La cultura como factor de interés para el
aprendizaje del francés como idioma extranjero
Culture as a factor
of interest for learning French as a foreign language
Jorge Delgado-Rocha
Universidad Central
del Ecuador, Quito, Ecuador
jgdelgado@uce.edu.ec
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1568-3719
Katherine Sánchez
-Medina
Universidad Central
del Ecuador, Quito, Ecuador
kdsanchezm@uce.edu.ec
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2376-5084
(Received on: 13/10/2018; Accepted on: 24/10/2018; Final version received on: 03/12/2018)
Suggested citation: Delgado-Rocha, J. y Sánchez-Medina, K. (2019).
Culture as a factor of interest
for learning French as a foreign
language.
Revista Cátedra, 2(1), 26-41.
Resumen
En este artículo
se presenta a la cultura francesa
como factor de decisión para los estudiantes de la Alianza
Francesa de Quito (AFQ). Elegir al idioma
francés para el aprendizaje
de un idioma extranjero es fundamental. Se define a la cultura
desde
un enfoque social, además de determinar las diferentes características
que adquiere dependiendo de
la sociedad a la que pertenece,
de igual forma el objeto de estudio ha sido escogido, debido a
que la Alianza Francesa es un
referente en la educación del idioma francés
como lengua extranjera en Ecuador.
La investigación va dirigida a determinar la imagen de
la institución que se ha
generado gracias a la utilización de la cultura
francesa como atrayente para los estudiantes de la AFQ. Se realizó un
análisis cualitativo y
cuantitativo para observar la importancia que le dan los estudiantes y el directorio de la AFQ
a la promulgación de la
cultura dentro y fuera de las aulas.
Se utilizaron como herramientas
de investigación: encuestas sobre la cultura francesa dirigidas a 136 estudiantes de la Alianza Francesa de
Quito y, además, una entrevista para conocer la importancia que le da esta institución al uso de la cultura francesa como atrayente educacional. En conclusión, se determinó
el nivel de influencia de la cultura de un país para aprender
su idioma, mediante el uso de diferentes actividades y eventos propuestos e
impulsados por la AFQ.
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Palabras clave
Cultura, comunicación, educación, francés, lenguas
extranjeras.
Abstract
In
this article, French
culture is presented as a decision factor for the students of the Alliance
Française of Quito
(AFQ) to choose the French language for the learning of a foreign language. It is essential to define the culture from a social perspective, in addition to determining the different characteristics that it acquires depending on the society to which it belongs; thus, the object of study chosen, since the Alliance Française is a reference in the education of the French language as a foreign language in
Ecuador. The research is aimed at determining the image of the institution because of the use of French
culture as an
attraction for the students of the Alliance Française
of Quito. A qualitative
and quantitative analysis was made to observe the importance that the students and the board of the Alliance Française of Quito give to
the promulgation of culture inside and outside the classroom. The research tools used were: surveys
on French culture directed to 136
students of the Alliance
Française of Quito and, in addition, an interview
to know the importance that this institution gives to the use of French
culture as an
educational attractor. In conclusion, the level of influence of a country's culture to learn its language was determined, using different activities
and events proposed and promoted by the Alliance
Française of Quito.
Keywords
Culture, communication, education, French, foreign languages.
1. Introduction
This article
aims to analyze the use of French culture into the strategies of the Alliance Française
of Quito to attract students' interest in learning
a foreign language. The hypothesis handled in this research is the use of culture as a strategic communication element
in the learning
of French as
a foreign language. In addition, the global context will be analyzed, as well as the society changes in the so-called globalization. Globalization will be viewed from
a cultural perspective
as a phenomenon of homogenization and unification of cultures. This will give
way to culture and interculturality and its implications in today's society.
Over the years, foreign language teaching institutions have had to adapt to
the new trends in
education that globalization has brought with it, and it is together with
the culture that the enlargement and attraction of new types of students has been possible. Communication strategies used at the Alliance Française
of Quito are selected as object of
study, since this institution is a reference in the teaching and learning
of French as
a foreign language in Ecuador. According to the International
Organization of La Francophonie, in fifty years French will be the second most spoken language in the world.
In the same way, French is
the third language most used in business, making it
a referential point ineducation.
cultural differences, rather than leading to cultural
differences can become
into opportunities for cultural synergies. By raising awareness of
their own cultural processes and peers, students and teachers can reflect
28
on their learning cultures, expose their difficulties and try to solve them
(Trujillo, 2010, p. 153).
Alliance Française
of Quito was founded in 1953, becoming the first Alliance Française of Ecuador. Since its origin it has
positioned as a benchmark in the learning of French as a foreign language in our country.
Cultural activities
are carried out in the
institution, activities in which the Ecuadorian
culture and the
French culture are related. In addition, the Alliance Française is the only French learning institution that has diplomas in language certification endorsed by the
French Ministry of Education, granting an advantage over other language centers.
This research will be conducted from the systemic approach, understood as "a logical- mathematical theory that proposes to formulate and derive those general principles
applicable to all systems" (Betarlanffy,
1978, p. 34). In the
systemic approach, the institution is seen as a system, where each of the parties fulfils a specific function, which understands the context and and how it affects each
of these functions.
To meet this perspective, information will be addressed from an interview with Charline Lagarde, teaching coordinator of the Alliance
Française of Quito. Also, the systemic perspective will be fulfilled,
with the use of surveys with
closed questions, and with a lenght of no more than six questions; these questions are seen from Armstrong and Kotler perspective
The most used method for collecting primary data is the most appropriate strategy for gathering descriptive information. The company that wants to know the knowledge, attitudes, preferences or purchasing behavior of people can often obtain that information by asking them directly (Philip Kotler, 2012,
p. 109).
The article is
structured in: a
Literary review of the culture, interculturality
and globalization;
the following will be the application of a double analysis on the communication strategies used by the Alliance Française of Quito and the introduction of the culture, for which it
will be necessary to use an open interview addressed to the Director of the Alliance
Française. A survey will be used with open and closed questions addressed to the students of this institution. For the
application of these research tools the sampling formula for finite
universes was used and a
sample of 136 students who currently perform their studies at the Alliance Française
was obtained. Then the interpretation of the results obtained from both the interview
and the surveys was performed. Finally, based on the results obtained, certain
conclusions and recommendations were proposed on the importance of the French culture as an attractive
factor for students of the Alliance Française to finish their studies of foreign language.
2. Review of
the literature
2.1
Culture and its study
The term culture, from its Latin root, was understood in the beginning as the cultivation of the earth or as a reference of the work, but later, it gave way to its
meaning like the cultivation of the spirit. Nowadays, the term culture is quite used in the society, but this word has several meanings from different perspectives. It may be that intangible feature of society that makes it unique.
29
According to Bauman (2011),
culture or liquid modernity was initially considered as an agent of change, with a mission to educate the masses and to change their customs; but culture in modernity has lost that meaning, because it does not longer have the mission to illustrate and enlighten people, but to seduce the public. In this consumer society,
the goal is to create
new needs and guarantee a permanent dissatisfaction.
The French concept of
"culture" emerged as a collective name for government forces to foster learning, soften and improve manners, refine
artistic tastes and
awaken spiritual
needs that the public had not felt until then (Bauman, 2011,
p. 34).
Bauman refers to liquid modernity because in the same way that the liquid, its stages in the social life cannot
maintain its form for a long
or prolonged time, the solid has been diluted, and unlike the past, these dissolutions cannot be replaced by other solid
forms. In our society, consumption has become part of the daily life and culture is in
this consumption.
The culture of liquid
modernity corresponds well with the
individual freedom of choice, and its function is to
ensure that the choice is
a necessity and an unavoidable duty of life, while
the responsibility for the election
and its consequences remains where the
human condition of liquid modernity has placed: on the individuals,
now appointed general
manager and sole executor of his 'Life
Policy' (Bauman, 2011, p. 35).
Society has always had the
instinct to identify itself through ideas, reactions and
habitual patterns of conduct that members
have acquired either by instruction
or by imitation.
The migration of people is an
integral part of modernity. According to Bauman (2011) this phenomenon is separated
into three phases:
1.
Emigration from Europe to the rest of the world: Europe,
being the most populous region in the world at the time, was mobilized to the supposedly empty lands.
During these migrations, the invasion and slaughter was
justified with the mission of the white man and his cultural culture.
2.
Migration towards a model of assimilation: when the colonies were
about to end some of the native populations of the invaded places and traveled to the countries of their colonizers, so that when they arrived they became "ethnicminorities".
3.
The third phase, in which we are currently living, is a process that is still under development, and despite the efforts
to curb the access of immigrants to other countries by their Governments, this processcontinues.
These migratory processes have resulted in many more changes in the history of humanity, including phenomena that are currently studied, one of these is globalization, the phenomenon most studied by the social sciences.
There is something known as "cultural" shock ", which usually happens with people who are inserted in another culture different from the culture of origin. It can also occur when an individual
learns a second language, in both cases, symptoms such as: rejection, unhappiness, among others can happen.
This state of stress makes the student feels discomfort
and discrepancies between his/her culture and the new World he/she is exploring; it is a normal feeling
in this kind of situation, because the student is not used to socialize in that space. The way to overcome this shock is to
immerse in the culture, and know native people. It can then be defined as a temporary situation, because thanks to socialization and understanding that feeling of anguish disappears.
30
2.2
Globalization and its effect in the society
When referring to globalization, it is necessary to specify its different
points of view since globalization can
be analyzed from the meaning of the universalization of the economy, but it can also be seen from the cultural aspect and even from the Ppolitical.
"This term refers to something that occurs all over the world, affecting all countries
and almost the entire world population" (Ander-Egg, 2016,
p. 17). To this process that affects all, Ander-Egg mentions that it existed long before capitalism, a particular
aspect of the process of globalization which originated in the fifteenth century but it started to have significant
impact only at the end of the twentieth century with
the technological advances. For organizations, Ander-Egg mentions that globalization has another meaning:
Globalization,
for the companies
of my group,
is the freedom
to invest when and where they want, to
produce what they want, to buy
and sell wherever they want and to
suffer the least possible restrictions derived from liberal legislation and
social conventions (Ander-Egg,
2016, p. 17).
Roche
and Oliver (2015) mention that globalization has to do with a homogenization culture process, where there is only one way of
life, a uniformity of behaviors, thoughts and even leisure. For this reason, the media
has been used as a source of strategic dissemination at the global level, since emptying the cultures
of other countries provides a substantial advantage to turn the new culture into merchandise in the minds of people that make up other countries. "Every advance in technology makes it possible, without doubt, the acceleration of the process, but it does not imply changes in the fundamentals of this: In its logic,
in its system of values, in its
objectives" (Roche and Narbona, 2005, p. 69). Therefore, one cannot
speak of interculturality, since while unification
is interposed in globalization, interculturality
raises a dialogue between cultures
in an equitable manner.
2.3
La interculturality and its role nowadays
Modern nation-states have as their
main characteristic the plurality of cultures
in their territory, i.e., no longer one speaks of a single culture but of several diverse cultures with their own peculiarities. The union of these cultures results in diversity and the generation of new differences and new social groups.
Historically, the strategy of the dominant groups of the new States was to reduce internal diversity and promote cultural
homogeneity through school control and mass media, the imposition of a particular language, symbols and rituals, the delimitation of frontiers, the reconstruction and the invention of history,
and the fact of imagining the existence of a monolithic and monocultural unit that contrasted with the outside world (Beltrán, 2015, p. 66).
Interculturality is linked to aspects such as migration, where a process of exchange of open and respectful viewpoints is carried out between people of different origins, traditions, languages, religions, among others. It serves to better understand the diverse practices and visions of
the world. Through interculturalism tolerance and respect are sought. It is the capacity to
interconnect the culture of origin with the foreign culture. "The exchange is produced on an equal basis understood as the equal contribution of all the groups involved" (Beltrán, 2015, p.
80). Exchange is
the main characteristic of interculturalism. Interculturality in the education process of the students has a main character, since education
must allow spaces of absorption and integration between different cultures. "When
it comes to intercultural education,
we must explore in detail the discursive
31
constructions
with which different meanings have been given
to the term
culture" (Cortez, 2015, p. 24).
Language as an element of culture is an integral part of interculturalism, so it can be seen reflected in the Conseil de L'Europe (Council of Europe), as they are the creators of the CECRL (Cadre
Européen Commun de Reference pour les langues). This is a reference book for the Teaching and learning
of languages spoken in Europe (Spanish, French).
Its main objective is the organization of language learning
and the
homologation of diplomas or degrees, interculturality is a fundamental part of this. Within this manual, the person who learns the new language is considered as "apprenant" or apprentice, which gives the category of a subject or social agent. Therefore, the class is addressed to their social needs with the environment. The "apprenant" does not learn two foreign ways of
communicating, but rather he/she learns interculturality, a
form of relationship between the native languages and the foreignlanguage.
"The
objective of interculturality is communication, understanding of others, without imposing our values on
them or necessarily identifying with theirs" (Beltrán,
2015, p. 81). Within the communication, the teaching of languages together with interculturality is of paramount importance, because the culture of the other has elements that can be considered sensitive, for example, in a culture the
way of greeting can be offensive
or even aggressive, then interculturality is a fundamental aspect to
the knowledge and understanding of theother.
The
foreign language student must possess skills related to interculturality. These include the ability of the student to establish a relationship between the culture of
origin and the foreign culture. In addition, it is necessary that the student can
identify and know how to use interaction strategies that will depend on the contact with people of another culture. Finally,
the student needs to understand and serves
as an intermediary between the culture of
origin and the foreigner to solve intercultural misunderstandings, as well as to overcome stereotyped ideas.
The basis of interculturality is the understanding of the other, empathy, the exchange of ideas and experiences, but not the imposition. It is manifested in the harmonious integration of cultures, thus avoiding the loss of
identity of minority groups to dominant groups. Integration is the adaptation of all parties to equality of conditions, obligations, and even rights.
Even though this is the best solution for the proper coexistence, it does not mean that there are no
processes of acculturation or emergence of new cultures,
because it is inevitable. Globalization and Interculturalism change the paradigm
of homogeneous societies or
groups with a specific culture within a unique geographic space. "Culture and identity are built socially and are continually in motion and in reconstruction"
(Beltrán, 2015, p. 86).
It is also necessary to clarify the difference between intercultural and multiculturalism. Multiculturalism refers to the result of intercultural,
i.e., to
new cultures that have emerged or evolved
after the contact, while interculturality, as we definedit, is
the harmonic dialogue between these cultures.
3. French culture and the
Alliance Française of Quito
The Alliance Française is a non-profit organization which aims to promote
the French language in the different countries
of the world,
its main headquarters is located in Paris,
32
capital of France. On July 21, 1883, French
intellectuals such as: The scientist Louis Pasteur, the diplomat Ferdinand de Lesseps, the writers Jules Verne and Ernest
Renan and the
editor Armand Colin, among others met in the Cercle Saint Simon. From this moment, it spreads
throughout the world for the same purpose. Currently, the Alliance Française
has 1000 headquarters in 136 countries. In 2013,
the Alliance
Française becomes the first Cultural NGO
in the world with 6 million of spectators and 500,000 students.
Figure 1. Headquarters of the Alliance Française of Quito in Eloy Alfaro
and Belgium. Source: Campus
France equateur.campusfrance.org website
The
Alliance Française
of Quito has
as its
vision the following "to achieve excellence through permanent innovation in the teaching of the French language and to be a reference of prestige in the cultural
diffusion and
the link between the Francophone and Ecuadorian cultures" (Alliance Française, 2018). It works closely with
the Cultural
Cooperation and Action Service of the French Embassy for the development and realization
of linguistic, artistic and cultural actions. The
offer of studies in the Alliance Française of Quito is aimed at
learning the
French language since its origin until the preparation and obtaining of
diplomas certified
by the Ministry of Education of France, such as the TEL, DELF
(Diplôme d'études de langue française) A1, A2, B1, B2, and the DALF (Diplôme approfondi de langue française) C1 and C2; These diplomas serve to
carry out studies in the francophone country. "Currently, more than 3000 students and professors are part of a network
linked by the language, French and Francophone culture "(Alliance Française, 2018). It should also be mentioned that within its offer
is the FLE-Vivier program aimed at those
people who
want to obtain a certification
as Frenchteachers.
4. Objectives of the research
The objectives are:
1. To define the importance of culture and globalization in
today's society, when deciding to start and continue the learning
of a foreign language such as French.
2. To analyze
the communication strategies of the Alliance
Française of Quito, and how the French culture has been integrated withinthem.
To achieve the objectives
of this research
a quantitative-qualitative analysis
was conducted that focused on
solving the following questions.
1. ¿How does the Alliance Française of Quito incorporate the French culture into the classes and in their student recruitment strategies?
33
2. ¿ What is the importance and interest given by the students of the Alliance Française of Quito to the immersion and learning of the French culture?
5. Research methods
5.1
Interview
The purpose of the interview is to obtain information from
a primary source. "The interview is not a casual talk but a dialogue for informative purposes" (López Sobrino and López Cubino, 2012, p. 11). In the case of this investigation the interviews will
be made to the Teaching Coordinator Charline Lagarde. It was
the General Director
who appointed Charline Lagarde as the information support officer for this research. Once the
interviews were conducted,
it was noted that the information provided would be duplicated, since both the Teaching cCoordinator and the Communication Director
had the same information and data.
5.2
Survey
The survey will
be used as a data collection
method to obtain information from a primary source. The surveys can be carried out personally,
through the Internet thanks to various
programs created for this purpose
and also telephonically; in
this particular research the surveys were
carried out personally.
To start, it is necessary to make a questionnaire designed to obtain specific information. The people participating in the survey have been previously selected through the obtaining of a representative sample.
Survey research, the most widely used method of collecting primary data, is the
most appropriate strategy for
gathering descriptive information. The company that wants to know the
knowledge, attitudes, preferences or purchasing behavior of people can often obtain that information
by asking them directly
(Philip Kotler, 2012, p.256).
For the tabulation of data,
it will first be related the data of age with the data of sex, then it will be necessary to know the
age and the level of studies. From question number one, it will be related to the level, because through this assessment can be knownif the most advanced students have or do not have
more influence
of culture.
5.3
Sample
In order to carry out the
surveys, it is necessary to know the number of the target population. Data collection of
100% of this population has a certain
level of difficulty, so it is necessary to obtain a sample of participants. To obtain the sample, an interview was carried out previously to Charline Lagarde, Teaching Coordinator of the Alliance Française of Quito, who knew that the period in which this investigation is carried out (August
2018- September 2018) is one of
the periods with less frequency of students, due
to school vacations.
The number of students enrolled and attending regularly to class
in the Alliance Française de
Quito during the year is about 5000 people, and in
the period August-October is 300 students. Therefore, the formula for obtaining the sample based on a finite universe resulted in 136
students, so 136
surveys were conducted
𝑛 = 𝑍2 × 𝑁 × 𝑝 × 𝑞
𝑒2(𝑁 − 1) + 𝑍2 ×
𝑝 × 𝑞
Ecuación 1
𝑛 = 1.962 × 300 × 0.8 × 0.2
0.052(300 −
1) + 1.962 × 0.8 × 0.2
Ecuación 2
= 135.37 ≈ 136
6. Results
6.1
Analysis of
the interviews
The information shared by Charline Lagarde, Teaching Coordinator of the Alliance Française was important for carrying out this article. During the interview
we asked if the number of students has increased or decreased in the last
years, to which Lagarde answered: "The
number of students has not increased or decreased, the number is variable, but anyway I consider that it has maintained" (Lagarde, 2018).
It can be deduced that the Alliance Française maintains the annual number of students, which could be an indicator of image positioning, with a privileged position compared to other language learning institutions. After knowing this response, it was important to know the image of the members of the institution, for which it was asked, what do you
think is the reason that the CFA has taken this privileged position on the other language institutes?
The French alliance, I think has this position,
with an image of prestige because it always tries, I say try, because it is never possible to do it at
100%, to maintain a quality of service,
a certain exigency, and to be able to adjust to the needs of the students, i.e., if a student comes, we will try to know what
his/her projects are, to accompany him/her, to give solutions adapted to his/her profile, to his/her expectations. For us each
student is important, and we take him/her into consideration (Lagarde,
2018).
Es
decir que,
el trato personalizado
y la adaptación a
las necesidades de los estudiantes es la base
fundamental para que
la Alianza Francesa haya logrado esa
posición de prestigio frente
a los demás. Por lo tanto, si la Alianza Francesa de Quito, considera
que uno de sus fuertes es el servicio al cliente, es también relevante
conocer si la cultura francesa es un
fuerte atrayente para sus estudiantes.
Por lo que se utilizó la pregunta ¿considera que la cultura francesa es un atrayente
para que los estudiantes decidan inscribirse?, a
lo que Lagarde respondió:
In other words,
the personalized treatment and adaptation to the needs of the students is the fundamental basis for the Alliance
Française to achieve this position of prestige. Therefore, if the Alliance Française of Quito considers that one of its strengths is the customer service,
it is also relevant to know if French culture is a strong attraction for its students. So we asked: do you think that French
culture is an attraction for students to enroll?
to which Lagarde
answered:
I'm not sure. If we want to
know it we
should
ask the students, because as I said the students do not necessarily attend our cultural events, rather I think what is very appealing to students at the time of enrollment are
35
the studies in France.
I could say that 50% of students have registered for the pleasure of learning, so perhaps it may be linked to culture, i.e.,
French- speaking
general culture related to the knowledge of
a new language, new culture, gastronomy, travel, etc. (Lagarde, 2018).
For Lagarde, learning French is not directly
linked to cultural interests, since 50% of them are enrolled in the courses for pleasure; likewise, if
they are not
interested in
the culture, the cultural events organized by the Institution are not going to be of their interest either. These events are related both to the French culture and to the Ecuadorian culture, and sometimes the capacity of the placeis
low so they must move to a larger space, as is the case of concerts.
If students enroll for the pleasure of learning, rather than culture, we need to know if students complete
all levels offered by the institution. With regard to this question, Charline Lagarde said: "Not generally, not until the B2, most students only get to level A2, which would be about 6 periods. And in general, when they decide to continue until
B1 they continue to B2" (Lagarde,
2018).
Although the CFA has this prestige, only one part continues its learning up to the level
B2, level necessary to enter to a university or educational institution in France. However, with regard to communication strategies, it was considered
important to ask whether there was a differentiation between students and prospective students. Lagarde said: "Yes,
we make the
difference between those who are already students of
the Alliance Française and the new students, for the new ones we always have a marketing strategy, and different communication" (Lagarde, 2018).
It can be said that Alliance Française of Quito uses targets
(new students and students enrolled) for their
communication strategies. For students enrolled,
internal marketing strategies
for loyalty are used; for new or
future students, external marketing is used as an attractant.
Finally, the knowledge prior to the interview
is the annual realization of the linguistic journey, a communication strategy of the Alliance Française that has immersed the cultural aspect due to the direct contact with the
French culture. So does the linguistic travel promotion work only for students or can people from outside also sign up?
In general, the linguistic journey is open to all students of the institute, a network that constitutes about ten schools in
Quito. The minimum level required is A1. We have had students who have wanted to travel in
the linguistic journey, who have
registered only to pass the A1 level and travel (Lagarde,
2018).
With the answer offered to this question, we can conclude
that the French
culture can serve like an interest factor so that the students register in the French courses. They will have the opportunity to know the culture and
French language, to learn its customs and to gain access to a different society, all this by means of a trip to France promoted by AFQ. This
interest has its origin in the students because the trip is not at the beginning of the course but at the end, which provides an opportunity for the Alliance Française
to present in an attractive way everything that the students will see during their journey.
The target of the trip is that it serves as a reinforcement for the students who started their course and traveled to France, and then they could be able to continue finishing their studies in the institution.
36
6.2
Analysis of
the survey
The survey was applied to 136 students from a total of
300, studying at Alliance Française of Quito, and belonging to the period number 5, i.e. August
– October 2018.
It should be mentioned that the participants did so voluntarily.
The survey was scheduled for a duration of 5 minutes, but participants took 10 to 15 minutes due to the questions in which they had to give their opinion.
At the end
of the survey, a talk was generated among the students about these questions. Next, is presented the tabulation and interpretation of the results of the questions asked
in the survey.
Figure 2. What aspects of
the French culture have been acquired in your daily routine
thanks to the Alliance Française?
1. The music, to know its
history (History of France) day by day,
2. The democracy of the country, respect for
humanrights,
3.
A bit of the
culture and History of France,
4.
Listen
to varied music, French movies,
5.
Holidays, laws and rules studied in the book,
6.
The structure, education, politics,
the films, the
painting, the museums are the best I have known,
7.
Open
mindedness, cinema, music, cooking, fashion, multiculturalism,
8.
French culture in clothing, French language, youth exhibitions, food culture,
9.
Points of view and problem analysis. Appreciation for art.
Learn to value the culture to which Ibelong,
10.
Several of the aspects that have used to in my day to day
of the Alliance Française and its culture are the education, the formal form of
speaking, the food, the variety in each
dish,
11. Board games, French cinema and francophone countries,
12. The songs and the understanding of some French words used in Spanish,
37
Figure
3. What aspects of the French culture are similar
to the Ecuadorian
Culture?
For this question, the students took time to answer it, and they sometimes talked among them, and also answered it at the end.
64% of respondents answered that
no aspect is comparable, 18% responded the art, 5% responded
fashion, 3% responded
punctuality, the remaining 10% responded to different topics such as cordiality, education, food, among others.
1. People cordiality,
2. These are very different cultures for example you can compare the gastronomy, the fashion, the education. As completelyantonyms,
3. Architecture, art,
4.
Fashion,
gastronomy,
5. The customs transmitted from generation to generation,
6. Education, punctuality, respect, silence,
7. Depending on the region, in Quito people are
more conservative than French. However, interest in
art and food
is very similar,
8.
In the
French culture there is more education than in the Ecuadorian,
9. Unfortunately, not many. The differences are too pronounced,
10. The usual greeting
among friends, eating with the family, the variety of typical food,
museums, and monuments that make up thecountry,
11. In a negative aspect that France is more organized than Ecuador and something positive for students is that the two languages are very similar,
12. I think they are currently compared in the seriousness and way of not
being gentle with foreigners,
38
Figure 4.
Have you attended the different
cultural events organized by the French Alliance?
This question was made to find out if
the students participate in the cultural events of the
Alliance Française of
Quito. 64.9% of
the participants do not attend the alliance's
cultural events, out of which
38 people belong to the A1 level; 37 people to level A2; 10 to level
B1 and 4 to
level B2. 35% attend the different cultural events, this represents 16 people of level A1, 21 people of level A2, 8 of level B1 and 2 of level B2. Those who participate in the cultural
events needed to specify which events they normally attend. The results are the followings:
Figure
5. Cultural events
Out of the 47 people
attending the cultural events of the
Alliance Française, 42.5% have
attended the exhibitions and art galleries, this being the
most welcome event among the
participants. Then, in
Figure 7, the French film events,
with a total of 25.5%;
music festivals with 21.2%;
the events of psychoanalysis and gastronomic fair with 4.2% each and finally, the Light Festival with 2%. On the
Light Festival, it should
be emphasized that it is not
an
39
event organized by the
Alliance Française but if it has participation
of the French culture to be done jointly by the municipalities
of Quito and Lyon.
Figure
6. Do you consider that the cultural events help in the learning of the French language?
In this question, 6 people did not answer, representing 4.4% of the total number of participants. 66.9% think that cultural
events help considerably in the
learning of French
and 27.9% believe
that it helps, but partially or less.
Figure 7. Do you consider that the
French culture is well represented in the strategies and events carried out by
the Alliance Française?
Once again, in this question 8 people did not answer, representing 5.8% of the participants. 67.6% believe that French
culture is highly represented in the strategies and events of the
Alliance Française, showing
that the alliance has a good position. 26.4% consider that
it is partially represented.
7. Discussion
and conclusions
Culture has several definitions according to the perspective seen, this
research focused on the
research from the social aspect. Culture has developed and has exchanged ideas and visions
of the world due to migrations, a main characteristic of
human beings, and this has resulted in interculturalism.
40
Globalization
as a term began to be used in the 1980s, after the Second World
War and the emergence of new communication and information technologies. What it seeks is to homogenize and unify culture. At present, this process is more
forceful due
to the use of ICT in the daily lives of people, who can know and observe more easily how it is and how people live in other societies.
Interculturality is different from multiculturalism, because multiculturality refers to the result of the mix of cultures, while interculturality is a dialogue between them. Interculturality helps people in a society delimited with its predefined aspects and characteristics to access information and knowledge outside this society. In this way they acquire knowledge and a broader and cosmopolitan thought.
According to the authorities of the Alliance Française
of Quito, culture is
not an attraction for prospective students of the CFA, but rather the role it
fulfills in the communication strategies is to retain the students to continue
studying. This can be seen as a missed opportunity, because when the survey was conducted for
the students of the Alliance Française
of Quito, 66.9%
of the 136 students think that cultural events help them considerably in learning
French. And 67.6% believe that French culture is highly represented in the
strategies and events of the Alliance Française,
which reflects that the AFQ has
a good level of positioning against the interest of students when choosing
the institution and language to start learning.
Although the results of this investigation are not conclusive, it is clear
that culture has a great potential to be a determining factor
for students at the time of choosing a language to study, as a proof is that the public attending the
cultural events
of the Alliance Française of Quito is not necessarily the same public that takes classes in the AFQ.
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Authors
JORGE DELGADO-ROCHA completed his university education in Ukraine, in the city of Vinnytsia, at the National Technical University
of Vinnytsia. He graduated as a Business Administration Engineer, specialized in International
relations in 2013.
In 2015 he obtained his master's degree in Business
Administration, specialized in international relations.
He has more than 3 years of experience in university teaching
in different institutions, and 3 years of experience as a freelance Russian translator. He is currently working as a teacher at the
Faculty of Social Communication at Universidad
Central del Ecuador. His main research topics include work motivation,
research on culture at international and organizational levels, E-government management and brandmanagement.
KATHERINE
SÁNCHEZ-MEDINA holds a title in Social Communication with a specialization of Organizational Communication in
2018, obtained at Universidad
Central del Ecuador, at the Faculty of Social Communication,
From 2017 to 2018, she studies the formation course of FLE (Français langue Étrangère) in the program "Vivier de
professeurs de Français langue Étrangère", sponsored by Embassy of France
in Ecuador and performed
by the Alliance Française of Quito.