Exploring the alignment of EAP textbooks in Turkish higher education with current English teaching trends
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.58221/mosp.v119i2.22564Keywords:
English as a Lingua Franca (ELF), English for Academic Purposes (EAP), Textbook Analysis, Global Englishes (GE).Abstract
This study investigates whether EAP textbooks used in Turkish higher education reflect teaching English as a global language. Through analysis, eight widely used EAP textbooks spanning CEFR levels A2-C2 were examined. Guided by an analytical framework of document analysis (Bowen, 2009), Global Englishes (GE) principles were explored regarding ownership, target users, norms, culture, and bi/multilingual practices. Findings show that the textbooks prioritise Inner Circle countries, native speakers as target users and British/American norms. Some textbooks incorporate international cultures, but local contexts are marginalised. There are limited diversity integrations. Results show mismatches between ELF-oriented curriculum goals and textbooks. Findings offer implications for better textbook alignment with EAP principles for academic communication. Developing competent lingua franca users requires a fundamental transformation of textbooks, moving beyond merely including diverse global users as token representations. Instead, textbooks need to authentically integrate the principles of English as a Lingua Franca, such as emphasising communication strategies, acknowledging diverse varieties of English, and focusing on intercultural competence.
Downloads
References
Alhassan, A. (2019). EFL postgraduate students’ learning needs on english-medium business programmes: An exploratory study. Language Teaching Research, 25(5), 798–816. https://doi.org/10.1177/1362168819857861 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1362168819857861
Ambele, E. A., & Boonsuk, Y. (2021). Raising students’ awareness of global Englishes: Pedagogical challenges and prospects in Cambodia. Asian Englishes, 23(2), 142–156. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13488678.2020.1759248
Arik, B. T., & Arik, E. (2014). The role and status of English in Turkish higher education. English Today, 30(4), 5–10. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0266078414000339 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0266078414000339
Arslan, S. (2016). An analysis of two Turkish EFL books in terms of cultural aspects. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 232, 217–225. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2016.10.049
Baker, W., & Ishikawa, T. (2021). Transcultural communication through global Englishes: An advanced textbook for students. Routledge. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9780367809973
Banks, J. A., & Banks, C. A. M. (Eds.) (2019). Multicultural Education: Issues and Perspectives. John Wiley & Sons.
Belcher, D. D. (2006). English for specific purposes: Teaching to perceived needs and imagined futures in worlds of work, study, and everyday life. TESOL Quarterly, 40(1), 133–156. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/40264514
Benesch, S. (2001). Critical English for academic purposes: Theory, politics and practice. Routledge. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781410601803
Björkman, B. (2011a). Pragmatic strategies in English as an academic lingua franca: Ways of achieving communicative effectiveness? Journal of Pragmatics, 43(4), 950–964. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pragma.2010.07.033 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pragma.2010.07.033
Björkman, B. (2011b). English as a lingua franca in higher education: Implications for EAP. Ibérica, 22, 79–100. http://dialnet.unirioja.es/servlet/articulo?codigo=3738644
Boonsuk, Y., & Ambele, E. A. (2019). Global Englishes language policy: A pathway to intercultural communicative competence in globalized eras. LEARN Journal: Language Education and Acquisition Research Network Journal, 12(2), 100–113.
Boonsuk, Y., Wasoh, F., & Ambele, E. A. (2022). Global Englishes pedagogical activities for English-as-a foreign language setting and beyond: Understanding Thai teachers’ practices. RELC Journal, 0(0) https://doi.org/10.1177/00336882221112193 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/00336882221112193
Bowen, G. A. (2009). Document analysis as a qualitative research method. Qualitative Research Journal, 9(2), 27–40. https://doi.org/10.3316/QRJ0902027 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3316/QRJ0902027
Breen, M. P., & Candlin, C. N. (1987). Which materials?: A consumer’s and designer’s guide. In L. E. Sheldon (Ed.), ELT textbook and materials: Problems in evaluation and development, ELT Documents 126 (pp. 13–28). London: Modern English Publications.
Caleffi, P. (2016). ELF in the speaking and listening activities of recently published English language coursebooks. In L. Lopriore & E. Grazzi (eds.), Intercultural communication: New perspectives from ELF (pp. 63 – 82). RomaTrE- Press.
Canagarajah, S. (2007). Lingua Franca English, multilingual communities, and language acquisition. The Modern Language Journal, 91, 923–939. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0026-7902.2007.00678.x
Canagarajah, S. (2013a). Translingual practice: Global Englishes and cosmopolitan relations. Routledge. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203073889
Canagarajah, S. (2013b). Negotiating translingual literacy: An enactment. Research in the Teaching of English, 48(1), 40–67. DOI: https://doi.org/10.58680/rte201324158
Çelik, S., & Erbay, S. (2013). Cultural perspectives of Turkish ELT coursebooks: Do standardized teaching texts incorporate intercultural features?”. Education and Science, 38(167), 336–351.
Chan, J. Y. H. (2014). An evaluation of the pronunciation target in Hong Kong's ELT curriculum and materials: Influences from WE and ELF? Journal of English as a Lingua Franca, 3(1), 145–170. https://doi.org/10.1515/jelf-2014-0006 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/jelf-2014-0006
Charles, M., & Pecorari, D. (2016). Introducing English for Academic Purposes. Routledge. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315682129
Council of Europe. (2001). Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, teaching, assessment. Cambridge University Press.
Creswell, J. W. (2016). 30 essential skills for the qualitative researcher. Sage.
Crystal, D. (2003). English as a global language. Cambridge University Press. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511486999
Derman-Sparks, L. (1989). Anti-bias curriculum: Tools for empowering young children. National Association for the Education of Young Children, 1834 Connecticut Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20009-5786.
Dülger, O. (2016). Evaluatıon of EFL coursebooks taught in Turkey based on teachers’ vıews. Journal of Advances in English Language Teaching, 4(1), 1–11.
Efron, K. A. (2020). Representations of multiculturalism in Japanese elementary EFL textbooks: A critical analysis. Intercultural Communication Education, 3, 22–43. https://doi.org/10.29140/ice.v3n1.224 DOI: https://doi.org/10.29140/ice.v3n1.224
Fang, F., & Ren, W. (2018). Developing students’ awareness of global Englishes. ELT Journal, 72(4): 384–394. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/elt/ccy012
Flowerdew, J., & Peacock, M. (2001). The EAP curriculum: Issues, methods, and challenges. In J. Flowerdew and M. Peacock (Eds), Research perspectives on English for academic purposes, 176–194. Cambridge University Press. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9781139524766
Galloway, N. (2011). An investigation of Japanese students’ attitudes towards English. (Unpublished PhD thesis). University of Southampton, UK.
Galloway, N. (2013). Global Englishes and English language teaching (ELT)–Bridging the gap between theory and practice in a Japanese context. System, 41(3), 786–803. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2013.07.019
Galloway, N. (2017). Global Englishes and change in English language teaching: Attitudes and impact. Routledge. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315158983
Galloway, N., & Rose, H. (2015). Introducing Global Englishes. Routledge. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315734347
Grant, N. (1987). Making the most of your textbook. Longman.
Gray, J. (2016). ELT materials: Claims, critiques and controversies. In G. Hall (Ed.), The Routledge handbook of English language teaching (pp. 97–110). Routledge. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315676203-10
Holliday, A. (2006). Native-speakerism. ELT Journal, 60(4), 385–387. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/elt/ccl030
Honey, J. (1997). Language is power. The story of Standard English and its enemies. Faber and faber.
Hyland, K. (2018). Sympathy for the devil? A defence of EAP. Language Teaching, 51(3), 383–399. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0261444818000101 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0261444818000101
Jenkins, J. (2011). Accommodating (to) ELF in the international university. Journal of Pragmatics, 43(4), 926–936. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pragma.2010.05.011
Jenkins, J. (2015). Repositioning English and multilingualism in English as a Lingua Franca. Englishes in Practice, 2, 49–85. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/eip-2015-0003
Jeong, H. (2021). Global English in the Workplace: Introducing the concepts of ‘Workplace English as a lingua franca (WELF), and ‘successful WELF users’. In Henry, A., Persson, Å. (Eds.), Engaging with work in English Studies. Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-69720-4_9 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-69720-4_9
Karakaş, A. (2019). An analysis of the high school English curriculum in Turkey from an ELF perspective. i-manager’s Journal on English Language Teaching, 9(2), 1–10. DOI: https://doi.org/10.26634/jelt.9.2.15512
Katrıcı, S., & Karakaş, A. (2023). Coursebook writers’ orientations towards ELF: The case of coursebooks used in a private university. Bartın University Journal of Faculty of Education, 12(3), 501–514. https://doi.org/10.14686/buefad.1094889 DOI: https://doi.org/10.14686/buefad.1094889
Kemaloglu-Er, E. (2021). Explicit, implicit, or both? Novel ways of ELF integration into Global Englishes language teaching. In A. F. Selvi and B. Yazan (eds). Language Teacher Education for Global Englishes (pp. 94–88). UK: Routledge. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003082712-17
Kırkgöz, Y. (2011). An evaluation of English textbooks in Turkish primary education: Students’ and teachers’ perceptions. Egitim Arastirmalari-Eurasian Journal of Educational Research, 44, 167–184. Kirkpatrick, A. (2011). English as an Asian lingua franca and the multilingual model of ELT. Language Teaching, 44(2), 212–224. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0261444810000145
Kuckartz, U. (2014). Qualitative text analysis: A guide to methods, practice and using software. Sage. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4135/9781446288719
Lewis, C., & Deterding, D. (2019). World Englishes and global communication. Peters, M., Heraud, R. (Eds.), Encyclopedia of Educational Innovation (1–6). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-2262-4_82-1 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-2262-4_82-1
Lillis, T., & Curry, M. J. (2010). Academic writing in a global context: The politics and practices of publishing in English. Routledge.
Lincoln, Y. S., & Guba, E. G. (1985). Naturalistic inquiry. Sage. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/0147-1767(85)90062-8
Littlejohn, A. (2022). The analysis and evaluation of language teaching materials. In J. Norton and H. Buchanan (Eds.), The Routledge Handbook of Materials Development for Language Teaching (pp. 263–276). Routledge. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/b22783-23
Lowe, R. J., & Pinner, R. (2016). Finding the connections between native-speakerism and authenticity. Applied Linguistics Review, 7(1), 27–52. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/applirev-2016-0002
Matsuda, A. (2003). Incorporating World Englishes in teaching English as an international language. TESOL Quarterly, 37(4), 719–729. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/3588220
Mauranen, A., Hynninen, N., & Ranta, E. (2016). English as the academic lingua franca. I. K. Hyland and P. Shaw (Eds.). The Routledge handbook of English for academic purposes, (pp. 44–55). Roıtledge.
McGrath, I. (2016). Materials evaluation and design for language teaching. Edinburgh University Press. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/9780748694822
Ministry of National Education (MoNE). (2018). Turkey's Education Vision 2023. MoNE.
Naji Meidani, E., & Pishghadam, R. (2013). Analysis of English language textbooks in the light of English as an International Language (EIL): A comparative study. International journal of research studies in language learning, 2(2), 83–96. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5861/ijrsll.2012.163
Nguyen, T. T. M., Marlina, R., & Cao, T. H. P. (2021). How well do ELT textbooks prepare students to use English in global contexts? An evaluation of the Vietnamese English textbooks from an English as an international language (EIL) perspective. Asian Englishes, 23(2), 184–200. https://doi.org/10.1080/13488678.2020.1717794 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13488678.2020.1717794
Nowell, L. S., Norris, J. M., White, D. E., & Moules, N. J. (2017). Thematic analysis: Striving to meet the trustworthiness criteria. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 16(1), 1609406917733847. https://doi.org/10.1177/1609406917733847 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1609406917733847
Pennycook, A. (2007). Global Englishes and transcultural flows. Routledge. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203088807
Rose, H., & Galloway, N. (2019). Global Englishes for language teaching. Cambridge University Press. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316678343
Rose H., McKinley J., & Galloway N. (2020). Global Englishes and language teaching: A review of pedagogical research. Language Teaching, 54(2), 157–189. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0261444820000518 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0261444820000518
Richards, J., & Rodgers, T. (2014). Approaches and methods in language teaching (3rd ed.). Cambridge University Press. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009024532
Sandelowski, M., Voils, C. I., & Knafl, G. (2009). On quantitizing. Journal of Mixed Methods Research, 3(3), 208–222. https://doi.org/10.1177/1558689809334210 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1558689809334210
Seidlhofer, B. (2011). Understanding English as a lingua franca. Oxford University Press. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/9781405198431.wbeal0243
Si, J. (2019). An analysis of business English coursebooks from an ELF perspective. ELT Journal, 74(2), 156–165. https://doi.org/10.1093/elt/ccz049 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/elt/ccz049
Syrbe, M., & Rose, H. (2018). An evaluation of the global orientation of English textbooks in Germany. Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching, 12(2), 152–163. https://doi.org/10.1080/17501229.2015.1120736 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/17501229.2015.1120736
Tajeddin, Z., & Teimournezhad, S. (2015). Exploring the hidden agenda in the representation of culture in international and localised ELT textbooks. The Language Learning Journal, 43(2), 180–193. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09571736.2013.869942
Tomlinson, B. (2016). Current issues in the development of materials for learners of English as an International Language (EIL). In W. Renandya & H. Widodo (Eds.) (pp. 53–66), English Language Teaching Today. English Language Education Vol. 5. Springer. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-38834-2_5
Tosun, S. (2013). A comparative study on evaluation of Turkish and English foreign language textbooks. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 70, 1374–1380. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2013.01.199
Tomlinson, B., & Masuhara, H. (2013). Adult coursebooks. ELT Journal, 67(2), 233–249. https://doi.org/10.1093/elt/cct007 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/elt/cct007
Vettorel, P. (2018). ELF and communication strategies: Are they taken into account in ELT materials?. RELC Journal, 49(1), 58–73. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0033688217746204
Vettorel, P., & Lopriore, L. (2013). Is there ELF in ELT coursebooks? Studies in Second Language Learning and Teaching, 3(4), 483–504. DOI: https://doi.org/10.14746/ssllt.2013.3.4.3
Weninger, C., & Kiss, T. (2013). Culture in English as a foreign language (EFL) textbook: A semiotic approach. TESOL Quarterly, 47(4), 694–716. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/tesq.87
West, R., Güven, A., Parry, J., & Ergenekon, T. (2015). The state of English in higher education in Turkey: A baseline study. British Council-TEPAV.
Widdowson, H. G. (1994). The ownership of English. TESOL Quarterly, 28(2), 377–389. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/3587438
Yuen, K. M. (2011). The representation of foreign cultures in English textbooks. ELT Journal, 65(4), 458–466. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/elt/ccq089
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Ali Karakas, Sezen Arslan
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
The full license and copyright terms for Moderna Språk can be found under the journal's Open Access Policy.
