survey review Adult coursebooks Brian Tomlinson and Hitomi Masuhara Introduction In 2001 and 2008 we contributed reviews of adult courses to this journal (Tomlinson, Dat, Masuhara, and Rubdy 2001; Masuhara, Hann, Yi, and Tomlinson 2008) In the 2001 review we welcomed, in particular, an ‘increase in attempts to personalize the learning process by getting learners to relate topics and texts to their own lives, views, and feelings’ (2001: 96) We also welcomed an increase in the use of humour and fun and an increase in the realism of the audio components of courses We regretted, though, the increase in attention given to explicit knowledge of grammar at the expense of affective and cognitive engagement as well as the scarcity of narrative, of extensive reading and listening, of intelligent adult content, of achievable cognitive challenges, of ‘real tasks which have an intended outcome other than the practice of forms’ (ibid.: 97), and of activities which made full use of the resources of the learners’ minds In other words, we were disturbed by the apparent disregard of the findings of second language acquisition (SLA) research We were also disturbed by what we perceived as an excessive increase in the number of course components In the 2008 review, we welcomed a further increase in attempts to help learners to personalize their language learning as well as an increase in the ‘reality’ of texts, of ‘global English’, of intelligent adult content, of cognitive and affective challenge, and of applications of the findings of corpus studies However, we regretted again the scarcity of ‘engaging and extensive reading and listening texts’ (2008: 310), of ‘real tasks which have an intended outcome other than the practice of forms’ (ibid.: 310), and of activities stimulating multidimensional mental responses We also regretted the continuing predominance of analytical activities, the neglect of activities catering for experiential (and especially kinaesthetic) learners, and the even greater increase in the number of course components We were pleased that some acknowledgement had been made of the value of some research findings, but disappointed that many of the main findings of SLA research were still being ignored (for discussion of how the main findings of SLA research can be applied to materials development, see Harwood 2010; Tomlinson 2011, 2012, 2013a,b; McDonough, Shaw, and Masuhara 2013) In 2001, we used a list of 130 criteria, but in 2008 we reduced the list to 104 criteria, which we considered to best reflect the principles of ELT Journal Volume 67/2 April 2013; doi:10.1093/elt/cct007 © The Author 2013 Published by Oxford University Press; all rights reserved https://academic.oup.com/eltj/article-abstract/67/2/233/531488 Downloaded from by guest on 09 August 2018 233 language acquisition and learning In this review, we have focused on the 15 criteria that we think will best predict the long-term effectiveness of the six coursebooks that publishers submitted to us We have chosen these criteria also as they are likely to provide an indication of the changes that have taken place in course development since 2008 and a measure of the match between course materials and what we know from research and observation about how languages are best acquired and learnt We have restricted ourselves to 15 criteria so that we can achieve transparency by reporting our evaluations in detail within the review As in 2001 and 2008, we need to start by acknowledging the inevitable subjectivity of our evaluation We have attempted to be as systematic and rigorous as possible in using pre-use evaluation criteria that have been developed from our experience as learners, teachers, materials developers, and researchers, and from our understanding of the findings of current research and theory in classroom research (Tomlinson 2013b) and SLA (Tomlinson 2013a) However, our criteria and our use of them ultimately reflect our personal beliefs and prejudices, and there is no doubt that other reviewers would have come to different conclusions The courses we have evaluated In this review, we have evaluated the following courses that were submitted by British publishers: Name of the course Authors Publishers The Big Picture Goldstein Richmond global Clandfield/Benne/Jeffries Macmillan Education English Unlimited Rea/Clementson/Tilbury/ Cambridge University Press Hendra New Headway (fourth Soars/Soars edition) Oxford University Press Speakout Clare/Wilson Pearson Education Outcomes Dellar/Walkley Heinle Cengage Learning The evaluation procedure We agreed on 15 criteria and then one of us used them to evaluate Unit of the intermediate (i.e B1) level of each student coursebook The other used them to evaluate Unit 10 of the same coursebook Whilst evaluating each unit we made comments on the likely effectiveness of the unit in relation to our criteria and scored each criterion on a scale of to (with indicating ‘unlikely to be effective in facilitating long-term acquisition’, indicating ‘likely to be partially effective in facilitating long-term acquisition’, and indicating ‘likely to be effective in facilitating long-term acquisition’) We made sure that these two units in each book were representative of the other units in the book and then we compared our comments and scores before agreeing on the common response we are presenting below 234 Brian Tomlinson and Hitomi Masuhara Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/eltj/article-abstract/67/2/233/531488 by guest on 09 August 2018 We have focused on the student coursebook as this is the only course component used by many teachers around the world We also need to point out that we focused very much on the likely effectiveness of the courses in relation to what we believe facilitates long-term acquisition of an L2 (i.e deep processing from engaged and meaningful interaction with the target language) If we had focused on short-term learning from shallow processing of input from linguistic decoding and encoding (for example from controlled and guided practice activities) then the scores would have been very different See Ellis (2008) and Tomlinson (2013a) for discussion of deep versus shallow processing Evaluation of the courses To what extent is the course likely to … … provide extensive exposure to English in use? Course Score Comments The Big Picture English Unlimited global New Headway Speakout Outcomes Very short texts, none of which seem to be authentic Some simulated accents and a few rather contrived attempts to include such features of authentic spoken discourse as pauses, hesitations, etc Most of the texts are brief and seem to have been designed to illustrate language teaching points, though there are acknowledgements to various newspapers for ‘adapted’ articles There are attempts to include a variety of accents, for example Scottish, North American, Indian, and Japanese The telephone conversation between customer service and a frustrated customer in Unit 10 seems quite authentic though There are a number of extended texts that include elements of authenticity as well as efforts to provide some authentic texts, for example quotes, extracts from novels, recordings of users of English as a lingua franca (ELF) Most of the exposure is to short texts devised to illustrate language points (for example the Everyday English section on p 85 in which ELF users describe everyday objects using expressions such as ‘It’s one of those things you …’; ‘It’s long and thin and …’; ‘It’s the stuff you …’; etc.) A lot of short texts with potentially interesting content However, all seem to have been designed to illustrate language points The audio simulates some features of authentic spoken language, but it sounds as though actors are reading the scripts There are some extended texts that simulate authenticity (for example a passage about ‘What’s on in Buenos Aires?’ on p 73), but which also seem to be devised to illustrate teaching points However, many of the texts are very short and contrived (for example the conversations in 5.2 and 5.3 in Unit 5) Adult coursebooks Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/eltj/article-abstract/67/2/233/531488 by guest on 09 August 2018 235 … engage the learners affectively? Course Score Comments The Big Picture English Unlimited global New Headway Speakout Outcomes There is nothing to amuse, excite, disturb, or stimulate any kind of affective engagement The topic of ‘Insights and innovation’ in Unit 10 is potentially engaging, but most of the activities involve comprehension checks and the focus is on explicit learning of language rather than engagement Many mundane topics and mechanical activities with little to excite, enthuse, or amuse However, the topics on ‘complaining’ and ‘resolving’ in Unit 10 could be affectively engaging and there are a few potentially engaging activities (for example the pre-listening personalized discussion in 1b on p 82; the simulation of conflict negotiation in Tasks and on p 82) Some of the texts in Unit might encourage an affective response (for example ‘I’m a teacher, get me out of here’, p 59) and there are some cartoons, which aim to amuse the learners in relation to the topic of a text There are also attempts in Unit 10 to provide affectively engaging texts and activities (for example one or two sentences from the beginning of novels; guessing and finding out about classmates’ reading habits, p 115; the origin of birthday conventions, pp 116–7) Some of the topics have potential for affective engagement (for example Global Warming in Unit 5), but the focus on explicit language learning and practice makes actual affective engagement unlikely For example, the text on p 78 describes amazing facts about microprocessors, which are part of everyday goods we rely on (for example fridge, car, TV control) It could potentially arouse affective responses, but the activities that precede and follow the texts not exploit this potential The ‘Starter’ asks the learners to underline the nouns and reflexive pronouns in decontextualized sentences The next activity is comprehension questions to be answered after reading the text What follows is sentence completion and gap filling practice of articles Some of the texts in Unit have potentially engaging topics (for example ‘Do you get angry with your computer?’ on p 62), but their short simple sentences are unlikely to actually facilitate engagement Being environmentally aware and ethical is one of the main topics in Unit 10 This is important and worthy but might not be appealing and relevant to learners who not belong to the western, urban, highly educated middle class Food is another topic, but the unit assumes the learners are international travellers who are looking for good places to eat, as does the other topic ‘Do’s and don’t’s’ in international travel Little potential in Unit for affective engagement from texts and tasks that are all related to jobs, except possibly a disgusted reaction to the text on terrible jobs on p 40 In Unit 10, the topics relate to people who live in cities and have an interest in and access to the theatre, the cinema, art galleries, concert halls, and good restaurants None of the texts, though, are likely to stimulate affective responses, even for people with such a lifestyle 236 Brian Tomlinson and Hitomi Masuhara Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/eltj/article-abstract/67/2/233/531488 by guest on 09 August 2018 … engage the learners cognitively? Course Score Comments The Big Picture English Unlimited global New Headway Speakout Outcomes None of the texts or activities in Unit are likely to really challenge the learners to think analytically, imaginatively, or creatively Towards the end of Unit 10, the authors ask cognitively challenging questions for a pair of learners to think about and discuss (1b and on p 109) However, most of the unit is devoted to intensive comprehension checks and grammar exercises There is no need or incentive in Unit to be intelligent However, in Unit 10 the learners may find the topics on ‘complaining’ and ‘resolving’ cognitively engaging, as well as such activities as the prelistening personalized discussion in 1b on p 82 and the simulation of conflict negotiation in Tasks and on p 82 The texts (and some of the activities) aim to get the learners to think of the issues they present, and not just the language they use to express them (for example ‘Which statements can you infer are true?’, p 55) Also there are attempts to provide purposes, settings, and targets for the learners to think about in some Speaking and Writing activities These activities are more real-life like and cognitively engaging (for example Writing and 2, p 121) Some of the activities have potential for cognitive engagement (for example using photos to predict the effects of climate change on p 38), but the focus on language learning and practice makes actual cognitive engagement unlikely For example, on p 82, Activity asks open-ended questions about preferences for what the learners want to see in airports and stations Activity asks them to look at a picture of St Pancras International Station and invites them to describe it These activities seem cognitively engaging However, the two following activities request facts and figures that can be scanned from the text without really having to think about it None of the texts are likely to really stimulate young adults to think There is a clear stance on environmental issues and there does not seem to be any room for questioning or debate that may spark off cognitive reactions Most of the activities shift the learners’ attention to vocabulary and syntax The learners not really have to think about any of the texts or the language used in them Some of the texts (for example ‘Terrible jobs …’ on p 40) could have been used to stimulate thought and discussion about issues, but they are only used as a basis for comprehension questions and language work Some of the activities have potential for cognitive engagement, but the emphasis is on practising language rather than on expression of ideas (for example an activity on disappointments and failed promises on p 75, which tells learners to ‘Discuss the questions and explain your answers using future forms in the past’) Adult coursebooks Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/eltj/article-abstract/67/2/233/531488 by guest on 09 August 2018 237 … provide an achievable challenge? Course Score Comments The Big Picture English Unlimited global New Headway Speakout Outcomes Most of the activities are linguistically and cognitively easy with their main focus being on the mechanical side of language learning However, there are some activities in which the learners are invited to come up with innovative ideas (for example for creative use of everyday objects in Speaking and on p 109) The tasks in Unit seem to be very easy both in relation to the language required and the cognitive challenge However, simulation activities with roles seem to provide an achievable challenge to use English in 5a and 5b on p 81, as Tasks and on p 82 and Task on p 84 Learners have been provided with a dialogue as an example, alternative expressions, and preparation time There are many easy practice activities, but there are some activities that provide both a linguistic and a cognitive challenge (for example ‘Write a series of rules for a domestic robot in your home’, p 55) There are a lot of tedious ‘completing sentences by matching the beginning and ending’ and gap filling to check comprehension But there are also a few linguistically and mentally challenging activities, for example writing thank-you letters and exchanging them to see the effect of the letters (Writing and on p 117) So much help is given to the learners that all the tasks seem to become both linguistically and cognitively easy The questions tend to be superficial in a sense that answers can be found in the texts without really having to think It feels like many of the activities are like easy quizzes The questions on the texts seem more concerned with eliciting target language than challenging the learners, and the production tasks are made simple by the provision of prescriptions of content, strategy, and (sometimes) language Activity 10 on p 121, rewriting a short review (80–100 words) on a restaurant in town, sounds like an achievable challenge, but only after they have practised headings and linguistic connectors So the task becomes easy practice There is no instruction on what to with the review, so no outcome Prior exercises are intended to make the challenge achievable in terms of stylistics and linguistic elements, but they may be killing the challenge and opportunities for noticing All the tasks are made easy by giving answers to choose from, by providing help with grammar references, by providing expressions to use, and by prescribing content (for example Conversation Practice on p 71) … help learners to personalize their learning? Course Score Comments The Big Picture There are a lot of questions asking the learners to give their views or opinions and to relate texts and activities to their own lives (for example ‘Which of the trends in you think is the most important?’, ‘Why?’, ‘Which affects you and your country most?’, p 54; ‘Discuss what you think is the most interesting/worthwhile/important invention …’, ‘Why?’, p 107) 238 Brian Tomlinson and Hitomi Masuhara Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/eltj/article-abstract/67/2/233/531488 by guest on 09 August 2018 Course Score Comments English Unlimited global New Headway Speakout Outcomes The units start with personal questions (for example ‘Have you ever done any of these things?’, p 38) and most of the activities invite the learners to make connections to their own experience There are many activities that involve the learners relating texts and topics to their own environment and their own lives (for example ‘Is there a lot of red tape in your country?, p 56; for pair work, ‘In your country, when people usually …?’, p 121) There are some activities in which the learners are invited to give their own views and opinions, but there are pages that only ask the students to learn and practise language items or answer questions about people unconnected to their lives (for example pp 44–5) On p 82, Activity asks open-ended questions about what the learners want to see in airports and stations ‘What you think?’ on p 83 offers personalized questions, such as ‘What’s your favourite building?’ and ‘What building would you like to knock down?’, but there is no guidance as to what the learners are supposed to with the questions The rest seem to be mechanical test-like activities that are difficult to personalize Most of the texts are preceded by tasks inviting personal thoughts and reflection, but are followed by questions that focus on the content and language of the texts rather than the learners’ personal responses to them Page 119 (on food) starts with foreign food and people reporting on food cities in the world Listening, Section 3c, invites the learners to talk about the cities that are good for food What happens if a student has never really travelled the world? Speaking, Section 7a on p 120, does have a personalized section on going to restaurants and cooking, but again it assumes certain experience, cultures, and values There are many activities inviting learners to express their views and opinions (for example ‘Would you ever work for no money?’ on p 37; ‘Ask each other the questions in Exercise C, but give your own answers about things that are in your own town’ on p 70) … help the learners to make discoveries about how English is typically used? Course Score Comments The Big Picture There are a number of questions asking learners to identify types of expressions, etc (for example ‘Underline the expressions used to introduce the speakers’ opinions’, p 57) However, the learners are not asked to articulate any discoveries they have made The procedures for vocabulary and grammar sections seem to firstly provide opportunities for the learners to find features of language taken from the text through doing exercises If necessary, they are instructed to refer to a brief explanation in the box nearby The course offers sections for further grammar references and practice separately in a Grammar Reference section Such procedures may be called an attempt to include consciousness raising The activities, however, assume right answers; therefore the learners may just focus on finding the answers The Key Vocabulary and Grammar Box elements are prominent, so learners may go there first rather than going through the discovery activities Adult coursebooks Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/eltj/article-abstract/67/2/233/531488 by guest on 09 August 2018 239 Course Score Comments English Unlimited global New Headway Speakout Outcomes There are a few questions asking learners to make comments about language use (for example ‘Which ones could you use in these situations?’, p 43), but no opportunities for learners to make discoveries from authentic texts In Unit 10, learners are invited to think of other expressions in relation to giving a compliment or to saying thanks than the ones given (Explore, Section 2, p 83) There are a few activities that invite the learners to make discoveries for themselves from contrived examples (for example the questions about phrasal verbs on p 65; Vocabulary on p 120) There are questions testing what the learners already know (for example about future forms on p 39), but none inviting them to make discoveries for themselves There are a number of consciousness-raising activities requiring the learners to ‘discover’ predetermined answers (for example the rules for comparatives and superlatives on p 57) In introducing reported speech in Activity 4a on p 117, there is an attempt to help the learners to discover the procedures, but a box with Rules follows after that on the same page Most of the activities are tests or practice activities, but there are some activities asking learners to guess from evidence (for example ‘Use the extra information in Sentences 1–10 to guess the meaning of the words in bold’, p 36; ‘Decide if the words in the box are positive, negative, or could be both’) … provide opportunities to use the target language for communication? Course Score Comments The Big Picture English Unlimited global Most of the speaking and writing activities involve answering questions about texts or practising language items and structures rather than communicating to achieve non-linguistic outcomes There are, however, some slightly more extended (though still guided) speaking activities (for example a class debate on p 57) and one extended writing task in Unit involving posting texts on a hypothetical discussion board Many pair-speaking activities are personalized and localized (for example considering the values of the products that tackle problems of energy, water, and shelter from the perspectives of the learners’ countries in 5b on p 107), but there is no specification of audience or intended outcomes and therefore no communication The writing and speaking tasks are practice activities in which learners are told what to say and (often) how to say it (for example ‘Respond using language from 2’, p 44) Some simulation activities, however, provide some opportunities to use the target language for communication (for example 5a, 5b, and on p 81; Tasks and on p 82 and Task on p 84) There are a number of communicative production activities (for example writing email instructions to somebody who is going to ‘replace you in your workplace for a week’ on p 65), but many activities have no specified outcome and others prescribe both content and expression 240 Brian Tomlinson and Hitomi Masuhara Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/eltj/article-abstract/67/2/233/531488 by guest on 09 August 2018 Course Score Comments New Headway Speakout Outcomes Nearly all the ‘production’ activities are actually practice activities, as the learners are told what to say and how to say it There are a lot of guided production activities, but the focus is on correct output rather than effective outcomes The production activities focus on practising language just presented (for example ‘Role-play a conversation Use at least two “be/get used to” comments’, p 41) rather than on communication … help the learners to develop cultural awareness?1 Course Score Comments The Big Picture English Unlimited global New Headway Speakout Outcomes The illustrations and some of the texts are located in countries outside the United Kingdom, but there is no attempt to help learners to develop greater awareness of the cultures of these countries or of their own country Some cultural knowledge is transmitted, but there are no awareness-raising, skills development, or experiential activities, and no discussion Every other unit has an ‘Across cultures’ section in which language use is compared between languages (for example ‘Saying no’, p 45) However, there is no real exploration of the cultural determiners of these differences The speakers on the listening CDs use a number of different varieties of English and they often describe their cultural experience However, their anecdotes stay as someone else’s accounts and are unlikely to lead to reflecting on and questioning the learners’ own cultural experiences, nor to raising awareness of the self and others The expressions provided for conflict resolution are all based on British middle-class expectations Are they culturally applicable to other English-speaking cultures? There is a text about the legal protection of languages in a number of countries (p 63) and a text comparing lunch in India and lunch in Japan (p 60), but there is no real attempt to get learners to become more aware of the cultures of other countries The speaking activities in 4a and 4b (p 116) provide opportunities for the learners to discuss birthday customs or an important celebration in their countries One of the warm-up activities (Warm Up 2, p 122) prompts the learners to think of how they would say goodbye to different people But apart from that, the unit just provides information from European or American sources There is no representation of any culture other than British The audio recordings feature some rather stereotypical European accents (for example Italian and German) but there is nothing to raise cultural awareness There is no representation of any culture other than the British and no opportunities for the development of cultural awareness There is no real attempt to get learners to become more aware of the cultures of other countries There is a passage on going out in Buenos Aires (p 73), but no real opportunities to compare the culture of Buenos Aires with other cultures, just a language practice activity and a comparison of night life opportunities Adult coursebooks Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/eltj/article-abstract/67/2/233/531488 by guest on 09 August 2018 241 … help the learners to make use of the English environment outside the classroom? Course Score Comments The Big Picture English Unlimited global New Headway Speakout Outcomes Little attempt is made to encourage the learners to make use of English in their actual or virtual environments outside the classroom Task on p 115 suggests the learners write an explanation for the How Stuff Works website, but there are no instructions on what to or where to go No attempt is made to encourage learners to make use of English in their actual or virtual environments outside the classroom Simulation with roles in conflict resolution may lead to actual use in real life, but the book does not actually suggest developing such skills outside the classroom No attempt is made to encourage the learners to make use of English in their actual or virtual environments outside the classroom Some writing and speaking activities use likely everyday situations outside the classroom (for example role-play speaking between a host family and a student saying goodbye on p 122; writing an email to the learner’s brother or sister after moving away from home, p 121) The book, however, does not actually suggest developing such skills outside the classroom No attempt is made to encourage the learners to make use of English in their actual or virtual environments outside the classroom No attempt is made to encourage the learners to make use of English in their actual or virtual environments outside the classroom No attempt is made to encourage the learners to make use of English in their actual or virtual environments outside the classroom 10 … cater for the needs of all the learners?2 Course Score Comments The Big Picture English Unlimited global New Headway Speakout Outcomes The assumption seems to be that all the users of the course have access to and are interested in the internet, that they are frequent international travellers, and that they live in cities There is an assumption that learners are middle-class, welleducated, much travelled, urban computer users For example, the expressions provided for conflict resolution are all based on British middle-class expectations Are they what the learners need in the contexts in which they will use English? All the topics and texts relate to the lives of well-educated, urban, middle-class westerners There is an assumption that the learners are middle class, urban, and well educated Also, there is very little consideration of learning style preferences There is an assumption that the learners are middle-class, urban, well-educated users of modern technology Also, the learners are assumed to be world travellers, looking for good eating experiences and being ecologically aware! There is an assumption that the learners are middle class, urban, cultured, well off, and well educated 242 Brian Tomlinson and Hitomi Masuhara Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/eltj/article-abstract/67/2/233/531488 by guest on 09 August 2018 11 … provide the flexibility needed for effective localization? Course Score Comments The Big Picture English Unlimited global New Headway Speakout Outcomes There are some questions that invite the learners to relate the reading or listening texts to their own countries (for example ‘Which is the longest bridge or tunnel in your country?’, p 52; considering the values of the products that tackle problems of energy, water, and shelter from the perspectives of the learners’ countries in 5b on p 107), but most of the activities fix attention on what is in the texts There is little scope for learners to relate texts and tasks to their own localities There are some pre-listening activities though, which ask the learners to remember their own experience (for example annoying behaviours of other people in 1a on p 80; causes of dispute among the neighbours in 1a, p 82; activity for A Long Weekend 1, p 84) The conflict resolution simulation in Tasks and on p 82 could easily be localized, but the coursebook does not suggest how to so Some of the activities invite comparisons and connections with the countries of the learners (for example ‘Is it common for business people and children to have a packed lunch where you live?’, p 60) There is potential for localization in other activities but it is not explicitly encouraged There is little scope for the learners to relate texts and tasks to their own localities ‘What you think?’ on p 83 asks ‘What buildings is your town or capital city famous for?’, ‘When were they built?’, and ‘Why are they famous?’ But apart from this, there are few opportunities for localization There is little scope for the learners to relate texts and tasks to their own localities, and the many exercises that are designed to help the learners step by step make it difficult for the teacher to make modifications that encourage localization There are a few activities that invite the learners to relate topics to their own countries (for example ‘Are there any rules in your country that people often break?’ on p 39; ‘How you think the nightlife in your city/town compares to Buenos Aires?’ on p 72) 12 … help the learners to continue to learn English after the course? Course Score Comments The Big Picture English Unlimited No attempt is made to develop the skills, resources, or enthusiasms that would help the learners to continue to learn English after their course, and there is not much encouragement for autonomy during the course Little attempt is made to develop the skills, resources, or enthusiasms that would help learners to continue to learn English after their course Some real-life skills and strategies may be acquired through some of the activities, but the coursebook does not make explicit use of autonomy outside the class or in the future The e-portfolio in the DVD-ROM is supposed to encourage self-study and autonomy, but it is not clearly linked to the Student Book Adult coursebooks Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/eltj/article-abstract/67/2/233/531488 by guest on 09 August 2018 243 Course Score Comments global New Headway Speakout Outcomes No attempt is made to develop the skills, resources, or enthusiasms that would help the learners to continue to learn English after their course The course does advertise ‘interactive digital components for use in class, out of class and even on the move’ (blurb) but the Student Book does not mention such resources No attempt is made to develop the skills, resources, or enthusiasms that would help the learners to continue to learn English after their course Little attempt is made to develop the skills, resources, or enthusiasms that would help the learners to continue to learn English after their course Watching a BBC programme on DVD about endangered polar bears and working on a presentation on endangered places may have some real-life implications outside and after the course, but the connections are not made explicit Despite claiming in the blurb that ‘Natural, real-world grammar and vocabulary help students to succeed in social, professional and academic settings’, little attempt is made to develop the skills, resources, or enthusiasms that would help the learners to continue to learn English after their course 13 … help learners to use ELF? Course Score Comments The Big Picture English Unlimited global New Headway Speakout Outcomes The focus in Unit is exclusively on British English (for example the spoken texts are all interactions between native speakers) However, there are some attempts to include foreign accents in the listening materials in Unit 10 The photos of foreign people make them seem like exotic beings rather than, possibly, ELF users There are some interactions between non-native speakers, but all the ‘characters’ seem to speak and write with the same educated, English, middle-class, native-speaker voices, although there are acknowledgements to non-native speakers who took part in ‘the authentic recording sessions’ Many countries are referred to, but the emphasis is on nativespeaker English There are some L2 students’ photos and their authentic recordings, but their countries are Spain, France, the United States, and Switzerland The novels on p 114 are all English or American Where are the great novels in English from world literature? Is this book really ‘global’? The focus is on British English (for example most of the spoken texts are interactions between native speakers) However, the audio recordings feature some rather stereotypical European accents (for example Italian and German) Native speakers appear in roles that help these users of English The focus is exclusively on British English (for example the spoken texts are all interactions between native speakers) and the perspectives and values are based on educated, middle-class British norms The focus is exclusively on British English (for example the spoken texts are interactions between native speakers) and the language ‘taught’ is contemporary British, middle-class, standard English 244 Brian Tomlinson and Hitomi Masuhara Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/eltj/article-abstract/67/2/233/531488 by guest on 09 August 2018 14 … help learners to become effective communicators in English? Course Score Comments The Big Picture English Unlimited global New Headway Speakout Outcomes The focus is on accuracy of reception and of production rather than on helping learners to use English to achieve effective outcomes The activities focus on outputs, not outcomes, and there are no opportunities to raise awareness or discuss effects, repairs, or strategies in communication Most of the activities focus on accuracy, but some of those in the ‘Across cultures’ sections focus on appropriacy and effect The simulation activities with roles may help learners to become effective communicators in English (for example 5a, 5b, and on p 81; Tasks and on p 82; Task on p 84), and Task on p 82 asks about the outcome of the negotiation Some of the activities focus on appropriacy and effectiveness (for example the bureaucracy role plays on p 57), but the main focus is on accuracy of expression However, Writing and on p 117 involve exchanging letters and seeing the effect on the readers But it does not go any further in terms of discussing how to make the letters more effective There is a similar exchange and feedback activity in Writing on p 121, but the questions are all about organization, appropriacy, and use of good expressions, rather than on communicative effect The focus is on accuracy of reception and of production rather than on helping learners to use English to achieve effective outcomes All the production activities are guided and the focus is on accuracy of expression rather than effectiveness of communication There is no consideration of outcomes, just practice of output The focus of the production activities is on accuracy of expression rather than effectiveness of communication, but there are some attempts to help learners achieve communicative effectiveness (for example ‘Developing conversations’ on p 37 and p 72) 15 … achieve its stated objectives? Course Score Comments The Big Picture English Unlimited global New Headway The claims stress such words as ‘authentic’, ‘real-life contexts’, ‘fun’, and ‘stimulate’ and yet we found little that was authentic, real, fun, or stimulating We cannot find very much evidence of the ‘purposeful, real-life objectives’, ‘the natural English of international speakers’ (apart from exposure to some differing varieties of English), the inspiring topics, the real-world communication, or the flexibility claimed in the blurb Nor can we see how the book prepares ‘learners to use English independently for global communication’ The book does help learners ‘to learn about English as an international language’ and ‘to learn through using information-rich …texts’, but we cannot see how it enables learners to ‘learn English as it is used in our globalised world’ The course certainly provides ‘in-depth treatment of grammar’ but not ‘a perfectly balanced syllabus’ nor ‘integrated skills throughout’ And we not agree that it ‘challenges students to make real progress’ Adult coursebooks Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/eltj/article-abstract/67/2/233/531488 by guest on 09 August 2018 245 Course Score Comments Speakout Outcomes We cannot see much evidence of the course ‘using authentic materials’, meeting the ‘diverse needs of learners in a variety of teaching situations’, of ‘bridging the gap between the classroom and the real world’, or of providing ‘meaningful speaking and writing tasks’ (though, to be fair, we only reviewed the coursebook and not the video podcasts) Outcomes does not make outlandish claims, but we have doubts about its claims for ‘natural real-world grammar and vocabulary’, ‘CEF goals’ as ‘the focus of communication activities’, and ‘clear outcomes in every lesson …’ providing ‘students with a sense of achievement’ Averages ■■ ■■ ■■ ■■ ■■ ■■ Summary The Big Picture (1.2 = unlikely to be effective in facilitating long-term acquisition) English Unlimited (2.1 = likely to be partially effective in facilitating long-term acquisition) global (1.9 = likely to be partially effective in facilitating long-term acquisition) New Headway (1.1 = very unlikely to be effective in facilitating longterm acquisition) Speakout (1.3 = unlikely to be effective in facilitating long-term acquisition) Outcomes (1.4 = unlikely to be very effective in facilitating long-term acquisition) With the exception of some of the results for global and English Unlimited and all the results for the criterion of personalization, the results are disappointing in relation to our criteria (but of course could be very positive in relation to other people’s criteria) This is mainly because the courses seem to give priority to criteria that are more connected to face validity, to the achievement of instant ‘progress’, and to preparation for examinations than to helping learners towards the eventual achievement of communicative competence Given the cost of developing a course, this is inevitable Why should publishers risk prioritizing criteria that might be endorsed by SLA research and theory, but which could lead to the development of a course that looks too radically different to be profitable? One answer could be that there is evidence that most teachers are still compelled to use coursebooks, but are dissatisfied with the ones they use A British Council survey (2008) revealed that 65 per cent of the teachers they polled frequently used a coursebook and that only per cent never did A survey conducted at IATEFL, MICELT, and University of Hue conferences showed that 92 per cent of the respondents used a coursebook regularly (mainly because they were required to), but that 78 per cent of them were negative about the materials available to them (Tomlinson 2010) We have done unpublished research for publishers that revealed that what the majority of teachers and learners want most from coursebooks are longer and more engaging texts We have also done a survey of materials used for teaching EFL in the United Kingdom (Tomlinson and Masuhara 246 Brian Tomlinson and Hitomi Masuhara Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/eltj/article-abstract/67/2/233/531488 by guest on 09 August 2018 2008), which showed that teachers were complaining about their coursebooks because ‘there are too many dry and dull texts’, the ‘texts and activities are not preparing students for real-life situations’, ‘the texts and activities not engage the interest of foreign students’, and ‘the formats are repetitive’ These complaints were echoed in Tomlinson (2010) by teachers in a survey conducted in Malaysia, the United Kingdom, and Vietnam who criticized their coursebooks for being ‘not locally relevant’, not ‘varied’ enough, not ‘authentic’ enough, and ‘boring’ On a recent visit to observe classes in Turkish high schools, it was noticeable that students in the 12 classes observed were eager and interactive when doing localized and personalized communication activities designed by their teachers, but much less so when doing activities from a global coursebook It could after all be worth a publisher risking the development of a course that prioritizes affective and cognitive engagement, scope for localization, and authentic communication General features of the courses reviewed Positive features Personalization There is a high level of personalization in all the courses reviewed Learners are invited to think and talk about their own experiences and to think, talk, and write about their views, opinions, and responses This connecting of new language experience to the minds of the learners is likely to facilitate language acquisition and development Discovery Most of the courses deviate slightly from their presentation, practice, production (PPP) approach to encourage learners to discover things for themselves about how English is used However, most such activities are restricted to helping learners to ‘discover’ predetermined correct answers rather than the open-ended exploration of language use we would personally welcome Communicative effect The main focus of all the courses is still on linguistic accuracy, but it is encouraging to see some courses (i.e English Unlimited, global, and Outcomes) giving attention also to helping their learners achieve appropriacy and effectiveness of communication Use of illustrations Although none of our criteria focused on the use of illustrations, we did notice that most courses used engaging illustrations (usually colour photographs) as texts to trigger activities rather than just as decorations to appeal to the eyes Negative features Unfortunately, many of the negative features we reported in 2001 and 2008 are still conspicuous In our view, there is still too much attention given to explicit knowledge of grammar at the expense of affective and cognitive engagement, not enough activities for the experientially and kinaesthetically inclined, not enough use of narrative, not enough extensive reading and listening, not enough challenging content or tasks, and hardly any real tasks that have an intended outcome other than the practice of language Also, there is very little use made of Adult coursebooks Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/eltj/article-abstract/67/2/233/531488 by guest on 09 August 2018 247 humour or fun now compared to 2001 and 2008, there is even less use made of literature, there are even more and more expensive course components, and there seems to be an assumption that all the learners are aspirational, urban, middle-class, well-educated, westernized computer users (see Gray op.cit for a critique of such assumptions) For a different evaluation of current global coursebooks against criteria based also on commonly agreed findings of SLA research and classroom research, see Tomlinson (2013a) Conclusion Our criterion-referenced prediction is that most of the courses we have reviewed, whilst being very appealing to the eye and to those users favouring discrete focus on and practice of language items, are unlikely to be very effective in facilitating language acquisition and development Of course, our predictions could be wrong and we would be delighted if systematic post-use evaluations of the courses demonstrated both their short-term and long-term effectiveness Such evaluations would be demanding and expensive but would go a long way to informing us about what learners really need in order to become effective communicators in a second or foreign language Notes 1 For a discussion of ways of using language learning materials to help learners to develop intercultural competence, see Byram and Masuhara (2013) 2 For a critique of the way that global coursebooks tend to promote a materialistic, urban, aspirational lifestyle, see Gray (2010) References British Council 2008 Teaching English: Coursebooks London: British Council Byram, M and H Masuhara 2013 ‘Intercultural competence’ in B Tomlinson (ed.) Ellis, R 2008 The Study of Second Language Acquisition (second edition) Oxford: Oxford University Press Gray, J 2010 The Construction of English: Culture, Consumerism and Promotion in the ELT Global Coursebook Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan Harwood, N (ed.) 2010 English Language Teaching Materials: Theory and Practice Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Masuhara, H., N Hann, Y Yi, and B Tomlinson 2008 ‘Adult EFL courses’ ELT Journal 62/3: 294–312 McDonough, J., C Shaw, and H Masuhara 2013 Materials and Methods in ELT: A Teacher’s Guide (third edition) New York, NY: Wiley Tomlinson, B 2010 ‘What teachers think about EFL coursebooks?’ Modern English Teacher 19/4: 5–9 248 Tomlinson, B 2011 ‘Introduction: principles and procedures of materials development’ in B Tomlinson (ed.) Materials Development in Language Teaching (second edition) Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Tomlinson, B 2012 ‘Materials development for language learning and teaching’ Language Teaching: Surveys and Studies 45/2: 143–79 Tomlinson, B (ed.) 2013 Applied Linguistics and Materials Development London: Bloomsbury Tomlinson, B 2013a ‘Second language acquisition’ in B Tomlinson (ed.) Tomlinson, B 2013b ‘Classroom research’ in B Tomlinson (ed.) Tomlinson, B., B Dat, H Masuhara, and R Rubdy 2001 ‘ELT courses for adults’ ELT Journal 55/1: 80–101 Tomlinson, B and H Masuhara 2008 ‘Materials in the UK’ in B Tomlinson (ed.) English Language Learning Materials London: Continuum The reviewers Brian Tomlinson is a Visiting Professor at Leeds Metropolitan University and a TESOL Professor at Anaheim University He has worked as a teacher, teacher trainer, curriculum developer, university academic, and football coach in Indonesia, Japan, Nigeria, Oman, Singapore, the United Kingdom, Vanuatu, and Zambia and has given presentations in 60 countries He is Founder and President of MATSDA (the Materials Development Association), he has been involved in 12 coursebooks, and he Brian Tomlinson and Hitomi Masuhara Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/eltj/article-abstract/67/2/233/531488 by guest on 09 August 2018 has many other publications (for example he has just completed Applied Linguistics and Materials Development for Bloomsbury and Blended Learning in ELT: Course Design and Implementation (with Claire Whittaker) for the British Council) Email: brianjohntomlinson@gmail.com Hitomi Masuhara is Deputy Director of the MA in TESOL and the MA in Applied Linguistics at the University of Liverpool and Secretary of MATSDA She has worked at other universities in Japan, Oman, Singapore, and the United Kingdom and has presented at conferences all over the world Her publications include many journal articles, book chapters, and books (for example Materials and Methods in ELT with Jo McDonough and Christopher Shaw; Research for Materials Development in Language Learning and Developing Language Course Materials both with Brian Tomlinson) She has also been involved in the writing of eight coursebooks Email: hitomi.masuhara@gmail.com Adult coursebooks Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/eltj/article-abstract/67/2/233/531488 by guest on 09 August 2018 249 ... developers, and researchers, and from our understanding of the findings of current research and theory in classroom research (Tomlinson 2013b) and SLA (Tomlinson 2013a) However, our criteria and our... done a survey of materials used for teaching EFL in the United Kingdom (Tomlinson and Masuhara 246 Brian Tomlinson and Hitomi Masuhara Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/eltj/article-abstract/67/2/233/531488... eating experiences and being ecologically aware! There is an assumption that the learners are middle class, urban, cultured, well off, and well educated 242 Brian Tomlinson and Hitomi Masuhara Downloaded