study, or the topic. Because of this, the target population will be comprised of CFL teachers currently practicing in the United States. Apart from that, students who are now taking Chinese as a second language will be enrolled in the study. Following the collection of data through the use of open-ended interviews, the transcripts will be analyzed through coding and thematic analysis. Each of the respondents' answers to the questions will be checked and similarity in responses will be grouped into codes. Similar codes will be consolidated, forming themes.

References

Akkaya, A., Yilmaz, M. Y., & Aydin, G. (2018). Instructors' views on the assessment and evaluation of the speaking skill in turkish as a foreign language (Tfl) classes. International Journal of Progressive Education, 14(5), 130-143.

Chu, W.-H., Lin, D.-Y., Chen, T.-Y., Tsai, P.-S., & Wang, C.-H. (2015). The relationships between ambiguity tolerance, learning strategies, and learning Chinese as a second language. System, 49, 1-16. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2014.10.015

Diaz, A. R. (2016). Developing interculturally-oriented teaching resources in cfl: Meeting the challenge. In R. Moloney & H. L. Xu (Eds.), Exploring Innovative Pedagogy in the Teaching and Learning of Chinese as a Foreign Language (pp. 115-135). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-287-772-7_7

Hamid, M. O., & Nguyen, H. T. M. (2016). Globalization, english language policy, and teacher agency: Focus on asia. International Education Journal: Comparative Perspectives, 15(1), 26-43.

Handley, K., & Limao, N. (2017). Policy uncertainty, trade, and welfare: Theory and evidence for china and the united states. American Economic Review, 107(9), 2731-2783. https://doi.org/10.1257/aer.20141419

Liao, W., Yuan, R., & Zhang, H. (2017). Chinese language teachers' challenges in teaching in u. S. Public schools: A dynamic portrayal. The Asia-Pacific Education Researcher, 26(6), 369-381. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40299-017-0356-z

Ma, X., Gong, Y., Gao, X., & Xiang, Y. (2017). The teaching of Chinese as a second or foreign language: A systematic review of the literature 2005-2015. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 38(9), 815-830. https://doi.org/10.1080/01434632.2016.1268146

Moloney, R., & Xu, H. (2015). Transitioning beliefs in teachers of Chinese as a foreign language: An Australian case study. Cogent Education, 2(1), 1024960. https://doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2015.1024960

Ruan, J., Zhang, J., & Leung, C. B. (2015). Chinese language education in the united states. Springer.

Sharma, B. K. (2018). Chinese as a global language: Negotiating ideologies and identities. Global Chinese, 4(1), 1-10. https://doi.org/10.1515/glochi-2018-0001

Shum, M., Gao, F., & Ki, W. W. (2016). School desegregation in Hong Kong: Non-Chinese linguistic minority students' challenges to learning Chinese in mainstream schools. Asia Pacific Journal of Education, 36(4), 533-544. https://doi.org/10.1080/02188791.2015.1005048

Sun, J., & Shouse, R. (2016). U. S. P...