Whose knowledge is valued: a critical study of knowledge in elementary school textbooks in China

Abstract

This study critically examines knowledge in elementary school textbooks in China. Language analysis and story‐line analysis are used to examine how the knowledge related to minority groups and how the knowledge related to the Han group are introduced and interpreted. This study finds that the Han knowledge dominates elementary school textbooks in China and that minority knowledge and culture are under‐represented, which demonstrates that the dominant Han group’s knowledge is seen as the ‘truth’ while minority knowledge is seen as backward. Moreover, through the dominant Han group’s selection and construction of school knowledge, the Han group reproduces its ideology and legitimates its hegemonic control over minority groups. Minority knowledge and culture are, therefore, subjugated.

Keywords:

• Han knowledge
• minority knowledge
• dominant Han culture
• minority culture
• representation
• hegemony

Notes

1. Texts in this article refer to chapters, paragraphs, or independent stories.