Investigating Teachers’ Perceptions and Classroom Implementation Practices in Relation to My Book of English in First-Year Middle School Classrooms: A Case Study in Ghardaia and Berriane

Abstract

Textbooks are an important tool in language teaching. Teachers, on the other hand, are the backbone of the classroom setting who believe, make decisions, and interpret this tool based on their knowledge. This develops their perceptions toward the textbook and how they implement it through strategies of adaptation, selection, and supplementation, in which they help in meeting learners’ needs and the merits of learning. Because the prescribed textbook does not always suit teachers, learners’ interests, and curriculum goals, this study aims to investigate teachers’ perceptions and classroom implementation practices in relation to My Book of English in first-year middle school classrooms at Ahmed Herouini, Mohammed Boudiaf, and Ourida Meddad in Ghardaia Province, and Abou El Yakadan and Metalag Metalag in Berriane. This study is particularly significant as My Book of English is being implemented for the first time this academic year, within a new educational context in which first-year middle school learners are the first cohort to have received English instruction at the primary school level following recent curriculum reforms. The research explores the perceptions and experiences of eight teachers toward the use of the textbook in terms of content, sequencing, activities, structure, and meeting learners’ needs. It also examines the implementation of the lessons through modifying and adjusting this material, and it identifies the materials that the teachers adopt as an alternative to My Book of English. To accomplish this study, a qualitative descriptive approach was adopted. Data were collected from eight teachers through classroom observation sessions and semi-structured interviews to gather substantial data. Also, an examination of the textbook sequences and the didactic guide’s contents in a comparative way through document analysis was conducted. The findings from the teachers’ interviews explored their perceptions, experiences, and attitudes towards the use of the prescribed textbook, instructional decisions regarding curriculum use, and instructional materials. Finally, the study presents the main results and provides pedagogical recommendations for teachers, curriculum designers, and educational authorities.