World Englishes and ELF in ELT coursebooks

The current pluralization of English and the role of lingua franca it increasingly plays call for a representation of WE and ELF in ELT, above all in materials. The diversity of speakers and contexts in which English is used today means that learners encounter this diversity as language users. ELT materials should thus include English in its plurality in terms of settings and speakers, both from a linguistic and an (inter)cultural point of view, in order to allow both teachers and learners to have an inclusive perspective on the current plurality of English and its lingua franca role. This chapter focuses on findings from a research study aimed at investigating if and to what extent this diversity as to WE and ELF is reflected in recent ELT materials for lower secondary schools in the Italian context. Considerations and suggestions on how what is present can represent a starting point and be positively exploited within a WE- and ELF-aware perspective in ELT teaching practices are also provided. Such a perspective can enable both English language teachers and learners to gain a realistic view of how English is used today in their language learning/teaching practices.