Confused encounters: differing expectations in the EAP classroom

Abstract

This paper discusses the idea of culturally-specific norms of interaction and argues that where there is a mismatch between students' expectations and those of the staff, the students are likely to be judged negatively. Fred Erickson's ethnographic research on problems of cross-cultural interaction in school classrooms is considered with relevance to the ‘invisible culture’ of higher education. The paper then discusses particular examples of such problems drawn from students on Access and EAP courses and suggests some possible solutions. It is argues that staff need to become aware of their own cultural norms and then accommodate to the interactional styles of the learners. At the same time, they should be explicit about the interactional demands of their classes.

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