The role of course-book in an english course

                                           CONTENTS:

INTRODUCTION…………………………………………………………………..

I. The role of course-book in an english course…………….................................................................................................

1.1.  What kind of visual aids exist ………………...……………………………………………..

1.2.  The importance of using a course book …………………………………………………….

1.2.1. Advantages of the course book……………………………………………………………..
1.2.2. Disadvantages of the course book …………………………………………………………

1.3.   Course-book versus teacher-developed materials,visual aids and material

1.4.  Teacher’s beliefs and attitudes ……………………………………………………………..
1.5.  Benefits of using a course book for the teachers an for students ………………………...
1.6. Types of course books………………………………………………………………………...
1.7.  Language level………………………………………………………………………………..
II.    
2.1.  Analysis of the course book for the 7th form 
2.2.  Analysis of the unit from the course book for the 7th form

    




















CHAPTER I. THE ROLE OF COURSE-BOOK IN AN ENGLISH COURSE

1.1. What kind of visual aids exist

      The kind of visual aids we will look at several types of visual aids, for example: graphs, charts, drawings, photographs, videotape, computer graphics, objects, models. Most of these types can be convey effectively in high-tech media such as PowerPoint presentations. We speak about graphs that can help audiences understand and retain statistical data. The line graph, which is widely used in the textbooks, uses a horizontal and a vertical scale to show trends and the relationship between two variables, such as “death rate” and “years”. A bar graph consists of horizontal or vertical bars that contrast two or more variables. Also can effectively display a great deal of data in a clear, easily comprehended manner. A pie graph is a circle representing 100 percent and divided into segments of various sizes. A pie graph in a speech should have no more than seven or eight wedges.  Although such a graph is acceptable in a book because readers can scrutinize it as long as they wish, it could come across to listeners as cluttered, distracting, and confusing. Of all graphs, a pictorial graph is perhaps the easiest to read, because it visually translates information into a picture that can be grasp instantly.
      An organization chart can be used to show the hierarchy of a business or agency, with the chief executive at the top and lines of authority going downward. An information chart can sometimes take the form of a table, in which information is present in rows and columns [40, p.66].
      Drawings make good visual aids because they can illustrate points that would be hard to explain in words. One kind of drawing that is highly effective is a map. By sketching a map yourself, we can include only those features that are pertinent to your speech. If we were speaking about the major rivers of America, for example, we could outline the boundaries of the United States and then draw heavy blue lines for the rivers, leaving out extraneous details, such as cities. Photographs have a high degree of realism; they are excellent for proving points. Lawyers, for example, often use photographs of the scene of an accident to argue a case. In a speech, you should not use a photograph unless it can be enlarge so that everyone can see it clearly. 
      With the growing popularity of multimedia programs like PowerPoint, more and more presenters are using digitized photos. A digitized photo can be taken with a digital camera and then imported directly into a computer for use in a multimedia program.  It can be obtain by a digital scan of traditional camera film or a print. With videotape or DVD, we can transport your audience to any corner of the world. If you videotape an interview as part of your research, you may be able to use some excerpts in your speech. 
      
      The videotape was much more effective than a verbal description alone would have been. Because of the ease in rewinding and advancing a videotape, you can show key segments of a tape, eliminating irrelevant or redundant parts. Instead, use video only at carefully selected moments especially whenever listeners are likely to need visual help in understanding technical material. Sometimes a brief segment at the beginning can serve as an appetizer to whet the taste buds for the main course, the body of your speech. In some speeches, we can use a video segment at the end if we think it will motivate the audience to take action on your proposals. 
      Computer and internet multimedia with a computer, we can access these kinds of multimedia aids for a speech: 
* Photos are available in such categories as news events, historical persons, wildlife, travel scenes, and space exploration.
* Drawings include maps, charts, cartoons, and reproductions of art masterpieces. 
* Video clips are available for TV news reports, public events, speeches, health tips, and animated cartoons.
* Audio clips can be fined for music, speeches, interviews, and sound effects. The easiest way to gather these materials is to take them from the Internet— if your computer has sufficient power and space.
      The types of visual aids we have just discussed charts, graphs, and so on but can be conveyed to the audience via a variety of different media. An electronic presentation involves visual aids that are power by a computer. As a speaker talks, can display text slides, photos, drawings, animation, and video clips. Electronic presentations are often call PowerPoint presentations because of the popularity of one program, Microsoft PowerPoint.
      The method for displaying an electronic presentation should be determine by the size of the audience. For small groups of five or six people, an average-sized computer monitor may be large enough. For larger groups, you can use a large TV or a screen; in addition to a computer, we may need a computer-linked multimedia projector. 
       Either type of board makes a good tool for visual aids if you have a few technical words that we need to write for your audience. If we use a big word like transmogrification (which means a change into a different, sometimes bizarre, form), you can step over to the board and write it down in big letters. A board is also effective if we have complex drawings that require constant insertions and erasures for example, if we are diagramming plays for a soccer team. 
      We can put many kinds of visual aids such as graphs, drawings, and charts on posters. They do the same work as boards, but they are usually neater and more visually appealing. The size of the poster should depend upon the size of the audience. For huge audiences, posters are obviously unsuitable. Make sure there is a reliable place to put your posters. 


1.2. The importance of using a course book

      The role of a course book varies according to different teaching situations in some places it taken for granted, while in others it used selectively, supplemented by other materials. However, the practice shows that in most educational contexts, one cannot avoid using course book and that is why at various stages of their professional lives teachers faced with the problem of evaluating and selecting them.  These are certainly things, which are beyond the control of teachers. These things fall under broad background information: language policy, standards, syllabuses, exams, institution of learners.
       Each area of the background information brings the different aspects for course book in selection procedure. Prescribed syllabuses and exams that the course book selection procedure. Prescribed syllabuses and exams, which the course books have to match, can be both positive and the negative for teachers of selection procedure in course book. The positive aspect is that teachers have some guidelines as to what to look for, while the negative one means that teachers are somehow limited in their choice. Another limiting element can be the educational institution itself as far as its facilities are concerned, for ex. It is useless to study for course materials if there is no such equipment in the whole institution. Finally yet importantly, the learner’s needs to be consult for information such as age, educational background, needs and wants [28, p.66].
      We can say that a course book is a written or printed work that will used by students, children’s and by teachers in a program of instruction. Whether to use a course book or not for English language courses is an interesting dilemma because is going to be discussed throughout this section of course book. In opinion of Harmer that  suggests about the course book that “a problem with such assessments is that however good they are, they may still fail to predict what actually happens when the material is used” [40, p.108].
      The course books have benefits and drawbacks for our study. On one hand, if a course book is good it is the best companion for teachers, students and learners as suggested in opinion  Harmer  that give a explanation: “Good course books are carefully prepared to offer a coherent syllabus, satisfactory language control, motivating texts, tapes and other accessories such as videotapes, CD-ROMs, extra resource material, and useful web links” [40, p.108].
      We must take into account in our study that Harmer wrote these words more than a decade ago and the technology was not as advanced. Today, the tapes are obsolete and CD-ROMs are beginning to replace by virtual media. In addition, the course books tend to be attractively for teachers and students, which leads the students to be interested into the books content. When using course books, the students can actually see their progress. Furthermore, having a course book gives students the opportunity to review or strengthen the knowledge after the lesson. 
      A course book can be a teacher is greatest when they need to prepare a lesson without much time. On the other hand, we can say that some disadvantages appear when dealing with course books. The vast majority of these kinds of books organize in this way, for example: presentation, practice and production; which makes students lose enthusiasm and pleasure. Although in the recent years some new alternatives have appeared to the „classic? course book the majority of these books still have the typical organization. It is worth mentioning that some course books even if they are of different levels seem identical for teachers and students. 
      Course books with recurring themes and appearance end up with unmotivated teachers and students. Another explanation given by Harmer about course books that may have: this solution is a „do-it-yourself? approach. He explains it as follows: such an approach is extremely attractive. It can offer students and children dynamic and varied programs. If the teachers have the possibility to see its relevance to their own needs, it will greatly enhance their motivation and their trust in what they being ask to do. It allows teachers to respond on a lesson-by-lesson basis to what is happening in the class. Finally, for the teacher, it means an exciting and creative involvement with texts and tasks for students. 
      Course books can help a lot specially if you are a novice teacher, but using them all the time may lead to the risk that students feel that all their English language lessons are the same.    
      Teachers can omit, replace or rewrite some materials of the of course book that they feel inadequate as long as the result is coherent.  Harmer concludes another benefits and hazards of (do-it-yourself) approaches: this not only makes preparing lessons a very-time consuming business, but also runs the risk that students will end up with an incoherent collection of bits and pieces of material. However, where there is time for the proper planning and organization of teaching, students and children may well get exceptional programs of study that are responsive to their needs and varied in a way that does not abandon coherence. 
      Sheldon have the following opinion about course book: “the fact is that course books are here, and are even exploited in traditional environments as a method of controlling large classes of learners. Such pedagogical experiences generate expectations about what a course book should contain what it should look like and how it will used” [50, p.203].
      In our vision the course book is used here to mean a textbook of which the teacher and each student has a copy and which in principle to be followed systematically as the basis for language course. There are many different kinds of English, as a second language of course books that designed for students of all levels and all ages. Therefore, the process of choosing the right course book for use in the classroom in especially at the college and school level is a daunting task. Other reasons might be that the course books are visually appealing, easy and useful for the teacher to prepare, and the activities fits well into the timetable. 
      Most importantly is that students should learn something beyond just simple practices of ABC’s. According to the opinion of Cheung and Wong, “the major premise of an academic curriculum should aim at developing students’ intellectual abilities in this subject area that are most worthy of study”. This means that the curriculum should provide intrinsically rewarding experiences for the students while developing their affective and cognitive domain [46, p.66].
      The first advantage of the course book is that the course books come with a set of achievement aims that are clearly set. They tell the learner what the students will be able to do on completion of a course book and what to expect. The second advantage of course book is that when using the course books the genres and topics is structured such that they cover the four skill areas of reading, speaking, writing and listening. 
      In addition, the course books assist inexperienced teachers as they have ready-made activities and they assist such teachers to prepare for classes.  We can say that a course book brinks the students a sense of security.  A characteristic for a good course book can give a structure for a series of lessons, providing continuity and consistency for the class. There is usually a logical progression of language items including built-in revision as well as a good balance of skills work, languages, listening, reading and writing practice as well as activities for speaking.
      Fewer still, are those qualified in teaching that the specialization concerned and materials development. However, while far from systematic, there has recently been a move towards a more principled approach to the design of course books. Many course books written in collaboration with, or at least reviewed by a renowned expert from the field. 
      Course book are a key component in most language programs. In some situations, they serve as the basis for much of the language input learners receive and the language practice that occurs in the classroom. They may provide the basis for the content of the lessons, the balance of skills taught and the kinds of language practice the students take part in. In other situations, the course book may serve primarily to supplement the teacher's instruction.








1.2.1. Advantages of the course book

      For learners, the course book may provide the major source of contact they have with the language apart from input provided by the teacher. In the case of inexperienced teachers may also serve as a form of teacher training, they provide ideas on how to plan and teach lessons as well as formats that teachers can use. Much of the language teaching that occurs throughout the world today could not take place without the extensive use of commercial course book. Learning how to use and adapt the course book is hence an important part of a teacher's professional knowledge [50, p.78].
      The use of course book in teaching has both advantages and disadvantages depending onhow they are used and how the contexts for their use. Among the principal advantages are: 
* They provide structure and a syllabus for a program. Without course book, a program may have no central core and learners may not receive a syllabus that has systematically planned and developed. 
* They help standardize instruction. The use of a course book in a program can ensure that the students in different classes receive similar content and therefore can tested in the same way. 
* They maintain quality. If a well develop of the course book is used students are exposed to materials that have been tried and tested, that are based on sound learning principles, and that are paced appropriately. 
* They provide a variety of learning resources. The course book are often accompanied by Work books, CDs and cassettes, videos, CD ROMs, and comprehensive teaching guides, providing a rich and varied resource for teachers and learners. 
* They are efficient. They save teachers' time, enabling teachers to devote time to teaching rather than material's production.
* They can provide effective language models and input. The course book can provide support for teachers whose first language is not English and who may not be able to generate accurate language input on their own. 
* They can train teachers. If teachers have limited teaching experience, a course book together with the teacher's manual can serve as a medium of initial teacher training. 
* They are visually appealing. The course book usually have high standards of design and production and hence are appealing to learners and teachers. 
      In addition, we thing that authentic materials motivate learners and students enhance the positive attitudes towards the learning of a language, allowing for increased personalization. By incorporating authentic texts, publishers are finally attempting to facilitate the learner’s transition into the professional environment as opposed to making it up as they go along. Ultimately, professionals need to gain maximum exposure not only to texts that are authentic to them but also to tasks that are for the most part representative of those they are required to carry out in English around such texts; therefore achieving an outcome as opposed simply to linguistic accuracy. The big revolution has resulted in some publishers producing of course books that seek to replicate real-world tasks and methodology from the field. Thus, these course books not only more closely reflect the working environment of the target audience but also provide greater opportunities for learners and students to draw on their own experience [85, p.130]. 

1.2.2. Disadvantages of the course book

      Disadvantages of the course books, the use of inauthentic language and the inability to respond adequately to the real needs of the learner are possibly the most pertinent, and are particularly relevant. Typically, we found that interactions were over polite, insufficiently vague and invariably comprised of adjacency pairs. 
      However, there are also potential negative effects of the use of course book. For example: 
* They may contain inauthentic language. The course book sometimes-present inauthentic language since texts, dialogs and other aspects of content tend to be specially written to incorporate teaching points and are often not representative of real language use. 
* They may distort content. The course book often present an idealized view of the world or fail to represent real issues. In order to make course book acceptable in many different contexts controversial topics avoided and instead an idealized white middle-class view of the world portrayed as the norm.
* They may not reflect students' needs. Since the course book are often written for global markets, they often do not reflect the interests and needs of students and hence may require adaptation. 
* They are expensive. The course book may represent a financial burden for students in many parts of the world. Both the benefits and limitations of the use of course book need to be considered, and if the textbooks that are being used in a program are judged to have some negative consequences, remedial action should be taken, e.g. by adapting or supplementing books or by providing appropriate guidance and support for teachers in how to use them appropriately.  [8, p.74]
      Learners and students are able to concentrate on language usage and both learner and stakeholder grasp their immediate relevance and credibility. The constraints of the commercial publisher and not all will always be an issue and go some way towards explaining the reason behind much of the criticism directed in specifically of course books. Relatively speaking about production costs for niche-market course books, coupled with poor adoption levels means that return on investment remains modest, with publishers preferring to invest in more courses that are profitable.  The result is a course book that may not entirely; reflect the working environment of other, financially important, markets.  
      Several problems and issues have come up such as repetitive activities, levels, uninteresting topics, and inadequate language exposure. Many of the activities in the course books come as question and answer of sections. After doing it several times there is a likelihood that the students and learners will start finding the lessons boring and uninteresting. In the result, the reading sections in the course book tend to be relatively boring. Thus, they fail to be effective in helping students and learners to develop that component of the skill areas. The reading material also tends not to be challenging enough for learners and the learners end up not benefitting from studying the course books. If not checked, such issues can end up affecting a student's overall performance in the English language [10 p.78].
      The course book may not be suitable for your particular class – perhaps it is not appropriate for your age group, culture or nationality. For example, the topics may be too adult or childish for course book. This can become boring for both the students, leaners and the teacher if the book is followed too strictly and difficult. The course books can encourage teachers to be less creative and imaginative, preferring to use ideas in the book rather than their own.
      In addition, the course books are without doubt a very useful aid for teachers and students. However it is often more productive to try adapt and supplement the material in the book to suit your particular class. If we use a course book, we must try not to follow the same routine each lesson, vary the order of the activities and remember that it is not always necessary to do every exercise to achieve your aim.
      Our idea of a foreign language course book functions is closely with teaching and learning of foreign language, e.g. the English language.  From our viewpoint there are seven functions we consider the key ones: 
      1. informative function means the presentation of information about the English language, its socio-cultural background and contexts of its global use within the international communication as it is one of the sources for developing acculturation; 
      2. stimulating and developing function means the development of activity independence and creativity of students and teachers; 
      3. contrastive-transformational function means the respect for contrastive approach to the linguistic material of mother tongue and foreign languages and to both cultures, traditions and experience it also implies the receptive and productive relations of teachers, students or learners to the course book (set);
      4. integrating function means the integration of students’ knowledge and experience from other subjects of own experience in the English language, as well as the integration of other skills (e.g. dictionary use, the use of reference books, encyclopedias, etc.);
       5. educating and motivating function means the effort for the formation and development of learners and students personalities, their moral, ethical and aesthetic features and principles, as well as students’ and learners intrinsic motivation for foreign language study and acquisition;
      6. facilitating and relating function implies monitoring and facilitating role of teacher, students, learners activity work at school and independent work at home by means of tasks, activities, exercises. In the course book and in the workbook it also implies the cyclic character of the second language acquisition process through real-life situations in mother tongue and target language; 
      7. testing function means that there is material suitable for testing productive and receptive acquisition of linguistic and communicative competence from the viewpoint of a teacher and students. If the teachers of a foreign language of course book respect the above-mentioned functions, the foreign language course book will enable for the teachers and learners to use it effectively and it can be very motivating for learning and teaching foreign language.
      
      1.3. Course-book versus teacher-developed materials, visual aids and material
      The materials are contextualize to the experiences, realities and first languages of the learners and students. An important part of this involves an awareness on the part of the teacher of the socio-cultural appropriate of things such as the designer’s own style of presenting material of arranging groups, and so on. It is essential that the materials designer be formed about the culture-specific learning processes of the intended learners and for many groups this may mean adjusting the intended balance of what teachers can regard as more activities that are enjoyable and those of a more serious nature.
      The materials should link explicitly to what the learners and students to any areas of significant cultural difference. In addition, the materials are contextualize to topics and themes that provide meaningful, purposeful uses for the target language. It is possible; these will choose based on their relevance and appropriateness for the intended learners, to ensure personal engagement and to provide motivation for dipping further into the materials.
      In addition, the language-teaching materials should provide the situations that demand the same situations where learners need to interact with each other regularly in a manner that reflects the type of interactions they will engage in outside of the classroom. In opinion of Hall that mentioned three conditions and he believes are necessary to stimulate the real communication, these are the need to “have something we want to communicate”, “someone to communicate with”, and perhaps most importantly, “some interest in the outcome of the communication” [9, p.44].
      Another opinion is that Nunan refers to this as the “learning by doing philosophy” and suggests procedures such as information gap and information transfer activities, which can used to ensure the interaction is necessary [23, p.201].
      Language learning will be maximally  enhanced if materials teachers are able to acknowledge the communication challenges inherent in an interactive teaching approach and address the different norms of interaction, such as preferred personal space for example directly within their teaching materials. Effective the learning frequently involves learners in explorations of new linguistic terrain and interaction can often be the medium for providing the “stretch” that is necessary for ongoing language development.  
      The materials of teachers should ensure their materials allow sufficient scope for their learners to be “stretched” at least some of the time to build on from what is provided to generate new languages and to progress beyond surface fluency to proficiency and confidence.
      It is impossible for teach their learners all the language they need to know in the short time that they are in the classroom. In addition to teaching valuable new language skills it is essential that language teaching materials also each their target learners how to learn and that they help them to take advantage of language learning opportunities inside of the classroom.
       In addition, the materials of teachers can provide opportunities for self-evaluation by providing the necessary met language and incorporating activities which encourage the learners and students to assess their own learning and language development. Language teaching materials can tend to focus on one particular skill in a somewhat unnatural manner. Some aspects of these criteria that are particularly pertinent to materials teachers’ discuses below:
1. Physical appearance: initial impressions can be as important in the language classroom 
as they are in many other aspects of life. Put simply language-teaching materials should be good to look at. Factors to consider include the density of the text on the page of the type size and the cohesiveness and consistency of the layout.
2. User-friendliness: materials teachers  should also be attractive in terms of their usability 
for example if the activity is a gap-fill exercise is there enough space for learners to handwrite their responses. 



3. Durability: if materials of teachers  need to be used more than once, or if they are to 
use by many different students, the consideration needs to be given to how they can be made robust enough to last the required distance. In deciding on teaching materials there are a number of option for example: choosing a suitable published course, adapting a published course to match the needs of the course: using teacher-made materials and authentic materials as the basis for the course.
      There are a number of advantages to using institutionally derived of materials of teachers derived materials for a course:
      Relevance: the materials can be produce that are directly relevant to students’ and institutional needs and that reflect local content, issues, and concerns.  The developing materials can help develop expertise among staff, giving them a greater understanding of the characteristics of effective materials.
      Reputation: the institutionally prepared materials may enhance the reputation of the institution by demonstrating its commitment to providing materials specifically for its students.
However, there are also potential disadvantages for example:
      Training is means to prepare the teachers for materials writing projects, adequate training is necessary for materials writing is a specialized skill and not all teachers’ area capable of writing good materials.
      Cost it is means the quality materials take time to produce and adequate staff time as well as resources need to allocate.
      Quality is means the teacher-made materials will not normally have the same standard of design and production as commercial materials and hence may not present the same image as commercial materials.
      In many situations, the course book form is the basis of the curriculum in language programs. Provided there are a good degree of fit between the course book and the teaching context teachers use course books to provide the major source of input and direction to their teaching. Thus does not necessarily mean that the teacher plays a secondary role in the teaching process since teachers normally improvise around their teaching materials moving back and forth between book-based input and teacher-initiated input. Hence, even though a teacher may teach the same lesson from a course book many times, each time teaches it becomes a different lesson due to the improvisations the teacher initiates during teaching. These may result from on-the-spot decisions relating to timing, affective factors, and responses to learner difficulties. Experienced teachers hence use course books flexibly as a teaching resource [12, p.56].
      
      
      Sometimes however the adaptation may be required to reflect the needs of a specific teaching context. Various forms of adaptation are possible for example:
      Extending to provide additional practice it is means that a book unit has a limited number of pages and at times, the teacher may feel additional practice of grammar, vocabulary or skills is required and sources additional materials to supplement the book.
      Adding material to address an examination requirement it means that sometimes-supplementary material may need added to address the requirements of a specific institutional or other exam. For example, the reading component of an institutional text may make use of multiple-choice questions rather than the kinds of comprehension tasks found in a course book, so extra material to practice using multiple-choice questions needed.
      Localizing is an activity in the book may be more effective if it modified to reflect local issues and content rather than the content that discussed in the course book. The localization also involves the adapting or supplementing an activity to address the specific needs of a group of learners. For example, the pronunciation problems might reflect interference form the students’ first language and these not be covered in the course book. Additional activities can add the address problems specific to the learners.
      Modifying content it is content may need to change, because it does not suit the target learners, perhaps because of the learners’ and student’s age, gender, social background, occupation, religion or cultural background.
      Reorganizing content is mean when a teacher may decide to reorganize the syllabus of the book and arrange the units in what she or he considers a more suitable order. 
      On the other hand, within a unit the teacher may decide not to follow the sequence of activities in the unit but to reorganize them for a particular reason.
      Modifying tasks means the exercises and activities may need changed to give them an additional focus. For example, a listening activity may focus only on listening for information, so it adapted so that student scan   listen a second or third time for a different purpose. An activity may extended to provide the opportunities for more personalized practice. 
      While in many cases, a book may work perfectly well without the need for much adaptation, in some cases different levels of adaptation. Through the process of adaptation the teacher personalize the text, making it a better teaching resource, and individualizes it for a particular group of learners. Normally this process takes place gradually as the teacher becomes more familiar with the course  book be.......................