Living in the foreign culture can
be exciting, but it can also be confusing. A group of Americans who taught
English in other countries recently discussed their experiences . They
discussed that miscommunications were always possible, even over something as
simple as “yes” and “no”.
On her first day in Micronesia,
an island in the Pacific, Lisa thought the waitress wasn’t paying any attention
to her. The day was hot she went into a store and asked, “ Do you have any cold
drinks ?” The woman there didn’t say anything. Lisa repeated the question
again. Still the woman said nothing. She later learned that the woman had
answered her: She has raised her eyebrows , which in Micronesia , it means, “yes”.
Jan remembered an
experience she had in Bulgaria, a country in Europe. She went to a restaurant
that was known for its cabbage. She asked the writer, “Do you have cabbage
today ?” He nodded his head. Jan waited, but the cabbage never came. In that
country, a nod means “no”.
Tom had a similar problem when he
arrived in India. After explaining something in class , he asked his students
if they understood . They answered with different nods and shakes of heads. He
thought some people hadn’t understood, so he explained again. When he asked
again, the did the same thing. He soon found out that his students did
understand. In India, people nod and shake heads in different ways . It depends
on where they come from.
1.These Americans teaching English in other countries found that
they _____________.
A.
needed to
learn foreign languages.
B.
should often
discuss their experiences
C.
had problems
with communications
2.People in Micronesia show “yes”
by _________.
A. nodding
heads B. raising the
eyebrows C. shaking hands.
3. Tom misunderstood his class at
first because __________.
A.
he didn’t
know much about Indian culture
B.
he didn’t
explain everything clearly enough
C.
he didn’t
know where the students came from
4.Which of the following is TRUE
according to the passage?
A.
In Bulgaria,
nodding heads means “no”
B.
Jan taught
English on a Pacific island
C.
Lisa was
trying to buy some cabbage.
5.The passage is mainly about
_________.
A.
body language
in foreign restaurants
B.
class
discussion in Indian schools
C.
miscommunicaions
in different cultures
