The Role of Culture in Teaching English for Business Purposes

Abstract

As English is becoming more and more the language of the global market, the teaching/ learning of English for business purposes is at risk of separating the language from its culture. However, cultural sensitivity is an integral part of the interaction between languages and thoughts in the business domain, especially in the field of international trade, which plays a vital role in the understanding of the way other people think, behave, act, and react accordingly. This paper aims at underscoring the essential role played by culture in both teaching and learning of English for commercial aims since the cultural context could not be divorced from its language. Hence, showing the extent to which language skills are tightly linked to the cultural paradigm is of paramount importance. Moreover, emphasizing the inseparability of language and culture would be demonstrated through the critical role played by culture in business and commerce classes, as well as how discarding culture could be an obstacle for the teaching and the learning of the language.