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4.    Knowledge of the cultural connotations of words and phrases. The student should indicate awareness that culturally conditioned images are associated with even the most common target words and phrases.

5.    Ability to evaluate statements ab out a culture. The student should demonstrate the ability to make, evaluate, and refine generalities concerning the target culture.

6.    Researching another culture. The student should show that he/she has developed the skills needed to locate and organize information about the target culture from the library, the mass media, people, and personal observation.

7.    Development of empathy towards other societies. The student should demonstrate intellectual curiosity about the target culture and empathy towards its people. (Stern 1992:212)

4.3. The content of culture teaching

The average language leamer is most likely to reąuire the following six aspects (topics) of culture:

•    Places

The leamer needs some sense of geography to which to relate the target language.

•    Way oflife

As the focus in culture teaching is on people, it is important to get familiarized with their life-style, how they live, think, and value, and with their everyday life.

•. Society

The leamer should be able to identify basie social, professional, economic, and age differences existing in the target society.

•    History

In order to understand better the background of the current culture, the leamer should get an opportunity to get to know the significant historical developments of the country, the main historical personalities as well as critical issues of the past and present.

•    Institutions

These usually include the system of govemment, the educational system, social welfare, economic institutions, religious institutions, political parties, and the media.

•    Art, musie, literaturę

The leamer should be able to acąuire knowledge about the cultural heritage of the country, to know of great figures and their achievements.

The six topie areas should find their place in the syllabus of a generał language course. The problem of the vastness of the culture concept should be sorted out by modifying the content and teaching techniąues to the leamers' age, their maturity, and their previous language leaming experience and generał educational background.

4.4. Techniąues of culture teaching

The selection of appropriate techniąues for teaching culture in a language class may differ depending on the leamer’s situation. At least three major situations may be mentioned. Firstly, and most commonly, there is a situation in which the student is both physically and psychologically far away from the target language reality. Secondly, the student, although physically far removed from the cultural setting, is psychologically closer to it. This is the case when he or she is highly motivated preparing to visit the country, either for a holiday, or to work there. And thirdly, the students — immigrants, who are already in the target language environment. In addition to the above, other factors, such as the age, maturity and education level of students should not be overlooked.

The following eight approaches to teaching culture may be mentioned:

1. An authentic classroom environment The classroom is decorated with all sorts of maps, posters, newspaper cuttings, and cartoons; it creates a visual and concrete presence of the target community.

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