“Frank” is an English teacher who devotes a great deal of time planning his lessons. He develops wonderful activities in class; these tasks are complemented by the use of great materials designed by him or by other creative teachers. Frank likes to expose his students to listening sources, role plays, and visual aids, among others.
This devoted teacher is the first to admit that he likes to work with textbooks as well, and that he loves all of them. He relies on printed sources to be used as a supplementary material in class. Frank also admits that even though he is not an expert, he can discriminate between a good book and a bad one just by giving a quick review, and this is because he has some simple tools to do it.
This is the first time he is going to teach 8th level. Thus, he has to be well prepared; he plans a great lesson, designs appropriate games, and organizes the room based on the activities he has planned. This time he also selects a brand new book to use with his students this year.
Frank is eager to use this textbook because as he recalls “it was highly promoted by the editor and the salesman who showed up last week.” Every time Frank has a chance, he glances through the book and highlights its qualities. He is always willing to show his colleagues the reasons he has when picking up a course book; therefore, it is common to listen to him giving well supported lectures about it.
This time Frank is particularly happy; he is asked to develop a workshop where other educators learn how to assess a course book and what to consider when choosing it. “There are thousands of textbooks.” starts Frank, “but only few of them are appropriate for your students.” he continued.
Through the session, Frank revises different aspects to consider when selecting textbooks. He emphasizes on some elements like vocabulary that fits student’s needs rather than “having tons of useless words.” He suggests paying attention to the consistency of the vocabulary through the textbook. He also talks about the physical make up but most importantly about the content of the printed source. Cultural aspects, language integration, the use of updated and relevant information are some examples of criterion Frank’s develops during the workshop.
At the end of the session, Frank feels satisfied because he thinks other teachers are able to judge a book in a deepest way. He believes that now they have the knowledge to select a good course book according to their student’s needs and reality.
We all thank Frank and other teachers of different courses and workshops to help us when selecting the best materials to improve our English lessons and make them fun, adequate, and meaningful.
