Decolonizing EFL textbooks in Colombia

English language teaching (ELT) in Colombia has been shaped by a capitalist world in which English language teachers have relied on reproducing only Euro-American knowledge(s) that is portrayed in EFL textbooks. This qualitative action-research study describes a pedagogical intervention that unfolded in two moments. In the first one, researchers and pre-service English language teachers (PSELTs) co-constructed contextualized materials as a way to challenge hegemonic sociocultural representations in EFL textbooks. In the second one, the contextualized materials were implemented with 28 PSELTs at a Colombian public university, who participated voluntarily. Data were gathered through students’ artifacts, field notes, and a focus group interview. Findings revealed the need to embrace a sociocultural transformation through contextualization among PSELTs and the importance of becoming empowered agents of change within their future teaching contexts, particularly by giving visibility to gendered and sexual identities in the EFL classroom. Finally, this study opens the possibility of decolonizing teaching practices that have long been naturalized through the EFL textbooks used in Colombia.