Integration of Intercultural Communicative Competence: A case of English Language Teachers in Higher Education

There is scanty information about the practices of higher education teachers in integrating intercultural communicative competence (ICC) in language teaching particularly to the Purposive Communication course. Given this gap, this research sought to explore and study teachers’ level of ICC integration, and the ways on how they integrate it to their classes, through mixed-methods, particularly sequential explanatory design. The study employed the initial gathering of quantitative data through surveying Purposive Communication teachers and students in all state universities and colleges in three provinces and refining and explaining these data in the qualitative phase, which included the interview with teachers and students and the content analysis of learning materials used in the course. Results revealed that teachers showed high integration of ICC in their classes. They integrate ICC by linking culture to communication, adapting authentic materials in teaching intercultural communication, and providing role-playing and inquiry-based activities to foster students’ ICC. Though the teachers acquired an overall high integration rating, it was found out that ICC framework was only moderately integrated in components such as use of ICT-based materials, provision of authentic activities and assessments targeting social interaction, reflection and responsibility. Given the findings, it is concluded that strengthening the integration of ICC activities in the Purposive Communication course by capacitating language teachers in terms of content and pedagogy is needed.