Cultural representation in English textbooks: Voices from Chinese EFL teachers

When a person acquires a new language, culture is a central part of the process that cannot be separated. An English textbook serves as a medium for learning that is rich in the hidden cultural significance for its stakeholders. From the perspective of educators, there is limited scrutiny into how cultural values are depicted within English language textbooks. Therefore, this inquiry was conducted to examine the cultural content of textbook series in China, identifying the critical role these textbooks play in presenting culture. A questionnaire adapted from Kilickaya (2004) was used in this investigation. The study involved 625 Chinese EFL teachers and a questionnaire was administered to all participants. Among them, 21 were randomly selected for semi-structured interviews, which were based on a semiotics framework to enhance the depth of analysis. Collected data from the questionnaire were processed for quantitative analysis while the data from the interviews were transcribed and scrutinized for qualitative analysis. Results indicated that teachers hold a positive view about cultural representation in English textbooks and advocate for a cultural semiotic representation approach that connects images, texts, and tasks to improve students' cultural awareness. Ultimately, the results of this investigation have practical implications for EFL stakeholders.