Creating teacher-authored materials can be a challenging task for a variety of reasons. While relying on coursebooks to provide a ready-made structure to our classes, we often design our own materials to meet some of the specific needs and interests of our learners. Teachers usually approach the task of materials development through intuition and…

This paper seeks to explore the impact of video lectures on the students of the Department of English of a Bangladeshi private university during the world pandemic, COVID-19. Using various online resources, especially YouTube videos, website links, e-texts, and journal articles, to make a classroom vibrant, interesting, engaging, and entertaining…

This article provides critical student perspectives on a set of instructor-created materials in which students ultimately delivered a spoken anecdote in a class presentation. The research was conducted qualitatively through the lens of narrative inquiry. Data were gathered from six participants, all undergraduate English majors at a Japanese…

The importance of providing pre-service and in-service teachers with sufficient training and practice in integrating technology into their classrooms has led several studies to investigate the possible effects of pre-determined training and practice provided to teachers. However, most of these studies seem to have focussed on teachers' beliefs and…

This study was conducted to help English teachers in designing English listening materials in the form of audio and textbook through YouTube video editing. 18 English teachers of 10 Islamic junior high schools in Parepare were trained to write English listening materials in the form of textbook and to edit video (download, import, cut, merge, and…

This article describes part of a larger action research study carried out in 2018 with secondary school learners and teachers of English in southern Argentina. The study was guided by two aims: (1) improving English language learner motivation, and (2) transforming the English as a foreign language (EFL) curriculum through teacher and learner…

As blended language learning environments evolve within tertiary foreign language institutions, issues of power with regards to the privileging of electronic technologies come to the fore. Blended learning, or the principled mix of online and classroom-based activities, challenges the practices of traditional CALL and face-to-face teaching within…

Discusses the experiences of some teachers in developing instructional materials for English as a second language, covering the areas of needs analysis, the planning stage of development, development, class trials, pedagogical layout, restrictions, and guidelines. (Author/CB)

A kit using the concept of puzzles as a focus for developing self-correcting instructional materials for French language teaching is described. The kit, designed for teachers and including 47 ideas organized by theme, contains matrices and cards for a variety of exercises at various levels and suggestions for their use. (MSE)

Teacher-made visual aids (as opposed to the commerical variety) for adults are evaluated. These materials are put in perspective through a determination of their relationship to current theories of visual learning, design, color, and size. Reasons for their continued applicability for adult students are considered. A description of the uses of a…

Issues related to design and implementation of Computer Assisted Learning (CAL) programs on the university level are discussed. First, three points are noted that affect the way materials are conceived: the type of user and the way of giving choices regarding exercises, the fact that the computer is primarily a medium adapted to the written word,…

Discusses some of the reasons why idioms are difficult for second language learners to learn, including the fact that most materials for teaching idioms are inadequate. Criteria are suggested for choosing idioms to teach; 10 activities are described which will help students understand and produce idiomatic English. (Author/SED)

Foreign language teachers are encouraged to participate in developing computer courseware. Advantages include the potential for higher quality and more plentiful materials, increased confidence with computers, and the kind of discipline a computer affords in focusing on and organizing an exercise. (MSE)

The second language teacher who wishes to meet the needs of students will supplement a well-chosen textbook with innovative instructional content and methods. The crucial element in deciding what and how to teach is learner characteristics. Discovering learning styles is especially important. The need to supplement textbook material arises…

Argues that English-as-a-second-language teachers who develop their own instructional materials are more able to consider their students' interests and needs and are also more able to teach relevant content and language. (Author/CB)