Environmental Challenges: A Study of the Linguistic Representation of Environmental Issues in Textbooks through the Lens of Transitivity Model by Halliday

Abstract

The representation of climate change themes and text plays a key role in framing the youth perceptions and influencing climate change. The debate about the climate representation in text books concentrated on the narrow use of language, role of pictures and images and ideologies. This study describes climate change and environmental themes in relation to linguistic representation in textbooks from public and private schools in Punjab, Pakistan. It delves into linguistic analyses of textbooks, emphasizing the role of language in conveying environmental actions, actors, and entities. This research employs Halliday's Transitivity SFL Model as a framework to explore language patterns related to environmental issues. Mixed-method research design is used combining qualitative and quantitative approaches. Language structures dealing with actions, participants, and relationships related to climate are being uncovered using Halliday’s model to do linguistic analysis. This study involves content analysis, comparing the frequency and mean of ecolinguistic elements in textbooks from public and private schools. Ongoing difference of curriculum between public and private schools, and its impact on students’ understanding of climate change is clearly evident. Findings reveal distinct differences between public and private school textbooks, emphasizing that students in schools with more updated curricula, often found in the private sector, have a better understanding of climate change. While the study deals with the Pakistani context, its methodology and outcomes give a framework for similar explorations globally.