The Development of Students’ Intercultural Competence in Foreign Language Education in Chinese Universities: From Theory to Practice

The development of students’ intercultural competence (IC) has become one of the most concerns of foreign language education. Based on the discussion of the relationship of culture and language as well as the relationship of culture learning and language learning, this research explores the pedagogical approaches to developing students’ intercultural competence in foreign language education in Chinese universities. The appropriate path for the development of intercultural competence is the combination of personal experience and theoretical education, with the construction of e-learning platform to motivate students’ personal IC growth. The process for the students’ development of intercultural competence can be realized in the development of students’ language competence, acquisition of cultural knowledge, enhancement in skills for intercultural communication and attitudinal transformation.