Sutraphorn Tantiniranat (Khwan) The Manchester Institute of Education The University of Manchester The ASEAN Context of Intercultural Communication: Roles and Purposes of Thai ELT The ASEAN Context of Intercultural Communication: Roles and Purposes of Thai ELT

Thailand and the ‘single ASEAN’ economic community Implications for English language teaching in ASEAN and Thailand English as the regional and global lingua franca for intercultural communication About me The working language of ASEAN shall be English. (ARTICLE 34, ASEAN CHARTER) Introduction

PhD topic: TESOL Purposes and Paradigms in an Intercultural Age: Practitioner Perspectives from a Thai University thru TESOL ICC Thailand in ASEAN

Cultural globalization and implications on English language education (Kumaravadivelu, 2008, Kachru, 1996) TESOL Critical stance of TESOL (e.g. Widdowson, 1994; Pennycook, 1999, Holliday 1999, 2005; Kumaravadivelu, 2008; Alptekin, 2002; Jenkins, 2007) Appropriate Methodology (Holliday, 1994) How I situate my study and position myself Intercultural Communication (Competence) (e.g. Byram, 1997; Gudykunst and Mody, 2002; Deardorff, 2009 ) Intercultural Communication through English (e.g. Fay et al., 2010; Sifakis, 2004; Alptekin, 2002 ) Thailand within ASEAN Economic Community

1)To see the extent to which the concerns for intercultural communication within Thailand and ASEAN are discussed; 2)To study the ways in which the notion of Intercultural (Communicative) Competence is described or might mean by the top level discourse; and 3)To look for possible implications for the roles of Thai TESOL practitioners like myself. What I’m currently working on: Policy documents analysis Aims

1) are now emerging e.g. การทำงานข้ามวัฒนธรรม [cross-cultural working], ทักษะในการติดต่อสื่อสารข้ามวัฒนธรรม [cross-cultural communication skills] and ‘inter-cultural skill’ 2) co-occur with ‘working or employment opportunity’ 3) co-occur with ‘English ability’ but not as a part of Policy documents analysis Initial findings The concerns for intercultural communication and ICC…

4) ICC in the policy discourse include: Respect for / understand / appreciate different cultures (languages and religions); Recognize/ understand/ accept/ value multiculturalism, multiple identities; Having an open worldview; and Being aware of (and being responsible for) being a member (citizen) of ASEAN and world community. Initial findings (Cont.) Policy documents analysis

Conclusions The concerns for ‘intercultural communication’ and ICC are ‘emergent’ in the policy discourse. Next steps: to figure out how these findings could inform the role of Thai ELT (and to fit in my PhD!) Fieldwork in September to explore teacher perspectives. ขอบคุณค่ะ Thank you for your attention.