Can We Learn about Culture by EFL Textbook Images?: A Semiotic Approach Perspective | ||
| جستارهای زبانی | ||
| Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript, Available Online from 02 November 2025 | ||
| Document Type: مقاله انتقادی و مفهومی | ||
| DOI: 10.48311/LRR/lrr.2025.27786 | ||
| Authors | ||
| Yongliang Wang1; Saengchan Hemchua* 2 | ||
| 1School of Liberal Arts, Shinawatra University, Bang Toey, Thailand | ||
| 2School of Liberal Arts, Shinawatra University | ||
| Abstract | ||
| A close look at the education system reveals that too much attention is attached to text while visuals, such as pictures and cartoons, are often deemed as “decoration”, or are not incorporated in the textbooks at all. Visual texts constitute a part of daily communication, which can potentially bear many layers of meaning.The status of cultural elements and representation of culture in English instruction has proved to be a tricky issue. This is because of the diverse range of contexts where English is used on an international scale globally. Given the integral relationship between language and culture, it is essential to teach cultural elements in L2 classes, in particular, the representation of cultural values and elements as an integral part of the L2 curriculum of English language teaching (ELT). Furthermore, from a critical linguistics viewpoint, language textbooks should be viewed as social and cultural vehicles. Therefore, the incorporation of cultural symbols and raising cultural awareness are considered essential issues in ELT textbooks, in the context of English as a foreign language. Furthermore, multiple approaches to the analysis of textbooks and cultural contents have been adopted by different researchers. The present study is based on the core principles of semiotic analysis which implies that texts, pictures, and other modes of communication can be used as potential semiotic resources. This review study can yield important theoretical and pedagogical implications for researchers, L2 instructors, and the developers of ELT textbooks to take the images into account to represent culture in the textbook. | ||
| Keywords | ||
| culture; cultural representation; English as a foreign language; semiotics; textbook evaluation | ||
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