Evaluating the Cultural Content of Foreign-Language Texts

A form for evaluating the cultural content of foreign-language texts is presented with suggestions for its use. By causing the evaluator to consider the ways in which the foreign culture is portrayed in a given text, the form seeks to make him aware that his or her task involves more than an examination of the text's linguistic features. While the most obvious use of such an instrument is in the selection of a new textbook, it should also prove useful in evaluating one's present text in order to determine its strengths and weaknesses and to select supplementary cultural materials. Authors of textbooks and creators of learning activity packages could also profit from an objective examination of the cultural content of the materials which they are preparing. AA