Exploiting the Use of ELT Textbooks from a Cooperative Learning perspective: A Teaching Proposal based on Cooperation

Abstract

Today’s educational context is increasingly demanding for the inclusion of learners with different needs in the same classroom (Pujolàs & Lago, 2014). Given that situation, learning methods such as Cooperative Learning (CL) have emerged with the aim of providing learners the same opportunities to learn in an integrated and inclusive environment. In this respect, research on CL shows that this method is effective to guarantee the development of interpersonal and social skills, for example, sharing, empathy, respect, integrity and teamwork (Kagan, 2009). Moreover, concerning language teaching, different authors support the benefits of implementing cooperative strategies in the English as a foreign language (EFL) classroom (Alghamdi & Gillies, 2013; Ghufron & Ermawati, 2018; Pan & Wu, 2013). Among the strengths of CL, raising students’ self-confidence, improving problemsolving skills, fostering active participation, and raising students’ responsibility in their learning can be highlighted. For this reason, the following master’s thesis dissertation (MD) presents a teaching proposal that exploits the content of an English Language Teaching (ELT) textbook from a cooperative perspective. For this purpose, a particular unit of an ELT textbook is analysed to determine whether it promotes cooperative work in the EFL classroom. Then, these results are key for the design of the teaching proposal which tends to give response to the lack of cooperation observed in the ELT textbook material. The present MD contributes to supporting the implementation of CL in the EFL classroom to facilitate learners’ language development and promote social values.