Lecture 8: Materials Adaptation

1. Why do we need to adapt materials?

Despite the great effort that textbook writers make to meet the needs of the intended users,
textbooks are subject to adaptation when they are actually used in the classroom After all, most
commercial textbooks are not written for any particular class !hat makes the matter worse is that
sometimes the teachers are compelled to use certain materials, that is, materials imposed by
authorities "n a word, in most #L$ cases, teachers ha%e to adapt the materials they are using if
they want their teaching to be more effecti%e and more interesting
Materials adaptation should be based on the results of materials e%aluation &f course different
materials ha%e different potential areas for adaptation $he following are some common
deficiencies of existing #L$ materials:
fail 'unable( to fulfil the goals and objecti%es specified by national or local syllabuses or
curricula
fail to fulfil the goals and objecti%es of schools where the materials are used
cannot be finished in the time a%ailable
re)uire facilities or e)uipment or other supporting materials that are not a%ailable
not engaging the learners* personality
detrimental to the learners* culture
not cater for the learners* interests
McDonough and +haw ',--.:8/( ha%e listed more reasons for materials adaptation $he most
important reason is that there is mismatch between what is needed and what is pro%ided by
materials
2. Principles of materials adaptation
0rant ',-81( has listed the following principles for materials adaptation:
,( Making dialogues communicati%e
2( Making learning acti%ities rele%ant and purposeful
.( Meet your learners* needs, both external and psychological
3( 4se models of real, authentic language
5ery often, adaptation in%ol%es supplementation, that is, teachers add materials from other
resources to the textbook they are using "t is belie%ed that authentic materials are better than non6
authentic materials for supplementation +o teachers who make a point of collecting authentic
materials find it much easier to adapt textbooks $his is especially true in #L$ contexts where
authentic #nglish materials are not always readily to hand
DONTS in materials adaptation:
,( $eachers should not adapt materials too casually, eg based on his or her own preferences or
tastes7
2( Materials adaptation should not be done at the expense of completeness and o%erall framework
of the materials
.( Materials deleted or added should not go beyond a reasonable proportion, otherwise consider
alternati%e materials
3( $eachers should not adapt materials only to cater for the needs of exams or tests
. !e"el of materials adaptation
$extbook adaptation can be done at three le%els:
1# $acro adaptation
$his is ideally done before the language programme begins After comparing what is co%ered in a
textbook and what is re)uired by the syllabus or examination, the teacher may find that certain
areas or e%en whole units of the book can be omitted, and certain contents need to be
supplemented Macro adaptation is %ery important because it helps to a%oid waste of time and
energy of the teacher and the students as well "t also helps the teacher to see in ad%ance what he
or she needs to supplement so that he or she can keep an eye on materials that could be used
2# %daptin& a 'nit
$his could be reordering the acti%ities, combining acti%ities, omitting acti%ities, rewriting or
supplementing exercise material, etc 4nit adaptation helps to make the classroom teaching more
smooth and cohesi%e "t also helps the teacher to better fulfil the aims of a unit
# %daptation of specific acti"ities
&ccasionally an acti%ity is regarded as %aluable, but it is not well6designed or it is not feasible in a
particular class "f the teacher does not want to gi%e up the acti%ity, he or she needs to adapt it
(. Specific adaptation
Maley ',--8:28,, in $omlinson, ,--8( suggested the following options for materials adaptation:
Omission: the teacher lea%es out things deemed inappropriate, offensi%e, unproducti%e, etc,
for the particular group
%ddition: where there seems to be inade)uate co%erage, teachers may decide to add to
textbooks, either in the form of texts or exercise material
)ed'ction: where the teacher shortens an acti%ity to gi%e it less weight or emphasis
*+tension: where an acti%ity is lengthened in order to gi%e it an additional dimension 'for
example, a %ocabulary acti%ity is extended to draw attention to some syntactic patterning(
)ewritin&,modification: teacher may occasionally decide to rewrite material, especially
exercise material, to make it more appropriate, more 8communicati%e9, more demanding,
more accessible to their students, etc
)eplacement: text or exercise material which is considered inade)uate, for whate%er reason,
may be replaced by more suitable material $his is often culled from other resource materials
)e-orderin&: teachers may decide that the order in which the textbooks are presented is not
suitable for their students $hey can then decide to plot a different course through the
textbooks from the one the writer has laid down
.ranchin&: teachers may decide to add options to the existing acti%ity or to suggest
alternati%e pathways through the acti%ities 'for example, an experiential route or an
analytical route(
/. $aterials adaptation: some e+amples
%ssi&nment
+tudy the materials pro%ided, choose a unit that you think needs adaptation, and make some
suggestions about possible adaptation so that the unit can be used more effecti%ely in the class
!rite a one6page report about your suggestions and prepare to gi%e a ten6minute presentation
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