8 The role and design of

instructional materials

Teaching materials are a key component in most language programs.

Whether the teacher uses a textbook, institutionally prepared materials, or
his or her own materials, instructional materials generally serve as the ba-
sisjforjnuch of thejanguage input learMrsjeceJTO^dTfielianquage prac-
tice that occurs in the classroom. In the case of inexperi^c^teXcliers'rma-
tenaTsmay afeo 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 materials. These may
take the form of (a) printed materials such as books, workbooks, work-
sheets, or readers; (b) nonprint materials such as cassette or audio materi-
als, videos, or computer-based materials; (c) materials that comprise bom
print and nonprint sources such as self-access materials and materials on the
Internet. In addition, materials not designed for instructional use such as
magazines, newspapers, and TV materials may also play a role in the cur-
riculum.
Cunningsworth (1995,7) summarizes the role of materials (particularly
course books) in language teaching as:
• a resource for presentation materials (spoken and written)
• a source of activities for learner practice and communicative interaction
• a reference source for learners on grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation,
and so on
• a source of stimulation and ideas for classroom activities
• a syllabus (where they reflect learning objectives that have already been
determined)
• a support for less experienced teachers who have yet to gain in confidence
Dudley-Evans and SL John (1998, 170-171) suggest that for teachers of
ESP courses, materials serve the following functions:
• as a source of language
- as a learning support

251
 The role and design of instructional materials 252

• for motivation and stimulation

• for reference
ESP materials may therefore seek to provide exposure to the specialized
genres and registers of ESP, to support learning through stimulating cog
nitive processes and providing a_sjxucture_and.prpgression..fprJea^ners to
follow, to motivate learners through pro^iding^a_chievable,j?hallenges_.and
Interestmgf content; andtc^pTrovide a resource for self^tudy outside of the
dassrSoro. ' " ~~ '
Some teachers use instructional materials as their primary teaching re-
source. The materials provide the basis for the content of lessons, the bal-
ance of skills taught, and the kinds of language practice students take part
in. In other situations, materials serve primarily to supplement the teacher's
instruction. For learners, materials may provide the major source of contact
they have with the language apart from the teacher. Hence the role and uses
of materials in a language program are a significant aspect of language cur-
riculum development. In this chapter, we will examine the role, design, and
use of materials in language teaching, with particular focus on print mate-
rials and textbooks.

Authentic versus created materials

When plans regarding the role of materials in a language program are made,
an initial decision concerns die use of authentic materials versus created ma-
terials. Authentic materials refers to the use in teaching of texts, photo-
graphs, video selections, and other teaching resources that were not spe-
cially prepared for pedagogical purposes. Created materials refers to
textbooks and other specially developed instructional resources. Some have
argued that authentic materials are preferred over created materials, because
they contain authentic language and reflect real-world uses of language
compared with the contrived content of much created material. Allwright
(1981,173) thus describes a language course for foreign students at aBritish
university in which one of the guiding principles was "Use no materials,
published or unpublished, actually conceived or designed as materials for
language teaching." Such an imperative seems to reflect a very low opinion
of the abilities of materials writers to create pedagogically useful language
learning resources! Advantages claimed for authentic materials are (Phillips
and Shettlesworth 1978; Clarke 1989; Peacock 1997):
They have a positive effect on learner motivation because they are in-
trinsically more interesting and motivating than created materials. There
 The role and design of instructional materials 253

is a huge supply of interesting sources for language learning in the media

and on the Web and these relate closely to the interests of many language
learners.
They provide authentic cultural information about the target culture. Ma-
terials can be selected to illustrate many aspects of the target culture, in-
cluding culturally based practices and beliefs and both linguistic and non-
linguistic behavior.
They provide exposure to real language rather than the artificial texts
found in created materials that have been specially written to illustrate par-
ticular grammatical rules or discourse types.
They relate more closely to learners'needs and hence provide a link be-
tween the classroom and students' needs in the real world.
They support a more creative approach to teaching. In using authentic
materials as a source for teaching activities, teachers can develop their full
potential as teachers, developing activities and tasks that better match their
teaching styles and the learning styles of their students. However, critics of
the use of authentic materials point out: Created materials can also be
motivating for learners. Published materials are often designed to look like
teenage magazines and other kinds of real-world materials and may be just as
interesting and motivating for learners. Authentic materials often contain
difficult language and unneeded vocabulary items, which can be an
unnecessary distraction for teachers and learners. Since they have not been
simplified or written to any lexical or linguistic guidelines, they often
contain language that may be beyond the learners' abilities.
Created materials may be superior to authentic materials because they
are generally built around a graded syllabus and hence provide a system-
atic coverage of teaching items.
Using authentic materials is a burden for teachers. In order to develop
learning resources around authentic materials, teachers have to be prepared
to spend a considerable amount of time locating suitable sources for mate-
rials and developing activities and exercises to accompany the materials.
In many language programs, teachers thus use a mixture of created and
authentic materials because both have their advantages as well as limitations.
Furthermore, the distinction between autfientic and created materials is be-
coming increasingly blurred, because many published materials incorporate
authentic texts and other real-world sources. Clarke (1989,79) comments:
Such books [begin to] take on the aura, if not the actuality, of authenticity,
containing considerable amounts "of photographically reproduced 'realia', in the
form of newspaper articles, maps, diagrams, memo pads, menus, application
 The role and design of instructional materials 254

forms, advertisements, instructional leaflets and all the rest. Some books, indeed,
almost entirely consist of authentic material, including illustrations, extracted
from newspapers, or magazines.

Textbooks

Commercial textbooks together with ancillaries such as workbooks, cas-

settes, and teachers' guides are perhaps the commonest form of teaching
materials in language teaching. Haines (1996,27) characterizes differences
between past and current trends in English language textbooks.
Then _ Now
author and academic' centered market led
uncertain global market specific fragmented markets
European focus Pacific Rim/Latin American focus
sell what is published international or local culture
culture and methodology of origin indigenous learning situations
English for its own sake English for specific purposes
UK/US publisher dominance rise in local publishing
native speaker expertise normative speaker competence
culturally insensitive culturally sensitive
low risk/competition high risk/competition
little design design rich
artificial texts and tasks authenticity
single-volume- titles multicomponent/multimedia
Textbooks are used in different ways in language programs. For example, a
reading textbook might be the basis for a course on reading skills, provid-
ing both a set of reading texts and exercises for skills practice. A writing "
textbook might provide model compositions and a Ustpf topics for students to
write about. A grammar textbook might serve as a reference book and
provide examples as well as exercises to develop grammatical knowledge.
A speaking text might provide passages for students to read and discuss. A
listening text together with audiocassettes or CDs might serve as the pri-
mary listening input in a listening course.
The use of commercial textbooks in teaching has both advantages and
disadvantages, depending on how they are used and the contexts for their
use. Among the principal advantages are:
They provide structure and a syllabus for a program. Without textbooks
a program may have no central core and learners may not receive a syllabus
that has been systematically planned and developed.
 The role and design of instructional materials 255

They help standardize instruction. The use of a textbook in a program

can ensure that the students in different classes receive similar content and
therefore can be tested in the same way.
They maintain quality. If a well-developed textbook 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. Textbooks are often ac-
companied by workbooks, CDs and cassettes, videos, CD-ROMs, and com-
prehensive teaching guides, providing a rich and varied resource for teach-
ers and learners.
They are efficient. They save teachers' time, enabling teachers to devote
time to teaching rather than materials production.
They can provide 'effective language models and input. Textbooks 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
textbook together with the teacher's manual can serve as a medium of ini-
tial teacher training.
They are visually appealing. Commercial textbooks usually have high
standards of design and production and hence are appealing to learners and
teachers.
As with all examples of created materials, however, there are also po-
tential negative effects of commercial textbooks. For example:
They may contain inauthentic language. Textbooks sometimes present
inauthentic language because texts, dialogues, 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. Textbooks often present an idealized view of
the world or fail to~represent real issues. In order to make textbooks ac-
ceptable in many different contexts, controversial topics are avoided and in-
stead an idealized white middle-class view of the world is portrayed as the
norm.
They may not reflect students' needs. Because textbooks are often writ-
ten for global markets, they may not reflect the interests and needs of stu-
dents and hence may require adaptation.
They can deskill teachers. If teachers use textbooks as the primary source
of their teaching, leaving the textbook and teacher's manual to make the ma-
jor instructional decisions for them, the teacher's role can become reduced
to that of a technician whose primary function is to present materials pre-
pared by others.
 The role and design of instructional materials 256

They are expensive. Commercial textbooks represent a financial burden

for students in many parts of the world.
In making decisions about the role of commercial textbooks in a pro-
gram, the impact of textbooks on the program, on teachers, and on learners
has to be carefully assessed.

Evaluating textbooks

"With such an array of commercial textbooks and other kinds of instructional

materials to choose from, teachers and others responsible for choosing ma-
terials need to be able to make informed judgments about textbooks and
teaching materials. Evaluation, however, can only be done by considering
something in relation to its purpose. A book may be ideal in one situation
because it matches the needs of that situation perfectly. It has just the right
amount of material for the program, it is easy to teach, it can be used with
little preparation by inexperienced teachers, and it has an equal coverage of
grammar and the four' skills. The same book in a different situation, how-
ever, may turn out to be quite unsuitable. It contains too little material, it is
not sufficiently challenging for teacher and students, and has elements in it
(such as a grammar syllabus) that are not needed in the program. Before one
can evaluate a textbook, therefore, information is needed on the following
issues;

The role of the textbook in the program

' Is there a well-developed curriculum that describes the objectives syl-
labus and content of the program or will this be determined by the text-
book? '
• Will the book or textbook series provide the core of the program, or is it
one of several different books that will be used?
• Will it be used with small classes or large ones? """
• Will learners be expected to buy a workbook as well or should the text-
book provide all the practice students need?

The teachers in the program

• How experienced are the teachers in the program and what is their level
of training?
• Are they native speakers of English? If not, how well do they speak En-
glish?
• Do teachers tend to follow the textbook closely or do they use the book
simply as a resource?
 The role and design of instructional materials 257

* Do teachers play a part in selecting the books they teach from?

* Are teachers free to adapt and supplement the book?

The learners in the program

* Is each student required to buy a book?
* What do learners typically expect in a textbook?
* Will they use the book in class and at home?
* How will they use the book in class? Is it the primary source of classroom
activities?
* How much are they prepared to pay for a book?

It is also necessary to realize that no commercial textbook will ever be a perfect

fit for a language-program. Two factors are involved in the development of
commercial textbooks: those representing the interests of the author, and those
representing the interests of the publisher (Byrd 1995; Werner, et al. 1995). The
author is generally concerned to produce a text that teachers will find innovative,
creative, relevant to their learners' needs, and that they will enjoy teaching from.
The author is generally hopeful that the book will be successful and make a
financial profit because a large investment of the author's personal time and effort
is involved. The publisher is primarily motivated by financial success. However,
in order to achieve a profit publishers generally recognize that a book must have
qualities of excellence that will distinguish it from its competitors. Anew describes
the compromises authors and publishers often have to make in order to achieve
their sometimes conflicting goals:
A truly innovative approach may be unfamiliar with teachers and so meet with
their resistance: it may be threatening to the people responsible for text adoptions,
and it may create public controversy. A publisher's success is based on the ability
to satisfy the majority of the public; thus, the preference to aim for the
mainstream, to sterilize situations and vocabulary and arouse as little controversy
as possible. These products of compromise may be as boring as the innovative
materials are threatening. Falling too close to either end of the spectrum can have a
catastrophic impact on a text's marketability. (Ariew 1982, 12)

In an attempt to make an author's manuscript usable in as large a market as

possible, the publisher often has to change it substantially. Some of these changes
are necessitated by the fact that teachers with very different levels of experience,
training, and teaching skill might be using the book. Exercises should have
explicit goals, procedures for using activities should be obvious and
uncomplicated, and teachers should not have to spend much time working out
how to use the material. In addition, content that would
 The role and design of instructional materials 258

not be welcome in particular markets may have to be removed. As a conse-

quence, much of the "flavor" and creativity of the author's original manu-
script may disappear.
At the same time, the publisher will try to satisfy teachers* expectations
as to what a textbook at a certain level should contain. For example, if an
introductory ESL textbook does not include the present continuous in the
first level of the book, teachers may feel that it is defective and not wish to
use it. Anew describes the process of making the textbook usable in the
widest possible market as "homogenization."
Many publishers systematically delete all (or all but traditional consideration, of)
topics believed to be controversial or taboo. This tendency has several significant
consequences. Besides making texts look alike, these biases affect the treatment
of target cultures and may result in inaccurate descriptions or characterizations.
The text becomes an ethnocentric clone of the most conservative expression of
our own culture. (Anew 1982,12-13)

Criteria for textbook evaluation

Cunningsworth (1995) proposes four criteria for evaluating textbooks, par-
ticularly course books:
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) that learners will make
of the language. Textbooks should be chosen that will help equip stu-
dents to use language effectively for their own purposes.
3. They should take account of students' needs as learners and should fa-
cilitate their learning processes, without dogmatically imposing a rigid
"method."
4. They should have a clear role as a support for learning. Like teachers,
they mediate between the target language and the learner. " '-'
Cunnings worth (1995) presents a checklist for textbook evaluation and se-
lection (see Appendix 2) organized under the following categories:
• aims and approaches
• design and organization
• language content
• skills
• topic
• methodology
 The role and design of instructional materials 259

• teachers' books
• practical considerations
Dudley-Evans and St John (1998,173) suggest that operating with so many
categories is often not very practical and it is easier to use two or three key
criteria in the first instance and then apply others if or when needed. They
propose the following questions to ask when selecting ESP materials:
1. Will the materials stimulate and motivate?
2. To what extent does the material match the stated learning objectives and
your learning objectives? (It is rare for a single set of published material
to match the exact learning needs of any one ESP learner group, and ac-
tivities do not always meet the stated objectives.)
3. To what extent will the materials support the learning process?
The type of evaluation a textbook receives will also reflect the concerns
of the evaluator. One teacher may look at a book in terms of its usability.
The teacher is primarily interested in whether the book works easily in her
class, can be used flexibly, and could easily be adapted. Anomer teacher
may look at a book much more critically in terms of its theoretical orienta-
tion and approach. If it is a book that teaches conversation skills, what the-
ory of conversation is it based on? What kind of syllabus is it based on and
what is the validity of the activities it makes use of? Two teachers evaluat-
ing a writing text may likewise look at it from very different perspectives.
One may subscribe to a process-oriented view of writing and look for ac-
tivities that practice such processes as generating ideas, drafting, reviewing,
revising, and editing. Another may be more concerned to see that adequate
treatment is given to different conventions for organizing different kinds of
texts, such as narrative writing, expository writing, and descriptive writing.
In any language program, therefore, it is unlikely that a published checklist
can be used without_adaptation as a basis for evaluating and choosing text-
books. Based on the factors in each situation, questions specific to that sit-
uation need to be generated around the main issues involved in textbook
evaluation and selection:
• program factors - questions relating to concerns of the program
• teacher factors - questions relating to teacher concerns
• learner factors - questions relating to learner concerns
• content factors - questions relating to die content and organization of me
material in the book
• pedagogical factors - questions relating to the principles underlying the
materials and the pedagogical design of the materials, including choice
of activities and exercise types
 The role and design of instructional materials 260

Adapting textbooks

Most teachers are not creators of teaching materials but providers of good
materials. Dudley-Evans and St. John (1998, 173) suggest that a good
provider of materials will be able to:
1. select appropriately from what is available
2. be creative with what is available
3. modify activities to suit learners'needs
4. supplement by providing extra activities (and extra input)
Commercial textbooks can seldom be used witfiout some form of adap-
tation to make them more suitable for the particular context in which they
will be used. This adaptation may take a variety of forms.
Modifying content. Content may need to be changed because it does not
suit the target learners, perhaps because of factors related to the learners'
age, gender, social class, occupation, religion or cultural background.
Adding or deleting content. The book may contain too much or too little
for the program. Whole units may have to be dropped, or perhaps sections
of units throughout the book omitted. For example, a course may focus pri-
marily on listening and speaking skills and hence writing activities in the
book will be omitted.
Reorganizing content. A teacher may decide to reorganize the syllabus
of the book, and arrange the units in what she considers a more suitable or-
der. Or within a unit the teacher may decide not to follow the sequence of
activities in the unit but to reorder them for a particular reason.
Addressing omissions. The text may omit items that the teacher feels are
important. For example a teacher may add vocabulary activities or grammar
activities to a unit.
Modifying tasks. Exercises and activities may need to be changed to give
them an additional focus. For example, a listening activity may focus only
on listening for information, so it is adapted so that students listen a second
or third time for a different purpose. Or an activity may be extended to pro-
vide opportunities for more personalized practice.
Extending tasks. Exercises may contain insufficient practice and addi-
tional practice tasks may need to be added.
The ability to be able to adapt commercial textbooks in these ways is an
essential skill for teachers to develop. Through the process of adaptation the
teacher personalizes the text, making it a better teaching resource, and in-
dividualizes it for a particular group of learners. Normally this process takes
place gradually as the teacher becomes more familiar with the book, be-
cause the dimensions of the text that need adaptation may not be apparent
 The role and design of instructional materials 261

until the book is tried out in the classroom. When a number of teachers in a
program are teaching from the same textbook, it is useful to build in op-
portunities for teachers to share information about the forms of adaptation
they are making.

Preparing materials for a program

In cases where institutionally developed materials are being considered for

a language program, both the advantages and the disadvantages of setting
up a materials development project need to be carefully considered at the
outset

Advantages
Advantages of building a materials development component into a program
include:
Relevance: Materials can be produced that are directly relevant to_ stu-
dents' and institutional needs and that reflect local content, issues, and con-
cerns.
Develop expertise: Developing materials can help develop expertise
among staff, giving them a greater understanding of the characteristics of
effective materials.
Reputation: Institutionally developed materials may enhance the reputa-
tion of the institution by demonstrating its commitment to providing mate-
rials developed specifically for its students. '
Flexibility: Materials produced within the institution can be revised or
adapted as needed, giving them greater flexibility than a commercial course
book. 1.

Disadvantages
Disadvantages also need to be considered before embarking on materials
development.
Cost: Quality materials take time to produce and adequate staff time as
well as resources need to be allocated to such a project
Quality: Teacher-made materials will not normally have the same stan-
dard of design and production as commercial materials and hence may not
present the same image as commercial materials.
Training: To prepare teachers for materials writing projects, adequate
training should be provided. Materials writing is a specialized skill and po-
 The role and design of instructional materials 262

tential materials writers need the opportunity to develop the necessary

skills. Workshops can be developed for this purpose, as well as the creation
of writing teams that contain a balance of relevant expertise.

' The nature of materials development

It is also important to understand the nature of materials development and
the processes that are typically involved if quality materials are to be cre-
ated. Dudley-Evans and St. John (1998,173) observe that "only a small pro-
portion of good teachers are also good designers of course materials." Many
teachers underestimate how commercial teaching materials are developed
and the developmental processes that are normally involved. Preparing ef-
fective teaching materials is similar to the processes -involved in planning
and teaching a lesson. The goal is to create materials that can serve as re-
sources for effective learning. The writer starts with a learning goal in mind
and then seeks to create a set of activities that enable that goal to. be reached.
Shulman's (1987, 15) description of the central acts of teaching also apply
to the processes of materials development He sees it as a process of trans-
formation:
The key to understanding the knowledge base of teaching lies at the intersection of
content and pedagogy, in the capacity of a teacher to transform the content
knowledge he or she possesses into forms that are pedagogically powerful and yet
adaptive to the variations in ability and background presented by students.
Shulman goes on to describe the transformation phase of this process as
consisting of:'
• preparation: critical interpretation and analysis of texts, structuring and
segmentation, development of a currjcular repertoire, and clarification of
purposes
• representation: use of a representational repertoire- that includes analo-
gies, metaphors, examples, demonstrations, explanations, and so forth
• selection: choice from among an instructional repertoire that includes
modes of teaching, organizing, managing, and arranging
■ adapting and tailoring to student characteristics: consideration of con-
ceptions, preconceptions, misconceptions, and difficulties; language, cul-
ture, and motivations; and social class, gender, age, ability, aptitude, in-
terests, self-concepts, attention
In both materials development and classroom teaching the goal is to develop
a sequence of activities that leads teachers and learners through a learning
route that is at an appropriate level of difficulty, is engaging, that provides
 The role and design of instructional materials 263

both motivating and useful practice. Good materials do many of the things
that a teacher would normally do as part of his or her teaching. They should:
• arouse the learners' interest
• remind them of earlier learning
• tell them what they will be learning next
• explain new learning content to them
• relate these ideas to learners' previous learning
• get learners to think about new content
• help them get feedback on their learning
• encourage them to practice
• make sure they know what they are supposed to be doing
• enable them to check their progress
• help them to do better
(Rowntree 1997, 92)
Tomlinson (1998) suggests that good language teaching materials have the
following characteristics:
• Materials should achieve impact
• Materials should help learners feel at ease.
• Materials should help learners to develop confidence.
• What is being taught should be perceived by learners as relevant and use-
ful.
• Materials should require and facilitate learner self-investment.
• Learners must be ready to acquire the points being taught.
• Materials should expose the learners to language in authentic use.
• The learners' attention should be drawn to linguistic features of the input
- Materials should provide the learners with opportunities to use the target
language to achieve communicative purposes.
• Materials should take into account that the positive effects of instruction
are usually delayed.
• Materials should take into account that learners have different learning
styles.
• Materials should take into account that learners differ in affective atti-
tudes.
• Materials should permit a silent period at the beginning of instruction.
• Materials should maximize learning potential by encouraging intellec-
tual, aesthetic, and emotional involvement that stimulates both right and
left brain activities.
• Materials should not rely too much on controlled practice.
• Materials should provide opportunities for outcome feedback.
 The role and design of instructional materials 264

This may seem a. somewhat cumbersome list to apply in actual practice. Any
developer of teaching materials will have to develop his or her own set of
working principles that can be referred to in planning and assessing mate-
rials as they are written. For example, I used the following checklist in de-
veloping a set of low-level speaking materials. The list identifies the quali-
ties each unit in the materials should reflect:
• Gives learners something they can take away from the lesson
• Teaches something learners feel they can use
• Gives learners a sense of achievement
• Practices learning items in an interesting and novel way
• Provides a pleasurable learning experience
• Provides opportunities for success
• Provides opportunities for individual practice
• Provides opportunities for personalization
• Provides opportunities for self-assessment of learning
Each draft of the materials was then examined to assess the extent to which '
these principles were reflected. Achieving these goals through the design of *
instructional materials depends on the art, experience, skills, and craft of the
materials developer.

Decisions in materials design

In Chapters 5 and 6, the following processes of program design and mate-
rials design were discussed;
• developing aims
• developing objectives
• developing a syllabus
• organizing the course into units
• developing a structure for units
• sequencing units
When the process of writing begins, further decisions need to be made.
These concern:
• choosing input and sources
• selecting exercise types

CHOOSING INPUT AND SOURCES

No matter what type of materials are being prepared decisions concerning

input are involved. Input refers to anything that initiates the learning process
 The role and design of instructional materials 265

and that students respond to in some way in using the materials. The fol-
lowing are examples of input questions in the design of different kinds of
materials:
Grammar materials: Will the new grammar items be presented through
the medium of texts, conversational extracts, or a corpus of utterances? How
will tiiese be selected?
Listening materials: Will the source of listenings be aumentic recordings
taken from real-world sources, scripted materials on different topics, or a
mixture of both?
Reading materials: What kinds of texts will students read (such as mag-
azine articles, newspaper articles, extracts from books), and how will these
be chosen?
Writing materials: Will students be shown examples of different types of
compositions? Will these be examples of real texts or will they be specially
written? Will examples of student writing also be included? If so, how will -
these be chosen? For example, Raimes (1988) sees the primary texts in a
writing course as:
the students' texts: that is, the writing students do the teacher's texts: that
is, the comments teachers write on their papers other authentic texts:
supplementary readings for writing stimulus and close analysis
Speaking materials: What will the source of speaking activities be? Will
dialogues, recordings, texts, topics, pictures, situations, and so on be used,
and how will these be selected?
Often writers start with resources taken from magazines, books, the In-
ternet, television, or radio. (A large amount of material is available on the
World Wide Web, including articles, photographs, audio and video materi-
als, and much of it can be used free.) It is important, however, to realize that
many of the sources for teaching materials that exist in the real world have
been created by someone and that copyright permission may be required in
order to use it as a source of teaching materials in an institution or textbook,
even if they are adapted or modified in some way. It is normally not possi-
ble, for example, to use the following without permission from the copy-
right holder
■ segments taken from commercially broadcast materials (radio, video, mu-
sical recordings) • magazine articles, newspaper articles, chapters from
books
However, if materials are being used for legitimate educational purposes
and not being sold to make a profit it is often possible to obtain permission
 The role and design of instructional materials 266

without payment of a fee. A letter is written to the copyright holder (such

as a publisher) outlining the wish to use die materials and describing how
they will be used and in what quantities. (Rowntree, 1997)

SELECTING EXERCISE TYPES

One of me most difficult decisions in writing is deciding on the types of ex-
ercises that will be used. The issue is how to create exercises dial engage
learners in the use of skills and processes related to specific language teach-
ing objectives. A review of the exercise types used in current commercial
textbooks is a good starting point. In Richards (1990), for example, exercise
types related to different types of listening skills are presented as follows:

Exercises that develop "top-down" listening

' Listen to part of a conversation and infer the topic of a conversation.
• Look at pictures and then listen to conversations about the pictures and
• match them with the pictures.
- Listen to conversations and identify the setting.
• Read a list of key points to be covered in a talk and then number them in
sequence while listening to the talk.
- Read information about a topic, then listen to a talk on the topic and check
whether the information was mentioned or not.
• Read one side of a telephone conversation and guess the speaker's re-
sponses: then listen to me conversation.
• Look at pictures of people speaking and guess what tiiey might be saying
or doing; then listen to their actual conversations.
• Complete a story, then listen to how the story really ended,
• Guess what news headlines might refer to, then listen to news broadcasts
about the events referred to.

Exercises that involve listening for interactional purp~oses

• Distinguish between conversations that have an interactional and a trans-
actional purpose.
• Listen to conversations and select suitable polite comments and other
phatic responses.
• Listen to utterances containing complements or praise and choose suit-
able responses.
• Listen to conversations containing small talk and indicate when the
speaker is preparing to introduce a real topic.
• Listen to conversations and rate them according to the degree of famil-
iarity of the speakers.
 The role and design of instructional materials 267

• Listen to conversations and check whether the speaker is issuing a real in

vitation or using a pseudoinvitation to close a conversation. ■
Grellet (1981) contains an extensive taxonomy of exercises for teaching
reading skills. Under the category "understanding meaning," she illustrates
exercises of the following types:
Involving a nonlinguistic response to the text
• ordering a sequence of pictures
• comparing texts and pictures
• matching
• using illustrations
• completing a document
• mapping it out
• using the information in a text
• jigsaw reading

Involving a linguistic response to the text

• reorganizing the information: reordering events
• reorganizing the information: using grids
• comparing several texts
• completing a document
• question types
• study skills: summarizing
• study skills: note taking
Crandall (1995) gives further useful suggestions for the design of exer-
cises in reading materials (see Appendix 1). Candlin (1981) contains an ex-
ercise typology for the design of communicative exercises. Reviewing pub-
lished materials for information of this kind is a good way to get a sense of
the range of possible exercise types that can be used in materials.

Managing a materials writing project

Materials wridng projects are of different scope and dimensions. Some may
be the responsibility of an individual teacher; others may be assigned to a
team of writers. The management of a team-based writing project involves
addressing the following issues:
Selecting the project team: How many people will take part in the proj-
ect and what will their roles and responsibilities be? In a small in~house
project there may be two or three writers sharing responsibilities for all as-
 The role and design of instructional materials 268

pects of the project. In a large-scale project, however, the following people

might be involved:
• project director: responsible for overall management of the project, for
setting goals and ensuring that targets are met, and for liaising with all
parties involved
• writers: those responsible for writing all components of the course
• media specialist: a person who can help with such aspects as use of au-
diovisual materials and computer software
• editor: a person who reviews everything the writers have produced and
prepares the final version of the materials for publication or duplication
• illustrator: someone responsible for preparing and selecting art and il-
lustrations
• designer: the person who is responsible for the layout, type style, graph-
ics, and the overall format of the materials
Planning the number of stages involved: A materials project always goes
through several different stages of development. Typical stages might in-
clude:
• first draft
• comments on first draft
• second draft
• further comments
• tryout of the materials
• final revisions of materials
These processes are not necessarily linear. Carey and Briggs (1977, 286)
comment: "Many activities occur simultaneously, and one often works one
part of a product through a phase of design and then cycles back and begins
the same phase again with another part of the product"
Identifying reviewers: A crucial source of input to the developmental
process is critical feedback on materials as tiiey are written. A key person
is someone who can cast a critical eye over the materials as they are drafted
and provide constructive feedback on them. People involved in a materials
writing project should be open to feedback and suggestions and be prepared
to undertake extensive revisions of materials if necessary. Things that seem
perfectly obvious to the writer may not strike another person in the same
way. In commercial projects, this role is undertaken by editors and review-
ers. In institutional projects, this responsibility needs to be assigned to a
member of the project team. It is also useful to involve the participation of
classroom teachers in the process to review materials as they are written.
Focus groups can also be set up consisting of five or six experienced teach-
 The role and design of instructional materials 269

ers who meet to discuss materials in progress and give suggestions for im-
proving them.
Planning the writing schedule: A writing schedule can now be developed
with dates assigned for the different stages in the process. Even though as-
pects of the writing process are often cyclical, as noted, for practical plan-
ning purposes the different stages in the writing process need to be repre-
sented within a tentative time frame.
Piloting the materials: Piloting involves trying out materials with a rep-
resentative group of learners and teachers before they are made available
for wider use in order to identify problems or faults in them that can be iden-
tified before they are used more widely. Piloting seeks to find answers to
question" such as these:
• Are the materials comprehensible and the instructions clear?
• Do they contain any editorial or content errors?
• Is the pacing of the materials appropriate?
• Do the materials do what they are supposed to do? -
Do they address learners' needs?
• Is there sufficient quantity of practice material?
• Are the materials sufficientiy interesting and engaging?
Davison (1998,184) comments:
In general, piloting provides a feel for whether the material actually "works" or not;
whether the aims of the material are fulfilled; whether it is appropriate in level,
content, and approach; whether it relates well to teachers' expectations . and stages
of development, and whether it successfully promotes learning.
The intention is to have a group of teachers and students work through the
materials in conditions as close as possible to those under which the final
version of the materials will be used. However, it is often not possible to pilot
materials in a near-final form, because art and design may await final-
ization of the manuscript. A practical solution is to have sections of the ma-:
terials piloted by different teachers rather than have a few teachers try out
all of the materials. This can speed up the piloting process and enable more
teachers to participate. Following the piloting, both students and teachers
complete a review sheet or questionnaire and may also be interviewed to
find out what they think about the materials. Any problems identified can ■
be addressed at this stage. In some cases, this may involve a substantial
rewriting of the materials.
Design and production: Design issues refer to the layout of text and art
on each page. An effective design is a major factor in the reception and us-
ability of materials. Will art and illustrations be added to the manuscript and
 The role and design of instructional materials 270

who will be responsible for these? Production issues relate to the printing
of the materials. "Will the materials be printed from the writers' files, reset, •
photocopied, laser printed, or sent to a commercial printer?
An example of how some of these issues were addressed in a materials
development project is given in Appendix 3.

Monitoring the use of materials

No matter what form of materials teachers make use of, whether they teach
from textbooks, institutional materials, or teacher-prepared materials, the
materials represent plans for teaching. They do not represent the process of
teaching itself. As teachers use materials they adapt and transform them to
suit the needs of particular groups of learners and their own teaching styles.
These processes of transformation are at the heart of teaching and enable
good teachers to create effective lessons out of the resources they make use
of. It is useful, therefore, to collect information on how teachers use course
books and other teaching materials in their teaching. The information col-
lected can serve die following purposes:
• to document effective ways of using materials
• to provide feedback on how materials work
• to keep a record of additions, deletions, and supplementary materials
teachers may have used with the materials
• to assist other teachers in using the materials
Monitoring may take the following forms:
• Observation: classroom visits to see how teachers use materials and to
find out how materials influence the quality of teaching and interaction
that occurs in a lesson
• Feedback sessions: group meetings in which teachers discuss their expe-
rience with materials
• Written reports: the use of reflection sheets or other forms of written feed-
back in which teachers make brief notes about what worked well and what
did not work well, or give suggestions on using the materials
• Reviews: written reviews by a teacher or group of teachers on their expe-
riences with a set of materials and what they liked or disliked about them
• Students' reviews: comments from students on their experience with the
materials
Having considered the different processes and elements that constitute
the development and implementation of a language curriculum and the
 The role and design of instructional materials 271

dynamics of the curriculum in action, we can now consider the curriculum

as a whole and how it can be monitored, reviewed, and evaluated. This is
die focus of the final chapter.

Discussion questions and activities

1. What roles do instructional materials play in your language program or

one you are familiar with? What mechanisms are in place for the fol
lowing procedures?
selecting materials
adapting materials.
monitoring teachers' use of materials
developing original materials
2. Have you any experience with using authentic materials in teaching?
What problems do they pose for teachers? Do you think they are prefer
able to created materials?
3- What do you think is an appropriate role for commercial materials in a
language program? How can mechanisms be set in place to ensure that
materials facilitate creative teaching rather than dominate teachers' de-
cision making?
4. Examine a commercial textbook and its suitability1 for a specific teaching
context. What criteria would you use to evaluate it? In what way do you
think the book would need to be adapted to suit the needs of the program?
5. Use the checklist in Appendix 2 to evaluate a course book. How useful
is the checklist for this purpose?
6. Take a chapter from a commercial textbook and discuss how you would
adapt it to match your teaching style or the needs of a particular group
oflearners.
7. Choose some authentic materials (e.g., a magazine article, a section of a
TV schedule) and use them to plan teaching materials for a specific
teaching context you are familiar with. Decide what the goals of the ma-
terials will be and what exercise types you will use with the materials.
8. Examine a set of teaching materials for a specific skill area (e.g., read-
ing, speaking, listening). What exercise types are used in the materials?
HQW appropriate axe these exercise types? What other exercise types
could have been used in die materials?
9. Observe a teacher using teaching materials or a textbook and document
how the teacher uses t±ie materials. In what ways does the teacher adapt
and extend the materials?
 The role and design of instructional materials 272

Appendix 1 Guidelines for developing reading

activities (from Crandall, 1995)*

General guidelines for reading activities

In developing reading materials, it is helpful to consider the following gen-

eral guidelines. The reading text should:

1. Encourage appropriate use of both top-down and bottom-up strategies.

2. Offer opportunities for developing speed/fluency as well as deliberate-
ness/accuracy.
3. Include different text types, rhetorical genres, and topics.
4. Incorporate different types of reading tasks with different purposes (read-
ing to learn, reading to do, reading to evaluate, reading for enjoyment).
5. Offer sufficient interaction with a topic or text to develop content and re-
lated vocabulary knowledge.
6. Encourage students to examine their own reading strategies and try out
different strategies for dealing with different types of texts or for read-
ing for different purposes.
7. Introduce students to different types of directions encountered in texts
and tests.
8. Assist in identifying and building culturally variable information needed
for text interpretation, while treating positively the students' primary lan-
guage and culture.

Prereading activities
1. Discussion questions and prewriting activities that help relate the read-
ing to a student's prior experiences, activating and expanding the stu-
dent's content and formal schemata, building vocabulary, and helping to
identify cultural influences that may affect reading comprehension or in-
terpretation. Brainstonning, semantic mapping, and free writing might
all be used.
2. Prediction activities that draw attention to the organization of the text
and to identification of potential tfiemes and directions the author may
take.
3. Skimming activities that provide students with a general idea of the text
themes and the organization and development of ideas.

* From Material Writer's Guide, Isr edition, by P. Byrd ©1995. Reprinted with
permission of Heinle & Heinle, an imprint of the Wadsworth Group, a division of
Thomson Learning. Fax SOQ 730-2215.
 The role and design of instructional materials 273

4. Questions and other activities that focus on graphic cues such as titles,
chapter headings, indentations, and white space, as well as any visuals
and other text displays that highlight the organization and relative im-
portance of various themes in the text
5. Scanning activities that highlight key (including technical) vocabulary,
as well as names, dates, places, and other important facts.
6. Questions that can serve to focus a student's attention during reading as
well as engage a student sufficiently to motivate doing the reading.

Activities for use during reading

1. Filling-out a graphic while reading: completing a Venn diagram (for
comparisons), a flow chart (for processes), a table (for classifications or
definitions), or other organizers that reflect the logical relations between
ideas in the text and highlight for the student what is important enough to
be noted and remembered (Crandal 1993). A variety of forms can also be
used in this manner.
2. Guided or controlled writing assignments or discussion questions that
encourage students to react to and reflect upon what they are reading at
key stages in the process and to note confusion or questions they hope
to have answered before the end of the reading.
3. Underlining, highlighting, or note-taking activities that help students de-
velop more effective study skills.
4. Vocabulary building activities that help students find clues for meaning
within the text.
5. Periodic paraphrasing and summarizing activities, which encourage stu-
dents to see how an idea is developed and a text is structured, to drawin-
ferences, and to effectively tie new ideas to prior topics.
6. Timed activities that encourage rapid reading, perhaps combined with
questions that require skimming for general answers or scanning for key
information.

Postreading activities
1. Vocabulary activities, helping students to expand their vocabulary by ap-
plying affixes and roots drawn from the key vocabulary in the reading,
using charts and tables to illustrate the relationships between words.
2. Questions to encourage critical analysis and evaluation of the reading.
3. Activities that help students to summarize the text, beginning with par-
tially completed summaries.
4. Cloze activities and sentence strip activities for developing vocabulary,
grammar, and discourse knowledge.
 The role and design of instructional materials 274

5. Journal writing, either monologic or dialogic, to encourage students to

reflect on, synthesize, or evaluate what they have read.
6. Application activities, which encourage students to apply what they have
read to some task or activity.

Appendix 2 Checklist for evaluation and selection of

course books (from Cunningsworth 1995)

Aims and approaches

Q Do the aims of the course book correspond closely with the aims of the
teaching programme and with the needs of the learners?
Q Is the course book suited to the learning/teaching situation?
Q How comprehensive is the course book? Does it cover most or all of
what is needed? Is it a good resource for students and teachers?
Q Is the course book flexible? Does it allow different teaching and learn-
ing styles?

Design and organization

Q What components make up the total course package (e.g., students'
books, teachers' books, workbooks, cassettes)?
Q How is the content organized (e.g., according to structures, functions,
topics, skills, etc.)?
Q How is the content sequenced (e.g., on the basis of complexity, "learn-
ability," usefulness, etc.)?
Q Is the grading and progression suitable for the learners? Does it allow
them to complete the work needed to meet any external syllabus re-
quirements?
Q Are there reference sections for grammar, etc.? Is some of the material
suitable for individual study?
Q Is it easy to find your way around the course book? Is the layout clear?

Language content
Q Does the course book cover the main grammar items appropriate to each
level, taking learners' needs into account? Q Is material for
vocabulary teaching adequate in terms of quantity and
range of vocabulary, emphasis placed on vocabulary development,
strategies for individual learning? Q Does the course book include
material for pronunciation work? If so, what
is covered: individual sounds, word stress, sentence, stress, intonation?
 The role and design of instructional materials 275

Q Does the course book deal with the structuring and conventions of lan-
guage use above sentence level, for example, how to take part in con-
versations, how to structure a piece of extended writing, how to iden-
tify the main points in a reading passage? (More relevant at intermediate
and advanced levels.)
Q Are style and appropriacy dealt with? If so, is language style matched
to social situation?

Skills
□ Are all four skills adequately covered, bearing in mind your course aims
and syllabus requirements?
Q Is there material for integrated skills work?
Q Are reading passages and associated activities suitable for your stu-
dents' levels, interests, etc.? Is there sufficient reading material?
Q Is listening material well recorded, as authentic as possible, accompa-
nied by background information, questions, and activities which help
comprehension?
Q Is material for spoken English (dialogues, roleplays, etc.) well designed
to equip learners for real-life interactions?
Q Are writing activities suitable in terms of amount of guidance/control,
degree of accuracy, organization of longer pieces of writing (e.g., para-
graphing) and use of appropriate styles?

Topic
Q Is there sufficient material of genuine interest to learners?
Q Is there enough variety and range of topic?
Q Will the topics help expand students' awareness and enrich their expe-
rience?
Q Are the topics sophisticated enough in content, yet within the learners'
language level?
Q Will your students be able to relate to the social and cultural contexts
presented in the course book?
Q Are women portrayed and represented equally with men?
Q Are other groups represented, with reference to ethnic origin, occupa-
tion, disability, etc.?

Methodology
Q What approach/approaches to language learning are taken by the course
book? Is this appropriate to the learning/teaching situation? Q What
level of active learner involvement can be expected? Does this
match your students' learning styles and expectations?
276 Chapters The role and design of instructional materials 276

Q What techniques are used for presenting/practising new language

items? Are they suitable for your learners? Q How are the different
skills taught? Q How are communicative abilities developed? Q Does
the material include any advice/help to students on study skills and
learning strategies? Q Are students expected to take a degree of
responsibility for their own
learning (e.g., by setting their own individual learning targets)?
Teachers' books
Q Is there adequate guidance for the teachers who will be using the course
book and its supporting materials? Q Are the teachers'
books comprehensive and supportive?
□ Do they adequately cover teaching techniques, language items such as
grammar rules and culture-specific information?
□ Do the writers set out and justify the basic premises and principles un-
derlying the material?
□ Are keys to exercises given?
Practical considerations
□ What does the whole package cost? Does this represent good value for
money?
Q Are the books strong and long-lasting? Are they attractive in appear-
ance?
Q Are they easy to obtain? Can further supplies be obtained at short notice?
Q Do any parts of the package require particular equipment, such as a lan-
guage laboratory, listening centre, or video player? If so, do you have
the equipment available for use and is it reliable?
 The role and design of instructional materials 277

Appendix 3 Case study of materials development project

(adapted from Richards 1995)

Background
Target: To write a two-level conversation course intended primarily for
Japan, Korea, and Taiwan, to be used as a text to support conversation
classes in universities, junior colleges, and private language schools.

Researching the need for a new series

In planning the course it was necessary to determine what potential users of
the course might be looking for. Information was obtained from the fol-
lowing sources:
1. The project editor's interviews with classroom teachers in Japan, Tai-
wan, and Korea.
2. The publisher's marketing representatives (some twenty people) who are
responsible for selling the publisher's existing books and who would
also be responsible for sales of the new series. The marketing staff were
a key source of information since they are in daily contact with schools
and teachers. They know which courses are popular and why, and what
kinds of materials teachers are looking for.
3. Consultants. A group of consultants was identified to provide input to
the project These were experienced teachers in the kinds of institutions
where the course would likely be used.
4. Students. Through the consultants, information was also, sought from
students on their views on textbooks and on the materials they were
studying from.

Key features of the course

The goal of gathering information from consultants and the publisher's
marketing representatives was to develop a preliminary profile of the proj-
ect, which produced the following specifications of the project:
 278 Chapter 8 The role and design of instructional materials 278

PROJECT SPECIFICATIONS

Market: 50% Universities

30% Private language schools and vocational colleges
20% Junior colleges 2
Levels: 96 pp. 4
Extent: 8.5x11 false
Colors: beginner
Trim: intermediate
Starting point: text CDs
Ending point: audiocassettes
Components: placement and achievement tests; unit quizzes;
video (tentative)
learner-centered syllabus based on student
questionnaires; student questionnaires within the
text; student-centered activities with extensive
Distinguishing cognitive skill development; conversation
features: management strategies
task-based; extensive graphic organizers; easy to use
mix of illustrations and photos; sophisticated look for
universities
Other features: 75% speaking; 25% listening
Art: topical
4 pp.; two 2-pp. lessons
■2 2 20
Balance of skills:
Syllabus: Length 50 minutes
of units: Activities 80% foreign with varied levels of training *
per page: Yes
Listenings per unit:
Number of units:
time per lesson:
Teacher profile: ■
Piloting:

It was decided to involve students in the development of the project to the

maximum degree possible. Information was gathered from students through
the teachers who were consultants to the project. In order to obtain infor-
matiqn-.about die life and interests of students in the age and social group
the' course was planned for, a questionnaire was developed which sought in-
formation about how students spent tfieir leisure time, what they were in-
terested in learning about American culture, the kinds of books they enjoyed
studying from in class, what they found difficult about learning English,
 The role and design of instructional materials 279

what foreign countries they would like to learn more about, and what they
thought an ideal conversation text would contain. Over 200 students in 14
institutions completed the questionnaire. Students and teachers were also
surveyed to find out the kinds of topics they felt they would like to see in a
conversation course. A questionnaire with a list of 50 possible topics for
inclusion in die series was developed and sent to a sample of teachers and
students.

Developing a syllabus
We decided to work on Book 1 first, and with the help of die editors and the
consultants the following topics were selected for Book 1.
1. music 11. health and fitness
2. work 12. the family
3. shopping 13. house and
4. making friends neighborhood
5. clothes 14. school life
6. food and eating 15. social English
7. cities and places 16. leisure and
8. special days entertainment
9. on vacation 17. places and
10 sDorts and hobbies directions
18. movies
19. useful things
20. television
The unit titles were simply working titles at this stage, and the sequence of
units was also provisional, because until the materials' were written and
field-tested it would be difficult to determine which units were judged to be
simple or difficult.

The unit format -

After experimenting with half a dozen different proposals, it was decided
that each unit would contain five pages and that those five pages would di-
vide into four separate one-page lessons plus a one-page extension activity.
"Within a lesson there would be two to three exercises mat accomplished the
presentation, practice, and free production phase of a lesson. There would
be at least one listening activity per unit.

Sample unit.
Next, one of die topics for Book 1 was used as the basis of a sample unit.
This draft itself went through at least six revisions before it was ready for
 280 Chapter 8 The role and design of instructional materials 280

classroom testing. These revisions addressed exercise design, unit flow, and
interest level. The plan was to have the sample unit taught by several dif-
ferent teachers in Japan and to conduct focus groups (group meetings in '
which participants gave feedback on the materials) with teachers and stu-
dents. The publishers had copies of the unit prepared, with rough black-and-
white art and a simple cassette recording of the listening passages.

Piloting the sample unit

The next step in the process was to have the sample lesson taught to see if
it worked, to find out whether teachers and students liked it, and to identify
what its strengths and weaknesses were. For the piloting the publishers se-
cured the cooperation of a private university in Tokyo, which agreed to pi-
lot the unit Both the editor and I visited the university, explained the proj-
ect to the program director, and watched two teachers teach the sample unit
to two different classes of young Japanese students. Following the piloting
of the unit, the editor and I met with the teachers to discuss the unit, spoke
to the students about the material, and also met with a focus group of teach-
ers from the same institution to get their reactions to the unit.
The general reaction to the sample unit was quite positive, although some
activities worked better than others and my overall impression of the unit
was that the idea of using four single-page lessons was not very successful.
The teachers were able to get through two pages in a 90-minute lesson, so
it would make sense to have two two-page lessons per unit rather than four
one-page lessons. The idea of having a topic-based unit with a variety of
short student-centered activities, which contained both language control
and language support, seemed to work well. I now had all the information
I needed to do a first draft of the whole of Book 1.

Writing the first draft of book 1 " -

1 now began writing a first draft of the complete manuscript of Book 1. This
included 20 five-page units, each consisting of two two-page lessons and an
extra page devoted to a project-based activity. This was sent to seven re-
viewers. These reviewers were identified by the publisher, and chosen on
the basis of dieir teaching background and their ability to write useful re-
views. They were asked to examine the manuscript and to respond to five
questions:
1. How much variety and balance is tfiere in the material?
2. How original and distinctive is it, compared to other books available?
 The role and design of instructional materials 281

3. How would you rate the interest level of the material?

4. What is the overall appeal of the material?
5. If you were the editor, what advice would you give to the author?

A few weeks later the reviewers' comments were received. Their reactions are
summarized as follows:

1. Variety and balance. Most of the reviewers felt that die book had a good
balance and variety of activities. They felt that there were a good number of
activities that got away from the mundane, predictable kind of activities seen
in many textbooks.
2. Originality. Reviewers thought that the most original features of the book were
the projects and the surveys, especially the thought-provoking questions in
some of the surveys. However, too many exercises were rated as unoriginal,
boring, and flat.
3. Interest level The reviewers evaluated each unit in terms of interest level. Most
were rated as being of moderate interest, some were of high interest, and others
achieved a low rating.
4. Appeal. The overall appeal of the book was thought to be high, because of the
topics, projects, and survey.
5. Suggestions. The reviewers* suggestions can be summarized as follows:

• Develop and highlight the projects.

• Provide more language support for the projects.
• Weed out dull, flat exercises.
• Consistently maintain thought-provoking questions, puzzles, and highly
engaging activities.
• Focus on "asking for clarification" as a strategy.
• Build in ways of carrying on a conversation, so that a conversation will not
die out because there are no helps or hints as to how to continue it.
The editor also offered his own interpretation of the progress made so far.
' Overall, we're off to a good stare There's a nice progression of activities in each
lesson; a good focus on conversational language samples; the interviews at the end
of each unit are a very good feature; overall, the project work is excellent; and
there's a nice predictable structure and progression to the lessons.
What we need to do now is to get more personality and originality into a number
of units. The Japanese market is flooded with books based on a functional syllabus,
and after all these years it's really hard to do something new and fresh using that
approach. The units in this manuscript that are functionally organized (e.g.. Places
and Directions, Cities and Places, Leisure and Entertainment) for me were the
least interesting. The units that are based on topics that are really interesting to
students (Music, Movies, Television, On
 282 Chapters The role and design of instructional materials 281

Vacation) are by far the most interesting and the most in line with where the
market is right now.
The direction the manuscript needs to go in is clean more topic-based units,
more real-world content and more focus on the world of the students. As far as
the projects are concerned, this is an excellent section that will really add to the
appeal of the course, although too many of them involve poster work; we need
some more variety here. There are several key topics that are missing: dating,
travel, customs, careers, environmental issues, campus life, student lifestyles, dos
and don'ts in other countries. Some of these are more appropriate for Level 2.
Others can be the focus of existing units.
The editor and I then met to go through the reviews and to look closely at
each unit of the draft manuscript to determine what features could be in-
corporated into the next draft of the manuscript. The main decisions we
reached at that meeting were:
• Each book would be reduced from 20 units to 15 units.
• We were undecided about the fifth page in each unit, the project page. For
version 2 of the manuscript I would just develop four-page units, while
we sought further advice on the feasibility of doing project work with stu-
dents of very limited oral proficiency.
• More language support should be provided for activities. Fuller lists of
words and expressions which students could use for each exercise should
be included.
• Each page of the book had to be challenging enough to provide enough
material for about 30 minutes of classroom time.
• Each unit should contain one exercise that practices conversation man-
agement strategies.
• - Every exercise should have some novel or special feature, that is, some
special twist to make it more appealing and original.
• Each unit should contain at least one activity that presents real-world con
tent, that is, genuine information about lifestyles in the United States or
otiier countries, to provide something to interest students.
A second version of Book 1 was then written. This contained substantial re-
visions of the first draft, as well as some entirely new units. Probably 60
percent of the material in the second version of the manuscript was new.
■This formed the basis of a pilot version of the book.

Piloting the course

The manuscript was now prepared for pilot testing. Rather than have teach-
ers pilot the whole book, the manuscript was divided into three sections and
 The role and design of instructional materials 283

individual teachers were asked to try out different sections in their classes.
After they had taught each unit they were asked to complete a questionnaire
in which they commented on the unit as a whole and on each exercise in the
unit. Some thirty teachers took part in the pilot.

Preparing the final manuscript

From the piloters' comments a further round of suggestions was obtained
that formed the basis for the final revisions of the manuscript. During the
revision process, exercises were replaced, fine-tuned, and clarified, tape-
scripts and art specifications revised, and the manuscript moved forward
unit by unit to final content editing, design, and publication. The same
process was followed for Book 2. The course was published with the tide
Springboard (New York: Oxford University Press, 1998).
 The role and design of instructional materials 284 \

284 Chapter 8

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