Research background
Global education "involves learning about those problems and issues which cut across national boundaries and about the interconnectedness of systems"（Tye & Knip 1991:47). Among these issues, what tops the list is the issue of environment. Due to the environment degradation of our Mother Earth, the issue of environment has been ranked as one of the most urgent issues which requires immediate action. Therefore, environment education in schools at all levels is quite necessary.
Environment education is not only an increasingly important educational agenda around the world, it has also become part of the FL (Foreign Language) curriculum worldwide. By integrating environment education in FL curriculum, educators can enhance students' interest in global issues that might directly influence their futures, promote language learning and meaningful communication about environmental issues, and motivate them to contribute to a healthier, more sustainable world.
Textbooks, as the main instructional teaching materials in foreign language classrooms, are the direct source of education for students.In China, German has been taught as one of the main foreign languages in colleges for the past several decades, and a variety of textbooks of College German areavailable in the market. Unfortunately, few studies on German textbooks used in China's colleges have been conducted in terms of integration of environmental problems into language education. Given this gap, the current research was conducted to explore the environment contents and the value orientation reflected in China's College German textbooks .
The research questions:
(1)Are there any environmentally related contents in China's College German textbooks,and what specific topics are covered?
(2)How are these environmental contents constructed discursively in terms ofeco-discourse analysis(transitivity and ergativity analysis), and what environmental values (destructive, ambivalent or beneficial discourse) are conveyed?Selected textbooks
5 College German textbook series available in China's market were chosen as sample textbooks for analysis. They were Studienweg Deutsch, Hoch Schuldel, Klick auf Deutsch, Stichwort Deutsch, Einblick, and altogether they accounted for 95% of the College German textbook share in China's present market. These textbooks were published by Foreign Language Teaching and Education Press, Shanghai Foreign Language Education Press, and Higher Education Press.
Research results
We only analyzed the reading articles in the selected College German textbooks. The environment-related reading articles were sorted out and used as the final research corpus by way of eco-discourse critical analysis. The results suggested that while China's College German textbooks did cover diverse environment topics, most of them centered on shallow environmentalism, and there is a need for deep environmentalism topics and contents. Discursively, ambivalent discourse accounted for the largest percentage for the environment contents, followed by destructive discourse and beneficial discourse, which indicated there is a need for more beneficial discourse in textbooks to actively encourage students to protect the systems that support our life.
Given the current situation in China'sCollege German textbooks for tertiary students, when renewing College German Curriculum Criteriaand textbook compilation, more concerns should be put regarding environment education. Teachers,meanwhile, should devise certain pedagogical tasks to compensate for the gaps existing in the textbooks regarding environment education.
