Cultural Contents in Fundamental English Coursebooks

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the cultural contents in six commercial coursebooks for the Fundamental English courses at a university in Thailand. The cultural content was analyzed in terms of cultural sources and themes employing the framework adapted from Lee (2009), Cortazzi and Jin (1999), and Crystal (2003). Findings showed that there was a strong preference for the Big “C” themes of culture while those of Small “c” cultures were demonstrated with much lower frequency. In addition, Target Culture, International Culture, and Source Culture were presented in similar frequency in the coursebooks. This study sheds light on cultural content in the materials used for the teaching and learning of English as well as draws out the implications for the teaching of cultural content in the English language classroom, especially in the context of English as an international language.