I AM CANADIAN, EH? How Canadians Are Perceived TESL Ontario Conference, Toronto, Oct. 27 th -29 th , 2011

1. I AM CANADIAN, EH? How Canadians Are PerceivedTESL Ontario Conference, Toronto, Oct. 27th-29th, 2011 Shira Packer & Dana Lynch spacke@yorku.ca dlynch@yorku.ca York University English Language Institute Toronto, ON NOT FOR REPRODUCTION OR CIRCULATION WITHOUT THE EXPLICIT PERMISSION OF THE AUTHORS

2. Warm-up Question! Think about all the people you’ve met in Canada. What are 5 personality traits that you immediately think of to describe them? (Keep in mind, personality traits are those that describe the way that people act, not look.)

3. Agenda • Research question • Influencing literature • Social and cross-cultural psychology • SLA • Methodology & survey questions • Data analysis & results • Limitations • Results & Interpretations • Discussion

4. Research Question How do (1) native-born Canadian postsecondary students’ and recent graduates’ (CBs) perceptions AND (2) non-native-born Canadian postsecondary students’ and recent graduates’ (NCBs) perceptions (3) of people living in Canada DIFFER? (if at all) TO ANSWER OUR RESEARCH QUESTION, WE CONDUCTED AN ONLINE SURVEY!

5. Relevant Literature Social & Cross-Cultural Psychology Second Language Acquisition

6. Social & Cross-Cultural Psychology • Katz and Braly & follow up studies (1933 onwards) • 100 Princeton undergrads • List traits of 10 social and ethnic groups • Acculturation & Adaptation (Berry & Sam, 1980) =cultural changes resulting from intercultural encounter

7. Social & Cross-Cultural Psychology (cont.) • Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions (1980) • Power Distance • Individualism • Masculinity • Uncertainty Avoidance • Long-term Orientation • Five-factor model of personality (McCrae & Costa, 1987) • Conscientiousness • Openness to experience • Neuroticism • Agreeableness • Extraversion

8. Second Language Acquisition • Social identity, investment, and language learning (Bonnie Norton, 1995) • Language as access to learner’s social identity and social world • Towards a better understanding of academic acculturation: Second Language Students in Canadian Universities (Cheng & Fox, 2008) • Factors which affect acculturation in Canadian EAP • Autobiography of Intercultural Encounters (Language Policy Division, Council of Europe, 2009)

9. Methodology • Consent and research ethics • Rec’d consent from York’s Office of Research Ethics • Platform • Survey Monkey online survey tool • Outreach • Video: http://vimeo.com/18546862 • Email • Facebook: • Page http://www.facebook.com/pages/Perceptions-of-People-in-Canada-Survey/191190387561278 • personal messages • status updates • Twitter

10. Survey Questions • Background • Unprompted adjective ranking • 30 Likert-scale questions (5-point scale) • E-interview qualitative questions

11. Adjective Ranking Question Think about all the people you’ve met in Canada. What are 5 personality traits (characteristics or adjectives) that you think of to describe them? • ____________ • ____________ • ____________ • ____________ • ____________

12. Likert-scale Question To what extent do you agree with the following statements, where 1 represents strongly disagree and 5 represents strongly agree: People in Canada are….. • Friendly • Peaceful • Helpful • Polite • Selfish • Respectful • Loyal • Competitive • Open-minded • Caring • Modest • Funny • Hardworking • Self-confident • Boring • Cooperative • Optimistic • Dissatisfied • Materialistic • Risk-taking • Easygoing • Patient • Outgoing • Generous • Cold • Afraid • Individualistic • Reliable • Intelligent

13. Respondent Background Info Sample Size:

14. Respondent Background Profile

15. Canadian Post-Sec Institutions Represented • Kwantlen Polytechnic University • Langara College • Laurentian University • McGill University (11) • McMaster University • Medicine Hat College • Memorial University of Newfoundland • Mohawk College of Applied Arts and Technology • Mount Royal University • Mount Saint Vincent University • MTI Community College • Nipissing University • North Island College • Northern Alberta Institute of Technology • Nova Scotia Community College (various campuses) • OCAD University • Queen's University (14) • Redeemer University College • Ryerson University • Seneca College of Applied Arts and Technology • Sheridan College of Applied Arts and Technology • Simon Fraser UniversitySimon Fraser University • Sir Sandford Fleming College of Applied Arts and Technology • Southern Alberta Institute of Technology • St. Lawrence College • St. Thomas University • Thompson Rivers University • Trent University • Université de Montréal • Université de Sherbrooke • Université du Québec à Chicoutimi • Université du Québec à Montréal • Université Laval • University College of the Fraser Valley • University of Alberta (6) • University of British Columbia (6) • University of Calgary • University of Guelph • University of King's College • University of Lethbridge • University of Manitoba • University of New Brunswick • University of Northern British Columbia • University of Ontario Institute of Technology • University of Prince Edward Island • University of Regina • University of Saskatchewan • University of Toronto (UofT) (36) • University of Victoria • University of Waterloo • University of Western Ontario (Western) • University of Windsor • Vancouver Community College • Wilfrid Laurier University • York University (119) • Yukon College • Acadia University • Algonquin College of Applied Arts and Technology • Athabasca University • Aurora College • Bishop's University • Brandon University • British Columbia Institute of Technology • Brock University • Canadian Mennonite University • Canadore College of Applied Arts and Technology • Cape Breton University • Capilano College • Capilano University • Carleton University • Centennial College of Applied Arts and Technology • Collègeuniversitaire de Saint-Boniface • College of New Caledonia • College of the North Atlantic • Concordia University • Crandall University • Dalhousie University (10) • Écolepolytechnique de Montréal • Fanshawe College of Applied Arts and Technology • George Brown College of Applied Arts and Technology • HEC Montréal • Humber College of Applied Arts and Technology (10) • Huron College • Keyano College

16. CBs Profile (n=130)

17. NCBs Profile: in Canada (n=169)

18. NCB Profile: English Education (n=169)

19. Adjective Ranking Question Think about all the people you’ve met in Canada. What are 5 personality traits (characteristics or adjectives) that you think of to describe them? • ____________ • ____________ • ____________ • ____________ • ____________

20. Comparison CBs vs. NCBs: Total # of Mentions - Top 5 CBs NCBs

21. ‘Weighted Ranking’ Method We gave adj.s scores as follows: If a S’s 1st choice: 5 2nd choice: 4 3rd choice: 3 4th choice: 2 5th choice: 1

22. Comparison CBs vs. NCBs: Weighted Rankings - Top 5 CBs NCBs

23. Likert-scale Question To what extent do you agree with the following statements, where 1 represents strongly disagree and 5 represents strongly agree: People in Canada are….. • Friendly • Peaceful • Helpful • Polite • Selfish • Respectful • Loyal • Competitive • Open-minded • Caring • Modest • Funny • Hardworking • Self-confident • Boring • Cooperative • Optimistic • Dissatisfied • Materialistic • Risk-taking • Easygoing • Patient • Outgoing • Generous • Cold • Afraid • Individualistic • Reliable • Intelligent

24. Likert-scale results: Highest & lowest means (n=299)

25. Significant Differences in Perceptions

26. CB & NCB E-Interview Sample Quotes (+ experiences) CB “I walk in, wait in line and see that the tellers are pleasant . . . That person took the time to look into my eyes and make a connection even though she didn’t ‘need’ to. She didn’t seem to be worried about the long line behind me and whatever else she had to get done that day.” “I was walking through my grocery store one day with my mom and we saw a man accidentally bump into a girl . . . The girl explained about the man saying sorry, and the friend just said, “oh, yeah, we have to say ‘sorry’ here, it’s a Canadian thing.”” NCB “When i came to Canada many people in University helped me to adapt to the environment and to reduce the culture shock.” “My very first day at york . . . Just as I came to my residence people were there to help. Everyone was a complete stranger yet so friendly. . . . The people helping me did the heavy lifting of my things, yet they seemed to enjoy it. I was a positive experience cause coming from a different continent a different culture this was not expected. It did represent the typical friendly and nice nature of Canadians.”

27. CB & NCB E-Interview Sample Quotes (- experiences) CB “I was at work and someone and someone asked for my assistance on a project . . . I was really confused, but I suppose because I wasn’t very perky they interpreted me as being cold. This is typical of seme general bad things I’ve experienced in Canada—being scared to offend someone else to the point of being overly nice and worried, which makes me feel uncomfortable.” “. . . many Canadians seem to have an impenetrable wall that keeps them from showing others who they really are” NCB “Even though Canadians generally seems to be acceptance of others, deep down the heart, they do not really understand others.” “I do not really informed of political, historical, and any general knowledge about Canada and Canadians. It is hard to mingle and mix without knowing of these things especially about North American entertainment industry and sports.”

28. Limitations of Study • Sample size (n=299) • Sample of convenience • Significant York U and other urban representation • CBs and NCBs are heterogeneous groups • Our video may have promoted positive responses • Respondents with frequent social media access may be more likely to respond

29. Results & Interpretations • Overall, CBs and NCBs similarly perceive people in Canada • CBs may experience “inflated” self-perceptions for specific character traits • NCBs may be well-acculturated, but potential exists for further social integration and classroom acculturation of NCBs • Canadian content curriculum development

30. Discussion Questions • How, if at all, do you address Canadian culture in your classroom and/or at your institution? • To what extent do you feel that your students (and/or students at your institution) have an “accurate” understanding of Canadian culture/perception of Canadians? • To what extent can ESL instructors and administrators assist acculturation?

31. Works Cited Berry, J. W. & Sam, D. L. (1980). Acculturation and adaptation. In J.W. Berry, Segall, M. H., Kagitcibasi, C. (Eds.), Cross-cultural psychology: Social behaviour and application (Vol. 3, p. 291-326). Needham Heights: Allyn and Bacon. Cheng, L. & Fox, J. (2008). Towards a better understanding of academic acculturation: Second Language Students in Canadian Universities. The Canadian Modern Language Review, 65(2), p. 307-333. Council of Europe (2009). Autobiography of intercultural encounters. Language Policy Division. Katz, D., & Braly, K. W. (1933). Racial stereotypes of one hundred college students. Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 28, 280-290. McCrae, R. R., & Costa, R. T., Jr. (1987). Validation of the five-factor model of personality across instruments and observers. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 52, 81-90. Norton, B. P. (1995). Social identity, investment, and language learning. TESOL Quarterly, 29(1), p. 9-31. Paunonen, S. V., Jackson, D. N., Trzebinski, J., & Forsterling, F. (1992). Personality structure across cultures: A multimethod evaluation. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 62(3), 447-456. Schumann, J. (1976). Social distance as a factor in second language acquisition. Language Learning, 26, p. 135-143.

32. Accessing Our Presentation Go to slideshare.net Search for “Perceptions of People in Canada”