Scholars have demonstrated that language and culture are two notions that are inextricably linked in human life and the enrichment of one leads to the development of the other. Research in ELT too has led practitioners today to emphasize developing intercultural communicative competence (ICC) rather than knowledge of grammar or lexical structures alone. Hence, the present study investigates the impact of teaching intensive reading skills in an EFL classroom using multicultural narratives to simultaneously promote ICC that would enable learners to use English effectively. It does so by carrying out an intervention with a sample of one hundred and sixty (160) first-year students learning English as an obligatory course at the English Language Center at the Arab American University in Palestine during the second semester of the academic year 2020-2021.
The sample, divided into an experimental and a control group, was taught intensive reading skills using texts that incorporate aspects of multicultural contexts over a period of about three months. However, the experimental group underwent exposure and practice in various concepts and principles of ICC while learning English. In contrast, a control group practiced developing intensive reading skills using the same texts but in a traditional manner, without specific attention to ICC aspects. The groups were assessed using qualitative and quantitative tools to determine the increase in their English proficiency, if any, and to measure their awareness and development of intercultural communicative competence in English.
Chapter one offers an introduction to the background and the context of the study and introduces the concept of ICC and its importance in the EFL classroom. Chapter two discusses the concept of intensive reading, its significance and the various stages involved in developing intensive reading skills in a classroom context. It presents some definitions of intercultural communicative competence (ICC) and describes the studies and experiments conducted in the field of ICC models. It also discusses some of the ICC measurement tools and empirical studies in teaching intensive reading skills using ICC texts in the EFL classroom.
Chapter three presents the rationale of the study, its assumptions, research aims and objectives, and the research questions it proposes to investigate. It also offers an outline of the design and of the study, research tools, a profile of the sample of participants, a profile of the Arab American University, methods of collecting data, schedule of the study and statistical analysis used.
Chapter four describes details of the study as it was carried out and analyzes the qualitative and qualitative data collected through the various research tools. The analyses are based on the results of the statistical treatment, the reflective journals and semi-structured interviews.
Chapter five presents a brief summary of the findings following the analyses of chapter four. It discusses the implications of the study as well as its limitations, and offers suggestions for EFL classrooms at institutional and policy levels.