The Politics of Representation: The Portrayal of Ethnic Minorities in Chinese Elementary Social Studies Textbooks

• In Event: 14.044 - Roundtable Session 2
  In Roundtable Session: 14.044-24 - Issues of Immigration and Representation in Social Studies Education

Abstract

This study analyzed the depiction of ethnic minorities in the content of Chinese elementary social studies textbooks. Quantitative content analysis results suggested an underrepresentation of ethnic minorities in both textual and visual content of all textbooks and a representational bias towards female. The qualitative part of the analysis revealed that most content about ethnic minorities was presented from the perspective of dominant Han group. In spite of the official claim of China as a multiethnic country, school textbooks are essentially Han-centric. In addition, several prominent ideologies, such as ethnic diversity and national unity, Chinese Nation identity, and inter-ethnic solidarity, were promoted in the textbooks. Implications for textbook editors and teacher and teacher educators were offered.

Author

• Yiting Chu, University of Washington