Evaluation of a Coursebook - TEFL Academy Assignment Two 2021
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Course
Tefl level 5
Institution
Tefl Level 5
Here you'll find my evaluation of a coursebook for assignment two that you can use to get a better idea about the assignment and what you need to do to score high or pass. Please do not only use the files and my work as it is, because that is plagiarism and will lead to your course's suspension. In...
Assignment 2, Part 1 - An Evaluation of Cutting Edge Advanced
New Cutting Edge Advanced – An Evaluation
Based on my evaluation of unit one and assuming that the remaining units do not differ
much in content, structure and teaching approaches, I think the coursebook ticks most of
the boxes. Despite its rich content, visually it looks well-structured and learner-friendly; the
sequence of the different language items, more or less, follows the standard English as a
Foreign Language (EFL) teaching ‘’convention’’i. However, even though the book seems to
gradually build upon previous skills and knowledge, I find that the vocabulary, given at that
intensity, might be a bit overwhelming for some students. Only on the first two pages there
are over 20 potentially new vocabulary items, some of which I would easily consider level
C2. That aside, the book provides plenty of rather varied activities and exercises coupled
with clear presentation and instructions.
As opposed to many older or even other modern coursebooks, pronunciation is rather
carefully presented with excellent activities that, in my view, fill an age-old gap in language
learning books. On the other hand, I cannot say the same for the grammar section; in fact,
at the moment of writing this essay I am still in two minds about it. I could easily say that
grammar review is underrepresented, but then at this level grammar is expected to be
fairly familiar and usually stops being the main focus as the balance is tilted in favour of
vocabulary, fluency and functionality.
While I am struggling to make up my mind about the grammar compartment, I am rather
impressed with the wholistic approach the book has taken with regard to marrying culture
with language in almost every piece of content it offers. Quite often, coursebooks do not
pay sufficient attention to the intricate relationship between language and culture, and
consequently the former is presented in a more isolated way. The cultural aspect and tasks
require little to no prior cultural knowledge, which makes the content very inclusive to all
learners. Furthermore, the use of authentic-looking materials, explicitly practical tasks as
well as up-to-date topics makes the book an excellent candidate for international and non-
Western learners.
Overall, with certain modifications and adaptations introduced by the teacher where
needed (the grammar review section for instance), like elimination, addition or enrichment
of some of the content, I think I would use the book with my advanced students, because it
places a strong focus on frequently underrepresented areas in language teaching such as
speaking, pronunciation as well as being more task-based, practical and functional.
i
Referring to the generally accepted principles and methodologies used in the design of an EFL lesson.
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