Using Authentic Materials in the Foreign Language Classroom Teachers’ Perspectives in Saudi Arabia

Using Authentic Materials

Eng. 528Language Teaching Materials

Term Paper

Using Authentic Materials in the Foreign Language Classroom: Teachers’

Perspectives in Saudi Arabia

Written by:Enas Al.Musallam

First semester 2006/2007

Enas I. Al-Musallam

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There is significant difference in opinions regarding the presence of authentic

materials in the FL classroom. Views range from strong caution to encouragement. This

paper intends to provide a deeper understanding of foreign language teachers’ attitudes

toward using authentic materials, focusing on both reading and listening skills. Fifteen

female teachers working at King Saud University completed a survey questionnaire for the

purpose of this study. The questionnaire was analyzed in terms of frequency and percentage.

The results indicate that all of the female English teachers —whether of the Saudi nationality

or not— have a positive attitude toward presenting authentic materials in the classroom.

Recommendations for future research are provided.

1. Introduction:

The relentless push since the mid 1970s toward communicative approaches to

language teaching has brought along with it a need to develop students’ skills for the real

world. Teachers, therefore, must stimulate this world in the classroom. One way of doing so

is to incorporate the use of authentic materials. Scholars argue that the use of authentic

materials helps to bridge the gap between classroom knowledge and students’ capacity to

participate in real-world events. In other words, incorporating authentic materials helps

students acquire an effective communicative competence in the target language. The present

study was designed to investigate teachers’ attitudes toward using authentic materials in the

FL classroom.

2. Literature Review:

2.1. Definition of Authentic Materials:

The term authentic materials has been defined in different ways throughout the

literature. What is common in these definitions is the exposure to real language and its use in

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its own community. Nunan (1989, as cited in Adams, 1995) refers to authentic materials as

any material that has not been specifically produced for the purpose of language teaching.

Little et al (1988, as cited in Guariento & Morley, 2001) define authentic materials as those

that have been produced to fulfill some social purpose in the language community in which

they were produced. Bacon and Finnemann (1990) define authentic materials as texts

produced by native speakers for non-pedagogical purposes. This paper will adopt Bacon and

Finnemann’s definition because their definition specifies the producers of the text as native

speakers, whereas the others do not.

2.2. The Impact of Authentic Materials on FL Teaching:

Although the use of authentic materials in the classroom has become common practice

during the last 20 years, the issue of authenticity in FL teaching has been one of the most

debatable aspects in the field. However, the need for and usefulness of authentic materials

have been increasingly acknowledged. Empirical studies have confirmed positive results

obtained by learners who have opportunities to interact with and utilize authentic texts.

For example, several studies show that oral language development is improved when

the practice incorporates authentic materials (Bacon & Finneman, 1990; Miller, 2005; Otte,

2006; Thanajaro, 2000). In addition, several studies find that authentic materials can increase

reading development by introducing students to new vocabulary and expressions (Bacon &

Finneman, 1990; Berardo, 2006). Harmer (1991) believes that, despite many textbooks’ use

of non-authentic materials to practice specific language points, only authentic materials will

genuinely improve listening and reading skills. Furthermore, Allen et al. (1988, as cited in

Baird, 2004) maintain that the strategies students develop in comprehending authentic texts

can help them develop writing proficiency in the target language.

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Incorporating authentic materials in teaching a FL offers more than linguistic

advantages. Scholars argue for the motivating power of authentic materials. McNeil (1994)

and Kilickaya (2004) indicate that the use of authentic texts is now considered to be one way

for increasing students’ motivation for learning since they give the learner the feeling that he

or she is learning the real language—the target language as it is used by the community that

speaks it. Empirical studies (Bacon & Finnemann’s, 1990; Otte, 2006; Thanajaro, 2000)

have confirmed that students’ motivation and self-satisfaction increased after exposure to

authentic aural texts. In addition, Kim (2000) argues that authentic materials make a major

contribution to overcoming certain cultural barriers to language learning.

On the other hand, some scholars do not see the value of using authentic materials.

Clark (1983) claims that media do not affect learning under any conditions; thus, the

question of authentic versus non-authentic makes no difference (as cited in Miller, 2005).

Kilickaya (2004) further points out that authentic texts are random in respect to vocabulary,

structures, functions, content, and length; thereby causing a burden for the teacher. Teachers

face challenges regarding access to authentic materials, the expense of purchasing them, and

the time required to find an appropriate authentic text and design suitable pedagogical tasks

(McNeil, 1994; Miller, 2005). Such issues often make it impractical for instructors to

integrate authentic materials into the curriculum successfully.

Furthermore, authentic input has long been perceived as too difficult for students to

understand. Martinez (2002) mentions that authentic materials may be too culturally biased

and difficult to understand outside the language community. Learners may experience

extreme frustration when confronted by an authentic text, especially lower level students, as

found by McNeil (1994). Schmidt (1994) argues that authentic discourse may panic learners

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who find themselves faced with the speed of delivery coupled with a mixture of known and

unknown vocabulary and structures; instead, he prefers using simplified texts that have

communicative value rather than using authentic input. However, Guariento and Morley

(2001) assert that such difficulties can be overcome by designing tasks that require only

partial comprehension.

In conclusion, the benefits that authentic materials bring to the FL classroom greatly

outweigh the challenges. In addition, it is possible to overcome the challenges through task

design. Thus, integrating authentic materials will merit the extra time and effort required of

FL teachers.

2.3. When should Authentic Materials be Introduced?

The issue of when to introduce authentic materials has been surrounded by controversy

in the field of language teaching. On the one hand, researchers such as Kilickaya (2004) and

Kim (2000) claim that authentic materials can be used with intermediate and advanced

students only. These researchers believe that the use of authentic materials at lower levels

causes students to feel frustrated and de-motivated since students at these levels lack many

lexical items and structures used in the target language. According to Guariento and Morley

(2001), “ At lower levels, however, even with quite simple tasks…the use of authentic texts

may not only prevent the learners from responding in meaningful ways but can also lead

them to feel frustrated, confused, and, more importantly, demotivated” (p. 347). Kim (2000)

further argues that authentic language may not expose students to comprehensible input at

the earliest stages of acquisition.

However, others claim that exposure to authentic materials should start in the earliest

stages of language learning (McNeil, 1994; Miller, 2005), asserting that an early exposure to

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such texts will help students develop useful strategies for more complex tasks later on. In an

examination of high school students studying German as a FL, Bernhardt and Berkemeyer

(1988, as cited in Otte, 2006) noted that all levels of students were able to manage using

authentic texts. Similarly, Allen et al (1988, as cited in Miller, 2005) studied1,500 high

school students in three different language levels using authentic materials. The researchers

found that all subjects were able to capture some meaning from all of the texts, even at the

beginning level. According to these studies, less proficient students can benefit from

authentic materials.

2.4. Selection of authentic materials:

Berardo (2006) provides three criteria for choosing authentic texts: suitability of

content, exploitability, and readability. Suitability of content indicates that the text should

interest the students as well as be appropriate to their needs and abilities. Bacon and

Finneman (1990) add that the texts should be culturally relevant to the experience of the

students. In this vein, Lee (1995) states that “a careful and wise selection of materials

focused on learners is a must if we want a positive response from them” (p.325).Meanwhile,

exploitability refers to how the text can be used to develop the students’ competence and

how the text can be exploited for teaching purposes. Finally, readability refers to the

language of the text, including the structural and lexical difficulty as well as the amount of

new vocabulary and grammatical forms.

Lee (1995) states that the text must be compatible with the course objectives— i.e., it

can improve the language skills educators want the learners to practice. In addition, teachers

must consider the length of the text and their teaching approach. Further, a variety of text

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types must be selected, such as articles, advertisements, weather forecasts, interviews,

poems, radio talks, application forms, train timetables, and brochures.

2.5. Sources of Authentic Materials:

The sources of authentic materials (whether spoken or written) are infinite. The most

common sources are newspapers, magazines, TV, video, radio, literature, and the internet.

Although radio is easy to access, its aural texts are the most difficult for language learners to

comprehend. Miller (2003) claims that, “In order to use radio programs with learners,

teachers need to…decide on some global listening tasks for the learners” (p. 16) due to the

fact that all non-verbal information is missing. Unlike radio, TV and video allow learners to

access paralinguistic features of the spoken text; as a result, TV and video may be easier for

the students to comprehend.

Yet it is the internet that is considered the most useful source (Berardo, 2006). While

printed materials date very quickly, the internet is continuously updated, is interactive, and

provides visual stimulation. It provides easy access to endless amounts of different types of

material (Berardo, 2006). Moreover, the internet can be the portal to other sources. For

example, teachers can obtain articles, audio clips, and videos from the internet. However,

despite the useful qualities of the internet, Miller (2003) indicates that a survey conducted

on The ESL Magazine website concerning the most used medium for obtaining authentic

listening materials for ESL/EFL instruction found the TV the most used one (see Appendix

A).

The literature indicates that researchers have investigated the impact of authentic

materials on language comprehension and performance at various levels. Some studies

provided insights about learners’ attitudes toward authentic input. In addition, pedagogical

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research sought to provide recommendations for material selection and sources. However, no

study has been conducted with the aim of eliciting teachers’ attitudes toward using authentic

materials in their classes. Because of the importance of the teachers’ role in providing

authentic input for the students, the present study attempts to address this issue.

3. The Study:

3.1. Purpose of the Study:

The central purpose of this study is to elicit the attitudes of English language teachers

at King Saud University toward using authentic materials in their classes. The study focuses

on receptive skills only (listening and reading). The researcher aims to provide answers to

the following questions:

1. What are the teachers’ attitudes toward using authentic materials in their language

classes?

2. Do they prefer to use authentic materials? Why, or why not?

3. In which classes would the teachers use such materials?

4. What is/are the appropriate level(s) for introducing such materials?

5. What are the sources that teachers would use to obtain authentic materials?

6. How would they select the materials?

7. Do they need training in dealing with such materials? If so, what type of training?

3.2. Methodology:

3.2.1. Participants:

Initially, twenty female English teachers working at King Saud University were asked

to participate. The participants were randomly selected without regard to their nationality,

teaching experience, or academic degree. Only fifteen agreed to participate; eight were Saudis

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while the rest came from different Arabic countries (1 Sudanese, 1 Lebanese, 2 Syrians, and 3

Egyptians). Six had studied abroad in countries where English is the native language. Their

experience in teaching English as a foreign language—not necessarily at King Saud

University—ranged from two to twenty-five years.

3.2.2. Procedures and Instruments:

A survey questionnaire was employed in order to answer the questions of the study (see

Appendix B). The questionnaire, distributed to all twenty initially selected potential

participants, first defined authentic materials. The participants were then asked to indicate

their experience in teaching EFL. The questionnaire presented nine items in the form of

multiple-choice questions. Participants were allowed to choose more than one answer

according to their opinions. In addition, they were allowed to add their own comments

regarding any item.

The participants were given one day to complete the questionnaire. Participants returned

their answers to the secretary office, where the researcher came later and pick them up. All 15

participants who agreed to answer the questionnaire returned the surveys within the required

timetable, so no follow-up was required. Responses from the questionnaires were analyzed in

terms of frequency and converted into percentage to indicate the teachers’ attitudes toward

each issue accurately.

4. Results and Discussion:

As stated earlier, this study sought to determine English teachers’ attitudes toward using

authentic materials in the language classroom. To answer the questions of the study, a survey

questionnaire was completed by fifteen female English teachers working at King Saud

University. This questionnaire contained nine items aimed to determine answers to the stated

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research questions. Responses to the questionnaire were analyzed in terms of frequency and

percentage. The outcomes of the teachers’ responses to the questionnaire are provided in

Table 1.

Table 1 Analysis of Teachers’ Responses to the Questionnaire

Questions Answers Frequency Percentage

1. Would you prefer to use authentic materials in your classes?

2. Why do not you prefer to use authentic materials?

3. Why do you prefer to use authentic materials?

4. In which class(es) would you use such materials?

5. At which level(s) would you use authentic materials?

6. What are the sources that you would use to obtain authentic materials?

7. What criteria of selection would you follow?

8. Do you think you need training in dealing with such materials?

9. What type of training do you need?

Yes No

Time consuming Difficult for the students Syllabus constraints

Exposure to real languageMotivate the students Improve the students’ skillsAdministration requirement

Listening Reading

Beginning levelsIntermediate levelsAdvanced Levels

Newspapers and Magazines TV/ VideoRadio Internet

Language levelLength of the textStudents’ needs and interestsCourse objectives.

YesNo

Selecting the materials Designing the activities

150

000

149150

1314

61414

1315514

1461014

105

510

1000

000

93.3601000

86.793.3

4093.393.3

86.71003393.3

93.34066.793.3

66.733.3

50100

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As shown in Table 1, the analysis of the data indicated a general consensus among

English teachers at King Saud University concerning the beneficial effect of authentic

materials in teaching EFL. In their answers to the first item, all fifteen teachers indicated that

they prefer to use authentic materials in their language classes. Since all of the participants

prefer to use authentic materials, none of them answered item two regarding the reasons

behind not preferring to use such materials.

In the third item, all of the participants indicated that they want to provide authentic

materials to their students in order to develop students’ language skills. None indicated that

doing so is required by the administration. Thus, it appears that the administrative policy does

not encourage teachers to include authentic materials in the curriculum. However, it does not

provide any constraints for this issue either. The overwhelming majority (93.3 %) stated that

they would provide authentic input in order to expose students to the real language as it is

used in the community that speaks it. One of the teachers wrote:

Of course, I am with the use of authentic materials. Using this technique

connects the students to the real world, where the language is to be used. It

saves the student a possible shock when she first practices the language, and

in overwhelming by the difference between the classroom setting and the real

world.

Moreover, the analysis indicates that only 60% of respondents care about motivating the

students in learning the language by presenting such materials. One of the teachers indicated

“I would provide anything that will improve the students’ knowledge, whether they are

motivated or not it does not matter.”

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These results suggest that teachers have positive attitudes toward using authentic

materials in FL classes. They believe that such materials improve students’ skills and expose

them to the real language. These findings are consistent with previous studies that

demonstrated the positive effects of authentic input in improving students’ reading and

listening skills (Harmer, 1991; Miller, 2005; Thanajaro, 2000). The current results also

demonstrate that the teachers do not consider the motivating power of authentic materials in

determining whether to incorporate them into the classroom. This finding contradicts several

studies that found that authentic input increases students’ motivation (Bacon & Finneman,

1990; Otte, 2006; Thanajaro, 2000).

The analysis of participants’ responses to item four (in which classes would they use

such materials?) found that 93.3 % would use authentic materials in reading classes, whereas

86.7% would use them in listening classes. Although small, this difference could be due to the

fact that teachers may lack the technical support needed to provide aural input. The female

English department has only one listening lab and one computer lab. Thus, the labs may not

be available during teachers’ classes.

In regards to when to introduce authentic materials into the classroom, almost all of the

participants (93.3 %) believe that authentic materials can be used at the intermediate and

advanced levels, while only 60 % suggest using these materials with beginners. One of the

teachers stated that “Beginners can not handle such materials because they lack many lexical

items and structures of the FL.” Clearly the teachers indicate some disagreement concerning

this issue. This finding is consistent with the literature which shows that the suitable level for

presenting authentic materials is one of the most debated aspects in the field. According to

Guariento and Morley (2001), “The question now…is not whether authentic texts should be

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used, but when and how they should be introduced” (p. 348).Moreover, one of the teachers in

the current research stated:

I am with the use of authentic materials in the Saudi context, actually in any

context in the world. But we have to take some points into consideration, such

as the students’ level. Therefore, I believe that such materials must be

integrated gradually in order not to cause a shock for the students.

This view is consistent with Schmidt’s (1994) suggestion that sequencing authentic materials

according to the occurrence of high frequency lexis or structure and by scale of need is

required.

Item six asked about the sources teachers use to obtain authentic materials; all of the

participants indicated that they would use TV/video as a primary source for authentic

materials. In addition, 93.3 % would use the internet, approximately 86.7% would use

newspapers and magazines, and only 33% may use the radio. An analysis of these results

reveals that the TV/video is the most commonly potential used source for obtaining authentic

materials. The internet comes second, newspapers and magazines third, and radio last. This

finding is consistent with Miller’s (2003) survey at the ESL Magazine site (See Appendix A).

Regarding the selection criteria participants would follow (item seven), 93.3% indicated

that the texts’ language level and the objectives of the course would be the primary guidelines

for material selection. One teacher wrote “I would go beyond course objectives, even

compromise the secondary ones that can be learnt in other courses.” Further, 66.6% of the

participants would consider the students’ needs and interests, whereas only 40% would think

about the length of the text. Another teacher added that she would expose students to different

varieties and styles of the language as well as different types of texts. These findings are

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consistent with Berardo’s (2006) and Lee’s (1995) proposed criteria for selecting authentic

materials.

An analysis of the participants’ responses to item eight (regarding training) revealed

that 66.7% indicated that they felt they needed training in using such materials to some extent,

while only 33.3 % claimed they need no training. The researcher found that responses to this

item were not affected by the length of teaching experience. One teacher with 20 years of

experience stated “Any training that would help developing my teaching skills I would be

more than glad.”

Those who indicated that they need training were asked (in item nine) to specify what

type of training they needed. Of the ten teachers who responded to this item, all claimed that

they need training in designing the activities. Only 50% indicated that they need training in

selecting the materials. One possible explanation for this finding is that designing the

appropriate tasks is more challenging than selecting the appropriate text.

5. Conclusion:

This study explored the attitudes of teachers toward using authentic materials in the FL

classroom in Saudi Arabia. The study was conducted at King Saud University in Riyadh. The

results reveal that all of the teachers indicated positive attitudes toward providing authentic

input in their classes, regardless of their nationality, teaching experience, and academic

degree. The reasons for such an attitude are to improve students’ skills and expose them to the

real language. In addition, teachers indicated that they would tend to use more authentic

materials in reading rather than listening classes. Furthermore, the results indicate that the

internet and TV would be the most used sources for obtaining authentic materials.

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The teachers disagreed on the suitable level of students for presenting such materials.

Most of the teachers believe that the language level of the text and the course objectives are

the guiding criteria for selecting appropriate texts. Ultimately, however, most participants

indicated a need for additional training in using authentic materials, particularly in designing

appropriate tasks. The results of this study could be viewed as a starting point for further

exploration into the use of authentic materials in FL teaching.

6. Limitations and Recommendations:

Several limitations of the present study point to ideas for future research on attitudes

toward using authentic materials. First, the small size of the sample population (N=15) sheds

doubt on the validity of the results. A replication study with a greater number of subjects is

needed in order to obtain reliable and generalizable results. Second, the study deals with

teachers at the college level. The same study may be conducted with English teachers at

schools rather than college, whether elementary, intermediate, or secondary schools. Third,

the study focused on female teachers’ attitudes. Hence, future research should elicit male

teachers’ attitudes as well as Saudi learners’ attitudes toward authentic input. Finally,

additional aspects of authenticity should be explored such as teachers’ opinions about how

authentic materials can develop productive skills or how to plan instruction that incorporates

such materials effectively.

References

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Adams, T. (1995). What Makes Materials Authentic? (ERIC Document Reproduction Service

No. ED 391389).

Bacon, S., & Finneman, M. (1990). A study of attitudes, motives, and strategies of university

foreign language students and their disposition to authentic oral and written input.

Modern Language Journal, 74(4), 459-73.

Baird, K., & Redmond, M, (Eds.). (2004). The use of authentic materials in the K-12 french

program. Winston-Salem, NC: Wake Forest University, Department of Education.

Berardo, S. (2006). The use of authentic materials in the teaching of reading. The Reading

Matrix, 6 (2), 60-69.

Guariento, W., & Morley, J. (2001). Text and task authenticity in the EFL classroom. ELT

Journal, 55 (4), 347 - 353.

Harmer, J. (1991). The Practice of English Language Teaching. London: Longman.

Kilickaya. F. (2004). Authentic materials and cultural content in EFL classrooms. The

Internet TESL Journal, 10 (7). Retrieved November 1, 2006 from

http://iteslj.org/Techniques/Kilickaya-AutenticMaterial.html

Kim, D. (2000). A qualitative approach to the authenticity in the foreign language classroom:

a study of university students learning English in Korea. Texas Papers in Foreign

Language Education, 5 (1), 189-205.

Lee, W. (1995). Authenticity revisited: text authenticity and learner authenticity. ELT

Journal, 49 (4), 323-328.

Martinez, A. (2002). Authentic materials: An overview. Karen's Linguistic Issues.

Retrieved October 25, 2006 from

http://www3.telus.net/linguisticsissues/authenticmaterials.html

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http://iteslj.org/Techniques/Kilickaya-AutenticMaterial.html


McNeill, A. (1994). What Makes Authentic Materials Different? The Case of English

Language Materials for Educational Television. Papers presented at the Annual

International Language in Education Conference, Hong Kong.

Miller, L. (2003). Developing listening skills with authentic materials. ESL Magazine, 6 (1),

16-19.

Miller, M. (2005). Improving aural comprehension skills in EFL, using authentic materials:

an experiment with university students in Nigata, Japan. Unpublished master’s thesis,

University of Surrey, Australia.

Otte, J. (2006). Real language to real people: a descriptive and exploratory case study of the

outcomes of aural authentic texts on the listening comprehension of adult ESL students

enrolled in an advanced ESL listening course. Dissertation Abstracts International,

218B. (UMI No. 3212979)

Thanajaro, M. (2000). Using authentic materials to develop listening comprehension in the

English as a foreign language classroom. Unpublished doctorial dissertation, Virginia

Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, Virginia.

Schmidt, T. (1994). Authenticity in ESL: a study of requests. Unpublished master’s thesis,

Southern Illinois University, Carbondale.

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Appendices

Appendix A

A survey at the ESL Magazine Site

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ESL Magazine’s Online Poll

www.eslmag.com


Adopted from Miller (2003).

Appendix B

The Questionnaire

Name: ……………………………….

Years of teaching English: ………………………………

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What medium do you use most often to obtain authentic listening material for ESL/EFL instruction?

35% TV11% radio14% films

31% Internet9% other


Authentic materials are texts produced by native speakers for non-teaching purposes. These

materials reflect the real world language. Such materials include TV commercials, films,

news items, weather forecasts, radio talks, interviews, articles, train timetables,

advertisements, brochures, and application forms.

1. Would you prefer to use authentic materials in your classes?

………. Yes ……….. No

If your answer is ‘Yes’, move to item no. 3.

2. Why do not you prefer to use authentic materials?

…… time consuming (in terms of selection and preparation)

…… difficult for the students to comprehend.

…… due to syllabus constraints.

Others……………………………………………………………………..

…………………………………………………………………………….

3. Why do you prefer to use authentic materials?

……. expose students to real language.

……. motivate the students.

……. improve the students’ skills.

……. administration requirement.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………..

4. In which class(es) would you use them?

……… Listening ………. Reading

5. At which level(s) would you use authentic materials?

…… beginning levels …… intermediate levels …… advanced levels

6. What are the sources that you would use to obtain authentic materials?

………Newspapers and Magazines ………TV/ Video

……… Radio ……… Internet

7. What criteria of selection would you follow?

…….. language level. (vocabulary & grammar)

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……… length of the text.

……… students’ needs and interests.

…….. course objectives.

Others ………………………………………………………………………..

……………………………………………………………………………….

8. Do you think you need training in using such materials?

……..Yes ………. No

9. If so, what type of training do you need?

…………. selecting the materials.

………….. designing the activities.

Others……………………………………………………………………………………

……………………………………………………..

Comments:

…………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………

Thanks.

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Using Authentic Materials in the Foreign Language Classroom Teachers’ Perspectives in Saudi Arabia