There has been an increasing trend toward integrating an intercultural dimension into communicative language teaching and learning. The intercultural approach is highly important as it fosters learners’ ability to learn about different cultures, beliefs, and identities. One of the key components of intercultural competence is empathy. As EFL teaching and learning approaches have been shifting their interest toward developing learners’ and teachers’ awareness of the useful role of being empathic in the intercultural classroom, there is little research available in the Tunisian context to examine ‘empathy in practice’. Thus, this study attempts to investigate the concept of empathy as an essential intercultural aspect to nurture learners’ understanding of how to be attentive listeners, tolerant, respectful, and compassionate. To address this research problem, a qualitative research design was opted for, and forty-five Tunisian EFL university students were to go through two activities to present and practice empathy. Open-ended questions were also administered to gain insights about their viewpoints regarding experiencing empathy. Qualitative results have revealed fruitful insights into the way they discussed the issue in general and took part in the classroom activities in particular. The present study has significant implications for the understanding of how teaching empathy can be effective for the improvement of learners’ affective and interpersonal skills in intercultural contexts.

Authors:
Omayma Ben Kridis, University of Gafsa, Tunisia

About the Presenter(s)
Dr. Omayma Ben Kridis holds a Ph.D. in English Applied Linguistics. She is currently an Assistant Professor of English Linguistics at the Higher Institute of Applied Studies in Humanities of Gafsa.

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https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-umayma-ben-kridis-9167b6129

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