a) The value of using authentic materials in foreign language teaching:
Authentic material, described as “real-life text” (Wallace, 1992:145) are written for native speakers
(Berardo, S.A.,2006) and created for a social intent (Peacock, 1997). The most prominent benefit of
using authentic material in foreign language teaching is the exposure that students get
to unregulated native-speaker language. This refers to the actual ‘real world’ communication used
by native speakers. This is often motivating for all students, especially those that are constantly
exposed to inauthentic listening and reading material. Students tend to prefer authentic material
because they get the opportunity to learn specific pronunciation, accent, and colloquial dialect.
Authentic material is affective as it considers culture, time, and place. These attributes help
students to relate current events to their own personal experiences and knowledge.
Non-authentic material gives students the impression that language should be perfect and
structured all the time. This can be very daunting for some students and can trigger nervousness
and hesitation when trying to express themselves. The artificial qualities of the language and
structures used, make them very unlike real life experiences although valuable for teaching
structures but conducive to improving reading skills (Berardo, S.A., 2006).
b) Reasons for the selection of this text and the 12 vocabulary items. Rationale for changes to
text, if applicable.
The text I selected is an audio text of a facilitated discussion between two middle-aged women.
They are asked questions about their interests in a foreign language, their willingness to relocate,
their hobbies and pass times, and their aspirations for the future. Their discussions were very
wide-ranging, the discussions quite gripping and topics quite broad. I found the text to be quite
authentic as the ladies answering the questions used genuine colloquial language and vocabulary.
For the advanced class that would hear this text, the language is appropriate, and discussions were
rich with new vocabulary. The topics covered in the text would be suitable for the majority of
students in the advanced C1-C2 class and the vocabulary apt for social interactions amongst this
group of students, which each of them could gain something from.
The 12 vocabulary items that I had chosen were assisted by a vocabulary profiler. Most of the
items simply stood out on the profiler along with a few phrases that did not.
© 2020 The TEFL Academy. All rights reserved. 1
Authentic material, described as “real-life text” (Wallace, 1992:145) are written for native speakers
(Berardo, S.A.,2006) and created for a social intent (Peacock, 1997). The most prominent benefit of
using authentic material in foreign language teaching is the exposure that students get
to unregulated native-speaker language. This refers to the actual ‘real world’ communication used
by native speakers. This is often motivating for all students, especially those that are constantly
exposed to inauthentic listening and reading material. Students tend to prefer authentic material
because they get the opportunity to learn specific pronunciation, accent, and colloquial dialect.
Authentic material is affective as it considers culture, time, and place. These attributes help
students to relate current events to their own personal experiences and knowledge.
Non-authentic material gives students the impression that language should be perfect and
structured all the time. This can be very daunting for some students and can trigger nervousness
and hesitation when trying to express themselves. The artificial qualities of the language and
structures used, make them very unlike real life experiences although valuable for teaching
structures but conducive to improving reading skills (Berardo, S.A., 2006).
b) Reasons for the selection of this text and the 12 vocabulary items. Rationale for changes to
text, if applicable.
The text I selected is an audio text of a facilitated discussion between two middle-aged women.
They are asked questions about their interests in a foreign language, their willingness to relocate,
their hobbies and pass times, and their aspirations for the future. Their discussions were very
wide-ranging, the discussions quite gripping and topics quite broad. I found the text to be quite
authentic as the ladies answering the questions used genuine colloquial language and vocabulary.
For the advanced class that would hear this text, the language is appropriate, and discussions were
rich with new vocabulary. The topics covered in the text would be suitable for the majority of
students in the advanced C1-C2 class and the vocabulary apt for social interactions amongst this
group of students, which each of them could gain something from.
The 12 vocabulary items that I had chosen were assisted by a vocabulary profiler. Most of the
items simply stood out on the profiler along with a few phrases that did not.
© 2020 The TEFL Academy. All rights reserved. 1
