A comparative study of gender representation in junior high school EFL textbooks of Hong Kong and Japan

Abstract

This study aims to investigate the representation of gender and the presence of male dominance in spoken discourse in two selected English Language textbooks for junior high school year one students: Longman English EDGE (2nd Edition) 1A and 1B in Hong Kong, and New Horizon: English Course Book 1 in Japan, respectively. This research employs both qualitative and quantitative analyses to examine the content of dialogues in each unit. Key areas of analysis include the number of domestic and occupational roles assigned to male, female, and gender-neutral characters, the range of activities undertaken by these characters, the character initiating conversations, the occurrence of males, females and gender-neutral characters in dialogues, and the number of spoken words and turns by them. The findings indicated an improvement in gender equality in both textbooks in various aspects, compared with other earlier textbooks which were examined by other researchers (Lee & Collins, 2008, 2010; Lee, 2018). In terms of role allocation and activities, a relatively balanced representation of male and female characters was observed. Female characters demonstrated a higher frequency of initiating conversations and taking turns. The average number of words spoken per turn by male and female characters was similar in the LE1A and LE1B textbooks, but male characters still spoke more per turn in NH1 textbook despite female characters taking more turns. Moreover, LE1A and LE1B employed gender-neutral names to mitigate gender stereotypes but gender-neutral names were not utilized in the Japanese textbook, despite the author’s effort to achieve gender equality. Considering these findings, this study reveals that male characters were underrepresented in the textbooks in Hong Kong and suggests that it is crucial to enhance gender awareness among English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers, provide explicit gender-sensitive instruction, and establish specific guidelines by educational authorities to assist textbook authors in creating gender-inclusive educational materials.