To use or not to use: adapting the textbook for the
course of English for laboratory technicians
Ladislav Václavı́k
1 Introduction
Courses of English for speci ic purposes taught at the Medical faculty of Masaryk
University usually do not follow any particular textbook. Keeping to the topic
syllabus, teachers have at their disposal different resources (coursebooks, supplementary
textbooks) from which they pick and choose whatever material and
activities they deem useful for meeting their course’s goals and objectives. Understandably,
this relative liberty of action has its considerable assets. At the same
time, the absence of a textbook and the ensuing liberty of choice might present
the teacher with the classic agony of choice. It seems that the best position would
be to both enjoy the open creative space and to follow the directions outlined
by a textbook. The ESP course of English for laboratory technicians appears to
embody this very situation.
Taught without the use of a textbook, the course—prior to 2007—offered considerable
liberty as for the materials exploited. In 2007, a textbook1
, published by
Masaryk University Press, became both the backbone of the syllabus and the principal
source of materials for the students. However, in 2012, the IMPACT project2
enabled further innovations opening new spaces for the teacher initiative bringing
in modi ications of the syllabus, creating new teaching materials (worksheets) as
well as e-learning activities. Logically, these innovations went hand in hand with
modi ied goals and objectives of the course, which in turn meant implementing
new teaching methods. This, in its turn, necessitated adapting the textbook in
question.
In the present contribution we would like to describe, analyse and defend some
adaptation strategies undertaken with a view of making the teaching and learning
processes more ef icient and up-to-date. To do so, we would, irstly, like to set the
textbook into context. This should provide the reader with the necessary background.
Next, Kathleen Graves’ adaptation criteria will be introduced, as well as
her concept of adaptation cycle. Finally, a practical example will demonstrate the
adaptation strategies undertaken. The aim of the present article is then to show
the importance of critical approach to any material used in the classroom and stir
1 Dastych M., Cervený, L., Najman, I. English for laboratory technicians. Brno: Masaryk University Press,
2007.
2 For more information, see https://impact.cjv.muni.cz/.
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debate on the advantages and disadvantages of using textbooks in particular, and
adapting study material in general.
2 The textbook in the classroom
2.1 Advantages and disadvantages
Graves (2000: 174) states some advantages of using a textbook, such as providing
a syllabus, security for the students, consistency in, and considerable amount of,
study materials (visuals, readings, activities), saving the teacher a lot of time and
energy. The disadvantages concern relevance and appropriateness of the materials,
bias towards one aspect of the language, and imbalance in the typology of
activities (ibid.).
While some of the criteria mentioned above play a key role in the decision-making
process, others have less impact. The most important point, in our case, was to
provide students with a clear blueprint which would make them feel safe as to
where the course is heading and what they have achieved so far. The structure of
Dastych’s textbook is extremely helpful in this aspect: each of the ifteen units is
built following the same structure—opening text, vocabulary, technical terms definitions,
grammar explanation and exercises—which provides the students with
the much-needed order and gives the teacher a basis to start from. The textbook
contains valuable authentic texts and materials which constitute an important
backbone for the whole course. However, given the new set of goals and objectives,
the textbook had to be rethought methodologically. To do this, its contents
and structure needed evaluation.
2.2 Textbook evaluation
As Grant points out, ‘it is clear that the type of textbook you use will have considerable
in luence on the way you teach and the way your students learn.’ (Grant
1990: 12)3
. He then goes on to make a classic distinction between, grossly speaking,
two large categories of textbooks: traditional and communicative4
. Traditional
textbooks try to ‘get students to learn the language as a system’ (Grant 1990: 13).
Their most striking characteristics are the emphasis on the forms (rather than
communicative function), reading activities (rather than listening and speaking),
3 Similarly, Kathleen Graves compares the textbook to a piano claiming that ‘just as a piano does not
play music, a textbook does not teach language. The textbook is a stimulus or instrument for teaching and
learning. Clearly, the quality of the instrument also affects the quality of the music. However, if it is in tune,
even the most humble piano can produce beautiful music in the hands of a skilled musician.’ (Graves 2000:
175).
4 It also should be pointed out that the dichotomy ‘traditional vs communicative’ might not be that clearcut:
traditional teaching often involves communicative elements, and communicative activities are often
‘not…very communicative at all’ (Nunan 1987: 144).
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use of L1, stress on accuracy (rather than luency) and focus on a syllabus (Grant
1990: 13). The other category consists of communicative textbooks which create
‘opportunities for the students to use the language in the classroom, as a sort of
‘halfway house’ before using it in real life’ (Grant 1990: 13). These textbooks are
recognisable by features which include communicative functions of language, relection
of students’ needs and interests, emphasis on skills and activities (mainly
listening and speaking), speci ic de inition of aims, authenticity of language of
everyday life (Grant 1990: 14).
Even if it might seem dif icult sometimes to draw a clear line between the traditional
and communicative material, the textbook of English for laboratory technicians
meets most of the criteria adduced for textbooks of the irst category.5
The
teacher, whose role in the process is crucial6
, has to draw the line and decide on
the modi ications and adaptations. In its traditional approach, Dastych’s textbook
places big emphasis on translation method. It is not our objective, as non-native
teacher7
, to downplay the role of translation and L1 in language teaching8
. Quite
on the contrary—often, the use of L1 in the learning process proves bene icial9
and students were not discouraged from using L1 when necessary10
. On the other
5 Grant mentions four communication tests to ind out if the textbook falls into the irst or second
category:
1 Is the language—spoken or written—unnatural? (textbookese)
2 Are the language exercises all merely textbook activities of a kind no one does in real life?
3 Do the activities only emphasise accuracy (particularly written accuracy) rather than luency?
4 Does the course emphasise study—or practice? (Grant 1990: 16)
Penny Ur’s criteria for coursebook evaluation have also been considered, but these are meant to help
teacher choose an appropriate textbook for her course. As there is only one textbook available for the
course in question with no alternative at our disposal, Ur’s criteria only helped evaluate the coursebook
with a view of making necessary modi ications and arrangements.
6 According to Grant, the teacher should:
a) to assess the students’ aims, and learning styles, their likes and dislikes, their strengths, and their
weaknesses;
b) to decide what methods and materials are most appropriate, given the aims of the syllabus
c) to decide whether to use, adapt, replace, omit or supplement the methods and materials used in the
textbook (Grant 1990: 16)
7 Cf Medgyes (1994), pp. 65–67.
8 Cf Guy Cook’s Translation in Language Teaching (Oxford 2010) who tries to rehabilitate the TILT approach,
vili ied by the proponents of the direct method.
9 ‘A lexible approach will allow the student to ask for clari ication and the teacher to give it when necessary.
In this way the teacher is able to monitor students’ understanding, to ensure they do not feel lost,
and allow them to express their own thoughts, needs, and worries. For these reasons, own-language use
including translation, is likely to be far more empowering and student-centred than monolingual teaching,
which is a sure way of concentrating power and control in the hands of the teacher alone.’ (Cook 2010: 130)
10 As the students are at the intermediate level, the opportunities of using L1 are more varied: ‘the
amount of TILT for explanation may decrease, while the amount of TILT for developing translation skills
and explicit knowledge may increase.’ (Cook 2010: 132). Other advantageous activities are mentioned by
Exploratory Article / Informativnı́ článek 93
hand, regardless of all the advantages of using translation and L1 in teaching,
changes in the goals and objectives of the course led to reducing the role of
L1. Based on direct exposure to English, our approach was still far from radical
language acquisition methods as promoted by Krashen (1987). Even if we tried
to provide students with suf icient information input and diminish the affective
ilter as much as possible, our approach was more of the learning rather than
the acquiring type. In summary, our goal was to include all aspects of language
(all four basic skills), expose the students to everyday laboratory situations (lab
videos, role-plays), make them use English actively and, last but not least, let them
stop being afraid of actually using English.
3 Kathleen Graves—adapting textbooks
As mentioned earlier, teachers play a crucial role in the whole process. Sometimes
they may feel wary of adapting, textbooks often being considered sacred and untouchable
(Graves 2000: 176). As written documents, they might exert paralysing
power over the teacher who, by following it blindly, exposes herself to the danger
of ‘deskilling’ (Apple 1986). In this way, the teacher forgoes the opportunity
to make her own decisions concerning the teaching process. As Graves further
claims, ‘a good textbook—one that meets students’ needs, is at the right level, has
interesting materials, and so on—can be a boon to a teacher because it can free
him or her to focus on what the students do with it.’ (Graves 2000: 176). At the
same time, as Graves notes, textbooks are rarely written for a particular group of
students, and thus adaptations are often recommended or even required.
In order to understand how to use a textbook, the teacher has to consider two
aspects: internal (the content of the textbook) and external (everything other
than the textbook). These two perspectives help the teacher focus on what she is
adapting and what she is adapting the textbook to. Firstly, it is advisable to consider
‘how (the authors) conceptualised content, what the organising principle(s)
is (are), how the text content is sequenced, what the objectives of each unit are,
and how the units are organised.’ (Graves 2000: 176).
Taking into account Graves’ criteria, it can be said that Dastych’s textbook is conceptualised
in terms of topics and associated vocabulary and grammar. The materials
and exercises provide no communicative functions, though. Similarly, no pronunciation,
speaking or listening activities are included. Grammar and topics are
also the two organising principles of the textbook. It seems that a topic syllabus
was developed irst with grammar topics being incorporated subsequently. Only
exercises focusing on speci ic grammar structures seem to be included, activities
lacking completely.
Larsen-Freeman: recognising cognates, deductive application of rule, ill-in-the-blanks, memorisation and
use of words in sentences (1986: 14).
94
Once the textbook structure is understood, the teacher can then move on to decide
how she wants to adapt it. Graves conceives the adaptation process at three
levels: activity, unit and syllabus. (Graves 2000: 188). Adaptation at the activity
level concerns only activities with no changes in the syllabus and the order of
units. At the unit level, activities can be done in a different order, modi ied, left
out completely or added. At the most general level, new areas are added to the
syllabus or parts of it eliminated. It is important to point out that adaptations
are cumulative: adaptations at one level involve adaptations at another one. The
choice depends on the context11
and the students’ needs. Thus, ful illing Krashen’s
wish to lower the affective ilter12
, the teacher might wish to ‘develop activities
that would focus on learners’ needs, give some control to the students, allow
for students’ creativity and innovation to enhance students’ sense of competence
and self-worth’ (Graves 2000: 188) Also, the teacher—who thus necessarily steps
out of her tradition role13
—might try to enhance what is in the textbook and by
adapting at different levels make students more active learners, broadening their
learner strategies, enhancing their autonomy and making them re lect on their
learning (Hedge 2000: 75–106). In the course of English for laboratory technicians,
the aim was then to weave the activities into the existing framework of
the book based on contextual factors such as the course schedule and students’
expectations. (Graves 2000: 189) At the same time, all the adaptations and modi
ications have to do with the teacher’s belief in the importance of student participation
in the learning process, which works as a motivation to provide more
opportunities for interaction (Graves 2000: 191).
As far as the unit level is concerned, activities included there can be reshuf led, or
sequenced differently. Like in other aspects, teachers are individual personalities
and each one will decide on a different order of sequencing. As Graves puts it,
‘teachers have good reasons for sequencing activities the way they do. The reasons
have to do with their views of what language learners need to know and be able
to do in order to practise and master different aspects of language, views of how
the four skills interact and should be learned, and views of how activities build
on each other.’ (Graves 2000: 197)14
11 In our case, the IMPACT project provided the bene icial context for innovations to be implemented.
12 Cf Krashen (1987, pp. 30
13 Cf Harmer (2001) where the traditional roles of controller, assessor and corrector are balanced by the
roles of organiser, prompter and resource.
14 One of the important aspects of every textbook is its hidden curriculum which might be de ined as
‘(the) views which are embedded in the aspects of language addressed in the textbook, who and what are
portrayed in the visuals, readings, and dialogues, and how students are asked to work with the material.’
(Graves 2000: 200). As will become clear from the practical example, the book evinces certain views on
how the students are supposed to learn their English, views which came into con lict with the adaptation
aims, mainly in terms of the role students should play in the learning process: ‘Being clear about your
own beliefs about the role you want your learners to take in their learning, and about the skills and
Exploratory Article / Informativnı́ článek 95
To sum up, the teacher tackling a textbook should be aware of her ‘beliefs and understandings,
the givens of (her) context, and what (she) know(s) about students
and their needs.’ (Graves 2000: 202)15
Also, and importantly, it is vital to bear in
mind Graves’ concept of adaptation cycle: any activity, unit or syllable that has
been adapted goes through a necessary stage of re-evaluation in terms of ef icacy,
appropriateness and conformity with the goals and objectives of the course16
.
4 Practical example
Having considered some theoretical aspects of adapting a textbook, in the following
part we will attempt at a practical demonstration with a view of showing some
possibilities offered by the book of English for laboratory technicians. Respecting
Graves’ division of the adaptation process into three layers, attention will irst be
paid to adaptations at the syllabus level. This should bring us to the unit adaptation
level which will be dealt with together with speci ic activities.
4.1 Syllabus level
Not many changes have been made in the syllabus, as the textbook—the backbone
of the course—was kept to, at least structurally. Some new areas have been added,
given the students’ needs: topics such as irst-aid, haematology and biochemistry
classes came up. None of the existing areas was left out completely, as all topics
included in the textbook are equally important for the students.
4.2 Unit and activity level
It is at the unity and activity level that teachers can realize most of their beliefs
and understandings. The textbook in question is a golden adaptation opportunity
for a teacher who believes in students’ active participation in the learning process,
who wants her students to cooperate and discover for themselves, a teacher who
strategies you want them to learn, can help you to be aware of the beliefs underlying the texts you use.
Your ability to adapt the textbook so that it aligns with your beliefs and purposes will depend on clarity
about those beliefs and your own role, and comfort with bringing to the fore and dealing with issues that
are ideologically based.’ (Graves 2000: 201).
15 The givens of your context: e.g. institutional latitude with respect to adapting a text, schedule, examination
system, number and level of students, time of day. (Graves 2000: 203) Your beliefs and understandings
about how people learn languages: e.g. through interaction or introspection, by using all four skills, by
identifying problems and proposing solutions. Your students’ needs and interests: e.g. their level, whether
they will use the language in speci ic contexts, whether they have certain expectations about how they will
be taught. (ibid.)
16 The plan you have drawn up in the preceding investigation is only the irst part in the cycle of adapting
a textbook. This follows the same cycle as course development: planning how to teach with the text,
teaching (all the while adjusting as you plan and teach), replanning based on evaluating the teaching
and the text, reteaching with the text. (Graves 2000: 204)
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is ready to step aside and make room for students’ initiative. Ideally, this section
will demonstrate this modi ied approach to teacher’s role by displaying some of
the changes implemented when dealing with speci ic exercises. As both levels of
unit and activity adaptation interpenetrate considerably, they will be dealt with
together.
At the unit level, the sequencing of the sections of individual units was considered
as part of the reconceptualising process. This concerned mainly the opening
reading section of the units followed by one-to-one English-Czech vocabulary lists.
Other activities were often added and still others, mainly translation exercises,
were left out completely, and systematically. In the following, a practical example
of the adaptation technique will be described.
The original layout of Unit 5, focusing on osmometry, presents the students with
a text and a subsequent list of English-Czech vocabulary. As there are no exercises
or activities accompanying the text, it may be presumed that its purpose is to be
translated using the words attached. The teacher’s goal in adapting this activity
could then be to activate the students, stopping them from using English passively.
This effort has to do with the students’ role and future needs—rather than becoming
experts in translation, students will probably need other skills, such as being
able to use different reading techniques, speak to their English-speaking partners,
write reports or research articles.
The irst step was to think of a lead-in activity which, in this case, was a short
brain-storming session where students were asked to list any issues or vocabulary
relating to the topic. The words were listed on the whiteboard and the concept
of key words explained to the students. Next, always with closed books, students
were asked to listen to the teacher who went on to read the opening text. The
task was for the students to write down any word(s) they consider as key to the
topic in question. The text was read twice, then the students compared their lists
in pairs. Finally, a mind-map was created on the whiteboard using all or most of
the words suggested by students. As a follow-up, students were given the text,
but in a modi ied form with blanks. They were asked to ill in the gaps with the
key words. The text was then followed by a set of true-false statements for the
students to decide17
.
As can be seen, students are led to be active (brainstorming) and aware of various
learning strategies (key words, group work). Listening and speaking skills are put
forward, outbalancing the passive reading-translation part of the class. Writing,
which previously included L1, is restricted to L2—students are supposed to complete
the text by English vocabulary. Finally, one reading technique (scanning) is
17 This activity has been inspired by Deller, Sheelagh. Price, Christine. (2007). Teaching other subjects
through English. Oxford: Oxford University Press
Exploratory Article / Informativnı́ článek 97
put to practice, as students look for particular information to complete a task. In
this way, the modi ied goals and objectives of the course can be ful illed.
5 Conclusion
Not always are ESP courses taught by a textbook written speci ically for a group
of students. This, however, was the case of laboratory technician students thanks
to the care and effort of MM. Dastych, Cervený and Najman. Their coursebook,
published in 2007, was a major contribution, unparalleled so far in this ield,
to ESP textbook resources. Neatly structured, the book is a useful tool for the
students who have to cope with amounts of speci ic knowledge. In this respect,
the publication is invaluable, providing the students with a unique source of information,
both lexical and grammatical, all stored in one place and easy to ind.
In 2012, the IMPACT project enabled major modi ications to be brought in and
made the teacher face a question of cardinal importance, namely to what degree
it is important to use the existing textbook. Rather than discarding the textbook
completely, adaptation strategy was opted for.
The present article attempted to trace the adaptation process in three main lines.
Firstly, the use of textbooks in classrooms was considered and two major textbook
categories brie ly outlined. Then the coursebook of English for laboratory
technicians was analysed in the light of Graves’ adaptation strategies. Finally, one
example was provided to illustrate the main points. The aim of the article was to
describe the learner-centred adaptation strategy adopted in one particular case
as well as to demonstrate that the teacher does not have to rely completely on
a written book if she or he wants to deliver classes where the textbook stops being
the focal point and the spotlight shifts towards the students themselves.
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Author
Mgr. Ladislav Václavík, Ph.D., e-mail: 20439@mail.muni.cz, Masaryk University Language Centre
Author is currently teaching at the Faculty of Economics and Administration Unit of Masaryk University.
He takes a special interest in creativity, motivation and blended-learning areas.
Exploratory Article / Informativnı́ článek 99