26.946, Review: Applied Linguistics: Tomlinson (2013)

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Subject: 26.946, Review: Applied Linguistics: Tomlinson (2013)

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Date: Mon, 16 Feb 2015 15:34:11
From: Edie Furniss [furnisse at gmail.com]
Subject: Developing Materials for Language Teaching

 
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Book announced at http://linguistlist.org/issues/24/24-5280.html

EDITOR: Brian  Tomlinson
TITLE: Developing Materials for Language Teaching
PUBLISHER: Bloomsbury Publishing (formerly The Continuum International Publishing Group)
YEAR: 2013

REVIEWER: Edie Furniss, Pennsylvania State University

Review's Editors: Malgorzata Cavar, Sara Couture, and Ashley Parker

SUMMARY

The first edition of ''Developing Materials for Language Teaching,'' published
in 2003, addressed a need for a thorough treatment of the principle issues in
the field of materials development for language teaching and learning: the
theoretical and practical concerns of creating, evaluating, and adapting
materials for various types of learners and for specific language skills. The
volume under review is the updated second edition, which is intended to
provide current perspectives on the field, in addition to ''providing stimulus
and refreshment for teachers, academics and materials developers,'' according
to the editor, Brian Tomlinson, in the preface (p. x). The second edition
contains a mix of updated articles from the first edition and new articles
reflecting theoretical and technological advancements in the field. The
twenty-six articles contained therein are grouped into five themes:
'Evaluation and Adaptation of Materials', 'Principles and Procedures of
Materials Development', 'Developing Materials for Target Groups', 'Developing
Specific Types of Materials', and 'Materials Development and Teacher
Training'. Each section concludes with two to four pages of comments by
Tomlinson that summarize and synthesize the main conclusions from the articles
in that section. The chapters range from literature reviews to case studies
and action research projects, and focus on materials for a variety of
instructional contexts, and for learners of diverse backgrounds and ages. The
authors are concerned primarily with materials for learners of English, as
both a second and foreign language.

In his introduction to the volume, Tomlinson defines key terms and provides an
overview of the central issues in the field of materials development. He
defines materials development as “both a field of study and a practical
undertaking” in which theory and practice interact with one another
(Tomlinson, 2001, p. 66). The term ‘materials’ is used to refer to “anything
which can be used to facilitate the learning of a language” (Tomlinson, 2001,
p. 66). Tomlinson expresses his beliefs on why, how, and by whom materials
should be developed and evaluated, and addresses other issues in the field,
including the value of authentic texts. Finally, Tomlinson lists the current
trends (both positive and negative) in materials development, ideas for the
future of this field, and professional resources.

The first article (of three) in Part A, ‘Evaluation and Adaptation of
Materials’, is ''Materials Evaluation'' by Tomlinson. Here he delves into the
mechanics of evaluation: what exactly is being evaluated and how is that
process undertaken? Tomlinson emphasizes the importance of conducting
evaluations in a principled way that takes into account research on learning
in general and on second language acquisition (SLA), providing short summaries
of established findings for reference. The chapter concludes with a framework
for developing criteria for materials evaluation. The next article is
''Adapting Courses: A Personal View'' by Claudia Saraceni, in which the author
proposes that adapting materials for specific instructional contexts can
bridge the gap between SLA research and classroom practice, and advocates the
involvement of both teachers and learners in the adaptation process. She
outlines a model for adapting courses that is more flexible and geared towards
providing an aesthetic experience -- fostering 'immediate response to language
and literature' -- than traditional approaches to materials development. The
article includes a sample of materials accompanied by suggestions for
adaptation by both teachers in training and learners themselves. The third
article of Part A is Duriya Aziz Singapore Wala's ''Publishing a Coursebook:
The Role of Feedback,'' which details a proposal for incorporating feedback
into materials development, making it a dynamic process. The author reviews
the literature on feedback loops in materials development, then describes
these loops in practice in a discussion of a curricular reform project in
Singapore that integrated feedback from stakeholders at all stages. According
to Singapore Wala, ''materials must answer present-day teacher needs for
tomorrow's class with a view to meeting the goals of education for the
future'' (p. 84); this can be achieved, it is argued, by facilitating
interaction between stakeholders at several points in the materials
development process. Tomlinson, in his comments on Part A, notes that the
authors in this section agree on the value of the evaluation and adaptation of
materials in the learning process, the importance of acknowledging the needs
and wants of all invested in the use and implementation of materials, and the
need for flexibility in both materials design and their evaluation and
adaptation. He advocates for research into the effectiveness of materials and
outlines a framework for carrying out such an assessment.

Part B, ‘Principles and Procedures of Materials Development’, consists of
seven articles focusing on key issues in the process of creating materials.
Tomlinson contributes the first article, entitled ''Developing Principled
Frameworks for Materials Development,'' challenging the norm in materials
development of ''processes which are ad hoc and spontaneous, and which rely on
an intuitive feel for activities which are likely to 'work''' (p. 95). He
reviews the existing frameworks for materials development, as well as the
literature on the principles to be considered in this process. This is
followed by a flexible framework, created by the author and implemented in
materials writing workshops and textbooks projects around the world, which
uses a text-driven approach. Tomlinson demonstrates the framework in use by
presenting two sets of materials: one for a lesson focused on a poem, the
other for a web-based lesson utilizing online newspaper sources. Singapore
Wala authors the next article, ''The Instructional Design of a Coursebook Is
As It Is Because of What It Has To Do -- An Application of Systemic Functional
Theory,'' which utilizes Systemic Functional Theory (Halliday and Matthiessen
2004) in the analysis of a coursebook ''as a product of the context --
cultural and situational -- within which it is produced'' (p. 119). First,
concepts from the theory are described, and Singapore Wala argues that
Systemic Functional Theory, which describes language as functioning within
three contexts (situation, culture, and ideology), can also be applied to
materials design. This is demonstrated by an analysis of the schematic
structure of the coursebook genre, which is then applied to five English
Language Teaching coursebooks. In ''Humanizing the Coursebook,'' Tomlinson
provides ideas for adapting materials in ways that will increase learner
engagement and ''exploit [learners'] capacity for learning through meaningful
experience'' (p. 140). He gives a plethora of suggestions based on his own
experiences teaching English. Transitioning from coursebook adaptation to
development, Tomlinson suggests various ways of creating humanistic materials
that emphasize collaboration, text-driven and multidimensional approaches,
learner centeredness, and localization. David A. Hill analyzes the types and
purposes of the illustrations in three textbooks in ''The Visual Elements in
EFL Coursebooks,'' concluding that the majority of images are used solely for
decoration. The author argues that visual elements should be exploited for
instructional purposes and gives suggestions to this end. The next article,
''Creative Approaches to Writing Materials'' by Alan Maley, criticizes the
lack of creativity in foreign language teaching and materials development and
proposes a framework for remedying this issue. In a literature review, Maley
explores the key components of the concept of creativity, discusses
theoretical approaches to creativity, and reviews the history of the
application of creativity in language pedagogy. He concludes by presenting his
framework, followed by a list of recent trends that may facilitate a
''creative paradigm shift'' (p. 182). Thom Kiddle's ''Developing Digital
Language Learning Materials'' is an extensive overview of current digital
technologies and their potential applications to language teaching. He
provides background on the state of the field, then explores avenues for
teacher-created, student-created, and publisher-/professionally created
digital materials, concluding with several predictions for the future of
digital language teaching and learning materials. The final chapter in this
section, ''Demystifying Blended Learning'' by Freda Mishan, shifts the focus
to an approach in language pedagogy that combines ''face-to-face and
technology-based learning'' (p. 207). Mishan proposes a framework for blended
language learning, complemented by a discussion of the technological tools
involved. Finally, the author presents two case studies illustrating blended
learning in a language instruction context. Tomlinson closes Part B by
summarizing the resources mentioned by the authors of the section that are not
being exploited fully for language teaching purposes.

Five chapters make up Part C, ‘Developing Materials for Target Groups’.
Shelagh Rixon's contribution is entitled ''Authors' Knowledge, Rationales and
Principles -- Steady Flow-Through or Stuck in the Publishing Pipeline? The
Case of Early Reading with Young Learners.'' The author undertook an analysis
of 40 locally produced course materials of English for Young Learners from a
variety of contexts, observing that many of these materials do not seem to
tackle the teaching of reading in any systematic way. Based on this analysis,
Rixon distributed a questionnaire to authors and editors of materials for
Young Learners that solicited their knowledge and beliefs on teaching reading
to this population. The author discovered a disconnect between the developers'
principles and the published materials, perhaps due to reluctance to deviate
from the status quo. The next chapter, ''Developing Motivating Materials for
Refugee Children: From Theory to Practice'' by Irma-Kaarina Ghosn, details the
process of developing coursebooks for Palestinian refugee children in Lebanon
that are based on R. Ellis’ (2008) principles of instructed language
acquisition. Ghosn explains the context, including information on Lebanon's
national curriculum and the living conditions and schools of the Palestinian
refugees. The textbook development process is described from beginning
(evaluation of the old textbooks) to end (initial feedback on the new
textbook). In ''Materials for Adults: 'I am No Good at Languages!' --
Inspiring and Motivating L2 Learners of Beginner's Spanish,'' Rosa-Maria
Cives-Enriquez outlines her approach to classroom instruction, tailored to the
adult learner. The author bases her approach on two models for motivating
students; she describes how she has adapted these models and provides many
illustrative examples. Vivian Cook addresses adult learners as well in the
next chapter, ''Materials for Adult Beginners from an L2 User Perspective.''
He evaluates six beginner coursebooks (including two newer texts for the
second edition) with reference to three arguments developed in the Essex
Beginners' Materials Group: ''adult students have adult minds and interests'';
''second language users are people in their own right''; and ''language
teaching has been held back by unquestioning acceptance of traditional
nineteenth-century principles'' (pp. 289-290). Cook's criticisms of the
coursebooks under evaluation are supplemented by concrete suggestions on how
to remedy their deficiencies. He closes with an epilogue assessing the current
state of beginners' materials, finding that the newer coursebooks do reflect
some positive change. ''Mining the L2 Environment: ESOL Learners and
Strategies Outside the Classroom'' by Naeema Hann investigates learner
strategies in a longitudinal study. She first reviews the theories on learner
strategies, focusing particularly on social strategies that involve
interaction with native speakers. Hann then examines quantitative and
qualitative data from her study of English for Speakers of Other Languages
(ESOL) learners, and concludes by advocating for learner and teacher strategy
training, further research on strategy use in varied contexts, and the
development of materials for language learning strategy training. Tomlinson
notes the overarching theme across the articles of Part C: that ''different
types of learners need different types of materials'' (p. 333). He also
mentions that the authors in this section agree on the important role of the
teacher in facilitating students' interaction with materials and the
recommendation that ''the coursebook does not become the syllabus'' (p. 334);
rather, a syllabus should be created to match each group of learners.

Part D discusses ‘Developing Specific Types of Materials’. The first chapter
(of eight) is Jeff Stranks' ''Materials for the Teaching of Grammar,'' in
which the author suggests criteria for the presentation of grammar in language
materials. He argues for the inclusion of grammar that reflects actual usage,
such as ellipsis (which is a feature of conversational language that is
largely ignored in materials), and advocates that greater attention be paid to
the way meaning varies depending on grammatical form. Paul Nation contributes
the next article, ''Materials for Teaching Vocabulary,'' in which he details
and gives supporting examples for three central principles based on second
language vocabulary research: that vocabulary learning should be planned and
responsive to frequency; that materials should make use of learning conditions
shown to promote vocabulary learning; and that activities for vocabulary
learning should include ''learning from meaning focused input, learning from
meaning focused output, deliberate language focused learning and fluency
development'' (p. 352). In ''Materials for Developing Reading Skills,'' Hitomi
Masuhara reviews in detail the major approaches to L2 reading materials
development, followed by a proposal for an alternative approach founded on
four key principles, supported by examples of reading activities. In
''Materials for Developing Writing Skills,'' Ken Hyland explores the various
roles of materials used in the teaching of writing (models, language
scaffolding, reference, and stimulus) and considers criteria for selecting
writing materials. Hyland discusses textbook adaptation, making use of
Internet resources, and designing new materials for the teaching of writing.
In the next chapter, ''Developing Materials for Speaking Skills,'' Dat Bao
provides an overview of methodological trends in the design of speaking
materials, then proposes a framework for their development. He continues by
presenting a rationale for speaking materials as well as criteria for their
evaluation. Finally, Bao argues that two areas in materials for speaking
skills lack sufficient emphasis: learner identity and cultural localization.
This chapter is followed by ''Coursebook Listening Activities'' by David A.
Hill and Brian Tomlinson. The authors begin with a short analysis of the types
of listening activities in a sample of intermediate textbooks, followed by
suggestions for expanding and improving the teaching of listening in materials
development and examples of listening skills lessons. Alan Pulverness and
Brian Tomlinson, in ''Materials for Cultural Awareness,'' argue for a return
to cultural specificity in coursebooks, describing materials that use
innovative approaches to the teaching of culture. In the final chapter of Part
D, ''Corpora and Materials: Towards a Working Relationship,'' Ivor Timmis
addresses the disconnect between corpus research and language materials
development. He reviews the insights that research in corpus linguistics has
contributed to the English Language Teaching field, concluding by proposing a
'corpus-referred' approach that elevates the importance of ''intuition,
experience, local need, cultural appropriacy and pedagogic convenience in
determining syllabus content and the order in which items are taught'' (p.
470). Tomlinson links the articles in this section using five main themes:
explicit and experiential learning, extensive listening and reading, realism,
affect, and multidimensional learning.

The first chapter in Part E, 'Materials Development and Teacher Training', is
''Materials Development Courses'' by Tomlinson. He surveys the objectives and
procedures of materials development courses, then provides examples of his
flexible framework in practice, informed by his extensive experience in this
area. Next, in ''Simulations in Materials Development,'' Tomlinson and
Masuhara illustrate the value, principles, and procedures of simulations (as
opposed to real-life tasks) in materials development courses. The final
chapter is ''Working with Student-Teachers to Design Materials for Language
Support within the School Curriculum'' by Helen Emery. The author reports on a
project that uses a Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) approach
in the development of materials for teaching English science vocabulary in
Brunei schools. Student-teachers worked together to create these materials;
their results are described. Tomlinson, in his comments on Part E, reiterates
the value of positive affect, interactivity, and theoretical and practical
awareness raising in the materials development process. The volume closes with
a conclusion from Tomlinson, in which he briefly recaps the main criticisms
from the authors included, as well as the new directions they propose.
Tomlinson ends the book with a call to further applied and action research, in
order to advance the field of materials development.

EVALUATION

Because of its stress on practical applications of theory and research, and
the inclusion of detailed case studies and guidelines, the second edition of
''Developing Materials for Language Teaching'' will be of great value to
materials writers, publishers, and teachers interested in designing their own
materials. Tomlinson has published extensively on the topic of materials
development and his multifaceted expertise -- as teacher, materials writer,
and trainer -- is readily apparent. His belief in principled materials
evaluation and design, responsive to the individual evaluator/author and their
local context, is commendable and essential if we are committed to developing
and utilizing materials that can both engage and inform learners. The
individual chapters similarly promote learner-centered materials that are
flexible and prioritize emotional connection to the materials. In general, the
volume coheres; however, while most chapters ground their methodologies in
empirical data and support from the literature, occasionally contributors'
arguments are insufficiently substantiated by research and are too reliant on
anecdotal evidence. 

An element that is largely missing from this volume is empirical evidence on
the role of materials in the classroom. Last year, in an issue of the Modern
Language Journal (MLJ), Guerrettaz and Johnston (2013) presented a study
examining how materials function within the ecology of a language classroom.
Their call for such classroom-based research on the actual use and
effectiveness of language teaching materials inspired a 'Perspectives' column
in a recent MLJ (Tarone 2014), in which experts suggested ways of expanding
upon this pioneering work. It is to be hoped that this call will be heeded in
future work on language teaching materials.

As has already been mentioned, the volume focuses predominantly on materials
for the teaching of English. While certainly applicable to materials for other
languages, case studies and research on different languages that are sensitive
to context and learner background would be enlightening for foreign language
educators. This, of course, could be said for applied linguistics research in
general.

All in all, the shortcomings of the book under review are minor, and overall
it is a welcome contribution to the field. It will be particularly useful in
courses on materials development, given its wealth of examples, theoretical
support, and practical guidelines based on the experiences of thoughtful and
meticulous educators, writers, and researchers. ''Developing Materials for
Language Teaching'' is sure to inspire readers to create principled, engaging
materials, and to further research the use and effectiveness of materials in
the language classroom.

REFERENCES

Ellis, R. (2008). Principles of instruction second language acquisition. CAL
Digest. Retrieved from
http://www.cal.org/content/download/1553/16478/file/PrinciplesofInstructedSeco
ndLanguageAcquisition.pdf

Guerrettaz, A. M., and Johnston, B. (2013). Materials in the classroom
ecology. The Modern Language Journal, 97(3), 779-796.

Halliday, M. A. K., and Matthiessen, C. M. I. M. (2004). An introduction to
functional grammar. London: Arnold.

Tarone, E. (2014). The issue: Research on materials and their role in
classroom discourse and SLA. The Modern Language Journal, 98(2), 652-653.

Tomlinson, B. (2001). Materials development. In R. Carter, and D. Nunan
(Eds.), The Cambridge guide to teaching English to speakers of other languages
(pp. 66-71). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.


ABOUT THE REVIEWER

Edie Furniss is a Ph.D. candidate (ABD) in the Department of Applied
Linguistics at the Pennsylvania State University. Her research interests
include formulaic language, pragmatics, materials development, corpus
linguistics, and Russian language and culture.








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