From language learning to sustainability
Enhancing intercultural competence and global skills through foreign language education
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21720937 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Yan Sun (0000-0001-7588-8444, Changchun Normal University School of Foreign Languages, , Changchun, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Publication date | 2025-09-22 |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1467-6370 • E-ISSN: 1758-6739 |
| Publisher | Emerald (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1108/ijshe-02-2025-0083 |
| OpenAlex | W4414413030 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 24 |
Purpose This study aims to examine how integrating sustainability content in foreign language education and exposure to foreign culture through language learning impacts students’ intercultural competence and global learning skills related to sustainability among Chinese students learning Japanese. Design/methodology/approach A pre-posttest experimental design was used. Fifty Japanese language major students from a large university in Shanghai participated in a six-month curriculum that integrated sustainability content through three phases: sustainability vocabulary learning, Japanese cultural value discussions (e.g. mottainai) and case studies of Japan’s sustainability initiatives. Pre- and postintervention assessments measured changes in intercultural competence and global learning skills. Findings Both the integration of sustainability content and exposure to Japanese cultural values in language education enhanced students’ intercultural competence and global learning skills. Participants demonstrated improved understanding of sustainability concepts and increased ability to engage with environmental issues from cross-cultural perspectives. Originality/value This study advances foreign language learning literature by exploring sustainability in relation to intercultural competence and global learning skills. It uniquely examines how exposure to cultural values through language learning shapes learners’ engagement with environmental and social issues
Cultural competence · Curriculum · Education for sustainable development · Foreign language · Intercultural communication · Intercultural Competence · Sustainability · Sustainable development · Vocabulary · Global Education and Multiculturalism · Global Educational Policies and Reforms · Second Language Learning and Teaching
Education for Sustainable Development Goals
Transformative learning in the field of sustainability
Intercultural Orientations as Japanese Language Learners' Motivation in Mainland China
The statistics of English in China
Chinese university students’ multilingual learning motivation under contextual influences
The foreign language and intercultural competence teacher
The representation of multicultural values in the Indonesian Ministry of Education and Culture-Endorsed EFL textbook
Making a difference
Cultural Immersion
Sustainability Concepts in Indigenous and Non-Indigenous Cultures
| Highly cited | No |
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