Hi,

Have you already selected the two coursebooks you want to compare?

Your research topic sounds interesting and relevant to educational contexts. To evaluate and compare the writing skills and activities included in coursebooks, as well as the syllabi of two different coursebooks, you can consider the following evaluation criteria and explore existing literature for foundational insights:

**Evaluation Criteria:**

1. **Learning Objectives:** Compare the stated learning objectives of the writing activities in both coursebooks. Are they aligned with the overall goals of the course and the writing skills students need to develop?

2. **Task Types:** Analyze the types of writing tasks included in each coursebook. Are they diverse and reflective of real-world writing situations? Examples might include essays, reports, summaries, argumentative pieces, creative writing, etc.

3. **Cognitive Levels:** Examine the cognitive levels required by the writing tasks. Do they encourage critical thinking, analysis, synthesis, or application of knowledge?

4. **Authenticity:** Consider the authenticity of the writing tasks. Do they mirror real-world writing demands and situations?

5. **Audience and Purpose:** Evaluate whether the writing activities address different audiences and purposes, such as academic, professional, or personal writing.

6. **Feedback and Assessment:** Investigate how the coursebooks address providing feedback on students' writing and how assessment is conducted.

7. **Cultural Relevance:** Assess if the writing tasks consider cultural and sociocultural factors, making them relevant and inclusive for diverse students.

8. **Language Complexity:** Examine the complexity of language structures and vocabulary used in the writing tasks. Are they appropriate for the level of students?

9. **Progression:** Analyze the progression of writing activities across the coursebook. Do they scaffold skills from simpler to more complex tasks?

10. **Integration:** Explore how writing activities are integrated with other language skills, such as reading, listening, and speaking.

**Literature Review:**

To establish the basis of your research, consider exploring the following types of sources:

1. **Research Papers and Dissertations:** Look for academic papers and theses that investigate writing skills and coursebook analysis in language education contexts. Databases like ERIC, JSTOR, and Google Scholar can be helpful.

2. **Textbook Evaluation Frameworks:** Explore frameworks used to evaluate educational materials, such as the "Criteria for Evaluating ESL Textbooks" by Sheldon (1988).

3. **Language Teaching Journals:** Journals like "TESOL Quarterly," "Applied Linguistics," and "Language Teaching" often publish research on language education, including coursebook analysis.

4. **Educational Research Journals:** Journals focusing on educational research might offer insights into curriculum design and instructional materials evaluation.

5. **Comparative Studies:** Look for studies that compare different coursebooks or syllabi to gain insights into the methods used in such analyses.

6. **Institutional Libraries:** Check if your institution's library provides access to digital databases and repositories for academic literature.

When searching for literature, use keywords like "coursebook analysis," "syllabus evaluation," "writing skills," "language education," and "university preparatory programs" to refine your search and find relevant materials.

As you review the literature, you'll be able to identify methodologies, frameworks, and theoretical approaches that can inform your research design. Adapt and tailor these approaches to your specific research context and questions.

Remember that the goal of your literature review is to identify gaps in existing research, build upon previous findings, and contribute new insights to the field of language education and writing skills.

Hsin-Yuan Chen , I am still searching for that as well. I guess one of them will be English File B1. As a second coursebook, I cannot decide whether to choose Empower B1 or Pioneer B1 because both of them focus on formal and informal writing, letter and CV formats etc before paragraph writing. I am also talking to my colleagues around me, the ones who used these coursebooks before. THey may give a review of them.

@Tom Okello, thank you so much for your interest and guidance. Both the evaluation criteria and the keywords are very helpful. In fact, some of the items in the criteria are almost neglected by universities prep. programs in my country. This could be another dissertation subject in the future. Fo now, I would like to focus on my comparative research. It might be a trouble to find the variety in coursebook evaluation studies in university level in my country. The reason could be sever that I use. Another thing is, the textbooks which are prepared for elementary or high school grades are usually evaluated in Turkey. However, students are exposed to English more than twenty hours per week in universities' prep program whereas they are exposed to it for almost four hours peer week in lower grades. This might be another issue for another master's dissertation. :D

So, I'm giving a second try by using the keywords you have suggested. Once again, thank you so much. I hope to keep in touch.

Duygu Yalciner

Hi,

Thanks for the update. Sounds like you're doing thorough research. Best wishes.