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UNIT 14 COURSEBOOK AND LESSON MATERIALS
Course books can be rather daunting or helpful to a teacher, depending on their techniques and ways of teaching. Some unorthodox teachers would prefer to create their own materials and lessons than merely let a course book dictate what it is that needs to be taught or how a lesson should be taught. The use of course book is highly subjective but the main goal must always be carried upon and that is to teach the English language effectively to the students. As for me, I would prefer a balance of the traditional and unconventional ways of teaching that is to take what is relevant or significant or conducive to a teaching situation. Although balance is the goal, there will always be times when being more creative outweighs what is traditional and vice versa, depending on the type of students a teacher is educating.
There are three legitimate reasons why authentic materials should be used, authentic materials are real which makes it more interesting and scintillating, the students can gain more confident rather than diffident once they acquire understanding of the lesson and lastly they are geared to the interests of a specific group of students.
Some of the created materials in the unit that teachers must remember and use in their own ways are as follows:
>Crosswords
>Word Search Puzzles
>Role-play Cards
>Flashcards
>Gap-fill Activities
>Picture Stories
*All these are conducive to the students analytical skills and creativity and the information they'll gain from every game is a supplementary information that can help them to gain fluency with the English language.
Course books materials a teacher must posses:
a. Student's book
b. Workbook
c. Teacher's book
d. Cassettes
e. Videos
Advantages of Course Book:
>Expected by the students.
>Less time consuming
>It provides a syllabus which is graded to a level suitable for the students.
>Security for the students.
>Offers continuity and progress.
>Materials are tried and tested.
>Continually practice language.
>Good for inexperienced teachers.
Disadvantages of a Course Book:
>Does not always fit the specific needs of the students.
>Students may not like the book.
>Predictable and boring for the students.
>Makes teachers lazy and uncreative.
>Almost always a compromise.
>Books may be outdated and unattractive.
>Dictates what is to be taught.
However with balance being my goal, there is always the best way to use the course book and as the unit has covered, the following will be kept in mind when teaching:
>A teacher must choose what is the most suitable.
>Don't use the course book for the whole lesson.
>A teacher must know what will motivate the students and which can be taken from the course book as a supplement or which can be adapted?
>Explore ways to match the book to the needs of the students.
>Approach book critically.
>Never base lessons merely on the course book.
>Course book is not a solution to teaching all the time.
>A teacher must always try out new ideas.
Finally there are also different approach to the use of a course book:
>A teacher can always omit part of course book that is of no use to a certain situation.
>A teacher must know what is the most appropriate replacement to what is being omitted.
>The course book can be used as a supplement instead of wholly depending on it.
>The best way to use a course book is by adapting basic principles and applying it with a teacher's own creative way of teaching.
