Instructional Materials Theoretical Description

11 textbook provides a framework for the teachers, helps the teachers achieve the goals of the course, and also serves as a guidance for the teachers when conducting a lesson as cited in Rahimpour, 2013. There are six roles of materials in language teaching as defined by Cunningsworth 1995, p. 7. The first is as a resource for presentation materials in spoken and written. The materials are provided for the students both in the forms of spoken and written. The second is as a resource of activities for students ’ practice and communicative interaction. The students can practice the language through the activities which are provided by the materials. In addition, it leads to a communicative interaction among the students. The third is as a reference source for learners on grammar, vocabulary, and pronunciation. The materials become one of the guidelines in the language content. Thus, if there is a mistake in the materials, it will cause misinterpretation among the students. The fourth is as a source of stimulation and ideas for classroom activities. The materials supply ideas that can be used in the learning process. The fifth is as a syllabus. The materials reflect the learning objectives that have already been determined. Those materials are the implementation of the objectives. The last is as a support for the less experienced teachers who have yet to gain confidence. The materials help the less experienced teachers prepare and conduct the learning process. There are some advantages of using commercial textbooks in teaching and learning process as stated by Richards 2001, p. 254. The first is that a textbook provides structure and a syllabus for a program. The textbook helps the teachers in maintaining the syllabus that has been systematically planned. The second is that a 12 textbook helps standardize the instruction. The textbook can be used in different classes and it will help the teacher in assessing the students. The third is that a textbook maintains quality. A well-developed textbook leads the students to the appropriate pace of the learning process. The fourth is a textbook provides a variety of learning sources. A textbook is often accompanied by workbook, cassette, and a comprehensive teaching guide. The fifth advantage is textbook ’s efficiency. The textbook assists the teachers in saving their time for making the materials. The sixth is textbook provides effective language models and inputs. A textbook supports the teachers who may not be able to generate accurate language input on their own. The seventh is textbook can train teachers. The less experienced teachers can use teacher’s manual provided by the textbook which can serve as a medium of initial teacher training. The last is the visual appeal of the textbook. A commercial textbook usually has high standard of design. The theories above show that material --in this case is workbook-- has some advantages and plays an important role in a language teaching. A workbook gives an impact for both the teachers and the students. For teachers, a workbook functions as a partner to help them deliver the materials to the students. As well, for the students, a workbook also functions as a partner to help them review the materials at home, deepen their understanding through the exercises, and also as a record of their progress.