New Vistas on Cultural Awareness among English Foreign Language Teachers at the Algerian Primary Education

A recent initiative in the Algerian education sector suggests integrating English as a compulsory subject starting from the third grade of primary level. However, it was noticed that the conditions in which the initiative has been undertaken might require much more time because the interval between the decision of English incorporation and coursebook design was too short for a well-thought teaching material. Additionally, many researchers have disclosed the rationale and need for integrating the notion of culture in combination with foreign language teaching. However, questions remain as to the forms of work, content selection, strategies employed and technologies that provide pupils with active interactions, and complete immersion. The present study explores the degree of cultural awareness among ten English Foreign Language teachers working at the Department of Letters and English Language, University of Ain-Temouchent. It points out to the various strategies they use while incorporating culture in teaching English. The study relies on a structured interview held with the selected participants. The results revealed that despite the paucity of cultural awareness among the teachers, they exert much effort to help their young pupils build on communicative competencies of the target and local cultures without overlooking their national identity. The results of this study suggest that English foreign language classes should be equipped with trained teachers and manageable resources to help improve the quality of English teaching. Teachers also need to integrate cultural aspects adequately to help young learners enhance their capacities to communicate across linguistic and cultural boundaries. In the aftermath, the study ends with a conclusion and provides some recommendations.