The article notifies the significance of the cultural dialogue which has the history of four centuries, the dialogue between Prussian Lithuania and Lithuania Proper. Taken into account are the peculiarities of ethnic formation of both areas, as well as different strategies of assimilation policy used by Prussia and Russia. Consequently, these different strategies were accepted differently and yielded different effect. The activity of two cultural societies, that of Litauische literarische Gesellschaft, and that of Birutė is taken for comparison in the aspect of rising Lithuanian national self-consciousness, and the emphasis is laid upon sociopsichological aspects of the dialogue (which was not always direct) rather than upon historical or cultural parallels. To refresh run-of-the-mill academic attitude and discourse, unconventional literary means of the detective genre are put to use as a compositional and stylistic instrument.
The article focuses on kuršininkai ethnic group living in the Curonian Spit since 15th C. as an object of scientific investigations at the end of 19th C. and the beginning of the 20th C. My attention is paying also to the reasons which stimulated scientists interest to this small ethnic community cultural traditions in the German Empire, where the policy of ethnic minorities levelling was growing sharpat that time. I emphasize in this my article the importance of Franz Tetzner’s cultural perceptivity concerning kuršininkai ethnic culture transformations in the context of processes of modernisation and assimilation. It is very important to have a comprehensive information from Tetzner investigations on such ethnic traditions of already disappeared kuršininkai community at present times. This information helps us to understand much better the specific features of kuršininkai local identity (such as Latvian speaking at home, specific customs, fishery terms) and their ties with Prussian Lithuanians’ culture traditions (Evangelical Lutheran confession, Lithuanian language in the church and at school). The investigations from this my article have an idea to enrich particular research works on historical Prussian Lithuania region cultural heritage.
The current tendencies in global society are clear: the internationalisation of studies in HEIs, the expansion of the labour market, foreign employees with a different cultural background in almost all organisations, etc. A successful professional life depends on the readiness of people to be open to global changes and innovation. Intercultural communication may lead to openness and a better preparation for a future career. This form of communication strengthens a positive attitude towards new trends in the labour market, global business, immigrants and foreigners. In addition, intercultural communication can be used to promote the local culture to others, and to become familiar with remote cultures. This article reveals the importance of intercultural communication for careers, and presents students’ perspectives. According to the results of the survey, intercultural communication is beneficial for personal development: it strengthens qualities such as self-esteem and confidence, and can form new abilities such as critical thinking, problem solving and teamwork. This type of communication provides students with more opportunities to study abroad, and ensures a competitive advantage in business. As students noted, intercultural communication should be practised constantly, and its beneficial aspects have a positive impact on the broader world-view, cultural awareness and career prospects.
Journal:Tiltai
Volume 72, Issue 3 (2015), pp. 91–104
Abstract
In today’s life, the formation of a new twenty-first century society structure, which is changing people’s personal, professional and social conditions of existence, more and more frequent are demands from the public and there is a trend of social competence development. First of all, thinking about the teachers, who often run initiatives, internal motivation, knowledge, sometimes in interaction with students in strengthening the social competence phenomena such as communication and cooperation. It is never too late to improve communication and cooperation culture. The article seeks to reveal the importance of social competence for self-assessment process. The article presents the theoretical background of self-assessment process. In order to reveal social competence, a model which illustrates the parts of social competence such as communication (reciprocity) and cooperation (activity) is presented. That‘s why teacher-teacher, teacher-student, student-student, student-teacher have been chosen as research subjects who reflect the characteristics of reciprocity and activity in the process of learning. The instrument of the research is a questionnaire. The research participants were 49 Lithuanian teachers, 142 students and 23 Belgian teachers and 86 students.
The current tendencies of a global society are obvious: the labour market is expanding, people are travelling for various reasons all over the world, every organisation can have foreign workers with different cultural backgrounds, the internationalisation of studies HEIs is constantly being implemented, etc. Successful and effective daily life depends on the readiness of people of any age to be open to global change and innovation. The intense pace of life requires adaptation to new circumstances and the use of internationally recognised tools to address global challenges. This article reveals the benefits of intercultural communication in a global society. This form of communication influences the quality of modern life, and strengthens positive attitudes towards new trends in the labour market, global business, immigrants and foreigners. In addition, intercultural communication can be used to promote local culture to others, and to become familiar with other cultures. The analysis and survey of various sources provides valuable evidence that intercultural communication is beneficial to the quality of daily and professional life, and creates a competitive advantage for labour market professionals. According to the results of the survey, intercultural communication is useful for strengthening self-esteem and confidence, developing new competencies, studying abroad, and managing careers in business.