Textbook Evaluation: Teachers' Perspectives on Cutting Edge

Abstract

This study aimed to evaluate Cutting Edge, a textbook which is currently being taught at Najran University’s Preparatory Year Programme. Twelve EFL instructors were asked to share their perspectives about the target textbook, and a forty-item questionnaire, which was developed by Litz (2005), was used for the purposes of the evaluation. The six areas of the textbook that the questionnaire assessed included skills, activities, layout and design, language type, subject and content and practical considerations. The study’s findings revealed that the instructors were largely satisfied with a majority of the textbook’s features. They were most satisfied with the textbook’s layout and design (mean score=3.74), followed by its subject and content (3.65), its skills component (3.63), its activities (3.55) and its language type (3.51). By contrast, the respondents' opinions of the textbook’s practical considerations were unclear.

Because the instructors were happy with most aspects of Cutting Edge, it is likely that the textbook will continue to function as a suitable teaching aide during the instruction of English at Najran University’s Preparatory Year Programme. However, it is important to note that this evaluation was based on a select pool of instructors' personal opinions. It is therefore highly recommended that learners be given the opportunity to evaluate the textbook, as well.