ELT News Think Tank

This Month's Think Tank Panel

Marc Helgesen

Peter Viney

Chuck Sandy

Panelists: Marc | Peter | Chuck
Date: June 2002

Topic: "How can I make the best use of my textbook?"

Marc Helgesen

A textbook is a tool. You don’t use every tool in your toolbox for every project. And you don’t always use tools in the same way. Just like the objects in your toolbox, you need to get to know your textbook well to get the most out of it.

By now, you are probably well into the new school year. Still, I suggest start by reading the introduction. I know this seems obvious but most people skip over the intro. The preface to your book (some books only include it in the Teachers Manual), will let you know the belief system behind the book and will probably offer some practice tips. It might even point out some “easy to overlook” features. This will probably only take ten or fifteen minutes. I think you owe it to yourself and your students to invest the time.

I don’t think many authors are arrogant enough (would “naïve” or “stupid” be better words) to think that teachers teach our books exactly the way we have them laid out, first page 1, then page 2, on to page 3…doing everything on each page and nothing else. Of course, teachers modify the books and make them their own. It is useful, however, to know what it there. For the first lesson or two, you might trying staying fairly close to the lesson in the book (and outlined in the Teachers Manual). It will let you and the students know how the book works which will put you in a better position to pick and choose later.

I notice I’m only four paragraphs into this column and I’ve already mentioned the Teacher’s Manual (TM) twice. I echo Peter here in wishing more teachers would have a look at manuals. They’ve have come a long, long way since the days that TMs were basically an answer key and the tapescript. Authors recognize that different teachers rely on the TM for very different purposes. Some teachers want line-by-line lesson plans. Others want options and variations. Some need grammar and culture notes. Nearly everyone wants the extra expansion activities: No matter how much you like a particular book, you have to get the students out of the book at times. The TM probably has expansions that will help you do that in a way that reinforces and builds on the text-based material.

You should know that TMs often contain extra activities that are a bit on the edge. Stuff that is too "strange" for a main book often ends up in the TM. It is a resource for the kind of teacher who wants those types of activities but doesn’t get in the way of a teacher who can’t/doesn’t want to deal with in. An example: In my own classes, I often do multi-sensory work with the target structures of a lesson. It often involves imaging grammar. It’s wonderful stuff, but I know that a lot of people would never be comfortable have students close their eyes for activities (certainly not for a 9:00 am class ­ their eyes would stay closed!). So I put those kinds of activities in the TMs in a section called, "The language box and the senses." It’s a tool, for those teachers that want it.

Of course, you’ll want to see if your book has a web site that offers extra materials, teacher discussion, etc.

I guess my whole point it to get to know what is in your textbook, then make it your own. After all, it isn’t just the authors’ book. It’s your book now.

Panelists: Marc | Peter | Chuck

Marc Helgesen, Miyagi Gakuin Women's College

Co-author of English Firsthand and Active Listening

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