VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY – HOCHIMINH CITY
UNIVERSITY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES & HUMANITIES
FACULTY OF ENGLISH LINGUISTICS & LITERATURE

AN INVESTIGATION INTO TEACHERS’ AND
STUDENTS’ ATTITUDES TOWARDS THE
CULTURAL CONTENT IN “TIENG ANH 11” AT
TRAN KHAI NGUYEN HIGH SCHOOL - HCMC

A thesis submitted to the
Faculty of English Linguistics & Literature
in partial fulfillment of the Master’s degree in TESOL

By
DO THI THANH AN

Supervised by
LE THI THANH, Ph.D.

HO CHI MINH CITY, OCTOBER 2016


ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I am greatly indebted to a number of people without whom this thesis would
have been impossible.
First and foremost, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to Dr. Le Thi
Thanh, my supportive supervisor, for understanding my difficulties, knowing my
strengths and weaknesses, sharing useful materials, giving me constructive remarks,
and providing me with illuminating insights and invaluable expertise. Her patience,
encouragement, and support greatly contributed to the completion of my thesis.
I am also immensely grateful to the Faculty of English Linguistics and

Literature as well as all my teachers in my MA courses at the University of Social
Sciences and Humanities of Ho Chi Minh City for giving me a chance to follow
this postgraduate programme, widening my knowledge, developing my language
skills, and improving my teaching methods.
I acknowledge the great contribution of the school administrators, my
colleagues in the English group, and 11th graders at Tran Khai Nguyen High school,
where I am currently working as a teacher of English. Without their help, I could
not get valuable information and data that played an extremely important role in this
study.
Last but not least, my heartfelt thanks also go to my beloved parents who
always be there for me, love me unconditionally, encourage me endlessly, support
me wholeheartedly, and strongly believe in my ability to write the thesis to the end.

i


STATEMENT OF ORIGINALITY
I certify my authorship of the thesis submitted today entitled:
AN INVESTIGATION INTO TEACHERS’ AND STUDENTS’
ATTITUDES TOWARDS THE CULTURAL CONTENT IN “TIENG ANH
11” AT TRAN KHAI NGUYEN HIGH SCHOOL – HCMC
in terms of the statement of requirements for theses in Master’s Program
issued by the Higher Degree Committee. No other person’s work has been used
without acknowledgement in the content of this thesis. The thesis has not been
submitted for a degree or diploma in any other institution.
Ho Chi Minh City, October 29th , 2016

DO THI THANH AN

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RETENTION AND USE OF THE THESIS
I hereby state that I, DO THI THANH AN, being the candidate for the degree
of Master of TESOL, accept the requirement of the University relating to the
retention and use of Master’s Theses deposited in the Library.
In terms of these conditions, I agree that the originality of my thesis deposited
in the Library should be accessible for the purposes of study and scholarly research,
in accordance with the normal conditions established by the Library for the care,
loan or reproduction of the thesis.
Ho Chi Minh City, October 29th , 2016

DO THI THANH AN

iii


TABLE OF CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ....................................................................................i
STATEMENT OF ORIGINALITY ..................................................................... ii
RETENTION AND USE OF THE THESIS ....................................................... iii
TABLE OF CONTENTS ......................................................................................iv
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ...............................................................................ix
LIST OF TABLES ..................................................................................................x
LIST OF FIGURES ............................................................................................. xii
ABSTRACT ......................................................................................................... xiii
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ..........................................................................1
1.1. Background to the study..................................................................................1
1.1.1. Theoretical issues ........................................................................................1
1.1.2. Practical issues ............................................................................................4

1.2. Aim of the study and research questions .......................................................5
1.3. Significance of the study ..................................................................................6
1.4. Scope of the study .............................................................................................7
1.5. The organization of the study .........................................................................7
CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW..............................................................9
2.1. Language and culture ......................................................................................9
2.1.1. Definition of culture .....................................................................................9
2.1.2. Cultural components ..................................................................................13
2.1.3. The relationship between language and culture .........................................16
2.1.3.1. Through linguistic areas .......................................................................18
2.1.3.2. Through non-linguistic areas ................................................................20
2.2. The cultural content in EFL textbooks ........................................................22
2.2.1. Cortazzi and Jin (1999)’s framework .........................................................24
2.2.1.1. Target cultural content ..........................................................................25
2.2.1.2. Source cultural content .........................................................................26
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2.2.1.3. International target cultural content .....................................................28
2.2.2. The presentation of the cultural content in EFL textbooks ........................29
2.2.2.1. Topic .....................................................................................................30
2.2.2.2. The cultural content ..............................................................................30
2.2.2.3. Picture ...................................................................................................31
2.2.2.4. Task ......................................................................................................32
2.2.3. Related studies of the cultural content in EFL textbooks ..........................32
2.2.4. The cultural content in EFL textbooks in Vietnamese context ..................34
2.3. Strategies for teaching culture in EFL classrooms .....................................36
2.3.1. Valette (1986)’s purposes of culture learning in foreign language classrooms
..............................................................................................................................39
2.3.2. Hughes (1986)’s techniques for increasing learners’ cultural awareness ..39

2.3.3. Ryffle (1997)’s activities to teach culture in foreign language classrooms
..............................................................................................................................40
2.3.4. Moran (2001)’s cultural knowings framework ..........................................40
2.4. Teachers’ and learners’ attitudes towards culture learning in EFL
classrooms ..............................................................................................................43
2.5. Conceptual framework of the study .............................................................46
CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY.......................................................................51
3.1. Research site ...................................................................................................51
3.2. Sample and sampling procedures .................................................................52
3.2.1. Student subjects ..........................................................................................52
3.2.2. Teacher subjects .........................................................................................54
3.3. Research design ..............................................................................................56
3.4. Research tools .................................................................................................58
3.4.1. Textbook analysis .......................................................................................58
3.4.2. Classroom observation ...............................................................................59
3.4.3. Questionnaire .............................................................................................60
3.4.3.1. Student questionnaire ...........................................................................60
3.4.3.2. Teacher questionnaire ...........................................................................61

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3.5. Data collection procedure ..............................................................................62
3.6. Framework of data analysis ..........................................................................64
CHAPTER 4: DATA ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION ....................................66
4.1. Data analysis ...................................................................................................66
4.1.1. Textbook analysis .......................................................................................66
4.1.1.1. Topic .....................................................................................................67
4.1.1.2. The cultural content ..............................................................................67
4.1.1.2.1. Target cultural content ....................................................................68

4.1.1.2.2. Source cultural content ...................................................................69
4.1.1.2.3. International target cultural content ................................................72
4.1.1.3. Picture ...................................................................................................72
4.1.1.4. Task ......................................................................................................73
4.1.2. Classroom observation ...............................................................................75
4.1.2.1. Class A..................................................................................................75
4.1.2.2. Class B ..................................................................................................76
4.1.2.3. Class C ..................................................................................................77
4.1.3. Questionnaire .............................................................................................78
4.1.3.1. Students’ and teachers’ attitudes towards how the cultural content is
presented in TA11.............................................................................................78
4.1.3.1.1. The cultural content presented in TA11 ........................................78
4.1.3.1.2. Pictures illustrating the cultural content in TA11 ..........................80
4.1.3.1.3. Tasks in culturally-loaded units in TA11 ......................................82
4.1.3.2. Students’ and teachers’ attitudes towards culture learning through TA11
..........................................................................................................................84
4.1.3.2.1. Cortazzi and Jin (1999)’s three types of cultural content .............84
4.1.3.2.2. Moran (2001)’s stages of cultural knowings .................................85
4.1.3.2.3. Effects of culture learning through TA11 on students...................88
4.1.3.2.4. Difficulties in culture learning and teaching through TA11 ..........90
4.1.3.2.5. Strategies for teaching and learning the cultural content in TA11 93
4.1.3.2.6. Cultural topics that should be included in TA11 ...........................96

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4.2. Findings and discussion ...............................................................................101
4.2.1. Students’ and teachers’ attitudes towards how the cultural content is
presented in TA11 ...............................................................................................101
4.2.1.1 The cultural content presented in TA11...............................................102

4.2.1.2. Pictures illustrating the cultural content in TA11 ...............................103
4.2.1.3. Tasks in culturally-loaded units in TA11............................................104
4.2.2. Students’ and teachers’ attitudes towards culture learning through TA11
............................................................................................................................105
4.2.2.1. Cortazzi and Jin (1999)’s three types of cultural content...................105
4.2.2.2. Moran (2001)’s stages of cultural knowings ......................................107
4.2.2.3. Effects of culture learning through TA11 on students ........................109
4.2.2.4. Difficulties in culture learning and teaching through TA11 ...............111
4.2.2.5. Strategies for teaching and learning the cultural content in TA11 .....113
4.2.2.6. Cultural topics that should be included in TA11 ................................114
CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ...................115
5.1. Conclusions ...................................................................................................115
5.1.1. Students’ and teachers’ attitudes towards how the cultural content is
presented in TA11 ...............................................................................................115
5.1.2. Students’ and teachers’ attitudes towards culture learning through TA11
............................................................................................................................116
5.1.2.1. Cortazzi and Jin (1999)’s three types of cultural content ...................116
5.1.2.2. Moran (2001)’s stages of cultural knowings ......................................117
5.1.2.3. Effects of culture learning through TA11 on students ........................117
5.1.2.4. Difficulties in culture learning and teaching through TA11 ...............118
5.1.2.5. Strategies for teaching and learning the cultural content in TA11 .....119
5.1.2.6. Cultural topics that should be included in TA11 ................................119
5.2. Suggestions ....................................................................................................120
5.3. Limitations of the study ...............................................................................125
5.4. Recommendations for further research .....................................................126
REFERENCES ....................................................................................................128

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APPENDICES .....................................................................................................136
APPENDIX 1: SYLLABUS FOR ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING ...136
APPENDIX 2: CLASSROOM OBSERVATION ............................................141
APPENDIX 2A: Class room observation form A..............................................141
APPENDIX 2B: Classroom observation form B ...............................................145
APPENDIX 2C: Classroom observation form C ...............................................150
APPENDIX 2D: A summary of 3 classroom observations ...............................154
APPENDIX 3: QUESTIONNAIRE...................................................................156
APPENDIX 3A: Student questionnaire (English version) ................................156
APPENDIX 3B: Student questionnaire (Vietnamese version) ..........................159
APPENDIX 3C: Teacher questionnaire (English version) ................................162
APPENDIX 3D: Teacher questionnaire (Vietnamese version) .........................165
APPENDIX 4: CRITERIA FOR TEXTBOOK ANALYSIS ..........................168
APPENDIX 4A: Huhn (1978)’s criteria for evaluating treatment of cultural
contents in textbook ...........................................................................................168
APPENDIX 4B: Kilickaya (2004)’s guideline to evaluate cultural content in
textbooks ............................................................................................................169
APPENDIX 4C: Kristiawan (2012)’s five principles to evaluate ELT materials
............................................................................................................................171
APPENDIX 4D: Olajide (2010)’s questions to assess the cultural content of two
EFL textbooks popularly used in Nigeria primary schools ................................172
APPENDIX 4E: Reimann (2009)’s criteria for evaluating examples of cultural
information in textbooks ....................................................................................173
APPENDIX 4F: Sercu (1998)’s criteria to evaluate the adequacy of textbooks for
teaching intercultural competence ......................................................................174
APPENDIX 5: THE ENGLISH TEXTBOOK TA11 .......................................177
APPENDIX 5A: Textbook analysis......................................................................177
APPENDIX 5B: Culturally-related units in TA11 ................................................179

viii



LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS
CLT

Communicative Language Teaching

EFL

English as a Foreign Language

EIL

English as an International Language

ELT

English Language Teaching

HCMC Ho Chi Minh City
L1

First language

L2

Second language

MOET


The Ministry of Education and Training

Sts

Students

T

Teacher

TA11

Tieng Anh 11

UNESCO United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
VTEs

Vietnamse teachers of English

ix


LIST OF TABLES
Table 2.1 Moran (2001)’s Cultural Knowings .......................................................41
Table 2.2 Strategies and Questions for Culture Learning .......................................42
Table 3.1 General Information About the Student Subjects ...................................53
Table 3.2 General Information About the Teacher Subjects ..................................55
Table 4.1 The Cultural Content in TA11 Closely Relates to Students’ Daily Life .79
Table 4.2 The Cultural Content in TA11 Is Updated ..............................................79
Table 4.3 The Cultural Content in TA11 Interests Students A Lot .........................80

Table 4.4 The Pictures in TA11 Illustrate the Cultural Content Well .....................80
Table 4.5 The Pictures Illustrating the Cultural Content in TA11 Are Beautiful ...81
Table 4.6 The Pictures in TA11 Help Students Visualize Cultural Concepts and
Words ......................................................................................................................82
Table 4.7 The Pictures in TA11 Give Students Clues to Talk About the Given
Cultural Content ......................................................................................................82
Table 4.8 The Tasks in Culturally-loaded Units in TA11 Are Fun .........................83
Table 4.9 Students’ and Teachers’ Attitudes Towards Three Types of Cultural
Content (Cortazzi & Jin, 1999) ...............................................................................85
Table 4.10 Students’ and Teachers’ Attitudes Towards Stages of Moran (2001)’s
Cultural Knowings ..................................................................................................87
Table 4.11 Culture Learning Through TA11 Helps Students Realize Similarities and
Differences Between Vietnamese Culture and Other Cultures in the World .........88
Table 4.12 Learning About Vietnamese Culture Through TA11 Helps Students
Introduce Their Own Culture to Foreigners or Visitors .........................................89
Table 4.13 Culture Learning Through TA11 Provides Students With Vocabulary
Needed to Communicate With Members of Other Cultures...................................89
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Table 4.14 Learning About Cultures Through TA11 Increases Students’ Interest in
Learning English .....................................................................................................90
Table 4.15 Strategies for Teaching and Learning the Cultural Content in TA11 ...95

xi


LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 2.1 Hofstede (1997)’s Onion Diagram ........................................................14
Figure 2.2 Weaver (1986)’s Cultural Iceberg ........................................................15

Figure 4.1 Students’ and Teachers’ Attitudes Towards How the Cultural Content Is
Presented in TA11 ...................................................................................................83
Figure 4.2 Students’ and Teachers’ Attitudes Towards Three Types of Cultural
Content (Cortazzi & Jin, 1999) ...............................................................................85
Figure 4.3 Students’ and Teachers’ Attitudes Towards Stages of Moran (2001)’s
Cultural Knowings ..................................................................................................87
Figure 4.4 Students’ and Teachers’ Attitudes Towards the Effects of Culture
Learning Through TA11 on Students ......................................................................90
Figure 4.5 Difficulties in Culture Learning Through TA11 ....................................92
Figure 4.6 Difficulties in Culture Teaching Through TA11 ...................................92
Figure 4.7 Students’ Top Ten Favourite Cultural Topics .......................................96
Figure 4.8 Teachers’ Favourite Cultural Topics .....................................................97
Figure 4.9 Students’ Less Favourite Cultural Topics .............................................99
Figure 4.10 Students’ Favourite Countries .............................................................99

xii


ABSTRACT
It is a truism that language and culture has an undeniably intertwined
relationship as language is everywhere in a culture and culture is everywhere in a
language. That is to say, learning a foreign language will be nonsense if learners
know nothing about the culture associated with that language and members living
in that culture. For this reason, including the culture of Britain and the United States
in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) materials is a commonly-held belief
permeating the practice of learning and teaching English in many EFL classrooms.
However, the new status of English as an International Language (EIL) nowadays
interestingly implies that besides the target cultures referring to the culture of
countries in which English is spoken as the first language, learners should be
introduced to the source culture or learners’ own culture and the international target

cultures where English is used as an international language. Although the need to
integrate elements of diverse cultures into EFL textbooks and effects of culture
learning in EFL classrooms on learners have become worldwide concerns, these
issues did not receive much attention in the context of Vietnam, especially in
Vietnamese high schools. Therefore, this study aims at finding out the attitudes of
11th graders and their Vietnamese teachers of English (VTEs) towards the
presentation of the cultural content in the English textbook Tieng Anh 11 (TA11) and
culture learning through this textbook with the participation of 259 students studying
in grade 11 and 9 VTEs in charge of 11th graders at Tran Khai Nguyen High school.
Despite some problems existing in TA11 as well as the teaching practice in this
context of study, a majority of the participants gave positive responses to the way
the cultural content is presented in TA11 and culture learning through this textbook.
In accordance with the aims and the findings of this study, some suggestions and
recommendations for further research were put forward to enhance students’
motivation in learning the cultural content in TA11, improve the quality of culture
learning through this textbook in the context of study, and provide a springboard for
those who are interested in this issue.

xiii


CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

In the first section of this chapter, the background to the study is thoroughly
described. Theoretical issues and practical issues provided in the background to the
study help to identify the need to conduct this study. The second section presents
the aim of the study and two research questions. The significance of the study is
mentioned in the next section. This is followed by the scope of the study. The last

section of this chapter is used to outline the organization of the study.
1.1.

Background to the study

1.1.1. Theoretical issues
Language is undoubtedly considered as a window to the world. Through
linguistic activities such as writing, reading, listening, and speaking, we can get
access to a variety of information and knowledge not only about our own country
but also about other countries in the world. It is a deep-rooted belief that learning a
language entails learning about vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation of that
language. However, even if someone has a good grasp of these aspects of language,
there is no guarantee that that person will get the information he or she wants or
understand the intended message of the text and the conversation. Regarding the
purpose of learning a foreign language as a means to communicate with other
speakers of that language, it is an undeniable fact that effective communication takes
place only when the receiver interprets the message in exactly the same way as
intended by the sender.
According to Nida (1998), “every language form we use has meanings,
carries meanings that are not in the same sense because it is associated with culture
and culture is extensive than language” (p. 29, as cited in Jiang, 2000, p. 329). For
this reason, the process of communication is never an easy job, especially in
situations involving cross-cultural communication. If sender and receiver do not
know the underlying meaning of the language form which is largely dependent on
the culture of the speakers using it, sooner or later misunderstanding will occur.

1


Apart from the impact of culture on vocabulary, it has been explored through

other studies that there is also a close relationship between culture and other aspects
of language such as structures, four skills, and communication. Therefore, culture
undeniably plays a critical role in foreign language teaching and learning and has
been a concern among researchers, linguists, and educators in this field (Assemi,
Zadeh, Asayeshh, Janfaza, & Abbasi, 2012; Byram & Kramsch, 2008; Cortazzi &
Jin, 1999; Freitmuth, 2006; Jiang, 2000; Kirkgoz & Agcam, 2011; Kramsch, 2001;
McKay, 2002; Moran, 2001).
Despite the important role of cultural knowledge in foreign language
learning, in the 19th century and until the first half of the 20th century when
Grammar-Translation approach dominated foreign language teaching, culture
learning did not receive much attention. During this period when foreign language
was regarded as a tool to get access to classical literature of the target language
country, culture was reduced to formal aspects of the country where the target
language is spoken as a first language including works of art, facts, figures, life and
institutions of the target culture (Allens, 1985, as cited in Purba, 2011, p. 138;
Marczack, 2013). Kramsch (2001) came to a conclusion that “before the Second
World War, the term culture meant knowledge about great works of literature, social
institutions and historical events, acquired through the translation of written texts”
(p. 201).
Due to the development of linguistics, social sciences, and the need of the
economy after the Second World War, the role of spoken language, intercultural or
cross-cultural comunication became more and more important (Kramsch, 2001).
Steele (1989) went even further by emphasizing that “culture then became essential
not only for the study of literature but more importantly for language learning where
the term ‘small c culture’ came into the picture” (as cited in Abdullah & Chandran,
2009, pp. 2-3).
Concerning the nature of CLT approach implemented in the late 70s and met
with widespread support from educational community, Purba (2011) claimed that
because the purpose of CLT is to encourage learners to communicate effectively in


2


the target language, it “made the negligence of culture became worse” (p. 46). As
previously explained, without an understanding of the interlocutor’s cultural
background, misunderstandings between learners and members of other cultures are
likely to happen even if they speak the same language. Hence, learners need not only
linguistic knowledge but also cultural knowledge in order to communicate
appropriately with other speakers of the target language in a variety of contexts
(Purba, 2011). The importance of culture learning in foreign language learning has
been supported by Byram (1989) as “communicative competence involve
‘appropriate language use which, in part at least, is culture specific’” (p. 61, as cited
in Hinkel, 1999, p. 6).
As culture affects almost all aspects of the language used by its members, it
is undeniable that learning English is inevitably learning about British or American
culture. Taking into consideration the present-day status of EIL, because of the
globalization, English is used as a tool for interaction not only with native speakers
of English but also with members of other cultures. From McKay (2003)’s point of
view, along with the target cultures where English is spoken as a first language,
learners’ own culture and other cultures should be incorporated into the content of
EFL materials for learners to realize the status of EIL and use English to
communicate inter-culturally.
Even though it is widely agreed that culture and language is interrelated and
diverse cultures should be included in EFL education, the process of bringing
cultures to EFL classrooms will turn out to be a complete failure if learners do not
have favourable attitudes towards the cultural content in their English textbook.
Besides the critical role of learners’ attitude, the attitude of their teacher of English
towards the cultural content in the EFL textbook is also of great importance because
if teachers are not interested in teaching such content, there is no way they can help
build learners’ favourable attitudes towards the content.

In addition to the way cultures are portrayed in the EFL textbook, strategies
employed by teachers of English or how these teachers deal with the given cultural
content plays an undeniable role in keeping learners engaged or losing their interest

3


in both culture and English language learning. Accordingly, knowing the attitudes
of both learners and their teachers of English towards the presentation of cultural
information in EFL textbooks as well as culture learning and teaching through EFL
textbooks is undoubtedly one of the greatest keys to success in culture and English
language learning as Valdes (1986) said, a positive attitude is considered as “a boon
to any learning situation” (p.2).
1.1.2. Practical issues
In Vietnamese high schools, students are learning English through the
English textbook Tieng Anh published by The Ministry of Education and Training
(MOET), which comprises 16 units. Each unit is about an issue in real life and
divided into five main sections. Through reading, speaking, listening, and writing
based on the main topic of that unit, Vietnamese high school students gradually
develop their language skills as well as expanding their vocabulary related to that
topic. At the end of each unit, there is always a section named Language focus in
which students learn about grammar and how to pronoun English sounds.
It can be recognized that the focus of the English textbook Tieng Anh is on
equipping students with vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation so that they can
use English as a means of communication. As claimed in the Preface of TA11:
Teacher’s book, TA11 not only helps develop students’ English proficiency but also
helps increase their understanding of and build positive attitudes towards the
language, people, and cultures of some English-speaking countries (Hoang et al.,
2007b). Another aim of EFL education in Vietnamese high schools as stated by the
textbook authors is to make students appreciate, respect and be proud of their own

language and culture (Hoang et al., 2007b).
In spite of the fact that there are manifestations of culture in Tieng Anh,
teaching and learning culture through this EFL textbook in the context of
Vietnamese high schools is somewhat neglected. According to the curriculum time
allocation for EFL learning given by MOET, VTEs have only one period (45
minutes) for teaching one section in each unit. The real purpose of EFL education
in most Vietnamese high schools is to make sure that students can do well in their
4


English exams primarily focusing on checking students’ vocabulary, grammar,
pronunciation, and reading skills. To put it another way, there is not enough time for
VTEs to give enough attention to cultural information in Tieng Anh. The negligence
of culture teaching in EFL classrooms prevents Vietnamese high school students
from being aware of the underlying message or the deeper layers of cultural
phenomena which effectively help them communicate appropriately with other
speakers of English.
Despite the fact that there are a few articles realizing the importance of
teaching a variety of cultures in EFL classrooms in Vietnamese context (Ho, 2009;
Nguyen, 2013), these articles paid little attention to the English textbook Tieng Anh
for Vietnamese high school students.
For this reason, the study aims to find out 11th graders’ and their VTEs’
attitudes towards the cultural content in the Basic English textbook TA11 at Tran
Khai Nguyen High school, Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), where the researcher is
currently working. Since the process of teaching and learning cannot take place
successfully without appropriate strategies, some solutions to handle the cultural
content in TA11 effectively in the context of the study are suggested in the last
chapter. The participants are 259 11th graders and 9 VTEs at Tran Khai Nguyen High
school, HCMC.
1.2.


Aim of the study and research questions
Because the EFL textbook is regarded as the major source in which aspects

of different cultures are manifested, the study aims at investigating the attitudes of
11th grade students and their VTEs towards the cultural content presented in TA11.
Aside from the presentation of cultures in TA11, the second aim of this study is to
find out VTEs’ and their students’ attitudes towards culture learning through TA11
at Tran Khai Nguyen High school, HCMC.
To achieve aforementioned aim(s), the study attempts to answer two
following questions:

5


1) What are 11th graders’ and their VTEs’ attitudes towards how the
cultural content is presented in TA11?
2) What are 11th graders’ and their VTEs’ attitudes towards culture
learning through TA11 at Tran Khai Nguyen High school, HCMC?
1.3.

Significance of the study
Using TA11 to teach 11th graders English, the researcher realizes that when

she asked her students to make a presentation basing on topics they liked the most
in their English textbook, the ones related to culture were always their first choice.
Therefore, by analyzing the cultural content in TA11, the researcher hopes that
people will have a clearer view of the way cultural information is presented in the
English textbook for 11th grade students. In addition to textbook analysis, classroom
observations plays an important role in providing a truthful picture of the practice

of teaching and learning cultural information given in TA11.
As attitudes is undeniably considered as one of the major factors determining
the success of both English language learning and culture learning through the EFL
textbook, the researcher strongly believes that it is of great importance for VTEs to
know about what their students think and feel about the cultural content in TA11 as
well as culture learning through this textbook so that they can employ appropriate
strategies to improve not only students’ attitudes but also the quality of culture and
English language learning through TA11. Apart from students’ attitude, teachers’
attitude should not be marginalized in the process of learning and teaching as if
teachers are not interested in teaching the cultural content, they cannot make
students engage in learning. This is the reason why the study strives to investigate
the attitudes of both 11th graders and their VTEs at Tran Khai Nguyen High school,
HCMC, towards the cultural content in the English textbook TA11.
Findings from the participants’ attitudes towards the cultural content in the
English textbook TA11 serve as a basis for effective strategies to best present such
content to 11th grade students, especially cultural issues VTEs and 11th graders feel
confused and uncomfortable dealing with, in the context of Tran Khai Nguyen High
school. By doing this, the study hopefully makes a positive contribution towards
6


developing students’ attitudes to the cultural content in TA11 and culture learning
through this English textbook, increasing their cultural awareness, and helping them
use cultural knowledge to communicate with other speakers of English successfully,
which is regarded as the ultimate purpose of EFL learning.
1.4.

Scope of the study
The study confines itself to the attitudes of 259 11th graders and 9 VTEs


towards the cultural content in TA11 as well as culture learning through this English
textbook at Tran Khai Nguyen High school during the school year 2015-2016.
Because the focus of this study is on a particular grade in Vietnamese high school
curriculum (11th grade) and a specific area in the English textbook TA11 (culturallyrelated units), the findings cannot be applied to other grades in the high school
curriculum and to other areas of TA11. The sampling size with only 9 VTEs and the
characteristics of the research site in which one-third of the 11th graders are from
Chinese families are two other factors affecting the generalization of the result.
1.5.

The organization of the study
This thesis is separated into five main chapters as follows:
Chapter 1 provides the background to the study including theoretical issues

and practical issues leading to the need to carry out this study, the aims and two
research questions, the significance, and the scope of the study.
Chapter 2 presents, analyzes, and synthesizes theoretical issues and related
studies concerning language and culture, the cultural content in EFL textbooks,
strategies to teach culture in EFL classrooms, teachers’ and students’ attitudes
towards culture learning in EFL classrooms, and conceptual framework of the study.
Chapter 3 outlines the research site, explains the sample and sampling
procedures, gives a detailed description of research design and research tools. This
is followed by a discussion of how data are collected and analyzed.
Chapter 4 presents and analyzes information collected from the textbook
analysis and classroom observations as well as comparing the results obtained from

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the two sets of questionnaires: one for 11th graders and one for their VTEs. This
chapter is concluded with a discussion of the research findings.

Chapter 5 summarizes major findings, makes suggestions on how to deal
with the cultural content in TA11 effectively in the context of study, reveals
limitations of the study, and finally offers some recommendations for further
research.

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CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW
In this chapter, existing literature that is relevant to the focus of this study is
critically reviewed. Language and culture - the very first part of this chapter - is a
summary of various definitions of culture, cultural components, and the relationship
between language and culture. The second part of this literature review presents a
synthesis of theories relating to the cultural content in EFL textbooks comprising
three types of cultural content, the presentation of culture in EFL textbooks, previous
studies of the cultural content in EFL textbooks, and the cultural content in the
English textbooks in Vietnamese context. Strategies employed to deal with culture
teaching in EFL classrooms, students’ and teachers’ attitudes towards culture
learning in EFL classrooms, and finally the conceptual framework of the study are
also carefully discussed in this review.
2.1. Language and culture
2.1.1. Definition of culture
Despite the fact that people can feel and realize what culture is in their
everyday life, there are many opinions with respect to the definition of culture.
Although a lot of efforts have been made to provide a watertight definition of
culture, there is a substantial agreement among researchers and linguists that it is
too difficult or even impossible to find a perfect definition of culture which can
please all. Because culture is everywhere in our life and different definitions of
culture depend on different areas on which researchers and linguists focus their
study, culture “has been many things to many people” (Olajide, 2010, p. 256).

According to Zu and Kong (2009), culture ranges from all-encompassing concepts
like “it is everything ‘to some narrowly-viewed concepts like ‘it is opera or ballet’”
(p. 112).
Concerning the origin of the word culture, Kramsch (1998) found that the
term culture stemmed from the Latin word “colere” meaning “to cultivate”. Thus,
culture is understood as “what has been grown and groomed” (p. 4). As regards
culture in foreign language learning, Kramsch (1991) noted that culture was far more

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complicated than “the four Fs” including foods, fairs, folklore, and statistical facts,
which are frequently used to talk about culture in many language classrooms (as
cited in Hinkel, 1999, p. 236).
Regarding the concept of culture, there are a lot of researchers trying to give
general definitions of culture which seem to be too abstract to understand. In the
1980s, Lado (1986) viewed culture as “ways of a people” (p. 52). In the same vein,
Kramsch (1998) vaguely described culture as “membership in a discourse
community that shares a common social space and history, and common
imaginings” (p. 10). She further insisted that one should learn the language spoken
in a particular culture as through language, people know about attitudes, beliefs, and
values shared by members of that culture as well as mediating the imaginings. In a
similar fashion, Olajide (2010) associated culture with “knowledge derived
unconsciously and utilized as a social property”, which helps reveal how people live
in a society as well as their attitudes towards the language used in that society (p.
656). In general, it can be recognized that these theorists follow the anthropological
point of view in which culture is regarded as “the way of life of a people, the social
constructs that evolve within a group, the ways of thinking, feeling, believing, and
behaving that are imparted to members of a group in the socialization processes”
(Hinkel, 1999, p. 3). Obviously, through these definitions, culture is synonymous

with the way of life or the society in which people live.
While many researchers have attempted to establish a connection between
the definition of culture and the society in which members belonging to that culture
live and interact with each other, some focus their definitions on other areas such as
meaning or thought. According to Ilieva (2000), culture is related to the process of
encoding and decoding meaning as “a process of making sense of the world and a
site of social differences and struggles over meaning and representation of people
with multiple and shifting identities” (p. 52). Culture, seeing from a different angle,
is “the totality of a people’s socially transmitted products of work and thought”
(Jandt, 2007, p. 10). Jandt further emphasized that “culture also includes all the
things that guide a group of people through life, such as myths, language and

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gestures, ways of communicating, economic systems, what kinds of things to eat,
and how to dress” (p. 4). Clearly, the main drawback of these abstract and general
definitions is that it excluded important elements of culture which are appropriate
and helpful for those who begin to learn a foreign language and its culture.
In contrast to the foregoing general definitions of culture, other authors have
made every effort to provide all-encompassing or more concrete definitions by
listing all elements which can be understood as culture. From Cortazzi and Jin
(1999)’s point of view, culture consists of cultural products referring to “literary
works or works of art”, historical or geographical facts of a particular country,
behavior, attitudes, and the social knowledge used to “interpret experience” (p. 197).
Ting-Toomey (1999) conceptualized culture as “a complex frame of reference that
consists of patterns of traditions, beliefs, values, norms, symbols, and meanings that
are shared to varying degrees by interacting members of a community” (p. 10). TingToomey also maintained that traditions, beliefs, and values are elements hardly seen
as they belong to deeper layers of culture. On the other hand, what we could easily
recognize are “the uppermost layers of cultural artifacts” including fashion, trends,

pop music, verbal and nonverbal symbols (p. 10)
In an attempt to find out what culture is, Rajabi and Ketabi (2012) discovered
that culture is “the systems of knowledge shared by a group of people, including a
group’s values, beliefs, and attitudes, notions of appropriate behavior, statuses, role
expectations, and worldview (notions of time, space, and cosmology)” (p. 705).
Material objects as well as knowledge about their purposes and usage are also added
to Rajabi and Ketabi’s definition of culture. These definitions obviously help
illustrate the view that culture is “an enigma” and “multifaceted phenomenon”
which comprises both concrete and abstract elements (Ting-Toomey, 1999, p. 9).
Ironically, although numerous cultural aspects are mentioned in such inclusive
definitions, it may lead to considerable overlap among aspects. Furthermore, no one
can be sure that whether these definitions cover all aspects of culture or not.

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