Qualitative Critique and Evaluation of English for Schools (Prospect 1) with an Emphasis on Foreign Language Teaching Methodology

Learning any language has its own specific constraints and problems; English language learning is not an exception. One of the most important problems in learning English language is the quality of textbooks. Since “Prospect 1” is Iranian students’ first formal contact with English language in their schooling programs, designing and developing this book is of crucial significance and logically requires the authors’ more sophistication and precision. Therefore, evaluating and analyzing the content of this book can be an effectual undertaking in diagnosing the strengths and weaknesses where of. The main objective of the present study was to evaluate and analyze this textbook qualitatively on the basis of scientific criteria and eventually identify its merits and demerits especially with regard to the methodology of teaching a foreign language. To do so, 18 EFL teachers and 25 students were interviewed. Then, using content-analysis of the interviewees’ responses and also the analysis and inspection of the book’s content, the most important strong and weak points were discussed in the article.