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

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.

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.