Analysts and education experts are of the view that an instructor should understand the culture and the native language of a student learning a foreign language. Furthermore, it is important to understand the culture of the speakers of the target language. In this regard, it is essential to understand both L1 and L2 aspects of a culture. The new culture should not contradict the culture of the learner. LoBianco (1999) refers to this phenomenon as the ‘Third Place’. The third place is crucial in teaching a foreign language. LoBianco (1999) argues that when teaching a foreign language, one should identify the middle ground between L1 and L2. The middle ground is then used to benefit the learners. However, it is important to note at this juncture that the middle ground does not imply adopting the target culture. To the student, the middle ground may translate to appreciating the different cultures of fellow students (Liddicoat, Crozet & LoBianco, 1999). Moreover, foreign language students should comprehend the culture of the native speakers, regardless of whether or not they wish to adopt the new lifestyle and behaviour patterns (Liddicoat, 2000). Various scholars, such as Schmidt (1993) and Cook (1999), encourage learners to pay attention to the various aspects of the language they are learning. The learner should pay attention to such aspects as styles of speech, relevant contexts, and functional meanings. Kasper (2001) and Trosborg (1994) add that students should be aware of the sociopragmatic and pragmalinguistic behaviour appropriate for particular settings. Learning the various pragmalinguistic features, such as politeness markers, poses a challenge to learners. It is challenging given that one has to use the features correctly and within the right context (Schmidt, 1993; Lazenby, 1997). According to Lazenby (1997), sociopragmatic features are the social aspects of speech. Sociopragmatic features involve day to day activities, such as asking for help or apologising. The arguments made by Bardovi in 1999 (and cited in Kasper, 2001) reveal that grammatical awareness and pragmatic competence should remain independent of each other. The scholar notes that achieving considerable levels of grammatical competence does not necessarily mean that the learner is pragmatically competent. The two phenomena are quite different from each other. I am an English instructor at the College of Technology in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Most of my students are aged between 19 and 25 years, and they learn the English language within a period of two years. The students have already learnt English for a period of six years before joining college. However, the English instructions they have received prior to joining the college place little emphasis on culture. As a college instructor at the college level, my major aim is to assist the students in learning both the language and its corresponding spoken culture. There are several personal and professional beliefs that inform my envisaged objectives. For example, I believe that teaching my students the culture of the speakers of the target language will help them appreciate the uniqueness of the two cultures. As an English teacher working with learners o