By M.Sc. Carol Sutton
e-mail csutton19@hotmail.es
Writer Brian Tomlinson, author of Principles of Effective Materials Development, states that when planning we should take in account following factors: :
- the need to communicate
- the need for long -term goals
- the need for authenticy, and
- the need for student-centeredness
I strongly believe in his position because all that we do in a classroom and out of a classroom such as planning is centered around the students. On the other hand, materials are essential when you are teaching or learning a language. They contribute to make learning more exciting.
Materials can be written, spoken or visual . They can be home-made taking advantage of old magazines and others or we can buy at the bookstore if you have some extra cash. For material usage, we must take in account the learners' interest trying to motivate them. Language acquisition shoud be taken in account based on the five principles that the author mentioned.
Finally, I must say that Brian Tomlinson's ideas are very useful for us English teachers to apply and to contextualize in accordance with the different learning and teachings environments.
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