Reading in recent ELT coursebooks

Transcription

1 Reading in recent ELT coursebooks Rosa Maria Mera Rivas This paper presents an analysis of the reading component in a representative sample of ELT coursebooks for intermediate level and above, published in the last ten years. It examines the way those coursebooks reflect current theories on foreign language reading in their treatment of the reading skill. Based on the instructional implications of interactive models of reading, the analysis focuses on the attempts to develop both lower-level processing skills and higher-level comprehension and reasoning skills in EFL learners. From this analysis, it is concluded that, in general, the coursebooks seem to reflect current interactive views on reading, although they differ in the number and type of activities included, and are deficient in various ways. This implies that EFL teachers need to supplement deficient reading activities to help learners become efficient readers. Introduction The concept of an 'interactive model' is crucial to the view of reading explored in this paper. It refers not just to the interaction between reader and text, but to the interaction between the information that the reader obtains by decoding (bottom-up processing), and the information obtained by interpretation (top-down processing). Because of the close relationship between these various aspects of reading, teachers must focus both on language development (vocabulary, syntax, etc.), and on reading strategy practice. Several researchers (e.g. Alderson 1984 and Clarke 1988) suggest that language problems seem to be the most frequent source of reading difficulties for EFL learners at intermediate level. Thus, the most suitable approach seems to be a balanced one, focusing sometimes on language and sometimes on reading skills (Williams 1984). Tn order to find out how far current coursebooks meet the requirements of an interactive approach to reading, a representative sample of ELT material currently used in Spanish secondary schools and language schools was analysed: Intermediate, Brian Abbs and Ingrid Freebairn, Longman 1989, Intermediate, John and Liz Soars, Oxford University Press 1986, Intermediate, Paul Radley and Chris Millerchip, Nelson 1993, Upper-Intermediate, Brian Abbs and Ingrid Freebairn, Longman 1993, Upper-Intermediate, John and Liz Soars, Oxford University Press 1987, and Upper-Intermediate, Paul Radley and Chris Millerchip, Nelson ELT Journal Volume 531 January 1999 Oxford University Press 1999

2 The analysis was descriptive rather than based on actual implementation of the materials. It focused both on the activities designed to improve learners' linguistic competence, and on tasks designed to develop highlevel skills in learners, such as activating prior knowledge or schemata, guessing, and making inferences. Another aspect taken into account was the way the reading skill was integrated with the other language skills. This is of the utmost importance, for reading cannot be dealt with in isolation. The ultimate goal of teaching English at these intermediate stages is to enable learners to communicate effectively 'to use language appropriately' (Williams 1984: 11). Reading is a use of language, hence the need for its integration with the other language skills. The coursebooks Reading objectives Selection of reading texts With the exception of the books, which do not specify reading objectives, the coursebooks seem to share the notion of teaching reading for both linguistic and non-linguistic purposes, since they mention the following reading objectives: to consolidate language, learn language, and develop reading skills ( Intermediate; Intermediate), to use language for real purposes ( Intermediate), to develop skill proficiency ( Upper-Intermediate, Upper-Intermediate), and to use language outside the class, and show the target language in a natural context ( Upper-Intermediate). Thus, in general, they seem to assume the importance of developing both lower-order and higher-order skills in learners, which is implicit in the teaching of reading according to an interactive model. Several factors now influence the selection of reading texts for the EFL classroom. Apart from readability, other criteria taken into account include authenticity and reader interest. The notion of 'authenticity', together with that of 'simplification', has been a matter of debate among teachers and researchers for decades. An authentic text has traditionally been defined as one written for native speakers. Another interpretation is that proposed by Widdowson (1976), for whom authenticity lies in the interaction between the reader and the discourse, that is to say, authenticity depends on the reader's appropriate response. As a result, he does not recommend the use of authentic texts at earlier stages, and proposes the 'doctoring' of texts, using simple accounts to achieve appropriate response! Davies (1984) also favours simplification; but his identification of authenticity and reader's response leads him to consider simplified texts as authentic. The use of authentic texts has been strongly supported by researchers and teachers, especially those in favour of a communicative approach to language teaching. Moreover, those who view reading as an interactive process, recommend authentic texts of interest to learners (Bernhardt 1991). In this respect, they suggest the use of appropriate pre-reading and post-reading activities to increase the comprehensibility of difficult texts. In the present analysis, 'authenticity' is used in its traditional meaning. However, this cannot be assumed with reference to the authors of the Reading in recent ELT coursebooks 13

3 present coursebooks because, although they refer to the authenticity of the texts, some of them seem to have engaged in some kind of 'doctoring' or simplification of the texts. Reader interest seems to have been another factor taken into account in the choice of texts. They all present texts taken from a variety of sources similar to the ones students may encounter in real life in order to maintain students' motivation and involvement (see Figure 1). At the same time, the topics seem to suit the age range they are aimed at (students aged 15 and over, and adults). Figure 1 Intermediate Types of text Advertisements Literary extracts Newspaper articles Magazine articles Interviews Timetables TV pages Leaflets Quizzesquestionnaires Letters Descriptions Reports Dialogues Literary extracts Letters Magazine articles Newspaper articles Descriptions Encyclopaedia extracts Quizzes Narratives 7 Upper Intermediate S 14 Rosa Maria Mera Rivas

4 Instructional outcomes One instructional outcome of interactive models of reading is the exploitation of reading materials in terms of a three-phase approach: pre-reading, while-reading, and post-reading. Advocates of this approach identify several purposes: building up and activating background knowledge (Grabe 1991), practising reading skills, engaging in comprehension instruction (Grabe 1991), and helping with the problems of language and motivation (Williams 1984). In the coursebooks analysed, most authors incorporate recommendations of research into the design of their reading activities, presenting a three-phase approach. Another instructional implication of interactive models is the need for a large recognition vocabulary to achieve fluency in reading. In this respect, some researchers have described the interdependence between vocabulary knowledge and reading (Krashen 1989). In addition, it has been shown by research that syntactic and vocabulary knowledge are essential for comprehension (Berman 1984). Lexis has been identified as a source of difficulty for EFL readers; hence the need to develop students' recognition vocabulary. Several solutions have been proposed to achieve this: back-up devices, such as glossary or translation (Williams and Dallas 1984), rapid recognition exercises, rate building exercises, and extensive reading (Eskey and Grabe 1988). In the coursebooks selected, all the authors acknowledge the importance of vocabulary and, accordingly, they seem to incorporate a major implication of interactive models the need for a large recognition vocabulary into their reading activities. But they differ considerably in their approach to this issue: some include practice in the activation of prior vocabulary knowledge ( Intermediate and Upper-Intermediate), whereas the others restrict vocabulary practice to the postreading phase, including guessing word meanings from the text. It seems to me that asking learners to guess word meanings once they have completed the post-reading activities, does not make much sense. On the other hand, some of them do not include syntactic practice in the reading activities, but in a separate section ( Intermediate, Intermediate). As regards the development of automaticity skills, only reading speed is developed by means of skimming and scanning. It has been suggested that effective readers have to be able to understand the relationships between the parts that constitute a text. Consequently, to help EFL learners become effective readers, it is necessary to make them aware of such relationships. Several researchers recommend instruction on the cohesive ties of English: lexical reiteration, reference, substitution, ellipsis, and conjunction (e.g. Carrell 1988 and Williams 1983). The analysis of text structure has an irregular treatment in the coursebooks reviewed. They do not present many activities dealing with this issue. Only three of them ( Intermediate, Intermediate, and Upper-Intermediate) incorporate such exercises into the while-reading phase (e.g. arranging jumbled texts, event ordering, and matching topic sentencesparagraphs). This seems the best way of teaching cohesive devices in context, and Reading in recent ELT coursebooks 15

5 integrated in the reading texts. The other textbooks present isolated exercises on the recognition and use of discourse markers, disconnected from the reading texts, which does not seem likely to help develop learners' sensitivity to text structure. The three-phase approach in practice Pre-reading phase While-reading phase Following the findings of schema theory, interactive models of reading suggest that readers reconstruct the text information, based on the text, and on the prior knowledge available to them. This stresses the relevance of readers' prior knowledge for comprehension of texts. Accordingly, researchers have emphasized the need for schema activation before reading. Moreover, if students lack the appropriate schemata, they should be given them (Carrell 1988 and Barnett 1989). These are, in fact, the two main functions of pre-reading activities, which seek students' involvement, interest, and motivation, as well as providing language preparation. Basically, they are a means of incorporating the learners' knowledge of the world, linguistic knowledge, ideas and opinions, before checking them against the text. At the same time, they generate vocabulary related to the text topic, thus aiding vocabulary development. In the textbooks reviewed, the authors have incorporated most of these requirements into their pre-reading activities (see Figure 2). They present activities that activate and build up background knowledge, while at the same time helping with vocabulary development, and trying to arouse students' interest. The main goals of the while-reading phase are strategy and skill practice, and linguistic development, as well as helping learners to understand the writer's purpose, and the text structure and content. Several techniques Figure 2 Intermediate Pre-reading activities Prediction of text content Questioning Discussions Use of photographsillustrations Analysis of headlinestitles Making lists Introduction to text Guessing word meanings Semantic associations Introduction of keywords 16 Rosa Maria Mera Rivas

6 Figure 2 continued Upper Intermediate Pre-reading activities Prediction of text content Questioning Introduction to texts Photographsillustrations Analysis of headlinestitles Discussions Semantic feature analysis Guessing word meanings Writing activities y help to achieve these goals, e.g. pre-text questions, which present learners with learning objectives before they read a text, and comprehension questions, which are the typical while-reading activity. Three main types of the latter can be distinguished: direct reference questions, which mainly practise language, rather than aid comprehension, since sometimes they can be answered without understanding the text; indirect reference questions, usually employed to recognize text cohesion, where the reader has to identify in the text the words a pronoun refers to; and inference questions, which require an understanding of vocabulary, and make the reader think about the text; as a result, they can help both check comprehension and to develop it. With regard to the coursebooks selected (see Figure 3), not all seem to fulfil the general aims related to the while-reading phase; only two of Figure 3 Intermediate While-reading activities Direct reference questions y Inference questions Scanning Skimming Predicting Recognizing text structure Vocabulary practice Grammar practice Reading in recent ELT coursebooks 17

7 Figure 3 continued Upper-Intermediate While-reading activities Direct reference questions Inference questions Making notes Graphicscharts Recognizing text structure Vocabulary practice Grammar practice Predicting Skimming Scanning them provide language practice. In general, more practice in higherlevel skills involving inferring, guessing, and predicting would be desirable, since the ultimate goal must be to train and help learners comprehend texts, and not just to test understanding. This would apply in particular to Intermediate and Upper-Intermediate, and Intermediate and Upper-Intermediate. Post-reading phase The post-reading phase helps learners to consolidate what they have read and, at the same time, aims to relate the text to the learners' experience, knowledge, and opinions. To achieve these objectives, researchers (Barnett 1989) have proposed different activities, which contribute to the integration of reading with the other language skills, and which resemble 'real' activities performed by native readers, such as listing facts, summarizing, describing or providing information, as well as discussions, and writing compositions, new versions, or endings. The aims of the post-reading phase are not equally catered for in the different coursebooks analysed (see Figure 4). In this respect, it seems to me that both Intermediate and Upper-Intermediate offer the most consistent approach, since they provide a greater amount of activities that help consolidation and reflection on the texts, as well as a greater variety of creative tasks that help learners to relate their experience, views, and knowledge to the texts; and this variety contributes to the integration of reading with the other skills. Other coursebooks offer few opportunities for learners to relate creatively and imaginatively to the texts. The absence of such activities in the post- reading phase hinders, in particular, the integration of reading with writing. 18 Rosa Maria Mera Rivas

8 Figure 4 Intermediate Post-reading activities Questions Discussions Vocabulary exercises Style exercises Listening activities Writing descriptions Writing stories Writing biographies Writing letters Writing summaries Writing advertisements Direct reference questions Role-play Upper Intermediate Questions Grammar exercises Vocabulary exercises Style exercises Listening activities Writing descriptions Writing instructions Writing narratives Writing reports Writing film reviews Writing biographies Writing versionsendings Writing sketches Writing advertisements Discussions Debates Direct reference questions Reading in recent ELT coursebooks 19

9 Integration of reading with other language skills The need to integrate reading with the other skills has been a consistent claim made by researchers (Barnett 1989: 141 and Grabe 1991: 396). As regards the coursebooks reviewed, Intermediate and Upper-Intermediate offer the greatest number of activities that contribute to the development of reading integrated with the other language skills. Intermediate and Upper-Intermediate offer few activities to integrate reading and writing. Finally, Intermediate and Upper-Intermediate offer few opportunities for the integration of reading with writing and listening; their focus on a lexicalstructural syllabus seems to imply that reading is presented merely as language practice. Figure 5 Criteria Suitability of topics for learners' age Guidance on the presentation of texts Variety of styles reflected in texts Enough opportunities for developing lower-level skills Enough opportunities for developing higher-level skills Balance between linguistic practice and reading skills practice Training in different real-life styles of reading Opportunities for relating learners creatively to texts Firm integration of reading with other skills Attempts to seek students' involvement Current views on reading reflected in coursebooks Conclusions To sum up, several conclusions can be drawn from the analysis of the reading activities in the coursebooks selected. The first is that they all seem to reflect current theories on reading, particularly the implications of interactive models for the reading process. Similarly, they all seem to take into account the need for developing both lower-level and higherlevel skills in learners, although a closer analysis showed considerable differences in the design and amount of activities intended for such aims. At the same time, although they all follow a three-phase approach, not all of them seem to cater for the fulfilment of the aims implied in such an approach. Thus, some coursebooks do not incorporate linguistic practice into the while-reading phase ( Intermediate and Upper- Intermediate, Intermediate and Upper-Intermediate). Others 20 Rosa Maria Mera Rivas

10 do not seem to provide enough opportunities for the development of higher-level skills ( Intermediate and Upper-Intermediate). In other cases, there is no provision for the integration of reading with other language skills, especially with writing ( Intermediate and Upper-Intermediate, Intermediate and Upper-Intermediate). As a result in my view Intermediate and Upper- Intermediate seem to be the coursebooks that most accurately reflect interactive views of reading, and in doing so achieve a greater integration of the reading skill with the other language skills. Paradoxically, the most recent coursebooks ( Intermediate and Upper-Intermediate) present a more traditional syllabus lexicalstructural in which the reading component seems to serve the purpose of learning language. Finally, an important implication for EFL teaching, derived from these conclusions, is the need to supplement deficient reading activities to help our learners become efficient readers and language users. Figure 5 reflects some subjective criteria and judgements derived from this analysis and its conclusions. Received September 1996 References Alderson, J. C 'Reading in a foreign language: a reading problem or a language problem?' in Alderson and Urquhart. Alderson, J. C. and A. H. Urquhart (eds.) Reading in a Foreign Language. London: Longman. Barnett, M. A More than Meets the Eye: Foreign Language Reading, Theory and Practice. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice Hall Regents. Berman, R 'Syntactic components of the foreign language reading process' in Alderson and Urquhart. Bernhardt, E. B Reading Development in a Second Language: Theoretical, Empirical and Classroom Perspectives. Norwood, N.J. : Ablex Publishing. Carrel], P. L 'Interactive text processing: implications for ESLsecond language reading classrooms' in Carrell et al. Carrell, P. L., J. Devine, and D. E. Eskey (eds) Interactive Approaches to Second Language Reading. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Clarke, M. A 'The short circuit hypothesis of ESL reading, or when language competence interferes with reading performance' in Carrell et al. Davies, A 'Simple, simplified and simplification: what is authentic?' in Alderson and Urquhart. Eskey, D. E. and W. Grabe 'Interactive models for second language reading: perspectives on instruction' in Carrell et al. Grabe, W 'Current developments in second language reading research'. TESOL Quarterly 253: Krashen, S. D 'We acquire vocabulary and spelling by reading: Additional evidence for the Input Hypothesis'. Modern Language Journal 734: Widdowson, H. G 'The authenticity of language data' in J. F. Fanselow and R. H. Crymes (eds). On TESOL '76. Washington: TESOL. Williams, E Reading in the Language Classroom. London: Macmillan. Williams, R 'Teaching the recognition of cohesive ties in reading a foreign language'. Reading in a Foreign Language 11: Williams, R. and D. Dallas 'Aspects of vocabulary in the readability of content area L2 educational textbooks: a case study' in Alderson and Urquhart. The author Rosa Maria Mera Rivas has a BA in English Philology from the University of Santiago, and an MA in TEFL from the University of Reading. She has taught EFL at secondary level in Spain. Her current interests include EFL reading, grammar, and translation. Reading in recent ELT coursebooks 21