An analysis of project activities of three 6th grade English textbooks for the 2009 revised national curriculum

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to analyze project activities of three 6th grade English textbooks for the 2009 revised national curriculum. The activities were analyzed in terms of the following five criteria: language skills, student grouping patterns, learning materials, elements of multiple intelligence and creativity. The results showed that most of the activities integrated four language skills properly, although there were some activities that didn’t integrate all four skills. All three textbooks frequently used cooperative and collaborative activities, and thus group and pair activities accounted for the highest rate among other patterns of organizations. With regard to learning materials, writing supplies such as a pencil and paper were used for project activities most frequently in all three textbooks. The elements of verbal-linguistic and interpersonal intelligence most frequently appeared, whereas the elements of logical-mathematical intelligence and naturalistic intelligence were insufficient in all three textbooks. Among all elements of creativity, linguistic creativity and nonverbal creativity elements appeared most frequently in two textbooks, accounting for the highest rate, while such thinking skills as problem solving, critical thinking, and metaphorical thinking were rarely fostered. Based on the results, some suggestions for the project activities in English textbooks for 6th graders were included.