O’zbekiston respublikasi oliy ta’lim, fan va innovatsiyalar vazirligi andijon davlat chet tillari instituti ingliz tili o’qitishning integrallashgan kursi kafedrasi chet tillarni o’qitishning integrallashgan kursi

Lesson 23-24. Evaluating educational materials. Part 1-2

Module: Topic: Time: Aim: Materials: Aids:

Foreign language teaching in special directions (fields) Evaluating educational materials. Part 1-2 80 minutes To analyse materials evaluation 1. Harding, K. (2007) English for Specific Purposes (Resource books for teachers). 2. Jordan, R. R. (2005) English for Academic Purposes: A Guide and Resource Book for Teachers. 3. Dudley-Evans, T. & M-J. St John (1998) Developments in English for Specific Purposes.Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Charts, laptop with speakers, handouts, white board

Procedure:
Warm up:
While activity: In this lesson we will discuss how language teachers and departmental heads make suitable decisions when choosing a coursebook. As teachers, we know that selection of a suitable coursebook is vital, as coursebooks can provide a structure from which the process of language learning can begin (O’Neill, 1982: 110-111). A logical decision-making process rather than purely instinctive selection ensures a reliable decision is made without entering into impractical and lengthy evaluation research which may not be possible for many teachers due to time constraints or lack of experience, as well as the number of variables involved (Cunningsworth, 1995: 5). An efficient evaluation process is demonstrated in order to provide an example which may be helpful to other teaching professionals. The process can be used to evaluate several coursebooks comparatively (as in this example) for selection purposes or with individual coursebooks in order to maximize effective teaching and learning.
The first step in the selection process involves analyzing (or reanalyzing) the situation in which the coursebooks will be used, and comparing this information with the intended teaching/learning situation as stated by the publishers. The next stage analyzes the methodology and syllabus of the materials. Next, using selected comparable units, the main teaching points are identified and strengths and weaknesses evaluated. A single selected exercise can then be trialled with the learners to gain further insight.
Step 1: Who Will Use the Coursebook? In What Situation?
As materials can only be meaningfully evaluated in relation to their intended teaching situation (Richards, 2001: 256), the first stage of the evaluation involves assessing (or reassessing) the unique situation in which the materials will be used. In order to gather information on the specific learning context, a comprehensive, yet lengthy, published questionnaire which required a high level of theoretical knowledge (Cunningsworth, 1995: 6) was adapted and condensed into two equally important and codependent sets of questions.
The Learning/Teaching Situation
What are the overall aims of the English programme? What are the specific objectives for this course? Is there a detailed syllabus or will the coursebook provide the syllabus? How long is the course? How many learners are there? What resources are available in the class? Will progress be measured? How?
The Learners and Teacher
How old are the learners and what is their level of English? Are they all the same age and level? What type of language learning experience, if any, do they have? What do they expect from the classes? How do they like to learn? Are they motivated? What is their motivation? What are their interests and values? What is the role, experience and teaching style of the teacher? Are they free to adapt materials?
All teaching/learning situations are unique (McGrath, 2002: 10) and the above questions provide data relevant to the specific investigation in question (ibid. 25-27). No pre-prepared set of questions will be completely suited to a real classroom (Cunningsworth, 1996: 5). For this reason, questions can and should be revised to meet the needs of the specific evaluation in order to best identify the actual teaching/learning situation.
In the example situation the following characteristics were identified:
Adult learners aged 50+
Intermediate to Upper Intermediate level.
Learning English for social personal motivation rather than academic or business reasons.
Learners tend towards Authority Oriented (they prefer the teacher to explain things) and Concrete Learning (they prefer to play games and work in pairs) styles (Nunan, 1999: 57).
Group 11 students, 100 minutes per week
Experienced teacher. Free to adapt materials.
Following analysis of the actual learning situation, a comparison can be made with the intended learner/teaching situation as stated by the publishers. This is often found in the introduction of the teacher’s book or in the coursebook. A summary of the intended learner/teaching situations as stated by the publishers in the example materials is show below:
Coursebook Y (the old/existing coursebook)
For use by adults and young adults
Provides fun user-centred lessons
Prepares learners to begin FCE course
Coursebook X (the new/replacement coursebook)
For use by adults and young adults
Uses a communicative approach to teaching
Is intended to cover B2 level of the Common European Framework
In our example we see that the coursebooks are suitable in terms of learner age, level and desire for a communicative learning situation. Points of divergence include; preparation for FCE which is not the course aim, and an absence of reference to the social aspect of the learning situation. Following the first stage of our evaluation we can see that the intended learning situation in both coursebooks is compatible with the actual situation, and we are already starting to get an idea of what areas of the coursebook might need to be adapted.