Coursebooks and Materials - Authentic and Created Materials
Just to finish the sectional materials, we'll have a look the difference between what are called authentic and created materials. Authentic materials, as the name implies, are actual materials that are created for any reason outside of the classroom. So examples of authentic materials would be things like newspapers. Those are generated for the general public and they're certainly not generated for the use in the classroom. However, they can be used within the classroom other ideas would be things like songs and poems and even things such as brochures and magazines and indeed menus from restaurants. So these are materials that all can be used within the classroom but they have not been created for that purpose, whereas creative materials, as the name implies, have been produced purely and simply to be used in the classroom. Examples of these would be flashcards, crosswords that have been created within the teaching material that we've got and at a lower level than crosswords we have things like word search and we could also include things such as picture stories, roleplay cards and games. In terms of the materials that you use in the classroom, what we should try to do is to create a good balance of authentic versus creative materials. Authentic materials have certain advantages in that because they are real, the students tend to give them a little bit more value than those that have been created. So try to have a balance of authentic and creative materials within your activities.
Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language teaching. This convenient, highly structured design means that you can quickly get to grips with each section before moving onto the next.
