The Effects of Foreign Language Learning on Intercultural Awareness of Non-Native EFL Teacher Trainees

This research focuses on the impact of teacher trainees’ professional education in English Language Teaching (ELT) program on their perceptions of the intercultural diversity and awareness. It attempts to understand the relationship between foreign language learning as a part of foreign language teacher training and the development of personal intercultural perspectives. The paper argues that intercultural awareness would contribute to the EFL (English as a Foreign Language) teacher trainees’ personal development and future teaching performance in terms of development of global dialogue. The main assumption in this research is that foreign language instruction affects ELT teacher trainees’ intercultural awareness in a positive way by the exposure it offers, and such an awareness may increase their contribution to global social behavior and interaction. In this vein, foreign language teachers play an important role in the construction of intercultural and international dialogue. The subject group’s being ELT department teacher trainees in a non-English speaking country makes the results of the study more significant since the great majority of English teachers are not native speakers. Keywords: intercultural awareness, learning and teaching English as a foreign language, teacher training, teacher trainee