Values Education in China: A Critical Discourse Analysis of the People’s Education Press’s Seventh Grade English Textbook

Authors

  • Lei Wu Florida International University, United States
  • Lifu Wu Gushan Middle School, Wuxi, Jiangsu, China

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.33394/jollt.v13i2.13753

Keywords:

English learning, English textbooks, Value education, Critical discourse analysis

Abstract

In the fall of 2024, the People’s Education Press (PEP) of China published the latest edition of its English as a foreign language (EFL) textbook for the first semester of seventh grade. This study conducted a content analysis of the EFL textbook for the first semester of seventh grade from the perspective of values. After content analysis, the researchers concluded that this EFL textbook includes two dimensions and five themes at the value level. Personal values include morality and identity, and social values include patriotism, collectivism, and cultural concepts. This study used critical discourse analysis to interpret the themes of content analysis. The researchers argued that patriotism, collectivism, Chinese culture, and the current state of education all influenced this EFL textbook. The researchers suggested that this EFL textbook should be further revised to be more diverse, inclusive, and critical. In addition, the researchers attached importance to the analysis of this EFL textbook from a global context perspective and suggested that global citizenship education should be included. This study provides corresponding suggestions for the compilation of EFL textbooks by PEP and education policymakers in China.

Author Biographies

Lei Wu, Florida International University

Department of Teaching and Learning, Florida International University, USA

Lifu Wu, Gushan Middle School, Wuxi, Jiangsu

Gushan Middle School, Wuxi, Jiangsu, China

References

Ahmad, M., & Shah, S. K. (2019). A critical discourse analysis of gender representations in the content of 5th grade English language textbook. RIMCIS: International and Multidisciplinary Journal of Social Sciences, 8(1), 1–24. https://doi.org/10.17583/rimcis.2019.3989

Akbana, Y. E., & Yavuz, A. (2022). Global issues in a series of EFL textbooks and implications for end-users to promote peace education through teaching English. Journal of Peace Education, 19(3), 373–396. https://doi.org/10.1080/17400201.2022.2140403

Bowen, N. E. J. A., & Hopper, D. (2023). The representation of race in English language learning textbooks: Inclusivity and equality in images. TESOL Quarterly, 57(4), 1013–1040. https://doi.org/10.1002/tesq.3169

Chen, X., Wang, L., Shao, X., & Wei, R. (2024). An analysis of Chinese chemistry curriculum standards based on OECD Education 2030 Curriculum Content Mapping. Disciplinary and Interdisciplinary Science Education Research, 6(1), 2. https://doi.org/10.1186/s43031-023-00091-4

Curaming, E. M., & Curaming, R. A. (2020). Gender (in)equality in English textbooks in the Philippines: A critical discourse analysis. Sexuality & Culture, 24(4), 1167–1188. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12119-020-09750-4

Davidson, R., & Liu, Y. (2020). Reaching the world outside: Cultural representation and perceptions of global citizenship in Japanese elementary school English textbooks. Language, Culture, and Curriculum, 33(1), 32–49. https://doi.org/10.1080/07908318.2018.1560460

Elo, S., & Kyngäs, H. (2008). The qualitative content analysis process. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 62(1), 107–115. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2648.2007.04569.x

Fairclough, N. (2001). Language and power (2nd ed.). Routledge.

Gonja, C., & Musaev, T. (2024). ‘We’ in English language textbooks for Japanese high school students. World Englishes, 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1111/weng.12652

Hellmich, E. A. (2018). Language in a global world: A case study of foreign languages in US K-8 education. Foreign Language Annals, 51(2), 313–330. https://doi.org/10.1111/flan.12333

Huang, P. (2019). Textbook interaction: A study of the language and cultural contextualisation of English learning textbooks. Learning, Culture and Social Interaction, 21, 87–99.

Huang, P., & Liu, X. (2024). Challenging gender stereotypes: Representations of gender through social interactions in English learning textbooks. Humanities & Social Sciences Communications, 11(1), 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-024-03293-x

Kanwal, A. (2024). An ecolinguistic study of language teachers as activists in promoting dialogue on SDGs. Journal of Language Teaching and Research, 15(5), 1593–1602. https://doi.org/10.17507/jltr.1505.20

Keles, U., & Yazan, B. (2023). Representation of cultures and communities in a global ELT textbook: A diachronic content analysis. Language Teaching Research, 27(5), 1325–1346. https://doi.org/10.1177/1362168820976922

Kim, S. H., & Lee, H. (2023). Asserting Koreanness in South Korean middle school English textbooks. World Englishes, 42(3), 544–561. https://doi.org/10.1111/weng.12548

Lendo, S. J., Widodo, H. P., Fadlilah, S., & Qonnita, T. R. (2023). Cultural representation in German as a foreign language textbooks used in Indonesia: A critical social semiotic analysis. Foreign Language Annals, 56(3), 580–599. https://doi.org/10.1111/flan.12716

Lin, C, & Jackson, L. (2023). Patriotism in moral education: Toward a rational approach in China. Journal of Moral Education, 52(3), 343–361. https://doi.org/10.1080/03057240.2022.2136148

Liu, H., & Fang, F. (2022). Towards a global Englishes-aware national English curriculum of China. ELT Journal, 76(1), 88–98. https://doi.org/10.1093/elt/ccab040

Liu, Y., An, L., & Chen, S. (2024). Environmental sustainability education in twelve series of Chinese university English language textbooks. SAGE Open, 14(3), 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440241266829

Liu, Y., May, S., & Zhang, L. (2023). The ideological underpinnings in university English textbooks in China: A critical discourse analysis and corpus linguistics approach. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 1–20. https://doi.org/10.1080/01434632.2023.2173208

McConachy, T. (2018). Critically engaging with cultural representations in foreign language textbooks. Intercultural Education, 29(1), 77–88. https://doi.org/10.1080/14675986.2017.1404783

Meng, Q., Zhu, C., & Cao, C. (2018). Chinese international students’ social connectedness, social and academic adaptation: The mediating role of global competence. Higher Education, 75(1), 131–147. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-017-0129-x

Merry, M. S. (2009). Patriotism, history and the legitimate aims of American education. Educational Philosophy and Theory, 41(4), 378–398. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-5812.2007.00363.x

Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China. (2022). ä¹‰åŠ¡æ•™è‚²è‹±è¯­è¯¾ç¨‹æ ‡å‡† [National English Curriculum Standards for Compulsory Education]. http://www.moe.gov.cn/srcsite/A26/s8001/202204/W020220420582349487953.pdf

Mishan, F. (2022). The Global ELT coursebook: A case of Cinderella’s slipper? Language Teaching, 55(4), 490–505. doi:10.1017/S0261444820000646

Pan, M., & Zhu, Y. (2022). Researching English language textbooks: A systematic review in the Chinese context (1964-2021). Asian-Pacific Journal of Second and Foreign Language Education, 7(1), 1–17. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40862-022-00156-3

People’s Education Press Curriculum and Teaching Materials Research Institute. (2024). 七年级英语上册 [English textbook for first semester of seventh grade]. People’s Education Press.

Porto, M. (2024). How Can Language Education Contribute to Securing a Livable Planet?. TESOL Quarterly, 1–34. https://doi.org/10.1002/tesq.3321

Puspitasari, D., Widodo, H. P., Widyaningrum, L., Allamnakhrah, A., & Lestariyana, R. P. D. (2021). How do primary school English textbooks teach moral values? A critical discourse analysis. Studies in Educational Evaluation, 70, 1–11. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.stueduc.2021.101044

Risager, K. (2020). Language textbooks: Windows to the world. Language, Culture and Curriculum, 34(2), 119–132. https://doi.org/10.1080/07908318.2020.1797767

Smith, C., & Sheyholislami, J. (2022). Current trends in critical discourse studies of textbooks: A look at selected literature. Canadian Journal of Applied Linguistics, 25(1), 47–63. https://doi.org/10.37213/cjal.2022.31515

Ulum, Ö. G., & Köksal, D. (2021). A critical inquiry on the ideological and hegemonic practices in EFL textbooks. Multicultural Learning and Teaching, 16(1), 45–61. https://doi.org/10.1515/mlt-2019-0005

Vinall, K., & Shin, J. (2018). The construction of the tourist gaze in English textbooks in South Korea: Exploring the tensions between internationalisation and nationalisation. Language, Culture and Curriculum, 32(2), 173–190. https://doi.org/10.1080/07908318.2018.1513022

Weninger, C. (2021). Multimodality in critical language textbook analysis. Language, Culture and Curriculum, 34(2), 133–146. https://doi.org/10.1080/07908318.2020.1797083

Xiong, T., & Yuan, Z. M. (2018). “It was because I could speak English that I got the jobâ€: Neoliberal discourse in a Chinese English textbook series. Journal of Language, Identity & Education, 17(2), 103–117. https://doi.org/10.1080/15348458.2017.1407655

Yildiz, A., & Harwood, N. (2023). Why TESOL textbooks are the way they are: The constraints of writing for a global audience. TESOL Quarterly, 58(2), 909–931. https://doi.org/10.1002/tesq.3261

Zhang, H., Li, X., & Chang, W. (2022). Representation of cultures in national English textbooks in China: A synchronic content analysis. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 45(8), 3394–3414. https://doi.org/10.1080/01434632.2022.2099406

Zhang, X., & Zhou, M. (2021). An exploration of Chinese students’ perceived barriers to effective intercultural communication. Journal of Language and Cultural Education, 9(2), 11–31. https://doi.org/10.2478/jolace-2021-0008

Zhang, Y., & Song, H. (2022). Linguistic imperialism and standard language ideology in an English textbook used in China. Higher Education Studies, 12(2), 112–125. https://doi.org/10.5539/hes.v12n2p112

Downloads

Published

2025-04-19

How to Cite

Wu, L., & Wu, L. (2025). Values Education in China: A Critical Discourse Analysis of the People’s Education Press’s Seventh Grade English Textbook. Journal of Languages and Language Teaching, 13(2), 632–647. https://doi.org/10.33394/jollt.v13i2.13753

Issue

Vol. 13 No. 2 (2025)

Section

Articles

Citation Check

License

License and Publishing Agreement
In submitting the manuscript to the journal, the authors certify that:

  1. They are authorized by their co-authors to enter into these arrangements.
  2. The work described has not been formally published before, except in the form of an abstract or as part of a published lecture, review, thesis, or overlay journal.
  3. That it is not under consideration for publication elsewhere,
  4. That its publication has been approved by all the author(s) and by the responsible authorities – tacitly or explicitly – of the institutes where the work has been carried out.
  5. They secure the right to reproduce any material that has already been published or copyrighted elsewhere.
  6. They agree to the following license and publishing agreement.

Copyright
Authors who publish with JOLLT Journal of Languages and Language Teaching agree to the following terms:

  1. Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY-SA 4.0) that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal. 
  2. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgment of its initial publication in this journal.
  3. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work.

Licensing for Data Publication

JOLLT Journal of Languages and Language Teaching uses a variety of waivers and licenses, that are specifically designed for and appropriate for the treatment of data:
Other data publishing licenses may be allowed as exceptions (subject to approval by the editor on a case-by-case basis) and should be justified with a written statement from the author, which will be published with the article.

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.