Evaluating the Global Orientation of Chinese Senior Secondary English Textbooks: A Global Englishes Perspective

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Beijing Normal University, China

2 Zhejiang Wenzhou High School, China

3 Beijing Normal University, China; University of Oxford, United Kingdom

4 High School Affiliated to Nanjing Normal University, China

10.30466/ijltr.2026.57735.3510

Abstract

This article examines the extent to which the 2019 edition of New Senior English for China (NSEFC 2019), a widely adopted English textbook series developed in response to China’s 2017 national curriculum standards, conceptualises English as a global language from a Global Englishes (GE) perspective. Using an adapted Global Englishes Language Teaching framework, it investigates whether the textbook series reflects key GE tenets across four dimensions: English users and communication, models of English, cultural representation and explicit GE-related concepts. Findings reveal partial and uneven alignment between the representations in NSEFC 2019 and key GE perspectives. While the textbooks broaden cultural representation and introduce concepts such as English varieties and intercultural communication, English-user diversity is represented unevenly, with limited inclusion of non-Chinese L2 users, and native-speaker norms remain prominent in language models. Furthermore, the textbooks display coexistence of discourses of diversity and native-speaker normativity within the same textbook units, revealing an internal tension between acknowledging English as a global language and maintaining traditional pedagogical assumptions. The research calls for clearer curricular guidance on the global diversity of English, more systematic integration of GE-related perspectives in textbooks and critical mediation of such materials in classroom practice.

Keywords

Iranian Journal of Language Teaching Research
Volume 14, 3 (Special Issue)
November 2026
Pages 151-168

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History

  • Receive Date: 08 October 2026
  • Accept Date: 21 October 2026

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