An investigation into the cultural contents available in the reading passages of “English 12”, students’ attitudes and expectations toward the cultural contents to be loaded to this textbook and cultural learning at Phuc Tho High School

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES *************************** VŨ THỊ TUYẾT AN INVESTIGATION INTO TH

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES

***************************

VŨ THỊ TUYẾT

AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE CULTURAL CONTENTS AVAILABLE

IN THE READING PASSAGES OF ENGLISH 12, STUDENTS’

ATTITUDES AND EXPECTATIONS TOWARDS CULTURAL CONTENTS

TO BE LOADED TO THIS TEXTBOOK AND CULTURAL LEARNING

AT PHUC THO HIGH SCHOOL (Phân tích các nội dung văn hóa trong các bài đọc của sách giáo khoa Tiếng Anh 12, thái độ và mong đợi của học sinh về nội dung văn hóa được chuyển tải trong cuốn sách và việc học các kiến thức văn hóa đó ở

trường THPT Phúc Thọ)

M.A MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS

Field : English Teaching Methodology Code : 60140111

HA NOI – 2016

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES

******************************

VŨ THỊ TUYẾT

AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE CULTURAL CONTENTS AVAILABLE

IN THE READING PASSAGES OF ENGLISH 12, STUDENTS’

ATTITUDES AND EXPECTATIONS TOWARDS CULTURAL CONTENTS

TO BE LOADED TO THIS TEXTBOOK AND CULTURAL LEARNING

AT PHUC THO HIGH SCHOOL (Phân tích các nội dung văn hóa trong các bài đọc của sách giáo khoa Tiếng Anh 12, thái độ và mong đợi của học sinh về nội dung văn hóa được chuyển tải trong cuốn sách và việc học các kiến thức văn hóa đó ở

trường THPT Phúc Thọ)

M.A MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS

Field : English Teaching Methodology Code : 60140111

Supervisor : Assoc Prof Dr Võ Đại Quang

HA NOI – 2016

DECLARATION

I, the undersigned, hereby certify my authorship of the study project report entitled:

An investigation into the cultural contents available in the reading passages of

“English 12”, students’ attitudes and expectations toward the cultural contents

to be loaded to this textbook and cultural learning at Phuc Tho High School

The thesis is submitted to Faculty of Post-Graduate Studies in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master Degree of Arts in English Teaching Methodology at University of Languages and International Studies, Viet Nam National University, Ha Noi

Except where the reference is indicated, no other person‟s work has been used without due acknowledgement in the text of the thesis

Ha Noi, November 2016

V Th Tuyết

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

In the process of conducting this MA thesis, my efforts could not have

achieved such great success without the help and support from a number of people First of all, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my supervisor, Assoc Prof Dr Vo Dai Quang, for his genuine guidance, everlasting support and strong encouragement throughout the stages of my study, and whose stimulating ideas, expertise and suggestions have greatly inspired me in my growth of teaching career

My deepest respect and gratitude are extended to the lecturers and many others from Faculty of Post-graduate Studies at ULIS, VNU, for their enthusiastic help and support during all my course as well as the writing of the present thesis

My sincere thanks also go to my classmates and my friends for their hearted concern and encouragement

whole-Moreover, a special word of thanks isconveyed to all the teachers and

grade-12 students at Phuc Tho High school for their help and participation throughout the data collection procedure for my MA thesis

Last but not least, I am greatly indebted to my beloved family for their being with me and supporting me at the hardest times throughout all my studies and the fulfillment of this academic work

Language and culture are now deemed to be co-constitutive; hence English language teaching (ELT) textbooks should incorporate cultural aspects and promote intercultural competence However, cultural traits in the reading passages of the textbook English 12 seem to be ignored in teaching and learning English process at Phuc Tho High school The students here, to a great extent, know the rules of language, but are not always able to use the language adequately as it requires since they are not knowledgeable enough about the target culture This research is carried out to point out cultural groups and categories presented in the reading passages of the textbook English 12 Moreover, the reseacher aims to find out the students‟ concerning the presence these cultural contents in this textbook as well as their cultural learning at Phuc Tho high school so that the learners can raise their cultural aweaness and get appropriateness in communication during and after learning the material “ English 12” In order to fulfill these aims, two checklists and a student questionnaire were employed by the researcher The subjects involved in this study were 84 grade-12 students, including 28 males and 56 females who are all students

of mixed-level classes They were invited to participate in the survey questionnaire for data collection Quantitative data were analyzed by calculating the frequencies, percentages and rank orders Qualitative data were analyzed by applying the coding system for the categorization of collected responses and content analysis Based on the findings, some suggestions were given to teachers with the hope that they will collaborate with the school to make certain positive changes to this problematic reality Hence, teachers and learners need to have awareness and attitudes to integrate cultural knowledge into training English language so that English learning and teaching at Phuc Tho High school become more interesting and effective

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Declaration .i

Acknowledgements .ii

Abstract .iii

Table of contents .iv

List of abbreviations .vii

List of tables .viii

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1

1.1 Rationale 1

1.2 Aims of the study 2

1.3 Objectives of the study 2

1.4 Methods of the study 3

1.5 Scope of the study 3

1.6 Significances of the study 4

1.7 Structural organization of the study 4

CHAPTER 2 : LITERATURE REVIEW 6

2.1 Theoretical background of language and culture 6

2.1.1 Definition of language 6

2.1.2 Definition of culture 7

2.1.3 Interrelationship between language and culture 8

2.1.4 Culture and cultural learning 9

2.2 Theoretical background of textbook 12

2.2.1 Textbook 12

2.2.2 The role of textbook in teaching and learning 13

2.3 Theoretical background of reading skill 155

2.3.1 Definition of reading and reading comprehension 155

2.3.2 Reading passages and the load of cultural background knowledge 156

2.4 Review of the related studies 16

2.4.1 Studies on Classification of cultural content in ELT textbooks 16

2.4.2 Studies on cultural categories in foreign language textbooks 17

2.4.3 Studies on attitudes and expectations towards cultural learning and contents in English textbooks 19

CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY 22

3.1 Restatement of research questions 22

3.2 The fitness of the research approach 22

3.3 Research setting 22

3.3.1 The context at Phuc Tho High school 22

3.3.2 Textbook under Evaluation 23

3.3.3 Participants 24

3.4 Research types 25

3.5 Data collection methods 25

3.5.1 Textbook analysis 25

3.5.1.1 Checklist One used for the investigating the cutural groups 25

3.5.1.2 Checklist Two used for the investigating the cutural categories .26

3.5.2 Student Questionnaire 27

3.6 Data collection and data analysis procedure 27

3.6.1 Data collection and data analysis procedure on textbook analysis 27

3.6.2 Data collection and data analysis procedure on students‟ attitudes 28

3.7 Summary 29

CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONS 30

4.1 Research question 1 30

4.2 Research question 2 32

4.3 Research question 3 34

4.3.1 Attitudes of cultural contents in English 12 textbook 35

4.3.2 Expectations of cultural contents in terms of cultural categories in the textbook 36

4.3.3 Expectations of the preferred cultural groups in EFL textbooks 37

4.4 Research question 4 38

4.4.1 Students‟ attitudes towards cultural learning 38

4.4.2 Students‟ attitudes towards learning cultural groups and reasons for learning cultural groups 40

4.4.3 Students‟ attitudes towards situations of current cultural teaching and learning in EFL classrooms at Phuc Tho high school 42

CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION 45

5.1 Summary of main findings 45

5.2 Implications of the study 46

5.3 Limitations and recommendations for further research 48

REFERENCES 50 APPENDIX A I APPENDIX B VI

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

FLT Foreign Language Teaching

ELT English Language Teaching

EFL English as a Foreign Language

LIST OF TABLES

Table 3.1: Units and topics in the textbook 24 Table 4.1: The distribution of frequency and percentages of the cultural groups in

the reading passage of English 12 textbook 30

Table 4.2: Distribution of frequency and percentage of cultural categories

according to Checklist Two 33

Table 4.3 : Students‟ attitudes of cultural contents in English 12 35

Table 4.4 : Ranking of students‟ expectations about the most preferred cultural

categories to be presented in textbook 36

Table 4.5: Ranking of students‟ expectations about which cultural groups should be

presented in textbooks 37

Table 4.6: Students‟ attitudes towards cultural learning 38 Table 4.7: Ranking of students‟ attitudes about the cultural groups they had tried

and were willing to learn 40

Table 4.8: Students‟ reasons for learning cultural groups 41 Table 4.9 : Students‟ preferences about the most helpful methods for cultural

learning 42

Table 4.10 : Factors obstructing students‟ abilities to learn about cultures 43

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

In this part, the researcher will present the rationale of the study, the aims, objectives and the research questions, the scope, the methods, the significance, and the structural organization of the study

1.1 Rationale

There is no doubt that it would be a “nightmare” if human society existed without communication, of which language is a significant means Among many languages existing all over the world, English is nowadays commonly used as regards the international language that plays a crucial role in a lot of fields such as economy, politics, commerce and science, etc As a result, more and more people are interested in learning English not only because of their jobs‟ requirements, but also for the needs to integrate with the outside world

However, on the way mastering a foreign language, especially English, the learners have to encounter so many difficulties arising both within the language itself and from outside One of these foremost barriers is culture difference Emmitt and Pollock (1997) when discussing the relationship between language and culture have stated that “language is rooted in culture and culture is reflected and passed on

by language from one generation to the next” From this, one can see that learning a new language involves the learning of a new culture (Allwright &Bailey, 1991) and

“if we teach language without teaching at the same time the culture in which it operates, we are teaching meaningless symbols or symbols to which student attaches the wrong meaning”( Politzer, 1959, p 100-101)

In Vietnam, English has been taught as a compulsory subject in both public and private schools for many years Nevertheless, the focusing so much on teaching grammar, vocabulary and language skills, which often dominates in English teaching and learning method, results in the ignorance of teaching cultural background knowledge presented in the materials

Among the ELT materials, English 12 is the English textbook nationally published and used for senior high schools in Vietnam In fact, there have been investigations carried out on the issue of cultural elements in ELT Still, little attention has been paid to the cultural content of the ELT textbooks, and no investigations have examined the cultural content of the reading passages of the textbook “English 12” Furthermore, almost no attention has been given to the teachers‟ and students‟ attitudes and awareness of the cultural load of the

textbooks they use All the mentioned reasons have urged the author to choose “An

investigation into the cultural contents available in the reading passages of

“English 12”, students’ attitudes and expectations toward the cultural contents

to be loaded to this textbook and cultural learning at Phuc Tho High School”

as the title for this MA thesis

1.2 Aims of the study

The main purposes of the this study are:

(1) to examine the state of references to different cultural groups and cultural categories presented in the reading passages of the textbook English 12,

(2) to find out the learners‟ attitudes and expectations on cultural contents in the textbook English 12 and their culture learning at Phuc Tho high school

(3) to give some pedagogical implications that may raise students‟ cultural awareness and hope to contribute some possitive changes in teaching and learning English in the current context at Phuc Tho High school

1.3 Objectives of the study

For the mentioned aims, a number of research questions as the objectives of the study will be raised for investigation:

1 To what extent are the cultural groups represented in reading passages of

English 12 textbook ?

2 What categories reflecting cultural content does English 12 textbook

introduce in reading passages and to what extent?

3 What are the attitudes and expectations of grade-12 students Phuc Tho high

school towards cultural contents in English 12 textbook?

4 What are the attitudes and expectations of grade-12 students towards

cultural learning at Phuc Tho high school ?

1.4 Methods of the study

The study was carried out by some steps as follows:

First, the cultural groups represented in reading passages of English 12

textbookwas counted, calculated in the percentage and then analyzed

Second, a checklist was used to study the representation of categories reflecting

cultural content in reading passages in English 12 textbook

After that, the survey questionnaires for students and teachers were employed to

find out their attitudes and their expectationstowards integrating the cultural content

to the reading passages in English 12 textbook

Then, the data were collected, sorted and analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively

to obtain realistic results

To end with, pedagogical implications for enhancing students‟ positive attitudes in

learning listening skill will be proposed based on the results found from all data

collection instruments

1.5 Scope of the study

The present study aims at the investigation of references to different

cultural groups and cultural categories of the textbook English 12 and the attitudes

of grade-12 students at Phuc Tho high school who are exposed to using these

books The paper, however, concentrates on quite a narrow area, i.e not on the

traits of cultures ( Vietnamese culture and foreign cultures) in ELT textbooks in

general, but on the reading passages of the textbook English 12 This is due to

the assumption that reading passages and texts contain richer cultural load in

comparison with other textbook‟s items Furthermore, cultural contents may be

presented explicitly, and thus it can be easier to analyze their presence

The situation with students is often that they are given a textbook without being asked whether the textbook is interesting and motivating for them Therefore,

it is important to know their opinions and expectations towards cultural contents of the textbook they are exposing to and cultural learning in the context of their school

1.6 Significances of the study

This study offers insight into the cultural contents of reading passages in English 12 textbook and cultural learning at Phuc Tho high school with an aim of helping develop students‟ cultural awareness, improve their cultural learning and intercultural communicative competence It is expected to offer some advice and suggestions for cultural teaching and learning in the EFL classroom

1.7 Structural organization of the study

The study consists of five main parts:

Chapter 1: Introduction presents the general introduction of the thesis, combining

rationale, aims, objectives and research questions, scope, significances and

structural organizations of the study

Chapter 2: Literature review gives a critical review of the previous studies

relating to the research problem under this investigation and presents the theoretical background employed as tools for conducting the whole research

Chapter 3: Methodology provides the information by which the research is

conducted with a method section answering two main questions how the data was collected and how it was analyzed Restatement of research questions, the fitness of the research approach, research setting, research types, data collection methods, data collection and data analysis procedure

are shown in this chapter

Chapter 4: Findings and Discussions includes all the findings and a thorough

evaluation of the investigation The data collected form textbook analysis, survey questionnaires shall be analyzed and discussed

Chapter 5: Conclusion restates the aims, summarizes the major findings, presents

the limitation of the research and suggests some recommendations for further

studies

CHAPTER 2 : LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Theoretical background of language and culture

2.1.1 Definition of language

Since human beings used language as a tool to communicate with each other, many definitions of language have been proposed Language is introduced by Crystal (1971, 1992) as “the systematic, conventional use of sounds, signs or written symbols in a human society for communication and self expression” Chase (1969) declares that the purpose of language use is to communicate with others, to think, and to shape one‟s standpoint and outlook on life Krech (1962) explains the major functions of language from the following three aspects: (1) Language is the primary vehicle of communication; (2) Language reflects both the personality of the individual and the culture of his history In turn, it helps shape both personality and culture; (3) Language makes possible the growth and transmission of culture, the continuity of societies, and the effective functioning and control of social group

Language is not a thing to be studied but a way of seeing, understanding and communicating about the world and each language user uses his or her language(s) differently to do this People use language for purposeful communication and learning a new language involves learning how to use words, rules and knowledge about language and its use in order to communicate with speakers of the language This understanding of language sees a language not simply as a body of knowledge

to be learnt but as a social practice in which to participate (Kramsch, 1994) Language is something that people do in their daily lives and something they use to express, create and interpret meanings and to establish and maintain social and interpersonal relationships

It is obvious that language is the primary and essential means people use to communicate and express their thoughts, feelings, emotion and, passion, etc Moreover, language is not only our main link with the outside world, it is also a marker that distinguishes us from the animal creatures we share the world with (Richard E Porter, Edwin R McDaniel, 2007:164)

Thanks to language, people can understand each other more easily It helps

people build a better society to satisfy their lives and desires As a result, human

society would not exist without language

2.1.2 Definition of culture

The term “culture” is considered one of the most complicated words to define

In order to examine the cultural content of teaching materials, there should be the understanding on what culture is In the history, many linguists and scholars tried to identify the concept of culture, and every definition can be regarded as a

correct one in terms of certain conditions Culture is not genetically inherited, and

cannot exist on its own, but is always shared by members of a society (Hall, 1976,

p 16) This definition, however, does not satisfy the goals set in the present

research, since it does not say anything concerning possible cultural elements The

definition by Chen and Starosta states that culture is „a negotiated set of shared symbolic systems that guide individuals‟ (Chen & Starosta, 1998) This tells us

more about the nature of culture; however, it does not reveal the content of culture

In order to consider the concept of culture deeper way, many researchers

focus more on the cultural contents when defining the term “culture” in their

definitions According to Brooks (1971), culture is divided into two main areas: Hearthstone culture and Olympian culture, or, in other words, „big C‟ and

„little c‟ cultures „Big C‟ includes beliefs, behaviors, values of people, whereas

„little c‟ consists of such elements as great music, literature, and art Samovar,

Porter & Stefani (1998) define culture as the deposit of knowledge, experience,

beliefs, values, actions, attitudes, meanings, hierarchies, religion, notions of time,

roles, spatial relations, concepts of the universe, and artifacts acquired by a group

of people in the course of generations through individual and group striving

All in all, “culture is everything that people have, think and do as a member

of a society” (Fernando, 1996:18, cited in Nguyen Quang, 2006:16) foreign

language learning is composed of several components, including cultural

competence Cultural competence, i.e., the knowledge of the conventions, customs,

beliefs, and systems of meaning of another country, is indisputably an integral part

of foreign language learning (Straub, 1999) Therefore, foreign language teachers should see it as their goal to incorporate the teaching of culture into the foreign language classroom

2.1.3 Interrelationship between language and culture

The link between language and culture has been described as “intricate and interdependent” (Mitchell & Myles, 2004, p 235) To better describe this relationship, several metaphors have been used in the related literature For instance, language has been considered to be the „mirror of culture‟ since it is possible to see the culture through its language Another metaphor used to reveal

the connection between these two concepts is „iceberg‟ While the language

represents the visible part of the iceberg, culture symbolizes the underlying and

hidden part (Jiang, 2000)

Culture and language are so interdependent that knowledge of cultural contexts and frames is essential for successful and effective language use in both one‟s mother tongue and target language As Thompson (1993) indicates, knowledge of social values, norms of behaviour and interaction, and cultural discourse can be considered

as a crucial component of overall linguistic competence Likewise, language functions as a primary agent in the transmission of cultural knowledge When referring to the relationship between language and culture, Joyce M Valdes (1986:4) suggests the circular pattern of language, culture and thought in which each influences and is influenced by the others “They are not all the same thing, but none can survive without the others” Obviously, it is impossible for human beings

to study anything without being acknowledged of the language and its culture at the same time Culture is a deeply ingrained part of people‟s lives However, language - the means for communication among members of a culture – is the most visible and available expression of that culture

In short, language and culture are inseparable If teaching of a foreign language is separated from the culture it would mean a rejection of the basic

purpose of FLT, which is enabling students to “cope with experience in a different way” (Byram, 1988) Teaching of a foreign language without its cultural content is impossible Therefore, an understanding of the relationship between language and culture is important for language learners, users, and for all those involved in language education For language teachers and learners in general, an appreciation for the differences in opinion regarding the relationship between language and culture can help to illuminate the diversity of views held toward the use of language For all language users, the recognition of how their language affects others can greatly impact the direction and motivation for both language study and interpersonal relationships, and it can also add great insight and value to language education, program planning, and curriculum development

2.1.4 Culture and cultural learning

Cultural learning, also called cultural transmission, is the way a group of people or animals within a society or culturetend to learn and pass on information Learning styles are greatly influenced by how a culture socializes with its children and young people Cross-cultural research in the past fifty years has primarily focused on differences between Eastern and Western cultures (Chang, et al., 2010) Some scholars believe that cultural learning differences may be responses to the physical environment in the areas in which a culture was initially founded (Chang,

et al., 2010) These environmental differences include climate, migration patterns, war, agricultural suitability, and endemic pathogens Cultural evolution, upon which cultural learning is built, is believed to be a product of only the past 10,000 years and to hold little connection to genetics (Chang, et al., 2010)

Cultural learning allows individuals to acquire skills that they would be unable

to independently over the course of their lifetimes (Van Schaik & Burkart, 2011) Cultural learning is believed to be particularly important for humans Humans are weaned at an early age compared to the emergence of adult dentition (MacDonald, 2007) The immaturity of dentition and the digestive system, the time required for

growth of the brain, the rapid skeletory growth needed for the young to reach adult height and strength means that children have special digestive needs and are dependent on adults for a long period of time (MacDonald, 2007) This time of dependence also allows time for cultural learning to occur before passage into adulthood

On the basis of cultural learning, people create, remember, and deal with ideas They understand and apply specific systems of symbolic meaning Cultures have been compared to sets of control mechanisms, plans, recipes, rules, or instructions Cultural differences have been found in academic motivation, achievement, learning style, conformity, and compliance (Chang, et al., 2010) Cultural learning is dependent on innovation or the ability to create new responses

to the environment and the ability to communicate or imitate the behavior of others (Lehmann, Feldman & Kaeuffer, 2010)

In the 1960s, culture learning was included in foreign language pedagogy The pedagogical innovation in that age led to an increased emphasis on developing the students‟ practical language skills, and could be used in teaching in language classroom In this way, one could say that culture was taught in foreign language education in the form of the words and actions of everyday speakers in everyday life (Kramsch 1998) In the 1970s-1980s, many foreign language theorists propose the inclusion of culture in a foreign language course because language learners should learn cultural content in order to use a foreign language, and cultural insights would enhance students‟ ability to communicate appropriately in situations of language use (Lado 1957) Seelye (1984), for example, states that when students are equipped with this „super goal‟ for the teaching of culture, they would be able to develop cultural understandings and attitudes to communicate within a society of the target language Also, Littlewood (cited in Byram, 1997: 55) advocates the value of cultural learning, although he still „keeps linguistic proficiency as the overall aim of communicative competence‟

The term “Communicative Competence”, defined as the knowledge of both

rules of grammar and language use appropriate to a given context, was firstly coined by Hymes (1972) Hymes‟s conceptualization of communicative competence has been further developed by researchers such as Canale and Swain (1980) and Canale (1983) who attempted to define the specific components of the construct of communicative competence The widely cited model by Canale and Swain (1980), later expanded by Canale (1983), subsumes four competencies under communicative competence: grammatical competence, sociolinguistic competence, strategic competence and discourse competence Grammatical competence is concerned with mastery of the language code itself, including the mastery of phonological rules, morphological rules, syntactic rules, semantic rules and lexical items Today it is usually called linguistic competence Sociolinguistic competence addresses the extent to which utterances are produced and understood appropriately in different sociolinguistic contexts depending on contextual factors

It focuses on the learning of pragmatic aspects of various speech acts, namely, the cultural values, norms, and other socio-cultural conventions in social contexts Strategic competence is composed of two main strategies: (a) to compensate for breakdowns in communication due to limiting conditions in actual communication

or to insufficient competence; and (b) to enhance the effectiveness of communication And discourse competence concerns mastery of how to combine grammatical forms and meanings to achieve a unified spoken or written text in different genres

From 1990s, Intercultural Communicative Competence (ICC) has been the core trend in language education field According to Byram (1997), ICC requires certain attitudes, knowledge, and skills to be promoted, in addition to linguistic, sociolinguistic and discourse competence The attitudes refer to curiosity and openness as well as “readiness to suspend disbelief about other cultures and belief about one‟s own” (Byram 1997: 64) For him, the acquired knowledge comprises knowledge of social groups and their products and practices in one‟s own and foreign countries, and, knowledge of the general processes of individual and

societal interaction The skills comprise those of interpreting and relating, discovery and interaction as well as critical awareness/political education Byram also maintains that the FL classroom should provide sufficient opportunities for the acquisition of the abovementioned skills, knowledge and attitudes

The abovementioned literature views bring us to the conclusion, as indicated

in Lund‟s (2006) study, that foreign language learning is composed of several components, including grammatical competence, communicative competence, language proficiency, as well as attitudes towards cultural competence Cultural competence, i.e., the knowledge of the conventions, customs, beliefs, and systems

of meaning of another country, is indisputably an integral part of foreign language learning (Straub, 1999), and many teachers have seen it as their goal to incorporate the teaching of culture into the foreign language curriculum

2.2 Theoretical background of textbook

2.2.1 Textbook

The definitions for the textbook are wide and varied One common definition

is that a textbook is a printed and bound artifact for each year or course of study (Encyclopedia of Education, 2008b) They contain facts and ideas around a certain subject A textbook can be referred to as a published book specially designed to help language learners to improve their linguistic and communicative abilities (Sheldon, 1988) In addition to being a learning instrument, textbooks are also used

as a supporting teaching instrument (O‟Neil, 1982) The student‟s book usually comes with other materials such as a workbook, a teacher‟s book or even additional multimodal texts for reference as a textbook package (Masuhara & Tomlinson 2008) They are “designed to give cohesion to the language teaching and learning process by providing direction, support and specific language-based activities aimed

at offering classroom practice for students” (Mares, 2003) and foster effective and quick learning of the language (Cunningsworth, 1995)

Textbooks are not like other books Today, textbooks are assembled more than they are written They are not usually written by a single author, nor are they a

creative and imaginative endeavor They are, in fact, usually specially made by a corporation to follow a set standard curriculum for a school system or larger

organization, such as a province (Encyclopedia of Education, 2008b)

Textbooks are a key component in most language programs In some situations they serve as the basis for much of the language input learners receive and the language practice that occurs in the classroom They may provide the basis for the content of the lessons, the balance of skills taught and the kinds of language practice the students take part in In other situations, the textbook may serve primarily to supplement the teacher's instruction For learners, the textbook may provide the major source of contact they have with the language apart from input provided by the teacher In the case of inexperienced teachers textbooks may also serve as a form of teacher training – they provide ideas on how to plan and teach lessons as well as formats that teachers can use Much of the language teaching that occurs throughout the world today could not take place without the extensive use of commercial textbooks

2.2.2 The role of textbook in teaching and learning

The textbooks and instruction materials are often used by language instructors for they are considered essential constituents in EFL classrooms As Hutchinson & Torres (1994:315) suggest “the textbook is an almost universal element of English language teaching Millions of copies are sold every year, and numerous aid projects have been set up to produce them in various countries…No teaching-learning situation, it seems, is complete until it has its relevant textbook.” Sheldon (1988) posits that textbooks do not only represent the visible heart

of any English teaching and learning program but also offer considerable advantages for both students and teachers in ESL/EFL classroom He also points out students often have expectations about using a textbook and believe that published materials are more systematic and credible than teacher-planned materials

Several positive roles of textbooks in English teaching and learning context are identified by Cunningsworth (1995) as follows “ a textbook is:(1) An effective

resource for self-directed learning or self-access work; (2) An effective resource for presentation material; (3) A source of ideas and activities for learners‟ practice and communicative interaction; (4) A reference source for students on grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation and other aspects of knowledge; (5) A syllabus where they reflect pre-determined learning objectives, and (6) A support for less experienced teachers who have yet to gain in confidence

While many of the aforementioned scholars point out the benefits of using ESL/EFL textbooks, there are some researchers who do not accept this view and retain some reservations Allwright and Bailey (1994), for instance, have commented that textbooks are too inflexible and generally reflect the pedagogic, psychological, and linguistic preferences and biases of their authors In this fashion, therefore, textbooks essentially determine and control the methods, processes and procedures of language teaching and learning Hence, the important role of textbooks in English learning and teaching entrusts the greater responsibility to the authors of textbooks and instruction materials The contents, in both linguistic and cultural aspects, presented in textbooks should be handled with care because it has a great influence on learners

According to Cortazzi and Jin (1999), in many countries, many English learners and students approach textbooks as teachers and authorities They expect the teacher to help their knowledge expound based on the contents presented in textbooks Many English teachers take the English textbooks as the only or indispensable resource for their everyday teaching Students are made to spend a huge amount of time on textbook-related work in classrooms It is not difficult to see that many teachers and students expect to cover everything in a textbook The textbooks probably are thus viewed and accepted as facts, as authority documents both in linguistic and cultural contents Therefore, when cultural learning is presumed, the role of textbooks in English teaching and learning is the most primary and significant in these countries including Viet Nam

It can be concluded that the textbooks indeed play a very important role in English teaching and learning The use of textbook can be beneficial and effective for learners and teachers in many ways However, due to the dependence on textbooks by teachers and learners and the special features of textbooks used in Viet Nam, the cultural contents of textbooks have a great influence on learners

2.3 Theoretical background of reading skill

2.3.1 Definition of reading and reading comprehension

Collins and Cheek (1999) describe reading as a process that requires the use of complex thought processes to interpret printed symbols as meaningful units and comprehend them as a thought unit in order to understand a printed message According to Rubin (2002), reading is a total integrative process that starts with the reader and includes the affective, perceptual, and cognitive domains Reading is an interactive process consisting of inferring, knowing correct sounds and comprehension (Kamhi & Catts, 2008) The effective use of these skills in a reading environment enables the reader to comprehend the text The success of the reading process is determined by variables such as reading attitude, reading purpose, prior knowledge about the text, textual structure, vocabulary knowledge; comprehension is determined by the interaction of the reader with the text (Lanford, 2009)

Woolley (2011) states that reading comprehension is the process of making meaning from text The goal, therefore, is to gain an overall understanding of what

is described in the text rather than to obtain meaning from isolated words or sentences Indeed, reading comprehension is the act of understanding what you are reading Reading comprehension is an intentional, active, interactive process that occurs before, during and after a person reads a particular piece of writing

2.3.2 Reading passages and the load of cultural background knowledge

Students are constantly confronted with new information, particularly once they progress to the upper elementary grades and transition from “learning to read”

to “reading to learn” (Chall, 1983) To read to learn effectively students need to

integrate new material into their existing knowledge base Reading texts or reading passages play a vital role in loading knowledge, especially cultural information

2.4 Review of the related studies

2.4.1 Studies on Classification of cultural content in ELT textbooks

Studying about the culture in ELT textbooks, it is necessary to consider different types of culture There exists some different classifications of cultural content in ELT textbooks Still two main categories are native culture (C1) and the culture of the language which is being learned/taught – target culture (C2) A relatively recent trend of English language globalization and of developing interculturally competent students and fostering their critical thinking skills suggests considering other world cultures (C3) at English language lessons (Byram, 2000; Sercu, Bandura, 2005;)

When analyzing a textbook, Cortazzi and Jin (1999) focus on the cultural contents rather than four language skills They distinguish three main types of cultural information to be presented in foreign language textbooks:

Source culture materials refer to the textbooks which present language

learners‟ own culture Usually, these are the textbooks that are produced at a national level for a particular country The main purpose of this category of textbooks is to enable learners to talk about their own culture to foreign visitors to their country rather than be prepared to encounter other cultures

Target culture materials usually focus on one or two target cultures, such

as the United Kingdom, United States The textbooks of this category are the most popular instruction materials in the EFL context Though widely used all over the world, they are often criticized for their commercial nature and seen as publishers‟ promotional materials

International target culture materials involve textbooks that include a

wide variety of cultures set in English-speaking countries or in countries where English is not a first or a second language, but is used as an international language Cortazzi & Jin (1999) maintain that the rationale for this category is that speakers

who do not speak it as their first language frequently use English in international situations

In conclusion, considering the facts that (a) Language is not separable from the culture it belongs to; and (b) English belongs to different cultures; it may be concluded that English should be taught along with world cultures, or in other words, the world cultures should be introduced when teaching English This in its turn, brings us to the matter that when talking about the place of culture in ELT, one should consider all the possible types of culture, and decide upon the issue of

“whose culture we intend to present to our learners: target culture, home culture or international culture” (Zohrabi & Shah, 2009, p 277)

2.4.2 Studies on cultural categories in foreign language textbooks

Studies on cultural categories in foreign language textbooks mainly focus on investigating what aspects of culture students should learn in order to be able to function in that culture or interact with people from that culture Some frameworks are proposed by different researchers to describe specific categories of cultural knowledge that should be taught to students

Brooks (1964) suggests 64 possible cultural topics which could be used as the contents of brief cultural presentations in the language classroom Under each topic he provides some example questions so that teachers could elaborate the topic according to students‟ age and experience Brooks pays a considerable attention to a comparison of a student‟s view of life with that of an individual in the new speech community

In the middle of the last century, Taylor and Sorensen (1961) introduced a comparative approach for culture teaching – Culture Capsules The researchers focus on specific aspects rather than general ones in the target culture Based on eight cultural categories, proposed by Taylor and Sorensen, namely Subcultural, Technology, Economic Organization, Social Organization, Political Organization, World View, Esthetics, students can make a simple explanation of differences between an American culture custom and a target culture custom Taylor and

Sorensen suggest that the teaching should start from concrete knowledge such as Technology and later move towards abstract perspectives such as World View

The cultural literacy, which means background knowledge shared by everyone, is a basic notion proposed by Hirsch (1988) in order to categorize cultural knowledge needed to thrive in the modern world In The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy (Hirsch et al., 1988), twenty-three categories of common cultural knowledge are identified and defined with a number of examples provided They are World Geography; American Geography; World History to 1550; World History since 1550; American History to 1865; American History since 1865; Technology; Physical Sciences and Mathematics; Business and Economics; Medicine and Health; Anthropology, Psychology and Sociology; World Politics; American Politics; Fine Arts; Literature in English; Conventions of Written English; Proverbs; Idioms; Mythology and Folklore; World Literature, Philosophy and Religion; Earth Sciences; Life Sciences; The Bible

Based on the idea of anthropological definition of culture, Chastain (1988) proposes thirty-seven categories of culture themes for foreign language learners To develop students‟ comprehension of the values behind the categories, Chastain suggests using comparison and contrast when introducing these culture themes Chastain‟s detailed classification of culture categories include Geography, Contemporary Science, Commonly Known History, Clothing, Transportation, Home, Economic System, Earning a Living, Retirement, Money, Services, Health and Welfare, Family, Courtship and Marriage, Population, Politics, Death, Crime, Humor, Holidays, Leisure Activities, Correspondence, Language, Education, Courtesy Phrases, Good Manners, Eating, Social Interaction, Non-verbal Communication, Religion, Ecology, Vacations, Travel, Daily Routines, Pets, The Press, Meeting Personal Needs

A study of Lee (2009) collected 11 EFL high-school conversation textbooks used in Korea and examines how the textbooks teach culture The researcher designed 22 themes for Big “C” such as geography, agriculture, education which are based on Paige et al (1999) and Hinkel (2001), and 26 themes for little “c” domains such as fairness, competition, materialism and liberalism are designed with

references from intercultural, sociological, ethnographical and sociolinguistic perspectives All of which posit that culture learning/teaching and the themes to accomplish this are important for contemporary L2/FL/ELT culture acquisition

It can be concluded from the above studies that the important role of textbooks play in English language classroom were noticed The cultural contents presented in language textbooks, has been examined from varied aspects The major purpose of culture-related textbook analysis aims to find out whether the cultural contents in textbooks meet the students‟ expectations, encourage and support their intercultural communicative competence and cultural awareness

2.4.3 Studies on attitudes and expectations towards cultural learning and

contents in English textbooks

There are many studies conducted to investigate attitudes and expectations towards cultural learning and contents in English textbooks Klein & Colby (1999) carried out a study with the central purpose to advance culture teaching in the language education profession They examined the studies conducted in 1994 with the identification of relevant data of cultural learning They reached the conclusion

in their final reports that in most studies relating to the cultural contents in EFL/ESL textbooks, the cultural information provided is rather shallow and simple with respect to their treatment of culture They are therefore inadequate to the task

of teaching cultural specifics in the deeper sense (values, norms, beliefs, etc.) The literature also indicates that shallow presentation of culture can reinforce inaccurate stereotypes, both positive and negative in nature The study also revealed a serious absence of impact studies which examine the effects of different types of materials

on culture

Another study dealing with the influence of textbooks on learners in terms of cultural contents showed the significance of textbooks in cultural learning in EFL context The Durham researchers (Byram,1991) found that the textbook was used extensively functioned as an instructional guide, and determined themes and sequence of material Furthermore, extensive and frequent interviews with their

young learners led the authors to conclude that the textbook influenced most of the internalized knowledge the students had of French culture This they found particularly problematic because the textbook topics were frequently poorly chosen and represented a distorted view of reality by taking a tourist‟s perspective (e.g., focusing on topics such as restaurant meals or public transportation) The authors emphasize that the influence of the textbook on the range and depth of the cultural information should be cause for concern to all foreign language educators

The above studies implied that although the important role of textbooks had played in English language classroom were noted, the vast majority of classroom culture teaching practice is still seen to be incidental and superficial in nature (Fu,2001) As a result, the detailed cultural contents presented in language textbooks, has been examined by researchers

Richards (2001) surveyed Japanese students about their life and interests in order to select contents in teaching materials that would be motivating for the students The survey results showed that the students wanted to learn cultural content primarily about the United States, followed by Britain and China More specifically, they were most curious about school life in the United States, American food, American music and American film The survey results showed that the students, at least these Japanese university students, wanted to know more about target culture

Previous studies have discussed that learners agree in their positive attitudes and interests in target cultural learning in their English classroom Through contact with people from the target culture, the learners will have a positive influence and improve attitudes towards cultural learning under certain circumstances However, some negative effects on the learners of learning the target culture presented in English textbooks have been reported

In the study of Canagarjah (1993) found that the students had negative attitudes towards the target language and culture They discovered that this was due

to the western bias of the materials The students felt anxious and had the fear of

being “absorbed” by the culture of the language they were studying Because of these circumstances, students indicated that they favored the more traditional approach of memorizing the grammar and vocabulary while they were learning English , presumably because it was a process which allowed them to keep a certain distance from the culture which was totally different to their traditional cultural values

Fahsi (1990) also question the notion that cultural information relating to the target culture is motivating to students Drawing on the results of the interview with Moroccan teachers, they noted that, in general, the teachers believed that including information about the target culture, contributes to students‟ doubts with their own culture The teachers also maintained that there were patterns of behavior that existed in Britain and American that many Moroccans did not want their young people to learn Finally, the teachers believed that students would be more, not less motivated, to learn English if the language is presented in contexts that relate to their own lives as young adults rather than to see it presented in the context of an English-speaking country

CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY

This part will present restatement of research questions, the fitness of the research approach, research setting, research types, data collection methods, data collection and data analysis procedure

3.1 Restatement of research questions

The present study sought to find answers to the following questions:

1 To what extent are the cultural groups represented in reading passages of English 12 textbook ?

2 What categories reflecting cultural content does English 12 textbook introduce in reading passages and to what extent?

3 What are the attitudes and expectations of grade-12 students Phuc Tho high school towards cultural contents in English 12 textbook?

4 What are the attitudes and expectations of grade-12 students towards cultural learning at Phuc Tho high school ?

3.2 The fitness of the research approach

A survey research is a study of a large group through direct study of a subset

of that group Surveys are widely used to gather data at a particular point in time to describe the nature of existing conditions, identify standards against which existing conditions can be compared and determine the relationships that exist between specific events For these reasons, the researcher believed that a survey research design would fit the purpose of this study

3.3 Research setting

3.3.1 The context at Phuc Tho High school

Situated in Phuc Tho District, about 35 kilometres to the west of Ha Noi‟s city centre, Phuc Tho high school was founded in 1966 At the present, there are over 2000 students placed in three grades studying in Phuc Tho high school From this school, a great number of students have been quite successful and some even hold a crucial position in national political system Receiving tremendous support

from local authorities and residents, the school has all facilities to meet the requirements of teaching and learning activities The school has a library serving reference materials for students There are also four computer rooms serving information technology courses, examinations and five projector rooms for the presentation lessons Phuc Tho high school has just celebrated the Day of school‟s 50-year establishment and got the title for the school of national standards

In 2016, Phuc Tho High school has 90 teachers of which there are 9 teachers

of English, two of whom got Master Degree and all of whom got C1 certificates These teachers of English are at different ages (ranking from 27 to 45) and have at least four years teaching at Phuc Tho High school They are all enthusiastic, responsible and hard working teachers who have a lot of experiences in teaching English and many prizes from teaching contests for teachers

To become students of the school, candidates have to pass an entrance exam organized and put in to classes according to the scores they get The maximum of each class is 45 At Phuc Tho high school, the students are encouraged to take part

in extra activities such as sports, campaigns and contests Especially, the school often holds English contests for students such as: “English speaking contest”,

“English for fun”, etc that motivate students and inspire their love for English

3.3.2 Textbook under analysis

The study is carried out based on the content of Grade 12 English textbook (compiled by Hoang Van Van el al., Education Publishing House, 2007) The reason for choosing the textbook is that it is one of English textbooks nationally developed for Grade 12 in Vietnam After Tieng Anh 10 and Tieng Anh 11, English

12 is the last developed and published textbook among the set of English textbooks for senior high school in Vietnam and the analysis of its cultural content may set a contributing step for the analysis of the whole set of high school English textbooks

in terms of how culture is treated

The teaching content of Grade 12 English textbook follows the theme-based approach Each theme is broken into subthemes/topics which are used as titles for

16 units in the textbook The topics of the sixteen units are shown in table below:

Table 3.1: Units and topics in the textbook

ỏganizations

Asian Nations

In the textbook, each unit consists of five sections: Reading, Speaking, Listening, Writing, Language Focus and each section is supposed to be taught during one period of forty-five minutes

Reading is the beginning section in each unit It is aimed at introducing the topic and the language content of the unit and helping students to speak, listen and write about related issues of the next periods and outside classroom The reading passage is presented as a text within more than three hundred words The teaching

of reading is normally divided into three stages: Before you read, While you read and After you read While you read is the main part of the section and includes three

or four reading tasks

majority of students just learn English in order to pass the exams To gather data for the research, a short questionnaire, developed basing on the aims of the present study, will be distributed among students at the recess To make it easier for students, questionnaires will be translated into Vietnamese

3.4 Research types

This study is the combination of quantitative and qualitative researches Although both qualitative and quantitative data will be obtained and analyzed in the course of the present investigation, the general framework is not a mixed study, but rather a quantitative research with supplementary qualitative data, since the amounts of two types of data is not balanced and qualitative data will be collected with the purpose of supporting the quantitative information

3.5 Data collection methods

In order to obtain data and information for the study, two sets of checklists and a questionnaire for students are used Using checklists is an useful way for the researcher to analyze the cultural contents presented in the reading passages of the textbook Whereas, using questionnaires is one of the most popular instruments to investigate attitudes or opinions and one of the best choices to collect data from a large group of subjects at the same time

3.5.1 Textbook analysis

For the textbook analysis, two modified checklists were chosen as the data

collection techniques

3.5.1.1 Checklist One used for the investigating the cutural groups

Checklist One is based on the classification proposed by Cortazzi and Jin (1999: 204) and used to categorize English textbooks in terms of their cultural treatment They focus on the cultural contents rather than the four language skills to develop criterion for analyzing English textbooks used in the world However, since the design of English 12 followed theme-based approach as stated in the introductions of the textbook, the researcher modified the checklist to make it easier

and more detailed when analyzing the cultural contents The modified classification

in English 12 textbook consists these cultural groups:

3.5.1.2 Checklist Two used for the investigating the cutural categories

Checklist Two is based on cultural categories developed by Hirsch et al (1988) and Chastain (1988: 304) and used to count the number of specific cultural categories Compared to those lists of categories, Checklist Two is shortened and includes 19 items as follows: