1.1.
Background of The Study
One of the components determining the success of a language
instructional process in classrooms is materials. Materials are a tool and
guidance to teach and learn, they could be textbooks, workbook or photocopied
exercises, videos, CD-Roms, and also newspaper, live talks with the native
speakers, and internet. In other words materials are everything which is used
both by teachers and students in order to facilitate the teaching and learning
process. Materials could be defined as what teachers use in the classroom to
achieve the goals of the course.
English materials are important in language instruction and also an
important resource for teachers in assisting students to learn English. It
means materials give more benefits for both teachers and students. Teachers can
gain kinds of professional development through materials; 1)knowledge development, their knowledge is
improve because they get something new, 2)
English skill development , their four English skills is improve because they
often train and practice them, and 3)teaching
strategies, they analyze what appropriate strategies could be used when present
the materials. For students, materials can motivate them to become autonomous
learners, and to support them for continuing to learn outside of the classroom.
As Allwright (1990)[1] said that materials should
teach students to learn, that they should be resource for ideas and activities
for instruction or learning, and that they should give teachers rationales for
what they do.
Materials are the center of
instruction, it can be seen in many cases teachers and students rely greatly on
materials, and materials determine the components and methods of learning, that
is, they control the content, methods, and procedures of learning and students
learn what is presented in the materials. Furthermore, Hutchinson and Torres
(1994)[2] highlights some advantages
of materials (textbook), they could become a vehicle for teacher and students
in the teaching and learning process, they facilitate the classroom management,
and they could become an agent for change, it means they could facilitate
teachers with a clear objectives of what the change will look like and a clear
practical guidance on how to apply it in the classroom.
