skip to main skip to sidebar
LANGUAGE LEARNING RESOURCES
In this blog, you will find my reflections about the role of materials in the ELT process.
miércoles 28 de mayo de 2008

THE ROLE OF AUTHENTIC MATERIALS IN A LEARNER-CENTERED CURRICULUM

It is the purpose of this paper to enhance the potential benefits and possible drawbacks of authentic materials in a learner-centered instructional environment. Authentic materials have been conceived as texts that are not written for language teaching purposes (Jordan, 1997). They are also seen as exposure to “real” language, that is, “real life communication” as it is held by the native speakers of the language.Authentic materials have a lot of advantages in a learner-centered curriculum. Learners feel motivation when they notice that they are learning real language, a language that is used for communication in real life, not just as an academic burden. Authentic materials can have a positive effect on learner enthusiasm, provided their choice is done taking into account learners’ needs, interests and expectations. Authentic materials also have the intrinsic value of creating a realistic communicative classroom environment. It is through the use of this kind of materials that learners can be exposed to the target language and target culture at the same time. They keep students informed about what is happening in the world, so they have an intrinsic educational value (Sanderson, 1999).However, authentic materials can have certain limitations in a learner-centered curriculum. Some of these are the complexity of language structures, the inclusion of unneeded vocabulary and the lack of relevance in some topics, which may cause students feel frustrated or de-motivated, specially at lower levels. What is initially suggested, in this case, is that the teacher relies on students for the choice of suitable materials such as songs, elliptical texts (newspaper ads or maps) or any other material which is linguistically undemanding but intrinsically appealing to students’ preferences. As to the practicality of authentic materials, the teacher is also expected to generate engaging activities that promote an authentic use of the target language. It would be inefficient, for example, to bring a newspaper article just to make students identify pronouns or any other discrete grammatical item, without exploiting the discourse or the communicative potential of the chosen piece.To sum up, authentic materials are a useful component of a learner-centered curriculum since they give a sense of genuineness to the learners’ language development process. Their choice should be done along with learners, and they should also be used in an authentic way.Works citedJordan, R. R. English for academic purposes: a guide and resource for teachers.Camxbridge: Cambridge University Press. 113. 1997.Nunan, David. The learner-centered curriculum. N.Y: Cambridge University Press. 98-115. 1994.Sanderson, P. Using newspapers in the classroom. Cambridge: Cambridge UniversityPress. 1999.
Publicado por Edalin2008 en 11:50 1 comentarios
Suscribirse a: Entradas (Atom)
Comparative grammar syllabus
Comparatiove Grammar syllabus
http://edalin2008.wikispaces.com/

Archivo del blog
▼ 2008 (1)
▼ mayo (1)
THE ROLE OF AUTHENTIC MATERIALS IN A LEARNER-CENTE...

Datos personales

Edgar Alirio Insuasty
Edgar Alirio Insuasty is an English teacher who has explored different Applied Linguistics fields such as translation, ELT methodology, contrastive studies and literature Ver todo mi perfil


Discussion questions
1) Is it possible to broaden the definition of "authenticity" to situations where English teachers generate their own teaching materials in the light of their cultural values, i.e, materials related to their history, customs, legends, myths, and other issues which shape their cultural identity?
2) How do you consider American or British literature pieces can be worked as authentic material in an EFL class?
How you can use them in class?
3) Can content-based instruction be a good source of authenticity? Under what conditions?
4) What about internet and other information and communication technologies? Can these also be taken as authentic material for our EFL lessons?

_