THE IMPORTANCE OF CROSS CULTURAL UNDERSTANDING IN EDUCATIONAL

Oleh: Hartini Erfi Nurzannah

With the background that language and culture cannot be separated, when students learn a language, at the same time they must learn the culture of the country of origin of the language, besides learning to master four skills, namely speaking skills, listening skills, writing skills and writing and writing skills. reading ability. Cross-cultural understanding simply refers to the basic ability of people to properly recognize, interpret and react to people, events or situations that are open to misunderstanding due to cultural differences. There are several guidelines for using language effectively and sensitively to facilitate communication, namely being alert, choosing words carefully, avoiding idioms, slang, jargon, acronyms, respecting basic grammar rules and correct standard syntax, being polite and formal, avoiding informality. , avoid jokes and humor, listen, and value silence.

The importance of learning Cross Cultural Understanding because learning a foreign language is not part of learning the culture of the language user. This is to help them avoid non-language errors, and to help with knowledge to understand those native speakers of the language, furthermore if they have the opportunity to go abroad, they can survive culture shock.

Actually Cross Cultural Understanding is the basis of learning a foreign language (not arranging or choosing words). How to communicate with the owner of the mother tongue, because of the different expressions, we cannot translate one by one or lexically, because it is very closely related to customs and culture as well as situations and conditions. Understanding Cross Culture is to understand the relationship between different countries. This means that Cross Cultural Understanding is a way to understand cultural differences in various countries so that there are no misunderstandings.

Cross-cultural understanding plays an important role in communicating with people from different countries. language and culture cannot be separated. Therefore, when students learn a language, at the same time they must learn the culture of the country and society from which the language originates, to avoid miscommunication and misunderstanding. Cross-cultural understanding simply refers to the basic ability of people to properly recognize, interpret and react to people, events or situations that are open to misunderstanding due to cultural differences.

Language events will be a serious problem because language is a tool of cultural transmission, language is what people use to talk about things that are important to them, language is a tool of interaction between and among people.

Cultural events that are a matter of different perspectives often leave a person feeling offended, irritated, irritated or confused, or even disconnected. To be truly effective, cross-cultural partnerships must be free from cultural incidents of either type. The importance of studying cross cultural understanding at the higher education level will certainly open a wider student perspective on culture and language.

Culture is the "glue" that binds a group of people into one understanding. So each group has its own identity, and will react if it meets other cultures. Cultural differences or cross-cultural can be in a cross-cultural perspective, between two countries in the mass media or other media that can interact with each other.

When we continue our higher education to another country, we learn both the language and the culture at the same time. Like the ADS experience at Ausie. Whereas the culture of "teaching" outside, it turns out that there is "black and white", while in Indonesia, we also have the same culture, but different names in language. "Milk tea" (white tea), "black tea" (could be bitter tea or olong tea, China), or "just tea", as tea (normal). Just one thing in the "affair" of tea can be noisy, it is said that there is a substantial difference - way of thinking, politics.Not only that, learning language and culture also means we learn to master the four skills; speaking, listening, writing and writing skills and reading skills.

Cross-cultural understanding refers not only to people’s basic abilities to properly recognize, interpret, and react to people. It can be an event or situation that can trigger a misunderstanding debate because:

Cultural differences.

The importance of studying cross-cultural understanding in the context of education, at least to build a perspective on culture and language, which is not narrow. Any genius who doesn’t understand culture will also face problems, at least social problems.

Although culture is not the basis Of language learning, But more on understanding Context, how Communicate with the owner of the mother tongue, because of the different expressions, we cannot translate one by one or lexically, because it is very closely related to customs and culture as well as situations and conditions.

Cultural difference are something that cant be avoided in human life. Plurality and dynamic conditions allow human culture to continue to develop and have more and more diversity.

Penulis adalah mahasiswa Tadris Bahasa Inggris, Fakultas Tarbiyah, IAIN Gajah Putih Takengon.