A System for Analyzing Conversation Textbooks

This paper proposes an aural/oral communicative English textbook analysis
system that reveals the language learning theories behind the textbook and
identifies the classroom procedures required to use it effectively. To promote
systematic analysis I have created a set of scales that measures five major variables
determining the characteristics of each text: (a) topic consistency; (b) type of
syllabus; (c) frequency of drill use; (d) presence or absence of activities allowing
the expression of the students' own ideas; and (e) types of language activities.
These variables were generated by analysis of sixteen government-authorized
textbooks published in 1995 for Oral Communication A, a new course aimed at
developing Japanese senior high school students' ability to converse in English.