A probe into local cultural values in locally produced EFL textbooks in Indonesia

As a result of shifts in the objectives of teaching English as a language for international communication in the current era, a substantial modification of EFL textbooks has been made to include accounts of various cultures, including local cultural aspects, to spark students' interest in the language and promote cross-cultural awareness. Despite this transformation, a notable gap exists in the scholarly discourse concerning how local cultures are depicted in localized EFL textbooks. That said, the objectives of this research were twofold: first, it sought to examine the portrayal of local cultural norms in Indonesian locally produced English Language Teaching (ELT) textbooks; and second, it attempted to explore how the absorption of local culture promotes the intercultural communication skills of learners. To that end, two local ELT series were considered for analysis. To examine the cultural dimensions in the textbooks, a content analysis was conducted by referring to Yuen’s (2011) cultural evaluation framework with four major categories: products, practices, perspectives, and persons. The findings underscore that these course books extensively feature local cultures, with cultural products receiving the most substantial coverage, while perspectives are comparatively underrepresented. Significant exposure to localized resources effectively drives learners' learning engagement and enhances their intercultural literacy. Consequently, the study highlights the significance of the inclusion of culturally relevant content in EFL textbooks tailored for learners, offering noteworthy implications for both ELT practices and academic research.