English Through Culturally Familiar Contexts: A Pilot Study in Japan

Abstract

As more attention is given to the subject of global Englishes, consideration of the different methods by which English is taught has become more important. Across Asia, increasingly teachers have turned to culturally specific textbook design, yet few scholars have conducted studies that demonstrate the practical effectiveness of such texts in Asian contexts. To bridge this research gap, we conducted a study wherein students in two English reading classes at a Japanese university were given the same readings, with passages reflecting either Japanese or foreign cultural contexts. Through preand post-lesson tests, we gauged the effectiveness of culturally familiar proper nouns on vocabulary recall and content comprehension. Overall, we demonstrate that culturally familiar contexts in EFL study might have a positive impact on language learning for students.