"Provides an overview of the current state of materials design in language teaching. The materials discussed include the complete range of language-learning resources from teacher-created materials to commercially-developed tasks, texts, and activities. Seventeen original chapters explore the issues involved in the design, implementation, and evaluation of materials in a wide variety of contexts. The contributors, an international group of established experts, explain the theories and principles underlying their approaches to materials design. They examine the issues that materials writers encounter when developing language-teaching materials, both in print and digital formats, and present a variety of solutions that help resolve those issues. Discussion questions and tasks follow each chapter to make this volume useful to prospective and practicing teachers alike"--Page 4 of cover

This research collection presents a critical review of the materials used for learning English around the world. The first section includes a discussion of materials for specific learners and purposes, such as young learners, self-study, academic writing and general proficiency. The second section presents a detailed study of the materials used in Europe, Asia, North America, South America, Africa and Australia, and critically evaluates their effectiveness in the teaching of English to speakers of other languages. Taking both the teacher's and the learner's needs into consideration, the book makes a positive contribution to the future of research in materials development, and has practical applications. This comprehensive, critical analysis of materials in use around the world will be useful for academics researching materials development and applied linguistics and for students on post-graduate applied linguistics and ELT courses.

The concept of "funds of knowledge" is based on a simple premise: people are competent and have knowledge, and their life experiences have given them that knowledge. The claim in this book is that first-hand research experiences with families allow one to document this competence and knowledge, and that such engagement provides many possibilities for positive pedagogical actions. Drawing from both Vygotskian and neo-sociocultural perspectives in designing a methodology that views the everyday practices of language and action as constructing knowledge, the funds of knowledge approach facilitates a systematic and powerful way to represent communities in terms of the resources they possess and how to harness them for classroom teaching. This book accomplishes three objectives: It gives readers the basic methodology and techniques followed in the contributors' funds of knowledge research; it extends the boundaries of what these researchers have done; and it explores the applications to classroom practice that can result from teachers knowing the communities in which they work. In a time when national educational discourses focus on system reform and wholesale replicability across school sites, this book offers a counter-perspective stating that instruction must be linked to students' lives, and that details of effective pedagogy should be linked to local histories and community contexts. This approach should not be confused with parent participation programs, although that is often a fortuitous consequence of the work described. It is also not an attempt to teach parents "how to do school" although that could certainly be an outcome if the parents so desired. Instead, the funds of knowledge approach attempts to accomplish something that may be even more challenging: to alter the perceptions of working-class or poor communities by viewing their households primarily in terms of their strengths and resources, their defining pedagogical characteristics. Funds of Knowledge: Theorizing Practices in Households, Communities, and Classrooms is a critically important volume for all teachers and teachers-to-be, and for researchers and graduate students of language, culture, and education.

English Language Teaching Materials: Theory and Practice provides an overview of the current state of materials design in language teaching. This volume provides an incisive overview of the current state of materials design in language teaching. Seventeen original chapters explore the issues involved in the design, implementation, and evaluation of materials in language programs in a wide variety of settings and contexts. This stimulating collection considers different approaches to materials design - including teacher-developed classroom materials, commercial materials, and technology-driven materials. Discussion questions and tasks follow each chapter to make this volume useful to both prospective and practicing teachers alike.

Language learning materials development remains a surprisingly under-supported aspect of language teaching. This book constitutes a much-needed resource in the area, aiming to support and advance the craft of materials design. The volume offers a snapshot of the contemporary influences on language learning materials development from diverse perspectives around the globe. These influences include the demands of teaching ESOL in Britain and Ireland, the impact of Corpus Linguistics, the needs of young learners and of diverse worldwide audiences, the development of intercultural competence, as well as the integration of L2 acquisition research. Contributors to the volume are drawn from a broad range of teaching, research and materials development backgrounds. The book includes some chapters based on papers given at the MATSDA (Materials Development Association) 2008 conference.

Activities for English Language Learners Across the Curriculum is a must-have resource that features activities designed to help students improve English skills. Easy-to-use lessons are provided in each content area and include step-by-step instructions, as well as suggestions for whole and small group instruction and modifications based on students' levels of language proficiency. Definitely an invaluable resource for diverse classrooms, this book also includes background information on language acquisition and language proficiency level. In addition, new Bloom's Taxonomy questions are included to promote oral language development skills.

Provides a ground-breaking attempt to unite discussions on the pedagogical implications of the global spread of English, and lobby for change.