Facilitating intercultural communicative competence through student-conducted ethnographic research in a minority religious community in Japan

Abstract

Against the backdrop of religious hostilities worldwide, there is a pressing need to increase intercultural communicative competence (ICC) in the domain of religion. While there is a growing body of scholarship concerning interreligious dialogue, particularly in the field of peacebuilding, less is known about the contribution that universities can make towards facilitating religious understanding through intercultural education. Student-conducted ethnography, which has been shown to promote the learning of sociocultural beliefs and practices, holds significant potential for learning in this area. The present study explores this potential by examining the experiences of 16 undergraduate Japanese university students who completed an ethnographic assignment in a minority religious community. The students engaged in participant observation at international Christian churches in Japan to deepen their understanding of how religion is manifested in practice. They documented their findings in ethnographic reports which under went deductive qualitative content analysis according to categories drawn from Byram’s (1997) model of ICC. Analysis found that ethnography played a significant role in supporting classroom learning cognitively and affectively: students’ reports demonstrated enhanced knowledge regarding the theory and practice of Christianity, and favorable attitudes toward the community members. Nevertheless, perceptions of difference remained, with some students exhibiting an essentialized notion of their home culture. While previous studies of student ethnography have mainly been conducted in the context of language learning, the present study extends this knowledge to the context of learning about religion. It offers a pedagogical model to intercultural educators aiming to facilitate interreligious understanding in higher education.