Tell me where you are and I’ll tell you what you learn. Investigating hidden curricula using GIS analysis of place names in a case study of an English language textbook published in Japan

Abstract

Abstract The article aims to look for a way to geographically delineate the notion of target culture in the language textbook “The World We Live in” by Ogasawara et al. (2013) published in Japan for Japanese students and teachers. Looking at the textbooks as cultural artefacts, we identified geographical space within the scope of the sample textbook and analysed the pedagogical context the place names appeared in. By doing that we attempt to find the spatial bias of the book, which is a manifestation of values there inscribed, often called the “hidden curriculum”. The elaborated method, following a seminal study by Risager (2018), is an attempt to adapt the proposed content analysis of the textbooks into GIS tools in order to capture the geographic dimension of the content. The method serves as a stepping stone towards the creation of a model to analyse and identify the attitudes toward the cultural content of educational materials. This will not only enable a more authentic classroom experience responding to the needs of particular groups of students and teachers but also look for ways to make the textbooks more inclusive.