It is widely accepted that the aim of foreign language learning is to acquire the ability to perform a repertoire of cross-cultural acts(Hu Zhuanglin 2001)and the root purpose of college English teaching is to develop Chinese students’ cross-cultural competence.Language is inextricably tied to culture and culture is an inevitable element in language understanding.Different languages reflect different cultural backgrounds.Learning a foreign language means not only mastering its pronunciation,grammar,words and idioms but also learning its culture.Namely learning the ways in which their language reflects the ideas,customs,and behavior of their society.This paper states the importance of cultural teaching in college English and recommends some contents to be used in teaching.The purpose is to develop students’ intercultural communicative competence.
