Covert Curriculum in ELT Coursebooks: Evidence from Top Notch and English File Series

ELT coursebooks are the fertile soil for the transmission of cultural perspectives and also strong tools for shaping L2 learners’ behaviors and expectations. This study investigated the existence of covert/ hidden curriculum in two of the widely used ELT coursebook series Top Notch and English File . To do so, the content of the series was analyzed via Moran’s (2001) model of dimensions of culture and Chao’s (2011) main categories of culture . The results indicated that the series, along with covering different dimensions of culture, are biased mainly in favor of the western products, persons and perspectives, and that despite their global EFL/EIL audience, they vividly base their dialogues, reading and listening on the norms and values of the Englishspeaking countries, with almost no attention to the local, especially Asian values. The study, discussing the implications of such culture related covert curricula in the ELT coursebooks, makes relevant suggestions for the design of ELTcoursebooks in the present global village.