Intercultural Competence Conference

2014 International Conference on the Development and Assessment of Intercultural Competence:
Preparing and Supporting K–16 Language Teachers to Teach for Intercultural Competence in and beyond the Classroom

January 23-26, 2014, in Tucson, AZ

Keynote Presentation

Joan Kelly Hall

(Pennsylvania State University), How Current Understandings of Language and Culture (should) Inform L2 Pedagogy

Plenary Presentations

Carl Blyth

(University of Texas at Austin), Preparing Language Teachers to Teach for Intercultural Competence: The Promise of Cultural Linguistics

Maria Carreira

(California State University, Long Beach), Heritage Language Teaching: Bridging the Gap between “what is” and “what should be”

Toni Theisen

(ACTFL President, Loveland High School), Activating Communication by Integrating

With greater awareness of the importance of intercultural competence in enabling learners to communicate effectively in an increasingly interconnected world, and with global travel and instant international communications available to a growing number of people, one of the primary goals of language teaching is to promote the acquisition of intercultural competence in the classroom and beyond. In order for teachers to become intercultural mediators (Zarate, Gohard-Radenkovic, Lussier, & Penz, 2003) and facilitators of intercultural competence in the classroom, it is critical for them to understand the concept of intercultural competence, the process involved in its development, and the ways and means of assessing and evaluating it. However, this cannot be accomplished without a major paradigm shift in the professionalization of language teachers. Today's language teachers must be equipped with the tools and strategies to effectively and efficiently foster the knowledge, skills, and attitudes of intercultural competence, as outlined by scholars in the field, in order to support all students and prepare them to become interculturally competent global citizens.

Organized by the Center for Educational Resources in Culture, Language and Literacy (CERCLL) at the University of Arizona, the fourth international conference on the development and assessment of intercultural competence aims to bring researchers and practitioners across languages, levels, and settings to discuss and share research, theory, and best practices; to foster meaningful professional dialogue; and to enhance teacher effectiveness in teaching for intercultural competence in and beyond the classroom in order to support all students' development of intercultural competence. The conference is attended by faculty, administrators and students at post-secondary institutions, as well as K-12 teachers and individuals from a wide range of other non-traditional educational contexts who are interested in language teaching/learning and cultural competence.

Information about the conference including abstracts and bios for the keynote and plenary speakers, full details about the workshop offerings, a list of paper and poster presentations, and other details are on the conference website: http://cercll.arizona.edu/development/conferences/2014_icc


Please contact CERCLL with questions: coh-cercll@email.arizona.edu, 520-626-8071.