Foreign Language Textbook Activities: Keeping Pace with Second Language Acquisition Research

Aski, Janice M.

doi:10.1111/j.1944-9720.2003.tb01932.x

Cited by 24 publications

(24 citation statements)

References 17 publications

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“…Therefore, all writing activities, exercises and drills identified in the textbooks were conceived as writing tasks. Moreover, to examine which activity types predominated in our sample, Paulston's () classification of language activities (later modified by Aski, ) was used. Paulston () proposed a classification of language learning activities which consisted of mechanical drills, meaningful drills, and communicative drills.…”

Section: The Studymentioning

confidence: 99%

Categorization of writing tasks in Iranian senior high school English textbooks

Aliakbari

Tarlani-Aliabadi

2017

Int J App Linguistics

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Using Littlejohn's (2011) task analysis sheet, this study examined writing tasks in Iranian ELT textbooks developed by Iran's Ministry of Education since 1979 to see whether their underlying aspects reflected universal SLA principles. Almost all of the writing tasks were found to be writing‐as‐a‐means type engaging the students with aspects of language other than the writing itself. Also, the textbooks relied heavily on mechanical writing drills to practice certain structures thereby lagging behind SLA research and practice. Moreover, interviews with one key official and one ELT material developer attested to the lack of any ELT‐specific documents for material development. It is recommended that L2 writing pedagogy in Iran and similar contexts needs to be reevaluated in the light of more recent breakthroughs in writing scholarship.

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Section: The Studymentioning

confidence: 99%

Categorization of writing tasks in Iranian senior high school English textbooks

Aliakbari

Tarlani-Aliabadi

2017

Int J App Linguistics

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“…Bragger and Rice note that textbooks are used "for curriculum design, for lesson planning, as a basis for assessment, and perhaps too often, to define their [instructors'] approach to teaching" (p. 107). Several researchers have examined how various aspects of language are addressed in textbooks, including approaches to grammar (Aski, 2003;Fernández, 2011), cultural content (Chapelle; Gulliver, 2010), stylistic variation (Etienne & Sax, 2009), pragmatics (Nguyen, 2011, and fluency (Rossiter et al, 2010). However, apart from examinations of pronunciation-specific materials (Gorsuch, 2001), little attention has been given to how pronunciation is treated in general ESL textbooks.…”

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confidence: 99%

How Well do General-Skills ESL Textbooks Address Pronunciation?

Derwing¹,

Diepenbroek²,

Foote³

2013

TESL

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Many instructors are reluctant to teach pronunciation in adult ESL classrooms, often because of lack of formal training. However, significant numbers of ESL students want pronunciation instruction. Although stand-alone pronunciation courses for second-language (L2) learners exist, many students cannot gain access to them. One approach to meeting the needs of both instructors and students is for general-skills L2 textbooks to include pronunciation activities. We examined 12 ESL general-skills textbook series (48 texts in total) and six accompanying teachers' manuals to determine to what extent these popular books include pronunciation activities and how consistent the texts are across individual series.We also recorded which aspects of L2 pronunciation are the focus of the lessons. Task types were examined in a subset of five series. We found striking variability in the concentration of pronunciation activities both across and within series. For several years, researchers and practitioners have argued for more attention to pronunciation in second-language (L2) classrooms (Couper, 2006;Isaacs, 2009). There is also evidence that many English-as-a-second-language (ESL) students would like more opportunities to improve their pronunciation (Derwing & Rossiter, 2002; Foote, Holtby, & Derwing, 2011). This is not surprising given that L2 speakers who have a strong mastery of other aspects of Englishlanguage proficiency but who still have pronunciation difficulties may have limited career advancement opportunities and lower earnings (Davila, Bohara, & Saenz, 1993;Pendakur & Pendakur, 1997;Reitz & Sklar, 1997). Similarly, whereas some textbooks used several task types, others relied heavily on a limited range. Furthermore, some texts offered little in terms of explicit explanations. In some instances teachers' manuals provided instructors with guidance; others included little more than repeated admonitions to remind the students to monitor their L2 pronunciation. The implications for teachers of general ESL courses are discussed. Plusieurs enseignants hésitent à enseigner la prononciation aux adultes dans les cours d'ALS, souvent parce qu'ils manquent de formation formelle. Toutefois, un nombre considérable d'apprenants en ALS voudraient qu'on enseigne la prononciation. Même si les cours autonomes de prononciation pour les apprenants d'une langue seconde existent, plusieurs étudiants n'y ont pas accès. Une démarche qui répondrait tant aux besoins des enseignants que ceux des étudiants consisterait à intégrer des activités de prononciation dans les manuels L2 évoquant des compétences générales. Nous avons examiné 12 séries de manuels de compétences générales en ALS (48 volumes en tout) et six manuels pour enseignants dans le but de déterminer dans quelle mesure ces manuels bien répandusAlthough the demand for ESL pronunciation instruction has been partly addressed in that several pronunciation textbooks and teacher resources are currently available (Celce-Murcia et al., 2010;Gilbert, 2004;Grant, 2010;Hewings, 2004;Yates & Z...

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“…Grammatical study rarely goes beyond a handful of elements chosen mainly because of their frequent use in the language. Upon her investigation of textbook activities, Aski (2003) concluded that ''meaning, context, and function continue to take a back seat to traditional presentations and practice of grammar'' (p. 58). Likewise, Ellis (2002b), as well as Wong and VanPatten (2003), observed that the grammar instruction promoted in language textbooks is based primarily on an explicit description, followed by mechanical practice.…”

Section: Methodology and Theoretical Basis Of Current Textbooksmentioning

confidence: 99%

Constructivist Grammatical Learning: A Proposal for Advanced Grammatical Analysis for College Foreign Language Students

Mojica-Díaz

Sánchez–López

2010

Foreign Language Annals

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The teaching of foreign language advanced grammar (AG) at the college level nowadays continues largely to focus on form, with little attention to its functions and meanings. The practice agrees with neither the Standards for Foreign Language Learning in the 21st Century (National Standards, 2006) nor the advances made in basic language teaching pertaining to the communicative purpose and context of language. Since both second language acquisition and pedagogical research demand more attention to contextual use, as well as the active participation of the student in the analysis of the forms, a revision of current practices becomes necessary. This article proposes the study of AG based on the use of unabridged authentic texts and the application of a Constructivist Grammatical Learning Approach.

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Foreign Language Textbook Activities: Keeping Pace with Second Language Acquisition Research

Cited by 24 publications

References 17 publications

Categorization of writing tasks in Iranian senior high school English textbooks

Categorization of writing tasks in Iranian senior high school English textbooks

How Well do General-Skills ESL Textbooks Address Pronunciation?

Constructivist Grammatical Learning: A Proposal for Advanced Grammatical Analysis for College Foreign Language Students

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