Evaluating coursebooks

A. Cunningsworth Cunningsworth, (Choosing Your Coursebook. Heinemann, 1995) (1995) proposed four criteria for evaluating coursebooks: 1. They should correspond to learners needs. They should match the aims and objectives of the language-learning program. 2. They should reflect the uses (present or future) learners will make of the language. Textbooks should be chosen that will help students use language effectively for their own purposes. 3. They should take account of students needs as learners and should facilitate their learning processes, without dogmatically imposing a rigid method. 4. They should have a clear role as a support for learning.

You have a new ESL class and the school has told you that you can choose your own course book or materials. Sounds good, but now you are faced with the task of evaluating and selecting a book, a program or a syllabus. There are so many options out there, that all these choices can make it challenging to narrow down your selections. Here are some guidelines that will help you choose the right learning aids for your ESL students.

Instructions
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Assess your students learning objectives. A book based on living in America wouldnt be appropriate for Business English students in Europe who dont plan on relocating to the United States. If its a conversation class, the books and materials should focus on building vocabulary and fluency.
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Evaluate your overall class objectives. If the class is exam-based, such as a TOEFL course (Test of English as a Foreign Language), then test preparation course books will be a priority. Lifestyle-oriented books and materials would be appropriate for students who are learning English as a hobby.
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Select books and materials developed for specific genres, to teach students who are focused on learning English for a specific purpose (ESP), such a particular field of study or line of work. These often incorporate technical English that is typical of specific genres. Some examples include hotel and catering English books to teach hotel/tourism professionals, engineering English books to teach engineer students and legal English books for law students.
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Narrow down your choices based on the specific skills and learning levels of your students. As an example, comprehensive course work material for general English would, ideally, offer four different levels that offer a progression over the duration of the course: elementary, pre-Intermediate, intermediate and upper-intermediate. One such course is the English File series. See the Resources section below for a link.
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Take into account your own needs and teaching objectives. When evaluating a possible course book, consider whether or not it is loosely-structured enough for you to manipulate for your own purposes. Assess whether there is enough variation of activities and exercises to cover the key aspects of listening, reading and speaking.

Choosing a main course book

TEACHING INDEX | NEXT

Criteria for evaluating the main course book and other ELT resources
Profile of the learner(s) Needs of the learner / group / level; Fluency or Accuracy? Motivation / Method; interests; Cultural; Age Group? Time & Place - 2 weeks or 1 academic year? L1 or L2 environment? Other external constraints - public perception; examination syllabus. Criteria for evaluation - order of importance will vary according to learning / teaching / institutional context, time-scale and nature of goals:
1. Learners' needs

2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30.

Ordering and pacing of syllabus Maintenance of interest - suitable (perhaps for captive learners) Type of course: exam based, intensive, vacation - fixed period or continuous intake Age group - suitable for maturity-level and motivation of learners Time scale - variety & quantity of material - suitable for length of course Cultural orientation Suitable for class-size Role of teacher(s) and learner(s) appropriate to preferred teaching & learning styles Mono or Multilingual Narrative or Topic based Assumption of learner knowledge Mix of syllabus: structural; notional / functional; task-based (communicative) Right measure of authenticity i.e. suitably adapted for level Appropriacy of lexis, structure for learners' level Right selection of vocabulary and syntax for learners re function & complexity Range and appropriacy of texts Range & weighting of skills Revision technique: cyclical or linear Suitability for self-access Do learners' exercises, activities and tasks work? Ease of use for teacher Ease of use for learners Summary of items for reference Visual impact Accompanying aids: charts, cassettes, videos, CD-rom Dated or modern language Metalanguage Teacher book Course or part course book

But the real evaluation is made when it is used in the classroom.