Investigating local and foreign cultures in the Algerian middle school textbook MS1

Abstract EN

The last decades are marked by a renewed interest in the textbooks' cultural contents.

while there is a wide consensus over the inseparability of language and culture and the necessity for textbooks to be culturally loaded, the appropriate choice of culture that could help learners communicate effectively remains a moot question.

this research investigates the place of the local culture compared to target and transnational cultures in the Algerian middle school textbook my book of English MS1 and ENSB students' attitudes towards the promotion of local culture and enculturation.

the findings reveal that the local culture dominate over foreign cultures and students' attitudes correlate with the textbook authors' choices.

both textbook authors and students hold that celebrating the local culture, promoting good citizenship and nationalism should be the major educational goals.