The use of figurative expressions in textbooks for teaching Turkish to foreigners: Comparison of Yedi İklim and Altın Köprü Turkish Teaching C-1 level sets

Textbooks are among the most frequently used and utilised materials in teaching Turkish to foreigners. Yedi İklim Turkish Language Teaching Kit for Foreigners prepared by Yunus Emre Institute and Altın Köprü Turkish Language Teaching Kit for Foreigners prepared by Kyrgyzstan-Turkey Manas University School of Foreign Languages are among the leading textbooks in this field. Learning a foreign language is not only learning the grammar of the target language, but also getting to know and assimilate the culture and civilisation of that language to a certain extent. Metaphorical expressions have a remarkable position in terms of reflecting the culture and values of the nation. The aim of this study is to determine the use of metaphorical expressions in Yedi İklim and Altın Köprü C1 Textbooks prepared to be used in the process of teaching Turkish to foreigners and to compare these two sets in terms of metaphorical expressions. The method determined to achieve this aim is a case study from qualitative research models. Research data; figurative expressions in C1 level textbooks were collected using document scanning method. The findings obtained from the data were analysed as the sub-problems of the research with the content analysis technique. As a result of the research; 946 figurative expressions were identified in Yedi İklim C1 textbook. The figurative expressions identified are 369 in listening, 29 in speaking, 504 in reading and 44 in writing according to language skill areas. In the Golden Bridge C1 textbook, 821 figurative expressions were identified. According to language skill areas; 352 in listening, 8 in speaking, 358 in reading and 103 in writing. As a result, it was determined that there were more figurative expressions in Yedi İklim C1 textbook than in Altın Köprü C1 textbook. Considering the amount of figurative expressions obtained from the textbooks, it was concluded that these expressions, which carry traces of our culture, are not sufficiently included in Turkish books prepared for foreigners. Key Words: Teaching Turkish to foreigners, Metaphors, Yedi İklim Turkish teaching set, Altın Köprü Turkish teaching set, Turkish Teaching Centre.