TOPIC 4: SELECTION AND

ADAPTATION OF MATERIALS AND

ACTIVITIES
COURSE:
TSL3107 TEACHING OF
WRITING SKILLS IN PRIMARY
ESL CLASSROOM
OPTION:
TESL SEM 4 AMBILAN KHAS
FEB 2013

INTRODUCTION

Topic 4 provides you with information

on selection and adaptation of

materials for the ESL learners.

LEARNING OUTCOMES
By the end of Topic 4, you will be able to:
define the term material adaptation
explain the need for material adaptation
elaborate on the criteria for selection and adaptation

FRAMEWORK

ROLES OF MATERIALS IN ESL

CLASSROOM
Textbooks:
function as the main (primary) teaching-learning resource.
is an efficient way of implementing the syllabus in terms of
time and cost-effectiveness.
Other materials in the ESL classrooms:
In late 1970s, a paradigm shift towards student-centered
learning happened
emerged as supplementary resources

EXAMPLES OF MATERIALS
Teachers have access to a wide selection of materials ranging
from:
authentic printed materials eg. brochures, newspapers,
magazines
audio/video recordings eg. audio books, poetry/songs,
movies
video clips eg. the art of origami downloaded from
YouTube
computer software eg.SpellBuzz, Word Treasure Chest

THE NEED TO ADAPT MATERIALS

Material adaptation:
the process of modifying an existing material/resource
into one that serves a different purpose or for a different
group of learners.
Materials are usually adapted for their:
format (eg: from a newspaper article to a picture series)
language level (eg: from advanced learners to less proficient
learners)
focus skill (eg: from a reading text to a listening text)

CRITERIA (SELECTION AND

ADAPTATION OF MATERIALS)
The criteria comprise of four main aspects :
learners age and maturity level
learning styles
proficiency levels
exploitability

LEARNERS AGE AND MATURITY

Is a persons age proportional to his maturity level?
It is crucial that the teacher designs teaching-learning

activities to suit her pupils.

This calls for a need to adapt materials suited for each
group (advanced, intermediate, weak) in a mixed-ability
class.

LEARNING STYLES
Individuals have different learning styles.
People have a mixed range of styles; some may find they

have a dominant style while for others the style changes

depending on the learning circumstances.
Applying multiple learning styles strategies in the
classrooms could result in more conducive learning
environments.
Adapting materials to suit our pupils learning styles is one
way of ensuring learners success in the ESL classrooms.

THE 7 LEARNING STYLES

PROFICIENCY LEVEL
Proficiency levels among ESL learners vary from high to

less proficient or from Level 1 5.

Materials have to be adapted to suit these range of learners.
For example, the teacher simplifies the vocabulary of a
reading passage to make it more comprehensible to her less
proficient pupils.
Writing tasks are also designed to suit the pupils
proficiency levels.

PROFICIENCY LEVEL

PROFICIENCY LEVEL

EXAMPLE

EXPLOITABILITY
Exploitability refers to:
how a selected material can be used to develop the
learners language skills.
In other words, the original material is exploited in
many ways.

EXAMPLE
The teacher selects the story The Ant and The Dove
The teacher begins by adapting the story to suit the

proficiency level of her pupils. Some parts in the

story may have to be simplified, for example:
An Ant was thirsty.
It went to the river bank to drink some water

EXAMPLE
The teacher then exploits the story in a number of

ways. Here are some suggestions:

(i) Listen and complete the story

(ii) Retell the story in your own words
(iii) Rewrite the story into a dialogue
(iv) Write a poem based on this story

THE END