An Evaluation of English Textbooks in Japan from the Viewpoint of Nations in the Inner, Outer, and Expanding Circles

English is used as an international language in communicating with people across many cultures in the modern world. Kachru has investigated this phenomenon and created the “three concentric circles” model to portray the global diffusion of English. His findings show that the “cultural dimensions” of English usage have been expanding; as a result, it is important for Japanese English learners to understand as wide a variety of cultures as possible for effective intercultural interactions. In Japan, the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology maintains that “the understanding of cultures” should be regarded as one of the main objectives in teaching English at the secondary school level. However, as there are few specific instructions provided in terms of the teaching of culture, it is difficult to understand which nations should be included in the teaching of English. This paper, therefore, aims to help us understand which countries are currently included in junior high and senior high English textbooks based on Kachru’s three-concentric-circles model.