Abstract

Culture has a great influence on the language learning process and the way people use the language. The concept that learning a language is not only learning the linguistic knowledge but also its culture has been greatly emphasized. The purpose of this study was to investigate the perspectives of university English faculty in Taiwan on incorporating English-language cultures into their students’ English learning. A survey with a five-point Likert-type scale ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree) was designed and utilized. The target population for this study represented university English instructors in Taiwan during the Fall semester of 2007. The sample in this study included 146 English faculty members from 13 universities in Taiwan. Statistical analysis methods including descriptive analysis, independent-samples t test, one way ANOVA, and correlation analysis were performed. It is concluded that most university English faculty hold positive attitudes towards the incorporation of English-language cultures into their students’ English learning. Most English instructors agree with the concept that it is necessary to learn English-language cultures in order to master the English language. The incorporation of English-language cultures into English learning was indicated to enhance learners’ international understanding, reinforce their communicative competence, and raise their learning motivation.