The Impact of Teacher Participation in Online English Forums on Middle School Students' Intercultural Communicative Competence

With the advancement of globalization, the importance of intercultural communicative competence (ICC) in education has become increasingly prominent. This study explored the impact of Online Discussion Forum for Junior Students English (ODF-JSE) on students ’ ICC, based on a study conducted with 39 students and 5 bilingual foreign teachers. A four-month teaching experiment was carried out in a middle school in a Chinese city, adopting Byram's ICC model as the theoretical framework. The study encompassed dimensions of knowledge, skills, attitudes, and critical cultural awareness. Results revealed that ODF-JSE significantly improved students' ICC compared to traditional classroom methods. Both students and teachers positively evaluated ODF-JSE, recognizing its effectiveness in enhancing students' intercultural knowledge, skills, attitudes, and critical cultural awareness. This research contributes valuable insights for enhancing intercultural education practices in secondary English teaching.