教科書為老師及學生在課堂中學習英語的一個主要依據，所以教科書的內容和活動設計都會直接影響教學過程的進行方式和學生的學習狀況。本論文針對現行國民中學英語教科書中的口說活動進行探討，比較其中兩家出版社所出版的英語教科書如何設計口說活動及相關練習。本論文將教科書中的口說練習活動分別依照(1)活動類型、(2)溝通前之練習(pre-communicative activities)/溝通式活動(communicative activities)及(3)溝通程度(communicativeness)作分析，然後進一步去討論該活動設計是否符合九年一貫課程綱要中所敘述的方向準則。 根據資料分析結果，兩套教科書所採用的活動類型與進行方式相當類似，且集中在發音、句型練習、對話三種活動類型；所採用的口說活動類型中，以「在溝通前之練習」為主，「溝通式活動」則是相對少了很多；在溝通程度的分佈上，也都是以Category 4 (new information being transferred)和Category 6 (no information being processed)為主要。整體而言，此兩套教科書的活動設計不夠符合溝通式教學法的精神，在口說練習活動的設計上，雖然提供學生開口練習的機會，可惜份量不多，並且常缺乏語境，仍偏重傳統結構式的教學法，藉由反覆練習讓學生熟記文法句型。此與九年一貫課程綱要中所敘述之相關口說能力的準則相比較，仍有值得思考再進一步改善的空間。 / In the language classroom, textbooks are the primary resources which teachers and students rely on, so the content and the activity design would have direct influence on how the teaching/learning process proceeding. The present study analyzes speaking activities in two sets of English textbooks, trying to evaluate how they design the speaking activities and what similarities and differences are found between these two sets. These speaking activities are investigated from the perspectives of activity types, pre-communicative and communicative activities, and communicativeness, and then are discussed and evaluated based on the Nine-year Integrated Curriculum Guidelines. According to the results, it is found that both two sets of textbooks apply similar types of speaking activities, where pronunciation, drills, and dialogue are used most. Moreover, most of these activities are pre-communicative and fall into Category 4 (new information being transferred) and Category 6 (no information being processed). Overall, the design of speaking activities is not communicative enough. Although both sets try to provide more opportunities for students’ verbal practice, the proportion is not high, and meaningful contexts are usually ignored. Furthermore, the structural method is emphasized, using repetition and memorization as main techniques for language teaching and learning. Finally, with regard to the Nine-year Integrated Curriculum Guidelines, it seems that activities in the textbooks are not closely in compliance with the guidelines for the large proportion of less communicative activities. Also, definitions of each guideline are not precise or clear enough, and this situation results in influences on how textbook writers realize and interpret these guidelines, and how they design the activities.

Due to the internationalisation of higher education, the use of English at higher education institutions has become widespread. Today an increasing number of students participate in courses with the local language as medium of instruction but with textbooks in English. These have been called parallel-language courses, because they are expected to facilitate learning disciplinary discourse in two languages: the local language and English. This thesis reports an exploration of Swedish students' reading and learning from English textbooks in parallel-language courses. The overarching aim was to investigate the relationship between the students' Swedish and English reading habits and reading proficiency, their academic biliteracy, and incidental learning of subject-specific terminology in English from reading. The study also set out to identify pedagogical solutions to facilitate students' reading and learning from reading in English. The investigation comprised four studies which utilised a variety of methods and approaches, both qualitative and quantitative. Participants were Swedish and British students of biology and Swedish students of English. The results show that many Swedish students are capable of reading and learning from texts in Swedish and English without experiencing serious difficulties, although additional support is required for the learning of English terminology. The findings also indicate that some students' difficulty when reading in English is not due to poor English language proficiency, but rather a range of other factors such as weak general literacy skills, low motivation, low subject and vocabulary knowledge, note-taking strategies, slow reading speed, and time. For some students, learning is also rendered difficult by their self-perceptions and beliefs about reading and learning. Based on my findings, I propose a range of practices for EAP and subject teachers to adopt in order to improve reading and learning in parallel-language courses. / <p>At the time of the doctoral defense, the following papers were unpublished and had a status as follows: Paper 2: Submitted. Paper 4: Submitted.</p><p> </p>

本研究旨在藉由問卷調查，探討未來國中英語教科書編寫指引，並回答以下三個具體研究問題： (1)調查國中英語教師對於現行英語教科書之意見，是否符合現行國中英語教科書的編寫原則，並且進一步瞭解(2)在主題、份量、難易度方面，有何意見，以及(3)提供一套未來國中英語教科書適用之編寫指引。研究發現如下：(1)現行國中英語教科書包含溝通式教學法的一些原則，但並非所有的原則；(2)現行國中英語教科書符合部分英語教科書編寫通則，但需要再加強；(3)主題方面，例如日常生活、節慶、電腦受教師們喜愛；(4)現行國中英語教科書之份量與難易度一般而言適中，但份量和難易度並未均衡分佈於各冊；以及(5)未來國中英語教科書教師最愛之六項主題與六項活動。 / This study aims to find some relevant writing guidelines for future junior high school (hereafter JHS) English textbooks by conducting a questionnaire survey. Specifically, the study aims to do the following: (1) to find if the current set of JHS English textbooks has observed closely the guidelines, and (2) to understand teachers’ opinions about the current textbooks on themes, loading, and difficulty, and (3) to provide a set of alternative guidelines for future JHS English textbook writing. And the major findings include the following: (1) the current JHS English textbooks follow some principles of CLT, but do not include all of them; (2) the current JHS English textbooks meet some of the general principles for English textbook writing, but they need to be improved; (3) themes such as daily life, festival, and computer are appreciated by the JHS English teachers; (4) the degree of loading and difficulty of the current JHS English textbooks are moderate in general; however, the loading and difficulty in each volume are not evenly distributed; and (5) the six favorite themes and activities chosen by most teachers have to be covered in future JHS English textbooks.

A growing number of American businesses are offering ESL courses at the work site; likewise, more and more textbooks designed specifically for teaching ESL in the Workplace (EWP), are being written and published. The need for an evaluation of these new texts with regard to current teaching methodology, the particularities of EWP, and the social implications of EWP is a vital one. A good EWP text, besides serving as a guide and resource for learners, can also facilitate intercultural understanding, increase awareness of workers' rights and unions, and promote participation in training programs for job flexibility and promotion. Most importantly, a good EWP textbook can develop the skills necessary for learners, not simply to fit into the American world of work, but to become active participants in their workplaces. This study was intended to determine what EWP texts are currently available, and to evaluate them in light of three primary concerns: the social implications of their contents, their portrayal of workplace culture and relationships, and their effectiveness in exploring issues of conflict and unfairness at work.

Modern societies across the globe have been deeply transformed by the rise of capitalism and neoliberalism in the last century. This has had a significant impact on education which has been reconfigured to meet the needs of the market rather than the needs of the learner. Language learning in particular becomes instrumental and focuses on preparing individuals for a consumeristic lifestyle or for building successful international business careers. In that sense, from a neoliberal perspective, the social class of the individual is not relevant, and the assumption is that everybody starts on equal footing and with equal possibilities, contrary to reality. Consequently, systematic barriers that lead to social injustice are ignored in neoliberal reasoning. These ideas have been found to be propagated in textbooks for English language learning, which deeply shapes learner perceptions and teacher practices in the classroom. This study focuses on analysing two English textbooks used in Sweden and it aims to identify how social class is represented and the extent to which the texts and the tasks attempt to construct an entrepreneurial identity. The results indicate that an entrepreneurial identity manifests through recurrent narratives which accentuate consumerism, individualism, responsibility etc. Other phenomena identified are social class erasure and a focus on politics of representation rather than distribution. Interviews with 3 teachers were also conducted in order to investigate teacher perceptions and practices concerning social class representations and entrepreneurialism in textbooks. The interviews suggest that teachers are aware and reactive to social class representations in textbooks, but are more concerned about identity representations (gender, racial) rather than socio-economic disparities. Additionally, they show less awareness about content related to entrepreneurialism and adopt a non-critical stance in relation to this neoliberal value.

「真實性」是外語教學在內容設計及呈現上一項不可忽視的原則。它強調：教科書的編寫，要有意識地為學習者展現出語言在實際運用中的意義和功能。而除了文本(text)之外，有越來越多的教育者也強調「真實性的教學活動(authentic tasks/activities)」在教學過程中的重要性。本篇論文主要在探討是否現行國中英語教科書中的活動設計符合「真實性」的原則。此研究以Littlewood(2004)提出的教學活動分類作為架構，觀察台灣現行使用率最高的五套國中英語教科書中的教學活動分屬何種類型，分析及探究其中有哪些活動是符合「以真實溝通為目的」的原則，同時比較真實性教學活動分布在這五版教科書中的情況。 分析結果顯示，絕大多數的活動設計，是以學習語言形式為主要目的，極少數的活動有機會讓學習者運用語言、傳達訊息。此外，有些教科書中，甚至完全缺少以真實溝通為目的的教學活動。也就是說，透過現行的教科書，學生只是從事句型文法的練習，極少實際利用學到的語言進行溝通。顯然這些開放後由民間出版社編輯的英語教科書，就教學活動真實性的問題，尚有很大的改善空間。 / Authenticity has been regarded as one of the essential principles in EFL/ESL teaching. It is emphasized that the content of the textbooks can realistically reflect the genuine meaning and function of the language used in real-life situations. Aside from the authenticity of text itself, more and more teachers and educators recognize the value of using authentic activities for teaching and learning purposes. The thesis aims to examine whether and how the language learning activities in our EFL textbooks pertain to authenticity. We explore what authentic learning activities in these textbooks are, and how they are different as found in different textbooks. By following a rating scale developed on the basis of Littlewood’s (2004) five activity types (non-communicative learning, pre-communicative language practice, communicative language practice, structured communication and authentic communication), we evaluate and compare the language learning activities provided in five sets of English textbooks frequently used in Taiwan in terms of their task authenticity. The result of our analysis reveals that most language learning activities in the five commonly used sets of English textbooks are designed mainly for the practice of the linguistic forms. Few of the activities provide learners with the chance of exposure to real communication situations and applying their language skills in authentic ways. Even some of the textbook series don’t contain any authentic learning activities at all. It is clear that textbook writing in Taiwan still focuses on linguistic forms – a situation that has lasted for decades and more changes in textbook writing are needed in order to move forward to genuine communication.

<p>This investigation into the status of English in Iran and cultural presentations in Iranian English has two areas of emphasis. The first is a sociolinguistic profile of English in Iran in which the status, functions, uses and users of this language are described within in the country’s social and political contexts. In this part, contributing factors to the growth of English in three political periods, including the Qajar dynasty (1796 -1925), the Pahlavi era (1925-1979) and post-Revolutionary time (1979 – present), are elaborated upon to establish the historical and political bases for the second area of focus.</p> <p>The second focus is the cultural content in the locally developed English textbooks used from 1939 to the present time (2020). Accordingly, the content of four generations (across five textbook series) of Iranian high school English textbooks are analyzed based on an evaluation scheme which the author has developed. This research finds answers to the questions on the status of culture in the Iranian English textbooks; distribution of Iranian and non-Iranian cultures; dominance of cultural elements (products, practices and perspectives) in each English textbooks series; and the political and ideological influence of each era on the content of English textbooks.</p> <p>This investigation finds that the English textbooks which were developed before the Islamic Revolution (first and second generations) were highly cultural compared to the post-Revolution materials (third and fourth generations). Also, non-Iranian cultural components (particularly the American and British cultures) were more represented in the English textbooks of the Pahlavi period, whereas Western cultures were all eliminated in the post-Revolution textbooks, replaced by the Islamic/Revolutionary cultures. Additionally, cultural perspectives outnumbered cultural products and practices in the first and second generations of English textbooks (Pahlavi era) whereas cultural products dominated the post-Revolutionary English materials. This study finds that political and ideological hegemony of each era have directly influenced the textual and illustrative content of locally developed English textbooks in Iran.<a> </a></p>