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The Cultural Inventory: A Tool for Increasing Comprehension of Foreign Language Materials
Author(s) -
Pfister Guenter G.,
Poser Yvonne
Publication year - 1987
Publication title -
foreign language annals
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.258
H-Index - 49
eISSN - 1944-9720
pISSN - 0015-718X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1944-9720.1987.tb02964.x
Subject(s) - worksheet , reading comprehension , foreign language , reading (process) , comprehension , meaning (existential) , linguistics , process (computing) , psychology , computer science , pedagogy , mathematics education , philosophy , psychotherapist , operating system
The inventory technique is a reading tool to help students take advantage of their background knowledge and experience to overcome the gap between native and foreign cultural perspectives. The greater the reader's access to the foreign language text, the larger the body of data the reader will receive and process. The cultural inventory worksheet is specifically designed to help students collect and organize cultural information in written foreign language material. Emphasis is placed on the cultural factors during the pre‐reading phase because they provide orientation and stimulate readers to form predictions concerning the text's meaning. The strategies presented here are geared to promoting independent analytical ability and critical responses to materials from the target culture.