Checklist Textbook
Checklist Textbook
Is it easy to find your way around the coursebook? Is the layout clear?
Visuals
Are visuals reasonably well produced and attractive?
Is the style of the visuals (photographs, line drawings, cartoons) acceptable to the
users?
Are visuals used as an integral part of teaching material or are they essentially
decorative? Do the illustrations contribute to understanding?
Support material
Does the coursebook use authentic material at an appropriate level?
If semi-authentic material is used, is it representative of authentic discourse?
If non-authentic material is used, is it nevertheless a good model for learners to
follow?
Are there computer-based and web-based support materials?
3. Methodology (pg.97)
4. Language content
Checklist for selection of content (pg 59)
Topic
(pg 86)
Are real topics included in the coursebook? If so, how varied are they?
Do they relate to and engage the learners' knowledge system, ie the knowledge of
the world that they bring with them?
Is there sufficient material of genuine interest to learners?
Are they suitable for the age group?
Are the topics sophisticated enough in content, yet within the learners' language
level?
Do they actually do what they set out to do? If informative, do they inform, if
humorous, do they amuse, if controversial, do they challenge, etc?
What grammar items are included? Do they correspond to students' language needs?
How are new grammar items presented and practised?
To what extent is the presentation and practice: related to what learners, already
know and to what has already been taught, appropriately controlled and organized,
representative of the grammar rule to be learned, relevant to learners' needs and
interests?
Are they presented in small enough units for easy learning?
Is there an emphasis on language form?
Is there an emphasis on language use (meaning)?
How balanced is the treatment of form and use?
Are newly introduced items related to and contrasted with items already familiar to
the learners?
Where one grammatical form has more than one meaning, are all relevant meanings
taught (not necessarily together)?
Does the coursebook include material for pronunciation work? If so, what is covered:
individual sounds, word stress, sentence stress, intonation?
How thoroughly and systematically are each of the following aspects of the
phonological system covered: articulation of individual sounds, words in contact (eg
assimilation), word stress, weak forms, sentence stress, intonation?
Where phonology is taught selectively, is the emphasis on areas of pronunciation that
are important to meet learners' needs and help avoid misunderstandings?
Is the pronunciation work built on to other types of works, such as listening, dialogue
practice, etc or does it stand separately?
How much terminology is used? Is it comprehensible to the learners?
Is the phonemic alphabet used? If so, are students given any training in learning it?
Does the material use a diagrammatic system to show stress and intonation?
Are there cassettes or CD for pronunciation practice? If so, do they provide good
models for learners?
(pg 45)
Are style and appropriacy dealt with? If so, is language style matched to social
situation?
Is appropriacy taught with reference to choice of grammar, vocabulary, discourse
structure or pronunciation?
Does the coursebook identify situations or areas of language use where learners
should be particularly sensitive to using appropriate styles, eg when complaining?
Is there material for sensitizing learners to different levels of formality?
If so, are the examples presented sufficiently contextualized?
Is the level of formality related to the setting, social roles of the participants and
their communicative goals?
Is practice given in using different levels of formality in different situations?
Are learners led towards an understanding of why some forms in English are more
formal than others?
Are any other aspects of style other than formality/informality included (eg register
the language used within a particular activity or occupation)?
Are the social and cultural contexts in the coursebook comprehensible to the
learners?
Can learners interpret the relationships, behaviour, intentions, etc of the characters
portrayed in the book?
Are women given equal prominence to men in all aspects of the coursebook?
What physical and character attributes are women given?
What professional and social positions are women shown as occupying?
What do we learn about the inner lives of the characters?
Do the coursebook characters exist in some kind of social setting, within a social
network?
Are social relationships portrayed realistically?
Will your students be able to relate to the social and cultural contexts presented in
the coursebook?
Are other groups represented, with reference to ethnic origin, occupation, disability,
etc?
At schoollevel, do they link in with other subjects (eg history, geography, science)?
Are all four skills adequately covered, bearing in mind your course aims and syllabus
requirements?
Is practice in all four skills included? If so, is it balanced?
If not, which skills are omitted, and why?
Is there material for integrated skills work?
Does the material progress in terms of complexity and difficulty, in line with the
grammatical and lexical progression of the course? How well is this achieved?
Do the presentation and practice activities include the integration of skills in realistic
contexts? All four skills do not necessarily have to figure in every sequence of
activities for it to be valid.
Is material for spoken English (dialogues, roleplays, etc) well designed to equip
learners for real-life interactions?
Are reading passages and associated activities suitable for your students' levels,
interests, etc? Is there sufficient reading material?
Is the reading text used for introducing new language items (grammar and
vocabulary), consolidating language work, etc?
Is there a focus on the development of reading skills and strategies?
Is the reading material linked to other skills work?
Is there emphasis on reading for pleasure and for intellectual satisfaction?
How many reading texts are there, and how frequently do they occur?
How early on in the course (at elementary level) do reading texts start to appear?
How long are the texts? Do they encourage intensive/extensive reading?
How authentic are the texts?
Is the subject matter appropriate (interesting, challenging, topical, varied, culturally
acceptable, unlikely to date)?
What text types (genres) are used? Are they appropriate?
Are the texts complete or gapped?
Does the material help comprehension by, for example, setting the scene, providing
background information, giving pre-reading questions?
What kind of comprehension questions are asked: literal (surface) questions,
discourse-processing questions, inference questions?
To what extent does the material involve the learner's knowledge system (knowledge
of the world)?
How does the material handle controlled writing, guided writing and free or semi-free
writing?
Is there appropriate progression and variety of task?
Are the conventions of different sorts of writing taught? If so, which ones, and how
are they presented?
Is there emphasis on the style of written English? At advanced level, is there
attention to different styles according to text type?
Is attention given to the language resources specific to the written form, such as
punctuation, spelling, layout, etc?
How much emphasis is there on accuracy?
Are learners encouraged to review and edit their written work?
Is a readership identified for writing activities?
Are writing activities suitable in terms of amount of guidance/control, degree of
accuracy, organization of longer pieces of writing (eg paragraphing) and use of
appropriate styles?
Is there adequate guidance for the teachers who will be using the coursebook and its
supporting materials?
Do the writers set out and justify the basic premises and principies underlying the
material?
Are keys to exercises given?
Does the coursebook see the teacher's role as that of: guide, facilitator, manager of
learning, director, monitor?
Does the coursebook recognize different learning styles and different teaching styles?
How comprehensive and flexible is the teacher's book?
Is it written so as to be comprehensible to less experienced teachers?
Is it suitable for native and non-native speaker teachers?
Is the underlying approach of the writers expressed clearly and explicitly, or does it
have to be inferred?
Does the teacher's book provide enough detailed information on the language items
to be taught?
Does the teacher's book give enough guidance on the teaching procedures
advocated? Are teaching procedures clearly explained?
Do they adequately cover teaching techniques, language items such as grammar
rules and culture-specific information?
Is there enough cultural explanation to enable teachers unfamiliar with, for example,
British lifestyles to interpret and exploit appropriately the situations portrayed in the
coursebook?
Are there clear objectives for each unit/lesson?
Are new language items explained intelligibly in terms of their form and
meaning/use?
Are there outline plans for each unit/lesson?
Are learning difficulties predicted and appropriate advice given?
How detailed is the information and advice given?
Is the same detail given for every unit, or only for sample units?
Can the contents of the teacher's book be related easily to the relevant sections of
the student's book?
Is advice given on informal monitoring of students and on using correction
techniques?
Are there regular progress tests and advice on when and how to use them, and how
to follow them up?
Does the teacher's book make a positive contribution to heightening and sustaining
learner motivation?
Are teachers encouraged to note down their own ideas in the teacher's book?
Are there any guidelines for evaluating how well lessons went?
4. Language content
Topic
What grammar items are included? Do they correspond to students' language needs?
How are new grammar items presented and practised?
To what extent is the presentation and practice: related to what learners, already
know and to what has already been taught, appropriately controlled and organized,
representative of the grammar rule to be learned, relevant to learners' needs and
interests?
Is there an emphasis on language form or on language use (meaning)? How
balanced is the treatment of form and use?
Are newly introduced items related to and contrasted with items already familiar to
the learners?
Does the unit include material for pronunciation work? If so, what is covered:
individual sounds, word stress, sentence stress, intonation?
How are the following aspects of the phonological system covered: articulation of
individual sounds, words in contact (eg assimilation), word stress, weak forms,
sentence stress, intonation?
Is the pronunciation work built on to other types of works, such as listening, dialogue
practice, etc or does it stand separately?
How much terminology is used? Is it comprehensible to the learners?
10
Are all four skills adequately covered? Is practice in all four skills included? If so, is it
balanced? If not, which skills are omitted, and why?
Do the presentation and practice activities include the integration of skills in realistic
contexts? All four skills do not necessarily have to figure in every sequence of
activities for it to be valid.
Are reading passages and associated activities suitable for your students' levels,
interests, etc? Is there sufficient reading material?
Is the reading text used for introducing new language items (grammar and
vocabulary), consolidating language work, etc?
Is there a focus on the development of reading skills and strategies?
11
How does the material handle controlled writing, guided writing and free or semi-free
writing?
Is there emphasis on the style of written English? At advanced level, is there
attention to different styles according to text type?
Is attention given to the language resources specific to the written form, such as
punctuation, spelling, layout, etc?
Are learners encouraged to review and edit their written work?
Is a readership identified for writing activities?
Are writing activities suitable in terms of amount of guidance/control, degree of
accuracy, organization of longer pieces of writing (eg paragraphing) and use of
appropriate styles?
6. Teachers' books
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