"Reality has an author" : An analysis of how Inner and Outer circle speakers are constituted in English language textbooks in Sweden

• Main Authors: Hansen, Vanessa, Broberg, Maximilian
• Format: Others
• Language: English
• Published: Uppsala universitet, Institutionen för pedagogik, didaktik och utbildningsstudier 2012
• Subjects: Concentric Circles Model; discourse analysis; constitution of English speakers; textbook; English language teaching; Specific Literatures; Litteraturstudier; Specific Languages; Studier av enskilda språk; Educational Sciences; Utbildningsvetenskap
• Online Access: http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-167971

English is a global language with hundreds of millions of speakers all over the world. In Sweden,English is one of the most important subjects in primary and upper secondary school. As a guideand supplement, many teachers use textbooks in their teaching, but not much research has beenconducted on the contents of textbooks and how it may influence students’ worldview.This study aims to investigate how different speakers of English are constituted in four textbooksfrom English level 5 in the Swedish upper secondary school. The purpose of the study is to shedlight on possible problems that might arise with unreflected use of textbooks and it is based ondiscourse theory and the Concentric Circles Model. The authors reach the conclusion that thetextbooks constitute a reality where the traditional core of native English speaking countriesdominates the English-speaking world. Furthermore, the analysed textbooks were found not tofollow several of the directives set down in the national curriculum. Hopefully this study willcontribute to broaden the research field of textbook analysis in Sweden.