Representation of

Amerian, Mohammad; Afshar, Fargah

doi:10.22054/qjss.2026.89647.2928

Representation of "Iranian Society" in Iran’s High School’s English Textbooks: Pathology and Policy-Making

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

Mohammad Amerian ¹

Fargah Afshar ²

¹ Assistant Professor, English Division, IRIB University, Tehran, Iran.

² M.A. Student in Cultural Studies and Media, Department of Communication, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran.

https://doi.org/10.22054/qjss.2026.89647.2928

Abstract

This study examines the representation of “Iranian society” in high school English textbooks in Iran. Its main goal is analysis of the thematic content of the books and evaluation of the comprehensiveness, accuracy, and diversity of the image they present of Iranian society. To this end, the subject-oriented sections (lesson illustrations, conversation topics, and reading comprehensions) of English textbooks for the first and second years of high school (six book titles) and their corresponding books in the technical and vocational schools (two book titles) were subjected to qualitative content analysis through codification based on (1) cultural diversity (diversity of values, customs, language, and the like) and (2) social diversity (differences in economic and social class). The results show that the majority of categories that could be extracted from these textbooks revolve around "education", "science", "geography and nature", "customs and traditions", and "tourism and cultural heritage", and "Iranian society" (with its cultural and social variety, diversity and multiplicity) is rarely represented in them. Based on the findings of this study, it is suggested that the content of high school English textbooks be revised and improved with a multifaceted approach, diversification of images and narratives, and the use of modern educational technologies.

Keywords

Iranian Society

English Language Teaching

Textbook

High School

Qualitative Content Analysis

Subjects

Sociology

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