Cultural Content Analysis of English Textbook on Merdeka Curriculum

Abstract

The objective of this research was to investigate the cultural content found in the English textbook titled "Bright an English" published by Erlangga in 2022, designed for seventh-grade junior high school students. This research used content analysis method. Some underlying models proposed Chao and Yuen were used as the main framework for analyzing the textbook. The investigation revealed that the textbook primarily emphasizes the promotion of Indonesian culture, which serves as the source culture, accounts for 49% of the content in the textbook. The second highest is the target culture with 23%, followed by the international culture with 22%. Interestingly, intercultural interaction and Islamic culture have the smallest proportions, only 1% and 5% respectively. Moreover, each cultural element within the textbook is closely linked to the objectives of the Merdeka curriculum, which seeks to strengthen the Pancasila student profile such as having faith and fear of God Almighty, possessing noble character, being self-reliant, promoting mutual assistance, embracing global diversity, and cultivating critical thinking and creativity. Therefore, it can be concluded that the "Bright an English" textbook is not only rich in diverse cultures but also aligns with the characteristics and goals of the Merdeka curriculum.