1st Edition

Language, Ideology and Education The politics of textbooks in language education

Edited By Xiao Lan Curdt-Christiansen, Csilla Weninger Copyright 2015
    240 Pages 29 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    240 Pages 29 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    This book examines the role textbooks play in the teaching of dominant and non-dominant (first and foreign) languages in a range of cultural contexts worldwide. Each chapter addresses important issues related to what constitutes "legitimate knowledge", the politics of learning materials, global cultural awareness, competing ideologies, and the development of multilingual literacies.

    Language, Ideology and Education: The Politics of Textbooks in Language Education comprehensively surveys theoretical perspectives and methodological issues in the critical examination of language textbooks. In particular, it looks at:

    • The Cultural Politics of Language Textbooks in the Era of Globalization
    • The Politics of Instructional Materials for English for Young Learners
    • Ideological Tensions and Contradictions in Lower Primary English Teaching Materials in Singapore
    • Creating a Multilingual/multicultural Space in Japanese EFL: A Critical Analysis of Discursive Practices within a New Language Education Policy

    The book is primarily addressed to those who teach and research in the areas of Foreign Language Education, TESOL, Applied Linguistics, Language Policy, Critical Pedagogy, and Textual Cultures. Although the book is focused on textbook and materials analysis, rather than evaluation, most chapters discuss implications for curriculum design and materials development and therefore will be relevant to scholars working in those fields.

    Part 1 1.Introduction: Ideology and the Politics of Language Textbooks Editors  2.The Cultural Politics of Language Textbooks in the Era of Globalization Claire Kramsch & Kimberly Vinall  3.The Politics of Instructional Materials for English for Young Learners Bessie Dendrinos  4.Analyzing Culture in Foreign/Second Language Textbooks: Methodological and Conceptual Issues Csilla Weninger & Tamás Kiss Part 2 5.Educating Citizens in the Foreign Language Classroom: Missed Opportunities in a Colombian EFL Textbook Gillian Moss, Norma Barletta, Diana Chamorro & Jorge Mizuno  6.Ideologies of Monoculturalism in Confucius Institute Textbooks:A Corpus-based Critical Analysis Huaqing Hong & Xianzhong He  7.Contrasting Arabic and Hebrew Textbooks in Israel: A Focus on Culture Iair G.Or & Elana Shohamy  Part 3 8.Ideological Tensions and Contradictions in Lower Primary English Teaching Materials in Singapore Xiao Lan Curdt-Christiansen  9.Creating a Multilingual/multicultural Space in Japanese EFL: A Critical Analysis of Discursive Practices within a New Language Education Policy Sachiko Horii  10.Ideologies in Primary English Textbooks in China Qiao Ping  11.Digital Textbooks and the Politics of Content Enrichment in EFL Textbooks Bessie Mitsikopoulou  12.Cultural Content Matters: A Critical Sociology of Language and Literacy Curriculum Allan Luke

    Biography

    Xiao Lan Curdt-Christiansen is Associate professor in applied linguistics at the Institute of Education, University of Reading, UK.

    Csilla Weninger is Assistant Professor of English Language and Linguistics at the National Institute of Education, Singapore.

    Language, Ideology and Education: The Politics of Textbooks in Language Education breaks new ground in adding to our understanding of the role of textbooks in the ideological context of the foreign language classroom... It is a book that should be read by all current and future foreign language educators.

    -- Timothy Reagan, Nazarbayev University