Strangers in Paradise. The Role of Target Language Culture in Foreign Language Teaching Materials

Abstract

Coursebooks used in the foreign language (FL) instruction are primarily designed to facilitate language learning, but they cannot do just that since language learning is inseparable from its cultural context. As Cunningsworth states, “A study of language solely as an abstract system would not equip learners to use it in the real world” (Cunningsworth, Choosing your coursebook. Heinemann, Oxford, p 86, 1995). For that reason, it is usually expected that FL teaching materials (TM) that the language teachers select should include elements of the target language culture. The extent and ways of incorporating cultural aspects in FL instruction vary in different TM, and therefore it is important for the FL teacher to know what to look for in a particular language textbook in order to decide if it is suitable for attaining the aforementioned goals. It seems that the language teachers are often unaware of the cultural ‘richness’ of the target language culture and the possible benefits it brings to the language students. The chapter investigates the role of culture in FL instruction in terms of the cultural content of the TM used in secondary education as well as the teachers’ awareness of the cultural content of the coursebooks they select and later use with their learners.

Appendices

20.5 Appendix 1

20.6 Appendix 2