Why are ESL textbooks made my big companies a disappointing compromise to many ESL teachers?
EDog asked:
Are the course books made by these companies helpful or does it compromise the quality of teaching in an ESL setting?
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Are the course books made by these companies helpful or does it compromise the quality of teaching in an ESL setting?
Your help will be much appreciated!
April 30th, 2010 at 3:50 am
I´m not sure I really understand your question - what big companies are you referring to?
But i don´t think they would necessarily be compromising. If the company is big (again, Im not exactly sure what type of company you´re talking about here) it usually means they have invested more time and money in their publication. At the end of the day, though, it´s not all about the material - a good ESL teacher can work with any material. Amy
April 30th, 2010 at 5:55 pm
I view textbooks as useful aid to teaching but in no way do I slavishly follow them. They are usually well thought out and the general structure and approach is often quite good.
However, they are by their nature general. They don’t take into account the very specific needs and make up of your class. So I use them as a general path through the academic year, but stray from them to meet the needs of the class.
For example, let’s say the course book moves on to dealing with the Simple Past. We’ll do that work in class but perhaps my class don’t quite grasp this. Rather than push on with the course book regardless, I’ll bring in my own activities and ideas to give the class further practice and make sure they understand.Then, when it’s all clear, bring back the course book and move on.
Where coursebooks especially fall down is when it comes to more specific classes, for example Business English and so on. ICAL