JOURNAL OF IQRO – ЖУРНАЛ ИҚРО – IQRO JURNALI – volume 15, issue 01, 2025
ISSN: 2181-4341, IMPACT FACTOR ( RESEARCH BIB ) – 7,245, SJIF – 5,431
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Po’latova Maftunaxon Alisher qizi
O’zDJTU Magistratura bosqichi Xorijiy til va adabiyoti (ingliz tili) yo’nalishi talabasi
DEVELOPING STUDENTS’ INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE:
STRATEGIES AND CHALLENGES
ABSTRACT:
In today’s modern era, interrelationship among diverse nations and globalization
are improving day by day. These changes allow developing intercultural communicative
competence to become an essential purpose in language education. This study intends to examine
the pedagogical approaches which help to foster students’ intercultural communicative
competence in higher education and also to identify difficulties come across by learners. To
carry out the study, a mixed-methods approach has been used by combining both quantitative
and qualitative research methods such as survey questionnaires and interviews. The findings of
the investigation demonstrate that experiential learning programs, intercultural group projects
and exchanges programs can contribute significantly to students’ intercultural communicative
competence. Nevertheless, there are several factors which hinder the process of fostering
intercultural communicative competence such as language barriers, stereotypes and cultural
misunderstandings, institutional limitations. This study can benefit the field of intercultural
communicative competence by research-based findings.
Keywords:
intercultural communicative competence, experiential learning, higher education,
intercultural communication, global learning, language education, cultural awareness.
INTRODUCTION
Because of globalization in today’s world, cultural boundaries among people are gradually
facing “erosion” which leads to develop students’ intercultural communicative competence (ICC)
in higher education. Nowadays students want not only to work in their own country in the future,
but also to make a career in different professions all around the world. Actually, having
globalized jobs encourages students to interact with others from multicultural or culturally
dissimilar environments. Therefore, equipping students with ICC is necessary in educational
institutions. Intercultural communicative competence means “the ability to communicate
adequately and effectively with people who have different cultural backgrounds” (Byram, 1997).
It requires being proficient in languages along with understanding of cultural differences,
cultural adaptability, being emphatic toward other cultures, and analysing critically diverse
perspectives. It is clear that in a traditional way of language education students have been taught
grammar rules and vocabulary of the target language, different structures of sentences. However,
modern teaching methods focus on improving communicative competence of learners too and
having intercultural knowledge has appeared as an inseparable part of communicative
competence today. Even though a great amount of studies on ICC have been carried oud so far,
there are still difficulties in putting strategies found by scholars in the practice in the classroom.
In that case, several questions have arisen in the field such as What pedagogical approaches
enhance ICC more effectively?, What is the importance of integrating culture and experiential
study into language education?, How do educational institutions contribute to this process?
This study concerns with the questions mentioned above and answers them by examining
different methods which are used to improve students’ ICC in higher education, analysing
perspectives of both teachers and students, and finding main obstacles in ICC development.
Actually, the findings provided by the article can benefit implementation of ICC in education
and also make a contribution to the researches on intercultural communicative competence.
JOURNAL OF IQRO – ЖУРНАЛ ИҚРО – IQRO JURNALI – volume 15, issue 01, 2025
ISSN: 2181-4341, IMPACT FACTOR ( RESEARCH BIB ) – 7,245, SJIF – 5,431
ILMIY METODIK JURNAL
LITERATURE REVIEW
Conceptual foundations of intercultural communicative competence
Many researchers have worked on defining the concept of intercultural communicative
competence for a long time. Byram (1997) have contributed enormously to the field by his
researches. According to him, intercultural communicative competence includes five
components and they are followings:
1. Attitudes: curiosity and openness toward other cultures
2. Knowledge of one’s own culture and other cultures
3. Skills of interpreting and relating cultural experiences
4. Skills of discovery and interaction
5. Critical cultural awareness: analysing critically differences across cultures.
Byram states that just learning or understanding the target language is not enough for learners so
that his model on ICC focuses on being aware of diverse social contexts, cultural practices, and
developing an interaction among cultures.
One of the most important contributors to ICC studies is Deardoff and she defines intercultural
communicative competence as one’s ability to communicate appropriately with others according
to their intercultural knowledge, skills, and attitudes (Deardoff, 2006). Her process-oriented
model encompasses five interrelated elements:
1. Attitude (respect, openness, curiosity and discovery)
2. Knowledge and comprehension (cultural self-awareness, deep cultural knowledge and
sociolinguistic awareness)
3. Skills (listening, observing, and evaluating; analysing, interpreting, and relating)
4. Desired internal outcome (adaptability, flexibility, ethno-relative perspective, empathy)
5. Desired external outcome (the ability to interact effectively based on knowledge, skills,
attitudes)
Pedagogical strategies to improve intercultural communicative competence
In education various approaches have been used to cultivate ICC so far such as giving direct
instruction about cultures, integrating cultural topics into teaching languages and experiential
learning. Among others experiential learning (study abroad and cultural exchanges programs)
plays the most essential role in fostering students’ intercultural communicative competence.
Scholars such as Engle and Engle (2004) and Jackson (2009) emphasize on the importance of
cultural exchange programs in their studies. That means learners can experience real-life
situations in diverse nations, encounter different perspectives, and of course analyse them
critically which develops self-reflection.
The next approach is classroom-based learning which involves using authentic cultural materials
in the lessons such as TV shows, news, articles, films of the target language, making projects
about different cultures. Also, Liddicoat and Scarino (2013) recommends that integrating
teaching cultures into university education can be
carried out through intercultural
communication courses and problem-based methods which enhance students’ intercultural
competence. Adding to this, Byram (2008) states that language learning courses including
cultural aspects can contribute to the development of intercultural competence. Especially,
several classroom activities given by educators can promote cultural awareness. For instance, in
Hofstede’s study (2010), role playing is suggested as an efficient way for experiencing other
JOURNAL OF IQRO – ЖУРНАЛ ИҚРО – IQRO JURNALI – volume 15, issue 01, 2025
ISSN: 2181-4341, IMPACT FACTOR ( RESEARCH BIB ) – 7,245, SJIF – 5,431
ILMIY METODIK JURNAL
cultural situations. Moreover, critical pedagogy approach is highlighted by Guilherme (2002).
According to this strategy, students can analyse critically various cultural contexts which gives a
chance to enhance their awareness of different cultures.
Also, modern technologies can help to develop learners’ ICC and as for the research of O’Dowd
(2018), through technological advancements students can have an opportunity to communicate
with peers from different cultures online which is called virtual intercultural exchange.
Difficulties in developing ICC
In spite of approaches which are used for ICC improvement, learners still come across several
challenges. Sercu et al. (2005) states that in language education linguistic competence is mostly
prioritized over intercultural competence and surely, this is one of the main obstacles. In addition,
some teachers do not have enough qualification and confidence to help students to develop ICC.
Moreover, other factors such as language barriers, stereotypes, and resistance to different
cultures usually cause inefficient intercultural communicative competence (Fantini, 2009; Leask,
2009). Also, constraints in educational institutions can be another problematic issue. The study
of Leask (2009) shows that not all universities can meet all necessary requirements such as
assessment tools, recourses to integrate ICC into the curriculum.
It is clear that even though many studies on ICC have been made and there have been already
enough theoretical knowledge in the field, implementing them into practice still remains under
research. The article aims to fill this gap by examining how students develop their intercultural
communicative competence in universities and investigating educators and learners’ different
opinions about ICC.
METHODOLOGY
In order to explore basic strategies and obstacles in improving students’ intercultural
communicative competence of students, 100 students studying at Bachelor’s degree in Foreign
languages faculty and 12 educators working as EFL teachers at universities have participated in
this study. Mixed-methods approach had been applied to gain clear findings and more detailed
information in the research:
Quantitative research method. All participants have answered survey questionnaires which
intended to examine strategies and challenges in ICC.
Qualitative research method. 10 students and 10 teachers have given online interviews via
“Zoom” platform about the role of ICC, teaching methods, difficulties in the classroom and the
support by educational institutions.
When it comes to information collected in this study, quantitative data from survey
questionnaires have been analysed with the help of SPSS software program (Statistical Package
for the Social Sciences). As for qualitative data from interviews, they have been analysed
thematically that means participants’ opinions which are the same or nearly similar have been
provided under the same topic.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Quantitative findings
JOURNAL OF IQRO – ЖУРНАЛ ИҚРО – IQRO JURNALI – volume 15, issue 01, 2025
ISSN: 2181-4341, IMPACT FACTOR ( RESEARCH BIB ) – 7,245, SJIF – 5,431
ILMIY METODIK JURNAL
Figure 1. This chart shows which strategy can cultivate ICC more effectively as a result of
questionnaires.
As for the result demonstrated in the chart, studying abroad (also Cultural exchange programs) is
considered as the best way by both educators and students to enhance one’s intercultural
communicative competence. Actually, students face cultural differences directly by studying and
living in a foreign country and learn how to deal with them which benefits ICC. Also, virtual
exchange programs takes the next place according to its efficiency because leaners can have an
opportunity to interact with native speakers online. However, less beneficial methods are viewed
as classroom-based learning including project works, watching films representing the target
culture, and analysing cultural resources.
Figure 2. This table indicates main difficulties identified by participants.
Difficulties
Students
Teachers
Language barriers
45%
34%
Stereotypes
and
cultural
misunderstanding
17%
16%
Institutional
constraints on ICC
14%
31%
Limitations in ICC
assessment
6%
9%
Resistance to cultural
changes
18%
10%
JOURNAL OF IQRO – ЖУРНАЛ ИҚРО – IQRO JURNALI – volume 15, issue 01, 2025
ISSN: 2181-4341, IMPACT FACTOR ( RESEARCH BIB ) – 7,245, SJIF – 5,431
ILMIY METODIK JURNAL
Perspectives from teachers and students about challenges in ICC have been examined separately
and the findings of the investment show that language barriers such as lack of language
proficiency are a major obstacle to enhance intercultural communicative competence. After this,
the limitations of institutional support are regarded as the second key difficulty based on
teachers’ opinions. Other obstacles like stereotyping, misunderstanding diverse cultural views,
and being resistant in different cultural environments also hinder the process of ICC
improvement. At last, participants think that the lack of assessing ICC is a minor issue which can
be solved with a well-organized assessment system.
Qualitative findings
Through analysing interviews taken from participants, four main themes have been identified:
Experiential learning in real life interaction.
Both students and educators have mentioned the
advantages which learners can take by interacting directly with different cultures. Studying
abroad, cultural or virtual exchange programs can give a big chance to acquire intercultural
communicative competence in an effective way. For example, one of the students said that
“ When I went to Germany by an exchange program I learned about different cultural
perspectives and it was the best experience for me”.
Intercultural projects with peers.
Making group projects on different cultures can foster
communication skills, critical thinking, and problem solving skills as well. Also, students can
gain basic cultural knowledge by intercultural tasks. However, as one teacher states,
misunderstandings can appear while doing project works if the class is multilingual and
multicultural.
Institutional constraints.
Some of the students and educators have focused on the support
provided by institutions to the improvement of ICC in higher education. One foreign language
teacher has mentioned during the interview, “Even though everydiv knows the role of ICC in
language education, we do not have enough support to implement it effectively into the
curriculum”. Truly, integrating ICC into language teaching involves well-structured guidelines,
enough teaching recourses, and especially training courses for teachers’ preparedness.
Self-reflection and cultural awareness.
One of the students has mentioned that they also do
assignments such as writing reflection diaries and cultural autobiographies. Teachers sometimes
use these tasks in order to make students aware of their own cultural assumptions. In addition,
these activities improve students’ abilities to recognize and control their way of thinking and
learning.
As it is seen from the findings, institutions should integrate ICC into teaching languages, provide
teachers with intercultural training courses, and apply structured way of ICC assessment. Also,
students who cannot afford to study or travel abroad should be offered a virtual exchange
programs to improve intercultural communicative competence.
CONCLUSION
Nowadays the globalization is increasing all around the world and in this situation, developing
students’ intercultural communicative competence is regarded as a core aspect in language
teaching and learning. This study has analysed basic strategies in pedagogy, teaching and
learning experiences of ICC, structures of higher education which can contribute to ICC
enhancement or not. The results of the study indicate that experiential learning methods (e.g.
study abroad, intercultural projects, virtual exchange programs) are the most beneficial
JOURNAL OF IQRO – ЖУРНАЛ ИҚРО – IQRO JURNALI – volume 15, issue 01, 2025
ISSN: 2181-4341, IMPACT FACTOR ( RESEARCH BIB ) – 7,245, SJIF – 5,431
ILMIY METODIK JURNAL
contributors to ICC. That means these methods help students to develop critical cultural
awareness, empathy and resistance towards other cultures, and deeper understanding. However,
there are some obstacles which prevent the process of ICC development such as language
barriers, stereotypes and misunderstandings, and restrictions in institutional support. In order to
solve these problems well-organized and effective approaches should be implemented in the
education.
Also, further researches should be made to examine ICC development in diverse educational
places and to identify best assessment tools for ICC
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3. Deardorff, D. K. (2006). Identification and assessment of intercultural competence as a
student outcome of internationalization. Journal of Studies in International Education
4. Engle, L., and Engle, J. (2004). Assessing language acquisition and intercultural sensitivity
development in relation to study abroad program design. Frontiers: The Interdisciplinary Journal
of Study Abroad
5. Fantini, A. E. (2009). Assessing intercultural competence: Issues and tools. In D. K.
Deardorff (Ed.), SAGE Publications.
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(2005). Foreign language teachers and intercultural competence: An international investigation.
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