INTERCULTURAL CITIZENSHIP: A SURVEY ON KAZAKHSTANI EFL TEACHERS’ PERCEPTIONS AND TEACHING PRACTICES

Abstract

Intercultural citizenship education aims at harmonious raising of individuals with multiple talents, skills, and expertise, by instilling moral ideals, commitment to peace, responsibility, and conscientiousness. All these contribute to a comprehensive and stable development of society and state.This small-scale research aims to explore how English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachersperceive the concept of intercultural citizenship and what teaching practices they employ to foster students’ intercultural citizenship skills. The study collected data through an online questionnaire that included open-ended and close-ended items. The participants in the study were 23 EFL instructorsfrom two universities in Kazakhstan. The study’s results identified several categories associated with intercultural citizenship, such as openness and respect towards others, a commitment to human rights, empathy, tolerance, humanism, and active engagement in intercultural dialogue. The study indicated that teaching practices related to the integration of the intercultural citizenship component in the EFL classroom were limited, with some teachers promoting it through specialized textbooks and extracurricular activities, including English language decades and reading clubs. However, some participants did not employ teaching practices to prepare students as intercultural citizens. Furthermore, the participants reported challenges in finding suitable teaching materials to develop students’ intercultural citizenship skills. The findings of this study may provide insights for enhancing curricula, developing teaching resources, and implementing effective teaching practices to prepare students for active participation in a globalized society.