From EFL to English as an international and scientific language: analysing Taiwan's high-school English textbooks in the period 1952–2009

Abstract

Using both quantitative and qualitative content analysis of Taiwan's high-school English textbooks, this study aimed to investigate the projected roles of English in Taiwan's high-school English textbooks over the past 50 years. A total of 1072 lessons from 14 textbook versions dating from 1952 to 2009 were analysed. The results show that the percentages of Anglo-American lessons peaked in the 1970s at 56% and gradually declined to 30% in 2009. The percentages of local lessons peaked in the late 1990s at 14%, but dropped to 6% in 2009. These changes correspond to the socio-political changes in Taiwan. Intercultural and universal lessons increased steadily through the years and appear likely to be the main types of English lessons in the future. The genres in the textbook lessons changed from those of literature and morality lessons to neutral explanations and scientised text. The subtext of ‘idealized model of society’ hidden in Taiwan's high-school English textbooks gradually shifted from that of American society to that of a world society, manifesting the changing role of English in Taiwan from a foreign language to an international and scientific language.