A problem when adapting coursebooks for
Second Language Teaching (SLT)
Bosompem (2014:105) states that
“adapting teaching materials is about effecting changes to make them suitable for learners and their needs.”
In this blog I will talk about adapting teaching materials. Reflecting on what I have been learning in the module TE714. In practice, for material adaptation, I select the most relevant examination board to adapt the course book for my lesson planning. I have been tutoring students since 2006 for Spanish examination entrance for A Level and International Baccalaureate. Over the years, I have bought many course books and I have been faced with the issue of needing to adapt these course books for SLT, which is unavoidable and time-consuming.
Adapting teaching materials to foster learner’s needs has been produced following different approaches. According to Tomlinson (2012) there is not enough help for teachers when adapting materials in the literature.
Theory behind book adaptation
Tomlinson (2012:151) outlined writers’ focus on adaptation, such as Nunan (1999) “on procedures for making materials more interactive, White (1998) “on way of increasing students’ participation when using listening materials.” Also, McDonough & Shaw (2003) give advice on
“adapting, deleting, modifying, simplifying, and recording”.
McGrath (2002:59) proposed the ‘four evaluating process’. These are as follows:
1. Selection – of course materials that will be used unchanged.
2. Rejection – complete (for example omitting a whole activity.) Or partial.
3. Adding – in the form of extension or exploitation of the existing material. This can be regarded as adaptation; where new materials are introduced.
4. Changing – i.e. a more radical form of adaptation.
McGrath (2002:59) added to this, a series of tasks to enable readers to check their understanding. These tasks involve the reader adapting course materials. However, Tomlinson argues that (2012:151) the tasks are
“not situated in a specific learning context, even though one of the main objectives of adaptation is to make the materials of more value to the students using them.”
Reasons for adapting coursebook Thacker & Bianchi (2012) Spanish B for IB.
Teaching books suggested by exam boards are too expensive and some of them are not useful. When buying a new book It is important for me to consider its appropriateness for the learners’ needs. It is vital that students can access beneficial coursebooks as a means for gaining university entrance.
In the past students have commented that this coursebook did not inspire them, or help them to reach their goals in communicating effectively in Spanish. As Richards (2014:24) states, the aim of using texts and conversation samples is to
“show how language is used and that also enables learners to use genuine cognitive, interactional, and communicative when carry out.”
What to adapt from the book Thacker & Bianchi (2012) Spanish B for IB Diploma?
I have adapted some units of the course book by Thacker & Bianchi (2012) Spanish B for IB(Fig1). Also, it was taken into consideration the examination board’s criteria (Curriculum International Baccalaureate). This procedure enhanced the learner’s language understanding. If I were to describe this course book in the most metaphorical manner, I would say that it has been a ‘solid foundation’ to adapt and deliver each lesson. As Richards (2014:19), cited in McGrath (2002:8) states, some metaphors that teachers used describe the role of textbook as a
“recipe, springboard, straightjacket, supermarket, holy book, compass, survival kit, crutch.”
In this specific case the book has contents that are relevant, with some engaging activities, however there were some tasks teaching materials were supplemented materials.(examples below).
Why to adapt Thacker & Bianchi (2012) Spanish B for IB Diploma?
The layout and some of the activities are not engaging for learners in terms of their learning inquiry. Therefore, support to resolve the problem of the process of material production and adaptation could be fostered by another process mentioned by Jolly & Bolitho (1998). During the material writing, Jolly & Bolitho (1998:100) argue that the linear process of material-writing does not work for the human mind. Bolly & Bolitho (1998:101) suggest
“we must imagine various optional pathways and feedback loops which make the whole process both dynamic and self-regulating.”
(Fig.2)
According to McGrath (2002:194), a teacher’s path is through the production of new or adapted material. The focus in this diagram on the process by which the materials were conceived provides us with a different perspective on revision.
Practical examples
The objective of the tasks given in the IB book were not suitable for the learners’ needs and were not engaging. Students’ feedback was that they found the book-tasks boring. Even though the learners were at an advanced level, they could not understand the poem called Recuardo Infantil by A. Machado and the extract of the book. The content of the unit was set in the Spanish Civil War. This was not introduced properly in the book. A book page (Fig.3) was too difficult for the learners.
(A) An extract of a film was needed to engage the learners. They watched part of a film from YouTube- La Lengua de las Mariposas,by Manuel Rivas. The learners learnt to link a poem given with the film and they had the opportunity to learn new vocabulary through visuals that were relevant to the unit.
link-.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UYNyrPVTbIk
(B) Listening Task: Students listened a Flamenco song -from YouTube- which was the poem in the coursebook: Recuerdo Infantil by Antonio Machado (1875–1939), suitable for reading, pronunciation practice and sequence visuals. Learners matched meaning to visuals. Printed photos to prompt students to learn vocabulary and they could link new vocabulary with visuals.
link; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hjdmJt4HM74.
Results of the adaptations
The weight of the adaptation helped the learners to understand and to explore the genuine cultural and historical context. The learners benefited from the listening activity because it aided the retention of a sophisticated vocabulary. The supplemented materials helped the learners to achieve their goals because they completed the book tasks which were linked to assessment.
References
Bianchi. S, Thacker. M (2012) Spanish B for the IB Diploma Student’s Book – Publisher: Hodder Education and Hachette Company, UK.
McGrath, I. (2002) Materials evaluation and design for language teaching. Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh.
Curriculum International Baccalaureate. Available <http://www.ibo.org/globalassets/publications/recognition/2_langbsl.pdf> Accessed 12/12/15.
Garton, S. & Graves, K. (2014) International perspectives on materials in ELT. Palgrave Macmillan, Basingstoke.
McGrath, I. 2002, Materials evaluation and design for language teaching, Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh.
Tomlinson, B. (2012). Materials development for language learning and teaching. Language Teaching, 45, pp 143-179. doi:10.1017/S0261444811000528.
I thought this was an interesting post but it needs work. On the surface level you just need to tidy up some of the language slips and typos. On a deeper level you need to discuss some of the issues you raise but in more depth. I was interested in the example of adaptation and supplementation which you provide. I’d like to have had some more discussion on why the learners found the reading difficult because you don’t explain this as fully as I believe you need to. In addition, you don’t use this post as an opportunity to discuss the role of media choice when adapting or supplementing. What do the videos give the learners that the book doesn’t?