An evaluation of course book “english unlimited elementary” for first year students of university of information and communication technology under thai nguyen university

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI
UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES

BÙI THU TRANG

AN EVALUATION OF COURSE BOOK
“ENGLISH UNLIMITED- ELEMENTARY” FOR
FIRST-YEAR STUDENTS OF UNIVERSITY OF
INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION
TECHNOLOGY UNDER THAI NGUYEN
UNIVERSITY
(ĐÁNH GIÁ GIÁO TRÌNH “ ENGLISH UNLIMITED
”TRÌNH ĐỘ A2 DÙNG CHO SINH VIÊN NĂM THỨ
NHẤT TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC CÔNG NGHỆ THÔNG TIN
VÀ TRUYỀN THÔNG THUỘC ĐẠI HỌC THÁI
NGUYÊN)
M.A. MINOR THESIS

Field: English Language Teaching Methodology
Code: 6014.0111

Hanoi- 2017


VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI
UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES

BÙI THU TRANG

AN EVALUATION OF COURSE BOOK
“ENGLISH UNLIMITED- ELEMENTARY” FOR
FIRST-YEAR STUDENTS OF UNIVERSITY OF
INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION
TECHNOLOGY UNDER THAI NGUYEN
UNIVERSITY
(ĐÁNH GIÁ GIÁO TRÌNH “ ENGLISH
UNLIMITED ”TRÌNH ĐỘ A2 DÙNG CHO SINH VIÊN
NĂM THỨ NHẤT TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC CÔNG NGHỆ
THÔNG TIN VÀ TRUYỀN THÔNG THUỘC ĐẠI
HỌC THÁI NGUYÊN)
M.A. MINOR THESIS
Field: English Language Teaching Methodology
Code: 6014.0111
Supervisor: Dr.Do Tuan Minh

Hanoi, 2017


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CERTIFICATE OF ORIGINALITY OF THE THESIS
I, the undersigned, hereby certify my authority of the study project report
entitled An evaluation of course book “English unlimited- elementary” for firstyear students of university of information and communication technology under
Thai Nguyen University submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the
degree of Master in English Linguistics. Except where the reference is indicated, no
other person‘s work has been used without due acknowledgement in the text of the
thesis.

Hanoi, April 2017
Signature

Bùi Thu Trang


ii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
My deepest gratitude goes to Dr.Do Tuan Minh, my supervisor, for his valuable
instructions, comments and criticisms as well as his stimulating ideas, expertise, and
suggestions have inspired me greatly through my growing this thesis.
I am deeply indebted to the teachers and students at ICTU for their generous
cooperation and enthusiasm from which I have benefited a lot during my study.
Finally, I wish to express my sincerely thanks to my family for the sacrifice they
have devoted to the fulfillment of this academic work.


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ABSTRACT
The coursebook ―English Unlimited- Elementary‖ is written by Alex Tilbury,
Theresa Clementson, Leslie Anne Hendra & David Rea in 2010 and used for the
first-year students at University of Information and Communication Technology
under Thai Nguyen University since 2014. However, up to now, there has been no
official research conducted to evaluate the relevance of the coursebook to the
learners‘ purposes as well as its outcome requirements. The purpose of this study is
to reveal the findings and information about the coursebook evaluation from the
perspectives of students and teachers of ICTU. With this regard, the study tries to
assess the relevance of the coursebook to the students‘ needs in terms of knowledge,
skills and methodology. The study is divided into three parts including:
Introduction, Development and Conclusion. Ten teachers of English and 120 firstyear students participated in the survey. The findings show that the coursebook is

rather relevant to the needs of learners.


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TABLE OF CONTENTS
PART A: INTRODUCTION
1. Rationale of the study............................................................................................1
2. Aims of the study ..................................................................................................2
3. Research questions ................................................................................................2
4. Scope of the study .................................................................................................3
5. Method of the study ..............................................................................................3
6. Design of the study................................................................................................3
PART B: DEVELOPMENT
CHAPTER I: LITERATURE REVIEW
1.1. Materials in language teaching and learning......................................................4
1.1.1. Definition ..................................................................................................5
1.1.2. The role of materials .................................................................................6
1.1.3. Types of materials
1.2. Materials evaluation ...........................................................................................7
1.2.1. Definition of materials evaluation ............................................................7
1.2.2. Purposes of materials evaluation ..............................................................8
1.2.3. Types of materials evaluation ...................................................................9
1.2.4. Methods of materials evaluation ............................................................10
1.2.5. Criteria for materials evaluation .............................................................11
1.2.6. Materials evaluation models ...................................................................12
1.3. Needs analysis ..................................................................................................14
1.4. Material adaptation…………………………………………………………..16
CHAPTER II: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
2.1. An overview of current GE teaching and learning at ICTU ............................19

2.1.1. Context....................................................................................................17
2.1.2. Course objectives ....................................................................................20
2.1.3. The coursebook description ....................................................................21
2.2. Research methods.............................................................................................22
2.2.1. Research question ...................................................................................22
2.2.2. Participants .............................................................................................22
2.2.3. Data collection instruments ....................................................................23
2.2.4. Data collection procedure .......................................................................24
CHAPTER III: RESEASRCH RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS
3.1. About learners ..................................................................................................25
3.1.1. Learners‘ level of English ......................................................................25


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3.1.2. Learners‘ purposes and expectations of learning the GE course ―English
Unlimited Elementary‖ ............................................................................26
3.1.3. Evaluation on the needs satisfied by the course book ............................27
3.2. Learners‘ and teachers‘ evaluation of the coursebook ―English Unlimited
Elementary‖ .............................................................................................................27
3.2.1. The evaluation on the knowledge ...........................................................27
3.2.2. General evaluation on the students‘ process ..........................................33
3.2.3. The evaluation on skills ..........................................................................33
3.2.4. Evaluation on the methodology………………………………………..34
3.3. Teachers‘ suggestions fr the materials improvement…………………………35


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PART C: CONCLUSION
1. Summary of the study .........................................................................................37

3. Some conclusions ................................................................................................37
3. Limitations of the study ......................................................................................38
4. Suggested for further study .................................................................................39
REFERENCE……………………………………………………………………..40
Appendices………………………………………………………………………..I
Appendix 1: …………………………………………………………………………I
Appendix 2:………………………………………………………………….……. V
Appendix 3:………………………………………………………………..……… X
Appendix 4: .…………………………………………………………...…………XII
Appendix 5:…..………………………………………………………………..XVIII
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS
ESL/EFL

English as a Second Language/ English as a Foreign Language

ESP

English for Specific Purposes

GE

General English

ICTU

University of Information and Communication Technology


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PART A: INTRODUCTION
1. Rationale of the study
Since Vietnam began its open-door policy, English teaching and learning has
strongly developed and English is considered an important subject taught at both
schools and universities. University of Information and Communication Technology
(ICTU) under Thai Nguyen University is not an exception. Appropriate materials
are thought to stimulate effective teaching and learning. Because of materials‘ role
to second language acquisition, material evaluation has become a major concern of
several researchers. Cunnings worth (1995) and Ellis (1997) have suggested that
course book evaluation helps teachers move beyond impressionistic assessments
and help them to acquire useful and contextual insights into the overall nature of the
material.
In the curriculum for ICTU students, English courses account for 10 credits,
which are distributed into two phases: General English (GE) and English for
Specific Purposes (ESP). General English consisting of two courses (a total of six
credits) aim to train students in four general skills of English. ESP including two
courses with four credits in total is designed to teach students English language for
specific purposes, such as English for Electronics and Telecommunications, English
for Automation Technology and English for Information Technology.
In ICTU, course books are mostly used in teaching and learning materials for
both teachers and the learners. They not only provide a framework for teachers in
achieving the aims and objectives of the course but also play an important role as a
guide to the teacher in conducting the lesson. Therefore, using a course book is
probably the most common way of teaching English today. However, now with a
variety of textbook available on the market each with a different methodology and
syllabus, it can be much more difficult to choose the best suitable book for a
particular teaching situation. Thus, it is necessary for language teachers to carefully
examine all aspects of the materials and to take advantage of the materials.
The course book ―English Unlimited- Elementary‖ is used for teaching GE
for the first year students at ICTU since 2014 and also both positive and negative

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response from both students and teachers. However, up to now, no research on the
course book evaluation has been conducted to recognize its strength and weakness
as well as how suitably the course book matched the goal of the course. In response
to the problem, it is an urgent demand to carry out an evaluation of the course book
to determine its appropriateness for students at our university then provide the
adaptation for the better use.
For these above-mentioned reasons, the researcher decided to choose
materials evaluation as the theme of this minor thesis titled as:
“AN

EVALUATION

OF

COURSE

BOOK

“ENGLISH

UNLIMITED-

ELEMENTARY” FOR FIRST-YEAR STUDENTS OF UNIVERSITY OF
INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY UNDER THAI
NGUYEN UNIVERSITY”
2. Aims of the study

The study is carried out to evaluate the course book ―English UnlimitedElementary ‖ which is used as teaching materials for first- year students at ICTU to
see how is the appropriate degree of the course book to meet the requirement of the
course learning outcomes in terms of knowledge, skills and attitudes. The specific
aims are:
 To evaluate the appropriateness of the material to the course requirements in
term of knowledge, skills and attitudes.
 To offer suggestions for its better use.
3. Research question:
1. How is the course book English Unlimited- Elementary relevant to the course
outcomes requirements in terms of knowledge, skills and methodology?
2. What should be done so that this coursebook is used better?
4. Scope of the study
The course book English Unlimited- Elementary is only for the first year
students at ICTU, thus the study focuses on the evaluation of the first year students
at ICTU on course book currently used. In material evaluation, there have been a
number of criteria that should be taken into consideration, such as the content, the


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methodology, the layout, the culture bias, the authenticity, and so on. It will be
highly precious to conduct a comprehensive evaluation of the course book.
However, within the scope of a minor thesis, the criteria for evaluation were based
on Hutchinson and Waters‘ (1987) with focus on three criteria: Knowlegde, Skills
and Methodology to see how the course book is relevant to learners‘ needs.
5. Methods of the study
To conduct this study, two main instruments were used to collect data:
- Survey questionnaires - were designed for both first-year students of Faculty of
Information Technology and ten involved teachers of English at ICTU.
- Semi-structured interviews - were conducted to look for both teachers and

students‘ further opinions on the course book based on their experience in using it
or to clarify any misunderstanding.
6. Design of the study
The study consists of three parts:
Part A: Introduction – presents the rationale, aims, the research questions, scope,
methodology and design of the thesis.
Part B: Development – includes three chapters:
Chapter I: Literature review – provides theoretical basis for the study with literature
review on the aspects relating to material evaluation such as: materials in language
teaching and learning, materials evaluation. Readers are provided with concise
understandings of the definition of materials evaluation, purposes, types, methods of
materials evaluation, criteria and materials evaluation models. Besides, in this
chapter, materials adaptation for the better use has been presented.
Chapter II: Research methodology – describes the methods employed in this thesis.
Chapter III: Analysis of data and suggestion for materials adaptation - is devoted to
the analysis of the survey questionnaire and interview of the course book evaluation
carried out at ICTU in which description, data collection, and analysis are
demonstrated in detail. This chapter also reports main findings of the thesis to
address the research questions.


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Part C: Conclusion – summarizes the content of the thesis with regard to the
relevance of the course book in terms of three evaluated aspects, and points out
some limitations of the study.


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PART B: DEVELOPMENT
CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW
This chapter is concerned with the review of a theoretical base to develop an
operational framework for the evaluation of the course book “English UnlimitedElementary” used for first-year students at ICTU. The first section in this chapter
presents materials in language teaching and learning with regard. Next, the study
presents an overview of materials evaluation. Then, need analysis will be presented.
At last, the chapter will end up with theoretical discussion about materials
adaptation.
1.1. Materials in language teaching and learning.
1.1.1. Definition
It is important to give a good definition about textbook, course book and
material to do a book evaluation in a correct way.
Tomlinson (1998) defines that a textbook provides the core materials for a
course. It aims to provide as much as possible in one book and is designed so that it
could be serve as the only book which the learner necessarily use during a course.
Such a book usually includes work on grammar, vocabulary, function and the skills
of reading, writing, listening and speaking.
Ur (1996: 183) has given a simple one; it is very useful and easy to
understand. It reads as follows:
The term „course book‟ means, a text book of which the teacher and each
student has a copy and which is in principle to be followed systematically as the
basis for a language course. Therefore, from the above definition one can get that a
course book must have at least being available in the hand of students and teachers,
and used systematically in a course of study, and a course of study in this article
refers to an English course of study.
In Richards (2001:251) definition: ―Materials can be instructional,
experiential, elucidative and exploratory, in that they can inform learners about the
language, they can provide experience of the language in use, they can stimulate

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language use or they can help learners to make discoveries about the language for
themselves‖.
1.1.2. The role of material in general English course
In language teaching and learning, materials play important roles which are
mentioned by different authors in the literature. There are five important
components involved in English language instruction namely students, teachers,
materials, teaching methods, and evaluations among which essential constituents are
the textbooks and instruction materials because these instruction materials provide
the foundation for the content of the lesson, the balance of the skill taught, as well
as the kinds of language practice the students engage in during class activities.
Nunan (1988) mentions the vital role of teaching materials:
―Materials are in fact an essential element within the curriculum, and do
more than simply lubricate the wheels of learning. At their best they provide
concrete models of desirable classroom practice, they act as curriculum models for
teachers to follow in developing their own materials.‖ (p.98)
Stressing on the role of materials, Richard (2001) states that materials
provide a basic for the content of the lesson, the appropriate proportion of skills
taught, and the type of language practice students take part in. Furthermore, useful
teaching materials provide great assistance to inexperienced teachers or poorly
trained teachers. They can serve as ―a form of teacher training‖ (Richard, 2001:251)
and teachers can get ideas on how to plan and teach the lesson from the materials.
1.1.3. Types of materials
Published materials
Published materials refer to any kind of materials which is commercially
offered in the market. There are several advantages for basing the curriculum on a
series of ESL textbooks. First, the textbooks have a clearly identified set of
achievement objectives which include what the learners are expected to be able to
do and what to expect next. Second, there is a consistency in the topics and genres

in the four skills area (listening, speaking, reading, and writing). This allows for
greater autonomy in the learning process. Finally, ESL course books are the


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cheapest and most convenient ways of providing learning materials to each student.
All of these reasons make using these textbooks a very popular choice in the
English learning curriculum. The most obvious advantage of these materials is its
availability for use.
However, these published materials do have some limitations. First, most
textbooks contain a lot of activities where students do ―questions and answers‖.
After a few lessons, many students may find the learning process boring and
uninteresting. The second issue that teachers should consider is student motivation.
Most college students expect their English courses to be something different from
their high school English classes. So when we give them textbooks that are
similarly designed as their past learning materials, the students may quickly lose
their interest and motivation to study. Finally, although most ESL textbooks are
well organized with many different kinds of activities, however, they do not provide
enough details in other aspects of language study.
Home-made materials
Home-made materials refer to those materials developed by teachers or
practitioners for their own students in their teaching context. There are also
arguments for and against the use of home-made materials. Firstly, Block (1991)
argued that an important advantage of home-made materials is contextualization.
Home-made materials are likely to be more specific and appropriate than published
ones and to have greater face validity in terms of the language deal with and the
context it is presented in. Secondly, home-made materials may be more flexible. In
designing their own materials teachers can also make decisions about the most
appropriate organizing principle or focus for the materials and activities. And this

can be changed over the course of the programmed if necessary. A further
advantage of home-made materials is timeliness (Block, 1991). Teachers designing
their own materials can respond to local and international events with up-to-date,
relevant and high interest topics and tasks. In conclusion, the advantages of homemade materials can be summed up in the idea that they avoid the ‗one-size-fits-all‘
approach of most commercial materials.


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Despite the above mentioned advantages, home-made materials have some
limitations. Firstly, there are potential pitfalls for teachers who would be materials
designers like organization. Home-made materials may lack overall coherence and a
clear progression. Without some overall organizing principle, materials may be
piecemeal and can result in poorly focused activities lacking clear direction.
Secondly, the most common criticism against home-made materials is to do with
their quality. At the surface level, home-made materials may ―seem ragged and
unprofessional next to those produced by professionals‖.
Finally, the key factor inhibiting many teachers from producing their own
teaching materials is time. It must be take a lot of time for the teachers to design
suitable materials for their learners in their particular teaching and learning context
because all the involved elements of the textbooks, such as linguistic content,
culture values, and authenticity should be taken into consideration.
1.2. Material evaluation
1.2.1. Definition of materials evaluation
Up to now, there have been a number of researchers express their own point
of view regarding the definition of material evaluation.
According to Tomlinson (2001), ―Marterial evaluation is a procedure that
involves measuring the value (for potential value) of a set of learning material‖
Hutchinson and Waters (1993:p96) also give definition of materials
evaluation, as ―Evaluation is a matter of judging the fitness of something for a

particular purposes. Give a certain need, and in light of the resources available,
which is out of a number of possibilities can represent the best solution?‖ In other
words, ―Evaluation is basically a matching process: matching needs to available
solutions‖.
From Dudley (1998:128) defines ―evaluation is a whole process which
begins with determining what information to gather and ends with bringing about
the change in current activities or influencing future ones‖.
Material evaluation is ―a process not a final product‖ with ―attempts to
measure the value of materials‖ (Tomlinson, 1998) or ―the systematic appraisal of


9

the value of materials in relation to their objectives and to the objectives of the
learners using them‖.
With regards to this issue, Murphy (1985:210) considers evaluation one of
the key concepts in ELT to ―determine the extent to which a programmed is
worthwhile, and to aid decision-making through the purposeful gathering
information‖. In the programmed evaluation, material evaluation is given a great
deal of attention.
In conclusion, from above authors‘ general definition of evaluation, it can be
inferred that evaluation is a process of giving judgments, determining requirements,
collecting data, evaluation must include actions.
1.2.2. Purposes of material evaluation
An evaluation of teaching materials helps to identify articular strengths and
weaknesses of material in use. After being used in the classroom for a certain period
of time, teaching materials need to be evaluated to see if they have worked well for
the intended situation and students.
According to Cunningsworth (1995), through evaluation, we can assess
whether the course book is the most appropriate for the target learners at various

levels and in various teaching settings.
Ellis (1997) mentions that, there are two main reasons for carrying out
materials evaluation. Firstly, there may be need to choose among the materials
available the most suitable ones to use for a particular situation. Secondly, there can
be a need for materials evaluation to determine whether the material, which has
been chosen, works for that situation after it has been used for a period of time. This
may help in deciding whether to use the material again or replace it with a better
one.
Anderson (1992) sets out a list of purposes of materials evaluation as follow:
 To decide whether the materials have had the intended effect.
 To identify what affect materials have had.
 To vindicate a decision.
 To justify the future course of action.


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 To compare approaches/methodologies.
 To identify the areas for improvement in the future use.
 To show the positive achievements of teachers and students.
 To motivate teachers.
 To allay suspicions among parents and sponsors.
1.2.3. Types of materials evaluation
There are different researchers having different ways of dividing coursebook evaluation according to different researchers.
According to Cunningsworth (1995, p. 76) and McGrath (2002, pp. 14-15),
there are three types of material evaluation: pre-use, in use and post use evaluation.
This classification is similar to Ellis (1997) with different names: Preliminary,
Formative, and Summative Evaluation respectively. In spite of different terms used
to refer types of materials evaluation, these terms are basically similar and discussed
as containing three types.

Pre-use evaluation: according to Tomlinson (2003:23) often takes place
before the materials are used to predict the potential value of materials for their
users to select a course book for use with a particular class. It seems that pre-use
evaluation tends to be the most difficult type as there is no actual experience of
using the materials.
In-use evaluation is a kind of evaluation of suitability, involving ―matching
the course book against a specific requirement including the learner‘s objectives,
the learners‘ background, the resources available, etc.‖ (Cunningsworth, 1995, p14)
Post-use evaluation refers to an assessment of a textbook‘s fitness over a
period of continual use. According to Tomlinson (2003:25), evaluation of this kind
can be ―the most valuable as it can measure the actual effect of the material on the
users‖. Basing on the data measured, evaluators can make reliable decisions about
the use, adaptation or replacement of the materials. However, this type of material is
normally time – consuming.
In summary, there is no difference in distinguishing evaluation process.
Preliminary or pre-use evaluation established potential suitability of the materials.


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Formative or in-use evaluation examines how materials really work in by gathering
data on planning decisions, implementation and response. Summative or post-use
evaluation is used at the end of the course in order to provide retrospective
assessment and identify which strengths and weaknesses of the materials. Basing on
the current context of ICTU, the writer decided to choose the post – use evaluation
to measure the appropriateness of the course book and offer some method of
adaptation for its better use.
1.2.4. Methods of materials evaluation
1.2.4.1. The impressionistic method
According to Cunningsworth (1995:2), the impressionistic method is

designed to be able to gain an impression of a book by looking rather more carefully
at representative features, such as the organization, topics, layout, visuals and the
design of a unit or lesson or more specific features, such as the treatment of
particular language elements. Therefore, this method is wide ranging but relatively
superficial due to the fact that ―techniques of impressionistic evaluation cover the
wide spectrum‖.
1.2.4.2. The checklist method
McGrath (2002) states that ―a checklist is likely to need tailoring to suit a
particular context, and this can involve a good deal more than simply deleting
checklist items which are in applicable. Moreover, William (1993, cited in
McGrath, 2002:27) points out that ―checklist cannot a static phenomenon‖. This
means that the items in all materials evaluation checklist reflect the time at which
they are conceived.
1.2.4.3. The in-depth method
In-depth method consists of a focus on specific features (Cunningsworth,
1995), close analysis of one or more extracts (Hutchinson and Waters, 1987), or
throughout examination of two units using predetermined questions (McGrath,
2002). McGrath also argued that besides its advantages, this evaluation method has
certain disadvantages. Firstly, samples selected for analysis may not be
representative of the book as a whole. Secondly, only a particular section of the


12

material is focused. Moreover, this method takes time and requires expert
knowledge (McGrath, 2002:28).
1.2.5. Criteria for materials evaluation
Criteria is what evaluators use to ―reach a decision regarding what needs to
be evaluated‖ (Tomlinson, 1998: 220). In other words, they are the bases upon
which the evaluators depend when making judgments. Many scholars have

suggested different ways to help evaluators do their evaluation more systematically
by suing a checklist.
William (1983) suggests seven criteria, each of which has the following
aspects:
 General criteria: give introductory guidance on the presentation of the
language items and skills.
 Speech criteria: suggest aids for the teaching of pronunciation: e.g. phonetic
system.
 Grammar criteria: offer meaningful situations and variety of techniques for
teaching structural units.
 Vocabulary criteria: distinguish the different purposes and skills involved in
the teaching of vocabulary.
 Reading criteria: provide the guidance on the initial presentation of passages
for reading comprehension.
 Writing criteria: demonstrate the various devices for controlling and guiding
content and expression in compositions exercises.
 Technique criteria: contain appropriate pictures, diagrams, table, etc…
Hutchinson and Waters (1993, p.99-104) suggest five evaluation criteria for
objective and subjective analysis as follow:
 Audience: the learners and the materials intended for
 Aims: the aims of the course and the aims of the materials
 Content: language description, language points, proportion of work, microskill, text-types, macro-skills, proportion, level of knowledge, types of


13

 Methodology: theory of learning, learners‘ attitudes, kinds of exercises,
teaching-learning techniques, aids, guidance/ support for teaching, the
flexibility of materials.
 Other criteria: price, quantities, availability.

With regard to my context, the criteria set out by Hutchinson and Waters
(1993) is the most suitable one.
1.2.6. Materials evaluation model.
There are several different models for materials evaluation, the most
commonly models are suggested by Ellis (1997), McDonough & Shaw (1993), and
Hutchinson and Water ( 1987).
1.2.6.1. Evaluation by Ellis (1997)
In his model, Ellis suggests the practice of a detailed empirical evaluation and
focuses on evaluation at the task level with reference to its actual teaching and
learning context. The steps are as follows:
1. Choosing the task to follow;
2. Describing the task with specification of input, procedures, language activities
and outcomes;
3. Planning the evaluation with reference to the dimensions above;
4. Collecting information before, while and after the task was used, and what how
the task performed;
5. Analyzing the information collected;
6. Reaching conclusions relating to what has been discovered, and making
recommendations for the future teaching
7. Writing the report.
Ellis‘s model is a micro-evaluation .The aim of this model is to identify the
match between task planned and task in use. However, it can only be conducted
when the materials are being used in the classroom.
1.2.6.2. Evaluation by Hutchinson and Waters (1987)


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There is a difference between Ellis‘s model and this model. If Ellis‘s model
is a micro-evaluation, this one is actually a macro-evaluation as to be shown in this

diagram:
Define criteria
On what bases will you judge
materials? Which criteria will
be more important?

Subjective analysis

Objective analysis

What realizations of the
criteria do you want in your
course?

How does the material
being evaluated realize the
criteria?

Matching
How far does the
material match your
needs?

Figure 1: Materials evaluation model of Hutchinson and Waters (1987:97)
There are objective and subjective analyses in a checklist and the evaluators
should supplement other important criteria in the process of evaluating. Then
identifying the evaluator‘s requirements; analyzing the material and comparing
findings those two aspects by awarding points. However, the authors also note that
highest number of points does not necessarily indicate the most suitable material as
the points may be concentrated in one area.

1.2.6.3. Evaluation by McDonough and Shaw (1993)
McDonough and Shaw show a combination between macro and micro
evaluation. This model includes three stages: external evaluation, internal
evaluation, and overall evaluation. The internal stage requires an in-depth look at
two or more units to examine whether claims made by the author are the one found
in the internal evaluation. The internal stage will be carried out if the external


15

evaluation shows that the materials are potentially appropriate. If the findings show
that the materials are inappropriate, the evaluation will be finished at the external
stage.
The model proposed by Mc Donough and Shaw (1993) illustrates a logical
procedure for materials evaluation. However, the figure does not discuss the
objectives and criteria of the materials which are important to ensure the learners‘
learning success as well as teachers‘ effective teaching.
In summary, analyzing learners‘ needs is useful in teaching foreign
languages. And the author thinks that Hutchinson and Water (1987) recommend an
effective model. It clearly shows the evaluator the whole picture to analyze the
materials in accordance with the first year students at ICTU. Hence, in this study,
the author adopts the this model to examine whether the currently –used materials is
suitable for the students at ICTU.

1.3. Needs analysis
Need analysis (also known as needs assessment) has a vital role in the
process of designing and carrying out any language course, whether it be English
for Specific Purposes (ESP) or general English course, and its centrality has been
acknowledged by several scholars and authors.
This term ― need analysis‖ according to Elaine Tarone and George Yule (

1999), when it has been used in the context of language instruction, has usually
referred to the collection and evaluation of information to answer the question: “
What aspects of the language does some particular group of learners need to
know?‖. Mountford (1981) offers the definition that needs can be defined as what
students should be able to do at the end of their language course or ―what the user –
institution or society at large regards as necessary or desirable to be learnt from a
program of language of language instruction. Another definition given by Brindley
(1981:27) is that needs refer to wants, desires, demands, expectations, motivations,
lacks, constraints, and requirements. It is evident that course designers may take
students‘ needs into consideration when designing a course. Clearly, the role of


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needs analysis in any ESP course is indisputable. For Johns (1991), needs analysis
is the first step in course design and it provides validity and relevancy for all
subsequent course design activities. Different approaches to needs analysis attempt
to meet the needs of the learners in the process of learning a second language.
Among which, a modern and comprehensive concept of needs analysis is proposed
by Dudley-Evans and St. John (1998: 125) which reflects other approaches. Their
concept of need analysis is as follows:
 Environmental situation - information about the situation in

which the

course will be run (means analysis);
 Personal information about learners - factors which may affect the way they
learn (wants, means, subjective needs);
 Language information about learners - what their current skills and language
use are (present situation analysis);

 Learner's lacks (the gap between the present situation and professional
information about learners);Learner's needs from course - what is wanted
from the course (short-term needs);
 Language learning needs - effective ways of learning the skills and language
determined by lacks;
 Professional information about learners - the tasks and activities English
learners are/will be using English for (Target Situation Analysis and
objective needs);
 How to communicate in the target situation – knowledge of how language
and skills are used in

the target situation (register analysis, discourse

analysis, genre analysis).
Today, teachers are aware of that different types of needs analyses are in close
association to complete the jigsaw of needs analysis (Figure 2).


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Figure 2. Needs Analysis Jigsaw
As can be seen from the figure, need analyses should be the common
concern of not only ESP but also the general English because the needs of the
learners play paramount importance in any language process. Therefore, what the
designers should do is to analyze students‘ needs in order to design appropriate
courses so that students feel motivated and learn English faster and more
effectively. It is clearly that need analysis is of great importance to the effectiveness
of teaching and learning process.
1.4. Materials adaptation
Materials adaptation is a process of language teaching and learning. It

matches materials with the learner‘s needs, the teacher‘s demands, and
administration‘s purpose. The aim of materials adaptation is to make the teaching
materials the most appropriate in a particular teaching context by making some
changes.