Comparison of Sunrise 10 and Interchange level 3 English course books in Kurdistan’s EFL/ESL

context

Materials are an integral part of the curriculum. Moreover, teachers, learners, and contextual variables
contribute to developing effective language teaching materials (Richards, 2006). However, In EFL/ESL
settings, choosing a course book appropriate for students is always challenging. Therefore, textbooks
must evaluate continually to determine whether they are right. In this essay, I will critically assess “Sunrise
10” and “Interchange level 3” - two widely used textbook series in EFL/ESL contexts in Kurdistan, in
different aspects of how these books are most suitable for grade ten students. Moreover, I applied
curriculum approaches and patterns from Richard’s ‘Curriculum Development in Language Teaching
book’.

In both textbooks, the course outline is presented in the form of a map (Figures 1 &2). “Sunrise Ten”
begins with a short review of previous lessons in the first unit. Moreover, the course is divided into ten
units with six lessons each; the first four lessons introduce students to the tenses and grammar at the end
of each unit (Figure 3). Students will be involved in real-life activities throughout each lesson, including
listening, reading, speaking, and writing. Also, sound files and grammar files are included. In lesson four
of each unit, students will find a section dedicated to helping them study, which I believe is critical for
their development as independent learners. However, the “Interchange” is divided into sixteen units; each
unit consists of nine sections; a snapshot, perspectives, Grammar focus, pronunciation, listening, wiring,
word power speaking, and reading. Finally, two units are combined for the last and most effective section,
the progress check (Figure 4), a tool for students to review and practice the curriculum. A section at the
end of the lesson consists of Interchange, which provides a wide variety of vocabulary and activities for
students to interact more, and Grammar Plus, which contains additional grammar tasks.
Figure 1. Sunrise book map 10 Figure 2. Interchange plan of book 3

Figure 3. Figure 4.
Sunrise book Interchange.
language focus Progress checks

Richard (2017, p.141) defined a course’s aim as “a fundamental improvement that a program aspires to
bring about in learners.” Further, “Sunrise” and “Interchange” are materials for ESL context; the textbooks
offer high-interest subjects, focusing on fluencies, structures, functions, vocabulary, and pronunciation.
(Figures 5 and 6). The course’s underlying principle is best understood when employed for meaningful
conversation. Therefore, “Sunrise” and “Interchange” claimed to be Communicative Language Teaching
—both textbooks designed to teach students how to use the English language efficiently.

Figure 5. Interchange level 3, unit 10 Figure 6. Sunrise 10, lesson 3

As Richard defined it, the outcome is “the kind of performance or language practices that the learner can
demonstrate at the end of units of learning” (2017, p.147). Although, for “Sunrise”, students may have
difficulties acquiring the English language, as they are tested on their language knowledge rather than
how to use it. Additionally, it does not guarantee that all students learn the English language smoothly
and might need help to use it accurately and fluently. Moreover, the “Interchange” book provides
language learners with basic requirements for expressing attitudes, asking for and refusing, and
requesting, even though this is not sufficient to achieve the goal of students being able to use English with
a high degree of proficiency. However, one can see the difference between those students who studied
English in the Interchange book and those in public schools.

One of the main aspects to look at is the environment of Kurdistan and how it fits with the book’s
requirements; considering that “Sunrise” is a Communicative Approach course taught in public schools
where the classes consist of many students, teachers often encounter this load as a significant challenge.
Because they are unable to cover all the activities or have all the students participate and explore their
differences. Further, none of the schools in Kurdistan offers English language instruction in “Peripheral”
learning1. The teaching-learning context is not adequately suited to enhance the activities. Additionally,
there are few or no visual aids in most classes, such as cassette recorders, heating and cooling facilities,
or data projectors; besides that, the teachers are not fully equipped or have a high degree of English
proficiency to teach and adjust the curriculum. Even though “Interchange” uses the same approach as
Sunrise, the instructors more effectively impart their knowledge since it is taught in private schools or
institutes where the number of students is limited, and facilities provided. It is better to reconsider the
environmental aspects of adopting EFL/ESL materials in public schools so that the teachers can pursue the
activities in its matter.

1A peripheral learning approach is learning from the environment in which students are present. Peripheral learning is facilitated
by displaying posters and decorations showcasing target language and grammatical information in the learning environment
(Fatemipour,2012, p.1395).
 Another aspect to consider is whether these books have a Kurdish cultural footprint. As Richard (2017)
says, all materials that have a pedagogical purpose can be used as teaching instruments, such as texts,
photos, videos, and other types of materials; these tools are expected to be appropriate to the learner’s
culture, represent authentic language and demonstrate how the language is used in the real world. They
also must positively influence the learner’s motivation because they allow them to practice the language.
As seen from the “Sunrise” textbook, they have applied Kurdish culture (figure 7) where some of the name
references are Kurdish “Bahar, Haval”, with the mentioning Kurdish related in the unit-tasks question
such as “Explain Kurdish food to a visitor.” These footprints can be seen in their topic by integrating other
cultures, for example, Japanese dishes and explanation of the ingredients of their famous plate (figure 8).
Using this strategy, learners learn more effectively and understand the concept more easily. By comparing
to the “Interchange” texts, it is apparent that they reflect specific belief systems and cultural perceptions
related to the US and UK ways of living, respectively. The material and pictures appear biased in depicting
local cities and lifestyles and include subjects from these countries. Among the topics in the course book
(figure 9) is ‘Romance and Marriage in the United States, with the question, “In your opinion, which of the
things above are most important to look for in a partner? Did any of the items surprise you? Which? Why?
Are there other important qualities missing from the list?” It is important to note that, regardless of their
age, this concept might not be appropriate in other cultures in the same way it is in the United States (US).
It is, however, inappropriate in Kurdistan. Furthermore, a topic about “Absolutely not!” is included in the
book (figure 10). This topic advertises children’s behaviour and parents’ viewpoints, contrary to Kurdish
culture.

Figure. 7 Sunrise lessons 5&6 Figure. 9 Interchange p.2 Figure. 10 Interchange p.123
Figure.8 Sunrise p.33
Both textbooks explicitly focus on macro-skills (speaking, listening, reading, and writing) to assist students
in communicating in the target language; the four skills are focused separately (figure 11&12) with a clear
focus on grammar. A lesson in “Sunrise” begins with techniques for receptive skills (listening and reading)
and ends with strategies for productive skills (speaking and writing). The “Interchange” textbook follows
a different sequence, where (listening and writing) are introduced first and then (speaking and reading).
To practice listening, students listen to a CD or audio recording of a dialogue. Then, in pairs, the students
read and practice the given reading paragraph with the assistance of a role play. In addition, speaking and
writing skills are taught through activities that ask students to fill in gaps. Also, speaking and writing skills
are primarily developed through activities asking for gaps to be filled and then personalising actions to
make the speaking activities more motivating.

Further, a primary goal of the ‘’Interchange’’ textbook is to achieve communicative skills, so sub-skills
(listening and speaking) are emphasised more than reading and writing in the units. I believe this does not
imply that we cannot achieve this goal by drawing on other skills. Moreover, a greater emphasis is placed
on reading and writing in “Sunrise,” as these skills are repeated throughout the book, which was
developed for students tested only at the end of the school year. Although speaking is more critical for
communication, I believe it would be more beneficial.

Figure. 12 Interchange unit 5

Figure. 11 Sunrise unit 5
In learning and teaching the English language, grammar instruction can be implicit versus explicit and
deductive versus inductive approaches. Likewise, content should consider both form and meaning, and
activities should be planned accordingly. Although grammar is viewed as inductive and implicit in the
“Interchange” texts, grammar is dealt with deductively and explicitly in Kurdistan because of the
prominence of grammar in English books. Therefore, I suggest that Kurdish teachers include explicit and
deductive approaches to grammar with inductive and implicit processes. To make their teaching more
efficient.

The “Sunrise” coursebook effectively teaches English grammar; these mental operations activities are
divided into two Grammar parts in each unit, mainly containing grammar exercises, which provide a
sufficient number of grammar exercises of various types for the learners. In addition, students can notice
and practice grammar during the reading and writing activities; however, this activity does not provide
any specific value for students since it only provides them with some grammatical practices. Further,
students were instructed to recognise various meanings within a text, respond to questions regarding
reading comprehension, and work on grammar exercises. Nevertheless, long-term memory retrieval and
repetition were considered less significant abilities, and there were not enough tasks to improve these
skills. According to Richard (2017), Grammatical knowledge refers to knowledge of grammatical rules that
emphasise the sentence. It appears the “Sunrise 10” textbook has more knowledge than ability since the
outcomes for learners are limited in terms of composing effectively and communicating well.

Furthermore, “Interchange” uses a learner-centred approach and encourages students to speak more
than teachers. ‘’Sunrise’’, on the other hand, follows more teacher-centred methods. Even though both
textbooks count as CLT, each book’s syllabus provides a different approach. If we took ‘’Sunrise’’, for
example, it works on the Functional Syllabus because they reflect on the simplicity of communication;
also, the language ability is taught separately, along with the integration of the Grammatical Syllabus.
‘’Interchange’’ focuses on task-based and skill-based syllabi because they mainly focus on acquiring the
language and developing real-world communicative tasks through real-life exercises and activities, even
though the skills are not integrated. With the development of each skill on a macro and micro level,
students can compose, recognise vital information, present a topic, and finally skim and scan a text; these
are the accomplishment of the skill-based syllabus by Richard. (2017).one point mentioned in ‘’Sunrise’’
in teachers’ teaching methods is the Grammar Translation Method, the most widely used method for
instructing English in Kurdistan; therefore, many communicative techniques are not fully utilised in the
classroom. I believe it is essential for instructors to consider the CLT approach since it has become the
widely used approach for EFL/ESL teaching in Kurdistan.

The Activity Book is intended for students to complete at home. ‘’Sunrise’’ is written in simple language
that children can grasp, and they have almost no trouble knowing what is required of them. They
concentrate on grammar and vocabulary (Figure 13). Moreover, the exercises and activities in the
coursebook are varied and entertaining, stimulating the kids’ curiosity. As a result, ‘’Sunrise’’ may be
considered to provide a variety of beneficial activities that promote learning and improve students’
competency in all language abilities. Although the exercises are provided randomly rather than
systematically, students cannot utilise their creativity. However, these activities are complimentary,
enjoyable and influential.

Figure. 13 Sunrise activity book

The ‘’Interchange’’ emphasises form-meaning relationships marginally more than grammatical structures
because the language centre focuses on meaning as the basis for learning. In my opinion, this indicates
that the selected textbooks have succeeded since one of the primary objectives of the book is to develop
a communicative competence which can be achieved by enhancing one’s ability to comprehend the
language, and understanding a language requires the ability to focus on its meaning (Figure 14). However,
the ‘’Interchange’’ textbooks do not contain many activities that use auditory or visual channels for
providing input to learners. Using all sensory channels in learning can be deemed an advantage or
disadvantage of the textbook since the students are more active in the process and more motivated due
to more significant opportunities. Nevertheless, this book also allows learners to develop multiple skills
simultaneously - reflecting the realities of real-life situations.
 Figure. 14 Interchange workbook

I believe it is necessary to encourage learners to develop an expressive language of their own through the
use of the book. Consequently, the activities should be both motivating and rewarding, and they should
offer students the opportunity to express themselves in a foreign language. Learners should draw on all
their linguistic and world knowledge to create meaningful discourse. Unfortunately, most activities are
based on textbook content.

In conclusion, the multicultural content of the “Sunrise” coursebooks and the uncomplicated language
that has been used make them suitable for teaching, plus they have been used for many years. However,
some elements could be improved. Such as, much of the Sunrise curriculum in high school is not entirely
taught and assessed because students are prepared for those items included in both monthly and end-of-
term exams. Teachers do not give attention to listening and speaking tasks due to the lack of facilities in
their school. Also, there is a shortage of sufficient teachers continuously taking seminars and training
courses in language teaching and assessment.

On the other hand, “Interchange” provides the potential to be taught. The Interchange Series focuses on
pair works and meaning; the books encourage students to use English more regularly and require them
to do so. Students were not provided with various cultures in Interchange’s course books. Nevertheless,
pragmatic input is appropriate for a variety of communication purposes. In ‘’Interchange level 3’’, there is
a new update regarding online study; they developed Online Self-Study and Online Workbook with Games
where with every student’s book, hundreds of interactive online activities are provided for free, plus
teachers can save time and monitor pupils’ progress more precisely.
Additionally, learning opportunities are provided via the games in the Online Workbook; this can be a
successful step due to the wide use of technology among the learners. As a result of the present study, it
is possible to conclude that ‘’ Interchange’’ main weakness is that it made an impressionistic rather than
an in-depth examination of the materials contained. In essence, textbooks that address EFL in schools
should help teachers expand their teaching beyond linguistic and logical-mathematical intelligence,
satisfying students’ English linguistic ability. The programs provide educators with materials that help
them understand cognitive skills and be aware of other types of intelligence. Even though it might be
challenging to make all the students use English effectively, it is essential to consider alternative EFL/ESL
textbooks that will fulfil their aim.
Reference

Journals

Richards, J. C. (2006). Materials Development and Research—Making the Connection. RELC Journal, 37(1),
5–26. https://doi.org/10.1177/0033688206063470

Fatemipour, H. (2013). Peripheral Learning of English language: A Comparison Between ESL and EFL
Contexts Provided for University Students. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 93(1), 1394-1397.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2013.10.050

Books

Richard, J.C. (2017). Curriculum development in language teaching (2nd ed.). Rotolito Lombarda.

Richards, J.C., Hull, J., Proctor, S. (2017). Interchange level 3 (5th ed.). Vivar Printing.

(2005). Sunrise 10. Macmillan.