The Practice of English Language Teaching

In this new edition there is a new chapter on teaching vocabulary, a section on discovery techniques, more on task-based learning and learner training, and a recognition of the change of perception about what communicative competence might be. Many of the categories of communicative activities have been rearranged and there is a more detailed account of teacher roles, together with a section on the use of the mother tongue. The sample lesson plan has been changed and the many examples from textbooks generally reflect the materials now in use rather than those which were current when the first edition came out. The structure of "The Practice of English Language Teaching" remains essentially the same. In part A; Background, the author looks at some of the theoretical concerns which influence the teaching of English as a foreign language. In part B, Practice, the author looks at study materials and techniques for teaching, and in part C, Management and Planning, he looks at how classrooms and students can be organized and what is the best way to prepare for a lesson.
The appendix on materials evaluation should help anyone who is in a position to select the textbook which the students are going to use. "The Practice of Language Teaching" deals specifically with the teaching of English as a foreign language (EFL). It is not focused especially on English as a second language (ESL) although much of the context of the book can be applied to that slightly different teaching situation. The book is directed at the teaching of "general" English; the teaching of English for specific purposes (ESP) does not form a major part of the work. An ELBS/LPBB edition is available.