Investigation of Cultural Competence Development Processes of English Translation and Interpretation Department Students

• Published in: The journal of language and linguistic studies Vol. 16; no. 2; pp. 1070 - 1083
• Main Author: Köksal, Onur
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Journal of Language and Linguistic Studies 01.01.2020
• Subjects: Cultural Awareness; Departments; English (Second Language); Foreign Countries; High School Students; Language Processing; Language Proficiency; Preferences; Program Descriptions; Reading Comprehension; Second Language Instruction; Second Language Learning; Student Attitudes; Teaching Methods; Translation; Undergraduate Students; Universities; Writing Skills; Turkey
• ISSN: 1305-578X; 1305-578X
• DOI: 10.17263/JLLS.759369

The purpose of the present research is investigating cultural competence development processes of students studying at Selcuk University Department of English Translation and Interpretation. Data of the research were collected with English Translation and Interpretation Students' Cultural Competence Development Processes Survey, developed by the researcher. The courses promoting cultural competence were identified based on the analysis of the collected data. Additionally, the present research studies whether students' cultural competence development habits varied and how they formed these habits in terms of different demographic features. At the end of the research some suggestions below were given. High school students at foreign language and other programs should be offered with clear information about the department of English Translation and Interpretation. English Translation and Interpretation students, who were born abroad, can be detected and further studies can be conducted on the reasons for their preferences of the department. Even English education starts at an earlier age in Turkey, most of the participants stated that they started to learn English between the ages 9-11. A more comprehensive study should be conducted by language educators on the reasons for this finding. In the present research, the participants were asked to self-report on their speaking, reading comprehension and writing proficiency levels. In a further study on this subject, researchers can conduct proficiency exams to define participants' levels.