Abstract:

In the arena of second language acquisition there is a tendency in the United States foreign language course books to have English translations which is not the case for the English as a Second Language texts. The role of a foreign language text is to develop the linguistic competence in the four skill areas – reading, writing, speaking, and listening – in a natural immersion context along with the cultural mores of the target language. It is within this context that the stereotypes need to be dispelled, creating an understanding of the differing manners those societies in various regions live. In coupling the linguistic and cultural formation of the students it bridges the misnomers that foment misunderstandings and shows for all the differences there are more similarities hence the stereotyping is erroneous. The ideas presented are based on English FL course books and both the Polish and Spaniard educational context; however, the issues discussed may apply to other languages and international context as well.

Keywords:

Second language acquisition, cultural linguistic competence, course book evaluation for target language, and teacher education.