ABI - Cross-cultural encounters analysieren

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ABI - Cross-cultural encounters analysieren

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ABI - Cross-cultural encounters analysieren

Mini-description: Investigate communication, misunderstanding, adaptation, prejudice, power and mutual learning in cross-cultural encounters. Analyse people in context instead of treating cultures as fixed boxes. The course is designed for English as a continued foreign language in the Baden-Württemberg Kursstufe, shared by Basisfach (BF) and Leistungsfach (LF).

Media starter: Look at the multilingual airport sign. Before reading anything else, note what the image makes possible, what it assumes about its audience and what it cannot solve on its own.

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Fortfahren Ausblenden

Viewing impulse: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s TED talk is not a substitute for the prescribed literary text. Use it as a separate non-fiction source on stereotypes, narrative power and the danger of reducing people or places to one story.

Einleitung

Cross-cultural encounters happen when people with different experiences, languages, social positions, expectations or histories meet. A useful analysis does not begin with statements such as “people from culture X are …”. It begins with the specific situation: Who speaks? In which language? Who defines the rules? What is misunderstood? Who adapts? What assumptions enter the interaction? Who has more institutional or communicative power? What can both sides learn?

For the Baden-Württemberg Abitur 2027, the official English focus is On the Move: Migration and Cross-Cultural Encounters. In the Leistungsfach, the prescribed canon includes the film Arrival and eight short stories; the Basisfach works with the same focus and prescribed works in an appropriately reduced scope. The official course framework differentiates BF and LF by complexity, breadth, depth and differentiation. The target at the end of the Kursstufe is B2, in parts C1.

English first: Try context, word formation, visuals, an English explanation and a monolingual dictionary before using German help.

I-can goals

1. I can observe before I interpret. I can distinguish evidence from assumptions.
2. I can analyse communication. I can examine wording, register, silence, turn-taking, non-verbal signals and communicative strategies.
3. I can explain misunderstanding. I can identify competing expectations without blaming a whole culture.
4. I can analyse adaptation and agency. I can ask who changes, why, under what pressure and with which choices.
5. I can analyse prejudice and power. I can identify stereotypes, othering, unequal access to voice, resources or decision-making.
6. I can trace mutual learning. I can show how perspectives or practices change through interaction.
7. I can write and speak at B2 level and move towards C1 where appropriate. I use evidence, precise vocabulary and cautious claims.

BF and LF: one course, different depth

Area	BF	LF
Material	One main text or clip plus a manageable comparison	Several texts/media and independent cross-material synthesis
Analysis	Clear focus questions, paragraph frames, selected devices	Broader method choice, deeper interpretation, competing readings
Vocabulary	Core B2 vocabulary with support	Wider B2/C1 repertoire and precise conceptual distinctions
AFB	Strong structure for AFB I/II, selected AFB III	More sustained AFB II/III and independent evaluation
Output	Shorter, clearly scaffolded speaking and writing	Longer, more autonomous argument and material linkage

Differentiation is not artificial difficulty. LF goes deeper because it connects more evidence and perspectives, not because every sentence must sound complicated.

Prior knowledge check

1. Explain the difference between an observation and an interpretation using one everyday example.
2. Give one example of a misunderstanding that could have several causes.
3. Define stereotype in English without using a dictionary.
4. Name one situation in which language choice can create or reduce a power imbalance.
5. Write one sentence beginning: “In this situation, the evidence suggests …”

A non-essentialist analysis lens

Lens	Ask	Avoid
Communication	What is said, implied, translated, repeated or left unsaid?	“They communicate like this because of their nationality.”
Misunderstanding	Which expectations, words, roles or signals do not match?	Treating “culture” as the automatic cause.
Adaptation	Who adjusts language or behaviour, and is that adjustment chosen or required?	Assuming adaptation must be one-way.
Prejudice	Which prior judgement, stereotype or category shapes perception?	Guessing prejudice without textual or situational evidence.
Power	Who sets norms, controls resources, defines the problem or gets heard?	Reducing power to personality alone.
Mutual learning	What changes through listening, repair, perspective-taking or cooperation?	Calling every polite interaction “successful learning.”

Visualisation: Communication is not just transmission. In real encounters, meaning is negotiated through feedback, context and repair.

Observation before interpretation

Use this three-step routine:

1. Observe: “Speaker A interrupts twice before Speaker B finishes.”
2. Interpret carefully: “The interruptions may signal urgency, disagreement, enthusiasm or a different expectation about turn-taking.”
3. Test with evidence: Look at the words, tone, previous interaction, roles and later reactions before deciding.

A stronger analysis uses modal language such as may, might, seems to, suggests, can be read as. This is not weakness. It shows that you distinguish evidence from inference.

Context vocabulary

Core term	English explanation	Word family / useful phrase
encounter	a meeting or interaction, often significant	to encounter, an unexpected encounter
misunderstanding	a failure to understand meaning, intention or expectation accurately	misunderstand, misunderstood
assumption	something accepted as true without sufficient proof	assume, underlying assumption
stereotype	an oversimplified idea about a group	stereotypical, to stereotype
prejudice	a judgement formed before sufficient knowledge or evidence	prejudiced, prejudicial
bias	a tendency that shapes judgement, sometimes unconsciously	biased, bias towards/against
othering	presenting people as fundamentally different from an imagined “us”	to other, us-and-them framing
agency	the capacity to make choices and act	to exercise agency
adaptation	adjustment to a new situation or interaction	adapt, adaptive, mutual adaptation
accommodation	adjustment that makes communication or participation easier	accommodate, communicative accommodation
belonging	feeling accepted and connected	belong, sense of belonging
code-switching	changing between languages or varieties according to context	to code-switch
mediation	purpose-oriented transfer of relevant information for a specific audience	mediate, mediator
asymmetry	an unequal relationship or distribution	asymmetric, power asymmetry
reciprocity	mutual exchange in which both sides respond and contribute	reciprocal, reciprocally
perspective-taking	trying to understand a situation from another viewpoint	take another perspective

Think: Linguistic diversity is not the same as cultural difference, and neither automatically predicts an individual’s behaviour.

Help ladder: English before German

1. Context: infer the meaning from the sentence and situation.
2. Word formation: identify roots, prefixes and suffixes: adapt → adaptation; mediate → mediation.
3. Visualisation: use the table, image or interaction map.
4. English explanation: paraphrase the word in simple English.
5. Monolingual dictionary: check meaning, collocations and examples.
6. Bilingual dictionary: use it only when the English route is insufficient.
7. German support: use a short German hint, then return to English production.

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Fortfahren Ausblenden

Viewing focus: Note three examples used by Lera Boroditsky. Then separate evidence presented in the talk from stronger general claims about what language determines. Do not turn linguistic tendencies into fixed claims about whole groups.

Listening / Viewing

Viewing task 1: The danger of a single story

Use the embedded Adichie talk.

BF: Choose a teacher-selected section and complete:

1. State the central warning in one sentence.
2. Identify one example of a “single story”.
3. Explain how incomplete stories can affect perception.
4. Connect the idea to prejudice or power.

LF: Add:

1. Analyse how personal anecdote, contrast and repetition support the speaker’s argument.
2. Evaluate the limits of the “single story” concept: when is it a useful lens, and when could it become another simplification?

Viewing task 2: Listening and repair

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While watching Celeste Headlee, note:

1. two listening behaviours that support mutual understanding,
2. one behaviour that can block communication,
3. one strategy that could help repair a cross-cultural misunderstanding.

Transfer: Which strategy would work in a formal school, workplace or migration-related encounter? Explain why.

Viewing task 3: Arrival as an official trailer

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Fortfahren Ausblenden

This MOOC embeds only the official trailer, not unlicensed film sequences. The full prescribed film must be accessed through a legal school or private source.

Analyse the trailer:

1. How is first contact framed visually and acoustically?
2. Which images suggest uncertainty, fear, cooperation or control?
3. How is language presented as a problem and as a resource?
4. Who appears to possess expertise, authority or access?
5. Which questions would you need to answer using the full film before making a firm interpretation?

Reading

Micro-case: The project meeting

Fictional case. All names and details are invented.

At an international youth project, English is the working language. Amina is new to the programme and uses English as her third language. Ben has coordinated the group for two years. Mei joins online and prefers written preparation before speaking.

Ben opens the meeting: “Great, let’s do it the usual way and decide fast.” Amina asks, “What is the usual way?” Ben laughs and says, “You’ll get used to it.” Ten minutes later, he assigns roles without asking for preferences. Mei types a question in the chat, but the group continues speaking. Amina later suggests a slower round in which everyone explains one idea. Ben replies, “We don’t have time for special rules.”

After the meeting, Ben tells another coordinator that the new members are “not very proactive”. Amina tells Mei that she had several ideas but did not know when she was expected to enter the discussion. Mei says she understood the task differently because the shared document had not been updated.

Reading tasks

BF:

1. Summarise the main communication problem in 60–80 words.
2. Separate three observations from three interpretations.
3. Identify one misunderstanding and one power asymmetry.
4. Suggest one concrete repair strategy.

LF:

1. Analyse how language, role, turn-taking and access to information shape the encounter.
2. Examine the attribution “not very proactive”. What evidence supports or weakens it?
3. Discuss whether adaptation is currently one-sided.
4. Develop two plausible readings of the conflict and explain which is better supported.

Context check: prescribed works 2027

The 2027 Facherlass names the following canon for the Schwerpunkt On the Move: Migration and Cross-Cultural Encounters.

Prescribed work	How to use it here
Arrival – Denis Villeneuve	Analyse communication, decoding, fear, expertise, institutional power and learning.
Jhumpa Lahiri: The Third and Final Continent	Apply the six-part lens to a legally provided classroom text.
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: The Thing Around Your Neck	Analyse encounter, assumptions, belonging, agency and narrative perspective.
Sefi Atta: Green	Apply the same lens and compare evidence.
Andrea Levy: Loose Change	Apply the same lens and compare evidence.
Luis Alberto Urrea: The Southside Raza Image Federation Corps of Discovery	Apply the same lens and compare evidence.
Zadie Smith: The Embassy of Cambodia	Apply the same lens and compare evidence.
Kit de Waal: Exterior Paint	Apply the same lens and compare evidence.
Neel Mukherjee: The Soldier’s Tale	Apply the same lens and compare evidence.

Copyright rule: Work with legally supplied editions or extracts. Do not upload complete prescribed texts, scans or film scenes.

Analyse

The six-part analysis grid

Use the grid as notes before writing.

Focus	Evidence	Interpretation	Alternative explanation
Communication	wording, register, turn-taking, silence, gesture	What meaning is negotiated?	Could role, language proficiency or medium explain it?
Misunderstanding	conflicting statements or expectations	Where does meaning diverge?	Is missing information involved?
Adaptation	changes in behaviour or language	Who adjusts and why?	Is the adjustment voluntary?
Prejudice	labels, stereotypes, prior judgements	How does categorisation affect the encounter?	Could the claim be based on incomplete evidence?
Power	access, authority, resources, language norms	Who can define the situation?	Is power formal, informal or both?
Mutual learning	repair, reflection, changed practice	What is learned and by whom?	Is the change reciprocal or one-sided?

From device to effect

Do not write only: “The author uses repetition.” Use:

device → evidence → effect → function → link to the encounter

Example frame: “By repeating …, the speaker foregrounds … . This shapes the interaction because … and reveals … about the unequal distribution of … .”

For literary texts, consider point of view, characterization, setting, time structure, tone and lexical fields. For non-literary texts, consider line of argument, register, tone, forms of address, examples, statistics, references and perspective. These categories align with the official 2027 exam framework.

Operator focus from 2027

From examination year 2027, the revised IQB operator stock applies.

analyze / examine means: describe and explain in detail, give evidence and connect content to relevant aspects of language and form.

assess / evaluate means: give a well-founded judgement and support it with evidence and examples.

compare means: show relevant similarities and differences.

comment / discuss requires a clear, evidence-based position rather than a list of ideas.

Speaking

90-second analysis talk

Choose one image, clip or passage. Speak for 90 seconds using:

1. Claim: “The encounter is shaped mainly by …”
2. Evidence: “This is visible when …”
3. Analysis: “The wording / visual choice / turn-taking suggests …”
4. Power check: “The situation is asymmetric because …”
5. Alternative: “However, it could also be read as …”
6. Conclusion: “Therefore, the encounter shows …”

BF support: use the six sentence starters.

LF extension: connect two materials and include a counter-reading.

Privacy: recordings are voluntary and private. Do not upload classmates’ voices or images without explicit consent.

Pair discussion

Question: When does adaptation become mutual learning, and when does it become pressure to conform?

Rules:

1. Refer to at least one concrete piece of evidence.
2. Paraphrase your partner once before disagreeing.
3. Ask one clarification question.
4. Avoid statements about what an entire nation or culture “is like”.

Writing

Analysis paragraph

Use PEAL+:

Point → Evidence → Analysis → Link to the encounter → + alternative reading.

BF target: one precise paragraph of about 140–180 words.

LF target: two connected paragraphs with cross-material reference and a justified alternative interpretation.

Writing task

Prompt: Analyze how a cross-cultural encounter is shaped by communication and power. Focus on at least two of the following: misunderstanding, adaptation, prejudice, agency, mutual learning.

BF: use one core material and one brief comparison.

LF: synthesize at least two materials and evaluate the limits of your interpretation.

Do not produce a generic “culture essay”. Every paragraph needs evidence from the specific material.

Mediation

Fictional German source:

Die Schülervertretung plant eine internationale Projektwoche. In einem anonymen Feedback melden mehrere Lernende, dass Diskussionen oft von den schnellsten Englischsprechenden bestimmt werden. Vorgeschlagen werden kurze schriftliche Vorbereitungsphasen, klare Redezeiten und gezielte Nachfragen. Ziel ist nicht, Gruppen nach Herkunft einzuteilen, sondern Barrieren in der konkreten Situation zu erkennen und allen eine aktive Beteiligung zu ermöglichen.

Task: Your English-speaking partner school asks what the feedback means for the workshop design. Mediate the relevant information in English.

BF: 90–120 words, clear audience focus.

LF: 140–180 words, add a brief explanation of why the measures could improve participation without turning them into fixed rules for “cultures”.

Feedback, Hilfen und Fehleranalyse

Self-feedback

Check	Yes / revise
I distinguish observation from interpretation.
I avoid national or ethnic generalisations.
I analyse how language/form creates meaning.
I explain who adapts and under which conditions.
I identify power with evidence, not labels.
I include an alternative interpretation.
I use precise B2 vocabulary and only as much C1 language as I can control.
I check quotations, sources and AI-generated claims.

Typical errors and repairs

Weak version	Better version
“They misunderstand each other because of culture.”	“The misunderstanding arises from different expectations about turn-taking and missing information; cultural experience may be one factor, but the text does not prove it.”
“British people are indirect.”	“In this scene, the speaker uses indirect wording to soften disagreement.”
“She adapts.”	“She changes her register and speaking pace after receiving feedback, which suggests strategic adaptation.”
“He has more power.”	“He controls the agenda, distributes roles and decides whose contribution counts, giving him situational power.”
“They learn from each other.”	“Both participants change a practice after discussing the misunderstanding, so the learning is reciprocal.”

Responsible use of AI and personal data

1. Do your own analysis and writing. AI must not replace your essay or oral performance.
2. If AI is permitted by your teacher, state that you used it and verify claims, quotations and sources independently.
3. Do not paste copyrighted full texts, private recordings or personal data into external AI systems.
4. Use fictional data for practice tasks.
5. Audio or video recording is voluntary and should remain private unless everyone involved has agreed to sharing.
6. No unrequested uploads and no external AI access are required for this course.

Transfer

Apply the lens to a new encounter

Choose a legally available scene, article, podcast or prescribed text and answer:

1. What is the immediate communicative problem?
2. Which contextual factors matter?
3. Where do assumptions enter?
4. Who adapts, and who does not need to?
5. What kind of power is visible?
6. Does mutual learning occur?
7. Which interpretation is strongest, and what evidence could challenge it?

LF extension: Compare two encounters and ask whether the same concept explains both equally well.

Abi-Check 2027

For the Leistungsfach 2027, the official written exam includes listening comprehension and writing. After the listening section, the writing part offers a choice between a literary and a non-literary text basis. The tasks include an aspect-focused summary, analysis and a choice between personal comment and a creative writing task. Visual or discontinuous material may also be included.

Course-relevant check: Mediation remains an assessed competence in the qualification phase. In the Basisfach, the course assessment across the four semesters covers listening, reading, analysis, mediation and two different writing types.

Your final check:

1. Can I summarize without analysing too early?
2. Can I analyze content and language/form with evidence?
3. Can I distinguish claim, evidence and interpretation?
4. Can I write a justified assessment instead of a personal reaction?
5. Can I handle images, diagrams or other discontinuous material?
6. Can I speak clearly in monologue and dialogue?
7. Can I mediate for a specific audience and purpose?
8. Can I avoid essentialist cultural explanations?

Stand of this MOOC: 2 October 2026. For exam preparation, always check the latest official Baden-Württemberg documents and your school’s instructions.

Follow-up course

Continue with:

1. Migration narratives vergleichen
2. Identity and belonging analysieren
3. Arrival analysieren
4. Mediation im Englisch-Abitur
5. Speaking and communication skills

Interaktive Aufgaben

Quiz: Teste Dein Wissen

What is the best starting point for a non-essentialist analysis? (Analyse the specific interaction and its context) (!Assign behaviour to a fixed national culture) (!Use a country stereotype as the main explanation) (!Ignore roles and power)

Which sentence distinguishes evidence from interpretation most clearly? (In this scene the speaker pauses twice, which may suggest uncertainty) (!The speaker pauses because people from that culture are indirect) (!The speaker is obviously insecure) (!This proves the whole group communicates differently)

What should you do first when analysing a misunderstanding? (Identify what each participant expected and what actually happened) (!Decide which culture caused the problem) (!Choose the more polite participant) (!Translate every sentence into German)

Which question best analyses adaptation? (Who changes what, under which conditions and with how much choice) (!Which culture is more adaptable) (!Who speaks the best English) (!Who has travelled furthest)

What is prejudice? (A judgement formed before sufficient knowledge or evidence) (!A neutral summary of a text) (!A grammatical misunderstanding) (!A translation strategy)

Which question focuses most directly on power? (Who can set the rules and decide whose contribution counts) (!Who uses the longest sentences) (!Who knows the most vocabulary) (!Who enters the room first)

What is the clearest sign of mutual learning? (Both sides revise understanding or practice through the interaction) (!One side remains silent) (!One side copies the other without discussion) (!Both sides repeat their original assumptions)

What does analyze or examine require in the 2027 operator framework? (Describe and explain in detail and support the analysis with evidence) (!Retell the whole text without interpretation) (!Give only a personal opinion) (!List stylistic devices without explaining their function)

Which support sequence follows the English-first principle? (Context then word formation then visualisation then English explanation) (!German translation before reading the sentence) (!Bilingual dictionary before looking at the context) (!AI answer before checking the material)

How does LF mainly differ from BF in this course? (LF requires greater breadth depth complexity and independent linking) (!LF requires memorising national stereotypes) (!BF does not analyse texts) (!BF does not practise speaking)

Memory

Communication	Negotiating meaning through verbal and non-verbal signals
Misunderstanding	Diverging meanings or expectations in an interaction
Adaptation	Adjustment to a new situation or communicative need
Prejudice	Prior judgement without sufficient evidence
Power	Capacity to set norms control access or shape decisions
Mutual learning	Reciprocal change through interaction and reflection
Agency	Capacity to choose and act
Mediation	Purpose-oriented transfer for a specific audience

Drag and Drop

Ordne die richtigen Begriffe zu.	Thema
Observation	What can be directly seen heard or quoted
Interpretation	Meaning inferred from evidence
Othering	Constructing an imagined us and them divide
Reciprocity	Mutual exchange and response
Agency	Capacity to make choices and act
Accommodation	Adjustment that supports communication or participation

Kreuzworträtsel

Context	What do you examine before explaining behaviour through culture?
Adaptation	What is the term for adjustment to a new situation?
Prejudice	What is a judgement formed before sufficient evidence called?
Agency	What term describes the capacity to choose and act?
Mediation	What skill transfers relevant information for a target audience?
Reciprocity	What term means mutual exchange and response?

Lückentext

Vervollständige den Text.

A careful analysis begins with the specific rather than a fixed cultural label. A occurs when meanings or expectations diverge. An is accepted without sufficient proof. describes adjustment to a new situation. refers to the capacity to choose and act. A is a prior judgement formed without sufficient evidence. Unequal control over rules or resources can create a power . When both sides change understanding through interaction, this can become mutual .

Offene Aufgaben

Leicht

1. Observation vs interpretation: Choose one everyday interaction and write three observations and three possible interpretations.
2. Context vocabulary: Create eight vocabulary cards with English definitions, word families and one example sentence each.
3. Visual analysis: Analyse one Commons image on this page using composition, perspective, caption and audience.
4. Listening repair: Watch one embedded video and list three strategies that could improve understanding.

Standard

1. Micro-case analysis: Rewrite the project meeting from another participant’s perspective without changing the observable facts.
2. Speaking practice: Give a private 90-second analysis talk; recording is optional and should not be uploaded.
3. Mediation practice: Mediate the fictional German workshop note for an English-speaking partner school.
4. Prescribed text lens: Apply communication, misunderstanding, adaptation, prejudice, power and mutual learning to one legally supplied prescribed text.

Schwer

1. Cross-material comparison: Compare one prescribed literary text with one non-fiction video and evaluate where the same concept works differently.
2. Power analysis: Map formal, informal, linguistic and narrative power in one encounter and support every claim with evidence.
3. Counter-reading: Develop two competing interpretations of one scene and argue which is better supported.
4. Model critique: Examine a cultural model found in a textbook or online source and assess whether it risks essentialising people; propose a more context-sensitive alternative.

Lernkontrolle

1. Transferanalyse: Analyse an unfamiliar encounter and show how at least three of the six lenses interact rather than treating them separately.
2. Evidence challenge: Take five claims about a text and classify them as observation, inference or unsupported generalisation; justify each classification.
3. Power and adaptation: Explain how power can shape who is expected to adapt and develop one alternative reading.
4. Media comparison: Compare how a written text and a video construct otherness using different formal means.
5. Evaluation: Assess the claim that successful cross-cultural communication always requires compromise from both sides.
6. Abi transfer: Write a short analysis paragraph using an IQB operator and include a counter-reading without losing focus.

Lernnachweis

For a strong learning record, show that you can:

1. analyse a specific encounter without essentialising groups,
2. distinguish evidence, interpretation and speculation,
3. use the six-part lens flexibly,
4. connect language and form to meaning,
5. use B2 vocabulary securely and selected C1 language precisely,
6. speak and write with audience, purpose and register in mind,
7. mediate relevant information rather than translate mechanically,
8. evaluate alternative interpretations,
9. document sources and respect copyright,
10. disclose and verify permitted AI support instead of submitting replacement essays.

OERs zum Thema

Further OER orientation: Interkulturelle Kommunikation, Interkulturelle Kompetenz, Stereotyp, Vorurteil, Mediation, Sprachmittlung, Migration, Identität, Mehrsprachigkeit.

Quellen und Prüfungsbezug

1. Ministerium für Kultus, Jugend und Sport Baden-Württemberg: Facherlass Abitur 2027, Fach Englisch.
2. Bildungsplan Baden-Württemberg: Englisch in der gymnasialen Kursstufe, Basisfach und Leistungsfach.
3. IQB: Begleitende Dokumente und überarbeiteter Grundstock von Operatoren ab Prüfungsjahr 2027.
4. Wikimedia-Commons-Medien sind auf ihren jeweiligen Dateiseiten mit freien Lizenzen dokumentiert. Die eingebetteten YouTube-Beiträge stammen aus offiziellen bzw. verifizierten Kanälen; eingebettet werden keine vollständigen Pflichttexte oder unzulässigen Filmsequenzen.

Verknüpfte Lernbereiche

Cross-cultural encounters Interkulturelle Kommunikation Interkulturelle Kompetenz Migration Identität Mehrsprachigkeit Stereotyp Vorurteil Sprachmittlung Textanalyse Englisch Hörverstehen Englisch Speaking