A Two-phase Evaluation of an ELT Textbook

Journal of English Language Pedagogy and Practice

دوره 14، شماره 28، آبان 2021، صفحه 111-134   

نوع مقاله: Research Paper

شناسه دیجیتال (DOI): 10.30495/jal.2021.686872

نویسندگان

Negin Samoudi^{* 1}؛ Mohammad Mohammadi²

¹Department of English Language, Faculty of Humanities, Bu-Ali Sina University, Hamedan, Iran

²Department of Foreign Languages, Faculty of Humanities, Urmia University, Urmia, Iran

چکیده

It is by now well established that materials may have an impact beyond simply learning a language they present. Hence, in this study attempts have been made to investigate the strengths and weaknesses of a textbook Summit 2B which is currently being widely used in Iranian EFL classes. The textbook has been evaluated based on criteria provided by McDonough and Shaw (1993) on the basis of two stages: an external and an internal evaluation. Efforts have been made to critically evaluate the textbook in terms of the layout, grading and sequencing of assignments, design, content, different activities, sort of texts utilized, and the skills emphasized in the book. The findings showed that albeit there appears to be some shortcomings, Summit 2B seems to be more efficient to meet the requirements of EFL learners as compared with the other textbooks which have hitherto been used at different language classes. Accordingly, investigating and evaluating the book proved to be very lucrative and valuable in terms of pedagogy as well as the efficient attributes that suits the context of the present study. Finally, the implications as regards the efficiency of this particular course book as the consequence of evaluating it have been put forward and the strengths and weaknesses related to it have been argued.

کلیدواژه‌ها

materials evaluation؛ external evaluation؛ internal evaluation؛ Summit 2B؛ EFL classes

مراجع

Ahour, T., & Ahmadi, E. (2012). Retrospective evaluation of textbook “Summit 2B” for its suitability for EFL undergraduate students.  Journal of Educational and Social Research, 2(5), 195-202.

Akbari, O., & Pourabbas, H. (2015). Evaluation of Iranian second-grade high school English textbook based on needs analysis approach. Journal of Applied Linguistics and Language Research, 2(5), 19-34.

Ajayi, L. (2005). Teachers’ needs and predesigned instructional practices: An analysis of a reading/language arts course book for a second-grade class. Reading

           Improvement, 42(4), 200-211.

Breen, M., & Candlin, C. (1987). Which materials? A consumer’s and designer’s guide. In Sheldon, L. E. (Ed.), ELT textbooks and materials: Problems in evaluation and development (pp. 13-28). ELT Documents 126. London: MEP/ The British Council.

Brown, H. D. (1994). Teaching by Principles. New Jersey: Prentice Hall.

Bouzid, H., A., Erguig, R., & Yeou, M. (2016). Towards a reflective textbook evaluation model. EFL journal, 1(3), 219-233. http://dx.doi.org/10.21462/eflj.v1i3.21

Carter, R. (1998). Orders of reality: Cancorde, communication and culture. ELT Journal, 5(2), 43-56. https://doi.org/10.1093/elt/52.1.43

Cook, G. (1998). The use of reality: A reply to Ronald Carter. ELT Journal, 5(2), 57-63. https://doi.org/10.1093/elt/52.1.57

Cunningsworth A (1995). Choosing your coursebook. Oxford: Heinemann Publishers Ltd.

Daoud, A., & Celce -Murcia, M. (1979). Selecting and evaluating a textbook. In M. Celce-Murcia & L. McIntosh (Eds.), Teaching English as a second or foreign language (pp. 302-307). Cambridge MA: Newbury House Publishers.

Ellis, R. (1996). Does it ‘Work’? Evaluating tasks in language teaching. The Language Teacher , 20(2), 21-42.

Grant, N. (1987). Making the most of your textbook. Oxford: Heinnemann Publishers Ltd.

Hutchinson T., & Torres E (1994). The textbook as agent of change. ELT Journal,48(4). https://doi.org/10.1093/elt/48.4.315

Jahangard, A. (2007). Evaluation of EFL materials taught at Iranian public high schools. ELT Journal, 9(2), 130-150.

Javanmehr, R. (2013). Post-use evaluation of English Book 2 for its effectiveness in Iranian high schools. Journal of Academic and Applied Studies. 3(8), 22-31.

Mahmood, K. (2011). Conformity to quality characteristics of textbooks: The illusion of textbook evaluation in Pakistan. Journal of Research and Reflections in Education, 5(2), 170 -190.

Maley, A. (1986). A miracle of rare device: The teaching of English in China. In JM Valdes (Ed.) Culture bound: Bridging the cultural gap in language teaching (pp. 102-111). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Masoumi Sooreh, E., & Ahour, T. (2020). Internal evaluation of English textbook "Vision 2"

from teachers’ perspectives. The Journal of English Language Pedagogy and Practice, 13(27), 237-256. doi: 10.30495/JAL.2020.683594

McDonough, J., & Shaw, C. (1993). Materials and methods in ELT. Blackwell.

Mohammadi, M., & Abdi, H. (2014). Textbook evaluation: A case study. Proceedings of the International Conference on Current Trends in ELT, 1148 – 1155. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.03.528

Mukundan, J., & Ahour, T. (2010). A review of textbook evaluation checklists across four decades (1970-2008). In Tomlinson, B., Masuhara, H. (Eds.). Research for materials development in language learning: Evidence for best practice (pp. 336-352). London: Continuum.

Murdoch, Y. (2000). Evaluation of the course books used in the Chungbuk Provincial Board of Education Secondary School Teachers’ Training Sessions. University of Birmingham, UK. Retrieved from www.cels.bham.ac.uk/resources/essays/yvette3.pdf

Nunan, D. (1989). Understanding language classrooms: A guide for teacher-initiated action. Prentice Hall

Nunan, D. (1991). Language Teaching Methodology. Prentice Hall.

Nursyahrifa, A., Mukhaiyar, B., & Jufrizal. M. (2019). Textbooks evaluation: To what extent do the English textbooks provide learning to promote cognitive skill? Journal of English Language Literature and Teaching, 3(1), 78-91. https://doi.org/10.31002/ metathesis. v3i1.1250

Pouranshirvani, M. (2017). The external evaluation of new English textbook "Vision1" for tenth –grade students in Iranian high schools from teachers' perspectives. Journal of Language Studies and Literature, 1 (2), 11-21.

Rashid, N., & Kehratfard, R. (2014). A Needs analysis approach to the evaluation of Iranian third-grade high school English textbook. Sage Open, 4(3), 1-9. https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244014551709

Richards, J. (2001). The role of text books in a language program. Cambridge University Press.

Richards, J., & Rodgers, T. (2001). Approaches and methods in language teaching.

          Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511667305

Roohani, A., & Heidari, N. (2012). Evaluating an instructional textbook: A critical discourse perspective. Issues in Language Teaching, 1(1), 123-158.

Sahragard, R., & Rahimi, S. D. (2018). Textbook evaluation of Family and Friends series based on teachers’ perspectives.  Journal of Applied Linguistics and Language Research, 5(2), 68-85.

Sajjadi, M., & Hadavi Nia, V. (2011). Evaluating the SAMT English textbook for BSc students of physics. The Journal of Applied Linguistics, 4(2), 175-195.

Saslow, J., & Ascher, A. (2006). Summit 2B. Pearson Longman.

Sheldon, L. (1988). Evaluating ELT textbooks and materials. ELT Journal, 4(2), 21-37. https://doi.org/10.1093/elt/42.4.237

Shahmohammadi, S. (2018). Textbook evaluation: Looking at Prospect series through teachers’ perspective. Research in English Language Pedagogy, 6(2), 182-204. https://doi.org/ 10.30486/relp.2018.542578

Skehan, P. (1996). A cognitive approach to language learning. Oxford University Press.

Skierso, A. (1991). Textbook selection and adaptation. In Celce-Murcia, M. (Ed.) Teaching English as a Second or Foreign Language. Newbury House.

Stern, H. H. (1992). Issues and options in language teaching. Oxford University Press.

Surtikanti, M., W. (2020). Textbook evaluation on curriculum 2013-based textbook “When English Rings a Bell” for the seventh grade. Journal of English Education and Literature, 1(1), 11-17. https://doi.org/10.38114/joeel.v1i1.22

Tomlinson, B. (2013). Humanizing the course-book. In B. Tomlinson (Ed.), Developing Materials for Language Teaching (2^nd ed., pp. 162-173). Bloomsbury Academic.

Tosun, S. (2012). A comparative study on evaluation of Turkish and English foreign language textbooks. Social and Behavioral Sciences, 70, 1374-1380. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2013.01.199

Wharton, S. (1991). Approaches to materials analysis. www.philseflsupport.com

White, R. (1988). The ELM curriculum. Blackwell.

 Willis, D. (2000). Syllabus and materials: Open distance learning postgraduate programs. University of Birmingham.

Willis, J. (1996). A framework for task-based learning. Longman.

Yapici, B. (2019). Textbook evaluation in English language teaching: Solutions, pre -intermediate. K U S A, 2(1), 62-74.