Constructing English as a Ugandan language through an English textbook

Stranger-Johannessen, Espen

doi:10.1080/07908318.2014.987296

Cited by 15 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 44 publications

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“…However, the scope of talk becomes limited which in turn narrows the process of semiosis and meaning-making and the construction of connotatively-based cultural meanings unless the teacher jostles them to move forward by posing symbols-induced questions. Thus, the fact that the affordance of an image as a sign can yield associations or connotations is particularly crucial, both in its own right and in connection with exercises and text (Stranger-Johannessen, 2014).…”

Section: Lesson 5 Of Prospectmentioning

confidence: 99%

Semiotic analysis of cultural representations in Iranian English textbooks

Safari

Pourhashemi²

2022

CERJ

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The Peircean semiotic approach suggests a non-linear and dynamic view of culture to examine it through signs, sign systems and meaning-making processes. This approach emphasises that images, texts and tasks are considered semiotic resources, generating cultural meanings through semiotic processes. This study aims to reveal the concept of culture in a dynamic manner concerning the semiotic potential embedded in the Iranian EFL textbooks used in junior high schools from the perspective of a semiotic framework. Semiotic analysis showed that cultural meaning-making is directed through guided semiosis, hampering students’ exploration of cultural potential meanings, cultural reflection, understanding and awareness. The denotational and the indexical relationship between texts and images also does not foster students’ intercultural understanding of living and maintaining in a global community, and hence, teachers need to move towards the symbolic aspect of texts and images through unguided semiosis to develop students’ cultural understanding of self and others. Keywords: Cultural, English textbooks, Peircean, semiotic, unguided semiosis;

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Section: Lesson 5 Of Prospectmentioning

confidence: 99%

Semiotic analysis of cultural representations in Iranian English textbooks

Safari

Pourhashemi²

2022

CERJ

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“…Many scholars have investigated the cultural representations of English textbooks in different contexts, such as Japan, Australia, Iran, England, Uganda, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and so on (Yamada, 2010;Lee & Collins, 2010;Hodkinson, 2018;Stranger-Johannessen, 2015;Alshammri, 2017;Mohamood, 2012). In these previous studies, thematic topics like cultural representation, identity construction, and gender stereotypes were reported and analyzed.…”

Section: Previous Studies On English Language Textbooksmentioning

confidence: 99%

Identity Options and Cultural Representations in English Textbooks Used in Cambodia

Li¹,

Dong²,

Duan³

2019

ASS

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Language textbooks play an important role in bridging learners’ understanding between the source culture and target culture. This study explores how the Cambodian and foreign characters are produced and how the source and target cultures are represented in three English language textbooks published by the Cambodian Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport (MoEYS). The data were collected from textbook passages, exercises and images presented in the textbooks and the data were analyzed based on the emerging themes in language and cultural representations of the textbooks. The findings indicate that regarding the distribution in the target communities, Anglophone and their postcolonial countries are prominently highlighted in the textbooks with the exception that Japan is exclusively introduced as imagined interlocutor for cultural communication; concerning the representation of the source culture, Buddhism and Khmer are constructed as legitimate forms of Cambodian practices. Based on the findings, we argue that English textbooks produced in Cambodia have not provided Cambodian youth with balanced exposure of cultural diversity. The study has implications for designing English textbooks with the consideration of diverse identity options and cultural representations.

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“…Despite the fruitful implications of this semiotic approach for cultivating a global conceptualization of culture in English curricula and instructional materials design and development, few studies to date have capitalized on this approach to critically scrutinize the quality of current EFL textbooks and examine their cultural representations (e.g. Canale, 2016; Chen, 2010; Dimopoulos et al, 2003, 2005; Koulaidis & Dimopoulos, 2005; Stranger-Johannessen, 2014; Weninger & Kiss, 2013). To fill this research lacuna, the present study, theoretically inspired by the mentioned studies, analysed the Iranian national EFL textbook, Vision 1 (Alavimoghadam et al, 2016), for its cultural representations following the semiotic approach.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

‘Should textbook images be merely decorative?’: Cultural representations in the Iranian EFL national textbook from the semiotic approach perspective

Derakhshan

2021

Language Teaching Research

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Studies examining culture representation in language textbooks have rarely adopted the semiotic approach, despite its potential for presenting and (re)creating cultural meanings at their various levels (i.e. cultural, intercultural, multicultural, and transcultural) in the co-instantiations of texts, tasks, and images. To address this issue, a qualitative analysis, embarking on the Peircean semiotic theory, was applied on the text-image-task semiotic relationship. It explored its potential for constructing and reconstructing cultural meanings relative to the Iranian national English as a foreign language (EFL) textbook, Vision 1, from the perspectives of Iranian EFL students, teachers, and teacher educators. Content and thematic analyses of the interview records revealed three themes: first, the co-instantiation of the image and text was indexical, cultural awareness and connotations were almost untouched; second, the textual and visual components driving intercultural meanings and interpretations were not in accordance with the tasks; and, third, some alternative more culturally engaging images were provided by the interviewees. On the whole, the findings confirmed the previous findings that the discourse of this brand-new Iranian localized EFL textbook leaves little space to raise cultural awareness for its users. Based on the findings, a dynamic model for evaluating cultural representations in textbooks is suggested, hoping to show how EFL textbooks can be developed, implemented, and received more effectively in instructional settings.

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Constructing English as a Ugandan language through an English textbook

Cited by 15 publications

References 44 publications

Semiotic analysis of cultural representations in Iranian English textbooks

Semiotic analysis of cultural representations in Iranian English textbooks

Identity Options and Cultural Representations in English Textbooks Used in Cambodia

‘Should textbook images be merely decorative?’: Cultural representations in the Iranian EFL national textbook from the semiotic approach perspective

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