The Possibility of using the 'New Cutting Edge' at the Senior High Schools in Indonesia

Fitrina Harmaini
Dosen Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris, FKIP
Universitas Bung Hatta

Abstract

The need of course books in the in English learning classroom setting should consider
the requirement of any classroom setting. In Indonesian classroom, English curriculum is
designed to make learners acquire listening and reading skill as it is implied through the
material tested in the National Final Examination. In order to attempt to fulfil such
requirement, this paper sees the possibility of using a modern course book ‘New Cutting
Edge” in Indonesian secondary classroom. It does pre-use evaluation towards the book. Two
criteria to evaluate are reading material and educational validity. The finding shows us that
the ‘New Cutting Edge’ can cater the requirement of English learning at secondary level.
Key words: course book, pre-use evaluation, classroom setting

1. Introduction

Zacharias's study (2005) has found the fact that there have been trend and preference

among Indonesian teachers to use the international course book instead of local ones in the

classroom. The teachers' reason is due to the accuracy of English use. Considering such

phenomena, this paper is interested in evaluating a modern English language textbook 'New

Cutting Edge' by Sarah Cunningham and Peter Moor in order to see the possibility of using it

in Indonesia.

A course book is one of the most important materials in Indonesian Secondary School

classroom. Every class uses a certain course book as the core material. A teacher or the school

board is free to pick up any course book to use in the classroom by referring to the national

curriculum and the form of national examination that the students have to face. The

curriculum and the final national examination are two things the teachers should consider

when picking up a course book as Williams (1983) stated that needs of the ESL learners

should be among the criteria in evaluating a course book. The form of national examination is

written test examining students' competency in reading and listening skills. Considering those

elements; Language competency and more focus to reading skills, this paper will be doing a
pre-use evaluation to the content materials of the 'New Cutting Edge'.

2. Review of related literature

There several different reasons teachers or a program to do a course book evaluation

for example, to select a suitable course book for use, to review the effectiveness of a book at

a learning process, and etc. The Differences in purposes, timing, and so on, of a course book

evaluation categories the evaluation into 3 types: Pre-use Evaluation, Whilst-use Evaluation,

Post-use Evaluation. (Tomlinson, 2003, 23-6)

As the purpose of the evaluation is to see the possibility of using the 'New Cutting

Edge' in Indonesian classroom, this paper will be doing a Pre-use evaluation. A Pre-use

evaluation is done before a course or a programme uses the book. Ellis (1998, 220) believes

that it is motivated by the need of using a right course book that is appropriate to the

particular learners in a learning programme. The evaluation will try to see the potential value

of materials that are relevant to the need of future users for the sake of materials uses

(Tomlinson, 2003, 23).

An evaluation is expected to result in a right decision of selecting the material to use.

In order to fulfil such expectations, it applies some criteria to see in a course book

(Tomlinson, 1998, 220). Some researchers have proposed a lot of criteria for the material

evaluation. As the need of Indonesian Secondary School is acquiring reading skills in order to

pass the national examination, this paper will focus only to develop two criteria as follows:

 Reading

1. it offers exercises for understanding of plain sense and implied meaning

2. it relates reading passages to the learners' background

3. the vocabulary range is within the learners' level

(Williams, 1983, 255)

It is impossible that the text content of a material is totally relating to learners'

experience, or the learners fully understand the meaning of the text. But, what is expected is

the learners could make interpretation about the text and connect the information in the text

with their previous knowledge already existed in their mind or do 'mental representation'.

(Masuhara, 2003, 341). In order to examine how such 'mental representation' could happen

and the text materials are relevant to the learners, the text presentation and kinds of tasks

following it will be examined.

 Educational validity

‘Does the textbook take account of, and seem to be in tune with, broader educational

concerns (e.g. the nature and role of learning skills, concept development in younger learners,

the function of 'knowledge of the world', the exploitation of sensitive issues, the value of

metaphor as a power of cognitive learning device)?’ (Sheldon, 1988, 244)

These criteria will look into how the material content enables learners to improve

their personal development and encourage them to apply the skills to the real life out of

classroom.

Furthermore, the basic need to use a course book is to provide learning input to the

students. In a course book, input transfer to the learners is facilitated by the kind of tasks

provided. So, in this evaluation, the tasks of the material will be examined. Littlejohn (1998,

198) gives us definition of task, ‘… refers to any proposal contained within the materials for

action to be undertaken by the learners, which has direct aim of bringing about the learning of

the foreign language' Then, he focuses the three aspects of task: a process that leads to the

learning, classroom participation, and content to focus on. While Ellis (1998, 226) referring

Richards, Platt and Webber defines 'task' as any respond given as the result of processing or

understanding a verbal or non-verbal language (input), the responds also could be either in

verbal or non-verbal, and the teacher usually should specify the successful completion of the

task. Candlin in Nunan (1998) proposes some criteria for judging the worth of the tasks as
following:

 promote attention to meaning, purpose, negotiation

 encourage attention to relevant data
 draw objectives from the communicative needs of learners
 allow for different solutions depending on the skills and strategies drawn on by
learners
 involve learner contributions, attitudes, and affects
 be challenging but not threatening, to promote risk-taking
 require input from all learners in term of knowledge, skills, participation
 allow for co-evaluation by the learner and teacher of the task and of the
performance of the task
 provide opportunities for metacommunication and metacognition (i.e. provide
opportunities for learners to talk about communication and about learning)
 provide opportunities for language practise

From definitions and some criteria above, in an evaluation it should also be defined the

content of tasks that will be evaluated. Ellis (1998, 228) specifies the evaluation to:

1. Input (i.e. the information that the learners are supplied with). Input can be in
verbal form (e.g. a series of directions) or non-verbal (e.g. a diagram or a
picture).
2. Procedures (i.e. the activities that the learners are to perform in order to
accomplish the task).
3. Language activity (i.e. whether the learners engage in receptive language activity,
listening or reading, or productive language activity, speaking or writing, or
both).
4. Outcome(s) (i.e. what it is that the learners will have done on completion of the
task): again, the outcome may be verbal (e.g. performing a role-play) or non-
verbal (e.g. drawing a diagram).

3. An evaluation to the 'New Cutting Edge'

Firstly, it is summarised below the material content that will be examined based on

the criteria chosen:

Table 1
Module Reading & Vocabulary

Module 1 The family that plays together …

Vocabulary: Past & present time phrases
Module 2 So you think you know what's good for you?
Vocabulary: Life
Module 3 1. How adventurous are you?
2. The gentle touch
Vocabulary: Mishaps
Module 4 Gender gaps on the brain
Vocabulary: Qualities of mind
Consolidation Modules 1-4 Vocabulary: Word hunt

Module 5 Remarkable achievements

Module 6 Worst case scenarios

Module 7 Food festivals around the world

Vocabulary:
1. Event & celebrations
2. Extreme adjectives
Module 8 How to be a celebrity
Vocabulary: The road to fame
Consolidation modules 5-8 Vocabulary:
Word combination
Modules 9 Strange events

Modules 10 Getting together 21st century style

vocabulary: getting together
Module 11 Big questions facing modern medical science

Module 12 Giving up TV
Vocabulary: types of media
Consolidation modules 9-12 Alphabet quiz

3.1 Reading

The book contains varied kinds of reading text that are following the fashion ones

developing in the daily life. The range of topics are relating to real life situation.

It is described in detail below:

Table 2
Input The passages of reading, quiz forms, schedule note, vocabularies
 Procedures Scanning for information, skimming for general idea, reading
comprehension, interpretation, compare the answer with the peers
Language activity Discuss the topic in the pair work or group work

Outcome(s) Making decision about or solving the problem in the text

The exercises coming after the reading materials enables the students to activate some

skills required in reading activity, those are scanning, skimming, inferring, comprehending,

interpreting, and comparing the information. Such tasks coming directly after the text imply

that the students should get comprehensive understanding after reading it. Then vocabulary is

presented in every reading because research in L2 reading has suggested that '...vocabulary

knowledge is of primary importance in reading and that learners are unable to pay due

attention to other linguistic aspects of texts until they have coped with vocabulary'

(Masuhara, 2003, 344).

3.2 Educational validity

The topics of course book can be classified into social situation, social status, human

achievement, human habit, deal with daily life problem, and earth phenomenon. Such topics

are presented to the students through some interesting features; the real story of people,

authentic texts, songs, the real picture from mass media, and animated pictures, without

losing its pedagogic value. Such features are close to the students’ environment that they are

likely to encounter out of classroom activity. That is expected to be able to engage the

students emotionally to the topic and to challenge them to get more knowledge or exploit

their own knowledge about the topic.

4. Finding

This paper learns that the tasks of the 'New Cutting Edge' encourage the students to

be engaged to the lesson and productive and interactive in the language use. The exercises in

the reading tasks of scanning, skimming, inferring, comprehensive reading, comparing

information, recognizing the rule, filling the gap, underlining the words are the kind of

productive task in the way the students have to respond to the grammar and reading tasks by

doing exercise in order to have the conceptual meaning of the language. In addition, after

doing such exercises the students are required to make use the language in the interactive

tasks: pair work and group work discussion, performing dialogue, and problem solving. Such

interactive activities lead to the communicative language acquisition as the expected

outcomes. The sociocultural theory of language acquisition believes that '...acquisition occurs

in rather than as a result of interaction. From this perspective, then, L2 acquisition is not

purely individual-based process but shared between the individual and other persons.' (Ellis,

2008, 526)

The presence of fashionable topics i.e. social status, human habit, earth phenomenon,

etc. in the stereo type forms and the exercises coming after could maximize the learning

potential because they encourage intellectual, aesthetic and emotional involvement of the

students which stimulates both right and left brain activities as suggested by Tomlinson

(1998, 20-1).

Furthermore, this paper learns that the 'New Cutting Edge' adopts the Functional-

notional syllabuses. Based on definition of Functional-notional syllabus given by Nunan

(1988, 35) the communicative tasks given to the students are meant to teach the students the

functional use of the language in communicative situations, and the conceptual meaning are

taught in through the communicative language context. Such notion deals with the

expectations of Indonesian teachers who are demanded to fulfil the competency-based

curriculum and grammatical and reading acquisition for passing examination. So, it is

suggested that the 'New Cutting Edge' be appropriate and possible to use in Indonesian Senior

High Schools.

5. Conclusion
 The development of communicative language teaching has influenced the English

language course book publisher to produce a communicative course book with more real life

material content. A lot of modern English course books have been found easily in the markets

of many cities in the world including in Indonesia. The availability of such kind of course

book enables the English teachers in Indonesia to use it in the classroom besides their

preference due to the language accuracy. However, before picking up one course book it will

be better to do evaluate the appropriateness of its contents to the curriculum of a certain

country, or culture.

After doing evaluation to a modern language course book, the 'New Cutting Edge',

this assignment suggest that the Indonesian teachers could use it in the classroom learning

because the material contents could meet the national curriculum and the target the teachers

are chasing to, i.e. to help the students to pass the national examination.

Reference List

Cunningham, S. and Moor, P. (2005), New Cutting Edge. Students' Book, Upper
Intermediate. England: Pearson Education Limited.
Ellis, R. (1998), 'The evaluation of communicative tasks' In Tomlinson, B. (ed.) Materials
Development in Language Teaching. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Ellis, R. (2008), The Study of Second Language Acquisition. 2nd ed. Oxford: Oxford
University Press.
Littlejohn, A. (1998), 'The analysis of language teaching materials: inside the Trojan Horse'
In Tomlinson, B. (ed.) Materials Development in Language Teaching. Cambridge:
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Masuhara, H. (2003), 'Materials for developing reading skills' In Tomlinson, B. (ed.)
Developing Materials for Language Teaching. London: Continuum.
Nunan, D. (1988) Syllabus Design. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Sheldon, L.E. (1988) 'Evaluating ELT textbooks and material' ELT Journal. v. 42, p.237-47.

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