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This unit covered the use of course books and lesson materials in ESL teaching. Materials come in two types; authentic and created. Authentic types are those that are not made specifically for ESL teaching; they are everyday texts such as newspaper articles, videos, songs, etc. Created texts are those that are made specifically to teach English, usually by the teacher, but also include course books. The unit went on to discuss the various advantages and disadvantages of using course books and supplementary materials created by the teacher. While course provide a solid, often tried and tested, syllabus, they are designed for a wide audience, and so do not cater to the individual needs of particular groups of students. Thus, it is important to use supplementary materials to make up for this. In my own situation, all my schools use a textbook designed and mandated by the government, which the English teachers are more or less obligated to follow exactly, moving through the textbook and completing every activity as required. This unit has reinforced that my job is to design supplementary materials to aid in teaching the content in the textbook. This allows me to use material that is interesting to the students, and cater the activity to their level, whether it is above or below the textbook standard. I believe this is a really important aspect of ESL teaching, as nothing is more boring to students than a stale series of lessons taught straight from a textbook.
