ELT Coursebooks Research Articles

Uncovering the role of English language teaching coursebooks in safeguarding intangible cultural heritage / Explorando el rol de los libros de texto de inglés para salvaguardar el patrimonio cultural inmaterial

UNESCO and local organizations raise concern over the threats towards Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) and continue their efforts to get help from any field possible for introducing ICH elements and raising awareness. Education is one of those fields. Considering the relation between culture and English language teaching, ICH can be incorporated into English classrooms. Besides, being the primary source of input in a language classroom, ELT coursebooks can serve as a bearer of culture. In this regard, this paper discusses the role of English language teaching coursebooks in the safeguarding of ICH by revealing the representation of ICH elements in locally produced coursebooks from 16 different countries: Bulgaria, Chile, China, Colombia, Croatia, Germany, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Norway, Republic of Korea, Romania, Türkiye, Ukraine and Uzbekistan. Findings from the study supported the idea that ELT coursebooks can be utilized as a medium for safeguarding ICH while improving the learners’ language skills.

Evaluating the Integration of Digital Literacy Components in ELT Coursebook Design

Given the changing nature of the meaning of literacy, this study seeks to adopt a pluralistic view of literacies and provide a holistic picture of how coursebooks help learners improve their technological-related literacies to participate fully in the present and future world of multiple and multimodal literacies. Accordingly, the elements of digital literacies in sixteen widely used ELT coursebooks were explored through content analysis. The findings revealed the implementation of the four foci of literacies (communication, collaboration, information, and re-design) in the digital literacies framework throughout the coursebooks. All coursebook series primarily emphasized the aspects of communication and collaboration, allocating comparatively less attention to the elements of information and re-design. The findings have call for practitioners in the field to rethink the curriculum, take the digital literacy components into account, and augment the digital aspects that are less discussed in coursebooks.

Critical Feminist Pedagogy in English Language Education: An Action Research Project on the Implementation of Feminist Views in a German Secondary School

AbstractBased on an action research project, this paper provides innovative teaching approaches for ELT to ensure gender equality through critical pedagogy. The qualitative study focuses on the reconstruction of students' perceptions through the analysis of group/peer talk allowing for the display of changing viewpoints after having dealt with feminist issues in class. Given the still limited representation of multiple individuals not only in society but also in secondary ELT coursebooks, critical educational practices have been concerned with the transformation of exclusionary schooling practices for the purpose of ensuring a just and equal future. Critical language education has been known to promote students' autonomy and sense of responsibility when it comes to the abolition of oppression and marginalization. Likewise, feminist approaches have the goal of fostering feminist principles and ethics of gender equality. The study, conducted in a German secondary school, reveals that the majority of learners welcome an exploration of feminist matters in the ELT classroom, because they recognize the significant connection between language learning and the exploration of societal issues. The implementation of critical and feminist ethics helped students become aware of prevailing gender inequalities; and their willingness for societal transformation highlights a visible increase in learner autonomy.

ELT coursebooks for primary school learners

Abstract This article reports on the findings of a comparative study on songs in four English coursebook series for primary school learners, with two published in China and another two in the UK. Detailed analysis focuses on the number, the coverage, the teaching purposes, and the instructional arrangements of songs. The findings show that although the total number of songs in coursebooks from China outnumbers that from the UK, no correlation exists between learners’ grade levels and the number of songs in each fascicle. The study further demonstrates that the purposes of songs in all four series are mainly to arouse learners’ interest, to improve pronunciation, and to enhance vocabulary and sentence structure understanding, revealing a lack of due attention to fostering learners’ intercultural awareness. Regarding the pedagogical approach and other instructional arrangements, British coursebooks feature a more diversified approach, highlighting the integration of learners’ physical, psychological and cognitive development, whereas Chinese coursebooks concentrate on providing simplistic and unified instructions which may pose a challenge for novice teachers but an opportunity for experienced teachers. Based on the findings, recommendations are offered to future coursebook writers.

An Evaluation of the ELT Coursebooks Used in International Schools in Istanbul concerning the CLT Principles

An Evaluation of the ELT Coursebooks Used in International Schools in Istanbul concerning the CLT Principles

Attainment of Learning Outcomes in Glocalised ELT Coursebooks: The Case of ‘Q Skills for Success’ and Foundation Program Students

The present study investigates the extent to which coursebooks learning outcomes, characterized by discourse extension (in terms of themes, structures, and vocabulary items) and skills integration, are met using students’ performance. It aims at measuring the degree of realization of learning objectives of Q Skills for success coursebook. The study makes use of the survey method to collect data through the investigation of tests administered, coursebook utilized, and grades obtained. Statistics of 2192 (1520 science track and 672 engineering track) students’ performance in reading, vocabulary, grammar, and listening are collected, analyzed, and investigated in order to assess the degree of success of the coursebook in helping students reach the desired and coursebook planned linguistic level. This study is crucial for it provide empirical data regarding the effect of implementing discourse extension and skills integration in glocal coursebooks, which is central in assessing its effectiveness. The study has implications related to glocalisation of ELT materials as well as the need for this glocalisation to emanate from the local practitioners themselves not only in terms of cultural but also language content. The findings shed light on the limitations of global coursebooks even if their publishers attempt to glocalize them. Personalizing materials used in English language teaching and engaging practicing teachers of the target population of students is of paramount importance for students to maximize benefit of coursebooks.

The Architecture of ELT Coursebooks

This paper is an attempt to develop a design-oriented approach to ELT coursebook evaluation, with a particular focus on the internal organization of coursebook units at both intra-unit and inter-unit levels. We believe that looking at coursebooks from the position of the materials designer sheds some additional light on ELT coursebook evaluation. The design-oriented approach to ELT coursebook assessment proposed in the paper goes well beyond the immediate, and often superficial, ‘check-list’ methods commonly used to help teachers select coursebooks. In other words, the design-oriented approach to ELT coursebook assessment enables teachers an insight into ‘the architecture’ of textbooks. On this ‘journey to the centre of ELT textbooks’, we try to highlight how language teaching materials have been resolving the conundrum of the dynamic combination of the What (content), and the How (pedagogy/methodology). In presenting a materials design process, we start off with the assumption that there has always been a broad basis of theoretical and pedagogical notions that can inform the content and organization of ELT coursebooks, and upon which coursebook writers can build when designing instructional materials. The article then discusses three stages of the design process, offering a more detailed analysis of the complex issue of unit structure at intra- and inter-unit levels. We explore different formats of unit structure, its components, ways of creating coherence throughout the unit, and its underlying methodology/pedagogy. The last point prompts the conclusion that today’s ELT materials are produced in response to a perceived market demand that is often at variance with the latest theoretical developments in ELT.

An analysis of ELT coursebooks in terms of 21st century skills

With the advances in innovation in the 21st century, the abilities needed to be effective in life have extensively changed. English, as a school subject, has assumed a main part in executing large numbers of the instructive changes and new methodologies in teaching since it is a worldwide language. Coursebooks, being a significant part of the educating and learning measure, impressively affect joining new methodologies into their schedules. Therefore, the current study aims to examine the 4Cs of 21st Century Skills – communication, collaboration, critical thinking, creativity, in English language teaching coursebooks. In view of this reason, a qualitative method – content analysis design – was employed. The data was collected through internal and external evaluation checklists, which were developed based on related literature and field experts’ opinions. The scope of the study was three 9th grade coursebook series designed by international publishing companies, namely English Plus by Oxford University, Excel by Express Publishing and Fall Blast by MM Publications. These coursebooks were chosen because these books are chosen by MES of RK and used in all schools. As the researcher works at school and teachers the 9th grade namely the 9th grade is taken for this study.  According to the results of the study, it has been revealed that each coursebook series includes the 21st century skills to some extent mostly in project, speaking and writing tasks. According to the findings it was also revealed that there are limited number of outcomes in relation to creativity, responsibility, social and flexibility and adaptability skills. Furthermore, there are not any outcomes related to information literacy, innovation, problem-solving, media literacy, ICT, cross-cultural skills, productivity and accountability, initiative and self-direction and leadership. Keywords: 21st сentury sills, communication, collaboration, critical thinking, creativity, coursebook analysis, evaluation, ELT coursebooks.

Rehabilitating the ELT conditional system

Abstract The commonly used categorical system for conditionals (zero, first, second, and third) has been repeatedly demonstrated to be inadequate because it is unable to account for many conditional types attested in actual usage. ELT coursebooks and pedagogic grammars are criticized for ignoring the evidence and persisting with its use, but the reality appears to be that, from the point of view of syllabus designers and materials writers, the usefulness and practicality that the system offers outweighs any concerns related to its accuracy. This paper attempts to resolve this tension by showing how the existing system can be improved rather than simply abandoned. It proposes a revised categorization system that better reflects the reality of conditional usage and takes into account evidence on how learners’ knowledge of conditional forms expands and develops as they progress through proficiency levels, but that nonetheless can be practically employed in multi-level teaching materials and courses.

Overviewing research on BELF communication strategies: From professional practice to ELT materials

The present paper focuses on the use of English in BELF contexts, bearing in mind both teaching and practice in the professional field. After an overview of the state of the art in ELF and BELF research over the last twenty years, the topic is tackled from three different perspectives, which mirror the studies carried out by the unit of the University of Verona in a three-year-long nationally funded research. Firstly, we will address BELF in professional settings, to shed light on what facilitates success in online interactions, with a special focus on e-mail exchanges. Secondly, still addressing e-mail exchanges, we will suggest a broadening of the notion of BELF communication strategies that goes beyond sheer successful, mutual understanding in the professional field. Finally, bearing the first two steps of our research in mind, we will turn to the teaching environment, overviewing if and to what extent international business ELT coursebooks deal with BELF communication strategies at different levels of competence, so as to provide hints and suggestions for more effective materials in this field.

Local culture and locally produced ELT textbooks: How do teachers bridge the gap?

The Ministries of Education in different countries have established that ELT materials would play an important role to provide learners in state-funded schools access to English language education. Nonetheless, the discussion concerning local culture and ELT materials has not yet reached textbooks designed for children in their first years of English language learning. This study aims to explore whether the ELT materials used in the first two years of compulsory English language education in Chile, 5th- and 6th- grades, include representations of the local culture, and whether these materials are being localised by the teachers. Through a content analysis of a corpus of four ELT materials approved and distributed in public schools from 2013 to 2016 and from 2017 to 2019 and the examination of 63 teachers’ perceptions on localisation of ELT coursebooks, the article argues that the ELT materials analysed include representations of local culture specifically associated with ‘national geography’ and ‘stereotypes and national identity’. Although teachers reported that they were unsure about whether the cultural representations of the materials facilitated learning, they claimed to include representations of local references when adapting the textbooks. The article concludes by suggesting that the ELT materials locally produced demand urgent review.

Examining the Task Complexity in ELT Coursebooks

Since the introduction of task-based language teaching, tasks have become an integral component of the curriculum, ESL classrooms, and ELT coursebooks in the Philippines. Hence, this study examines the complexity of tasks in selected ELT coursebooks. Specifically, this study sought to determine the complexity features of tasks per grade level and how they progress from the simplest to the most complex within each ELT coursebook level and across grade levels. Based on the analysis, almost a quarter of the language activities in these coursebooks are tasks, most of which have complexity levels 3, 4, 5, and 6. Further findings reveal that none of the ELT coursebooks show a linear progression of task complexity within and across grade levels. Implications for ELT coursebook development and future studies are discussed.

The content analysis of the English as an international language-targeted coursebooks: English literature or literature in English?

The integration of literature and literary works has always played an undeniable role in language education. Despite the existence of a wealth of literature in non-native English-speaking countries, in the majority of the coursebooks, the entire attention is devoted to literary works of the native English-speaking countries. In this study, five coursebooks claiming to be based on English as an international language (EIL) were randomly selected and analysed to investigate to what extent they have incorporated the literatures of native and non-native English-speaking countries. The criteria for the content analysis of the claimed EIL-based coursebooks were based on Kachru’s Tri-Partide Model to categorise the countries, and culture with a small c and Culture with a capital C dichotomy. Results indicated that although the chosen coursebook purports to be based on EIL, less or nearly no attention is given to the literary works of the non-native speakers of English.
 
 Keywords: ELT coursebooks, English as an international language, Kachru’s Tri-Partide model, literature in English

A Corpus-Based Analysis of Phrasal Verbs in ELT Coursebooks Used in Turkey

A Corpus-Based Analysis of Phrasal Verbs in ELT Coursebooks Used in Turkey

Creative Writing as Part and Parcel of Developing Communicative & Intellectual FL Learners’ Powers

Abstract For many years in ELT methodology the questions of teaching writing in ELT coursebooks have been given much attention in terms of its nature, differences between written and spoken speech, ELT objectives and approaches to teaching writing, types of writing genres, writing assessment. But one rather neglected area in that regard is a graded teaching of creative writing to FL learners. The fifteen-year experience with organizing language-and-culture competitions launched by the Research Centre “Euroschool” for foreign language /FL/ students across Russia have proved that even intermediate FL learners, not to speak about advanced students are quite capable of writing in a FL: a) poems and songs expressing their ideas about teenagers’ lifestyle & visions of contemporary world; b) short stories describing family and school life experiences of their own or their peers; c) essays based on their comparative study of native and foreign cultures; d) presentations of Russian culture & other cultures of the Russian Federation in an English environment while being on exchange visits; e) translations of English poetry, short stories, excerpts from humours books, stripes of comics. The paper compares teaching creative writing in Russian and English, discusses the questions arisen from the outcomes of the language-and-culture competitions, arguing that effective teaching of creative writing presupposes: 1) teaching a FL in the context of the dialogue of cultures and civilizations, 2) introducing creative writing into a FL curriculum, 3) designing a package of thought-provoking teaching materials aiming at developing communicative, intellectual & mediating learners’ powers, 4) applying appropriate assessment scales for observing the dynamics of learners’ development as creative writers, 5) marrying students’ bilingual and crosscultural/ pluricultural classroom activities stimulating their participation in language-and-culture competitions.

Creative Writing as Part and Parcel of Developing Communicative - Intellectual FL Learners’ Powers

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Communication Strategies, ELF and ELT materials

This paper discusses how Communication Strategies are dealt with in a set of ELT course-books addressed at Italian secondary school students, published by local and international publishers between 1990 and 2015. After presenting CSs as a field of research, their relevance in English as a Lingua Franca communication is illustrated with reference to existing research in the field. The research design and findings from the study are then presented, and examples from the data are provided. It is shown how, apart from a few cases, CSs are not dealt with consistently in the ELT course-books under examination, and the current lingua franca role English increasingly retains not represented. Recommendations for future research and implications for pedagogic practices are also set forward.

A Study on the Discourse Marker Well in Korean High School English Textbooks and ELT Coursebooks

A Study on the Discourse Marker Well in Korean High School English Textbooks and ELT Coursebooks

English

The purpose of this study was to examine four linking adverbials (LAs) of result, which are THUS, THEREFORE, HENCE, and SO, in the Corpus of Contemporary American English (COCA), focusing on written academic English. The data was collected from 1,200 concordance lines of the target LAs randomly selected from ACADEMIC genre in COCA. The findings revealed that the most frequent LA was THUS. The second and third most common were THEREFORE and HENCE respectively, while the SO occurred with the least frequency. With regard to the patterns in which these LAs are used, contrary to prior studies that reported SO to be the most frequently occurring in spoken English in the initial position, over 90% of SO in academic written English was found in the middle position. The patterns of the other target LAs in the corpus-informed data also outnumbered those available in the surveyed ELT coursebooks. Pedagogically speaking, it is highly recommended that English teachers incorporate more salient LA patterns based on authentic corpus-based data into their lessons to enhance the textbook information. Keywords: linking adverbial; language corpora; ELT coursebook; academic writing; corpus-based study DOI: http://doi.org/10.17576/3L-2017-2301-11

Case Study of the Commercially Published ELT materials in Foundation of English Course Books 1 & 2

Brumfit (1979) has suggested that many commercially published ELT materials are little more than ‘masses of rubbish, skilfully marketed’. He perhaps rejects most of the published materials. However, in reality, it is observed that these ELT resources are the only available alternatives in the contexts where infra-structural limitations of language classrooms and the inefficiency of the language-teachers make the goal of language learning and teaching unreachable or unattainable for many of the learners. This paper, through a case study, aims at justifying the use of commercially published ELT coursebooks that are designed and used, considering the limitations and problems of the personally produced materials by untrained teachers. Nevertheless, these materials must consider the local market rather than the global markets so that they meet the needs of the local language learners and instructors. The case study implies that it is the selection or adaptation of the right materials for the specific learners that makes them effective or ineffective. It also suggests that the personally designed or locally produced materials too may make teaching and learning difficult and impossible sometimes.IIUC Studies Vol.10 & 11 December 2014: 173-182