Iranian EFL Learners’ Perceptions with Respect to Tasks in Comparison with the Actual Content of the Textbooks

Abstract

Abstract-Most of the studies in the field of textbook evaluation in Iran have evaluated the textbooks from the perspective of teachers and have ignored the perceptions of the learners. The purpose of this study was to shed some light on the perceptions of Iranian EFL learners towards tasks and to compare their perceptions with the actual content of their textbooks. To this end, the study employed a descriptive and survey-based design. A questionnaire consisting of two different sections was distributed among 100 first-year high school students in four schools. One class in each school participated in the study. The first-year high school English textbook was carefully analyzed with respect to the percentages of tasks and non-tasks. The results of the questionnaire analysis were then compared to the results of the content analysis of the textbook. The comparison showed that the students generally rated tasks as being highly effective in the learning of English. In contrast, in their actual textbook, there was a much less number of these sorts of communicative activities. These findings show that there are wide gaps between the Iranian learners' perceptions and the actual content of their textbooks. These findings can be used by the textbook designers in order to take account of the learners' preferences and perceptions while designing new editions of textbooks.

Antagonism between western and Islamic cultures in Iranian English textbooks

“…A newly designed and revised English textbook attempts to prevent the potential damages of Western cultures to Iranian national identity and Islamic ideology. However, this series of English textbooks failed to promote a universal understanding of the English language, and also failed to act as a medium to familiarize students with English spoken/written arts, science, and literature, and develop students' oral skills (Farrokhi & Saadi, 2013;Rahimi & Hassani, 2012;Yarmohammadi, 2002). Moreover, many scholars argued that these textbooks did not cover the cultural aspects of language education (Aliakbari, 2004;Khajavy & Abbasian, 2011;Yarmohammadi, 2002), and are not based on the common core features of the EFL/ESL textbooks (Ansary & Babaii, 2002;Jahangard, 2007).…”