Análisis del Input de libros de texto para la enseñanza del inglés en Educación Primaria: Léxico frecuente, léxico emocional, y temas

Abstract

The textbook is the main pedagogical resource used by teachers of English as a foreign language in many countries. Quantitative and qualitative differences in the lexicon and topics covered by ELT textbooks may generate inequalities in an objective diagnostic evaluation, such as the evaluation that has been carried out since the 2014/2015 school year in the Autonomous Community of La Rioja (CAR). This Doctoral Thesis is mainly framed within the educational law LOMCE, whose curriculum was in force during the time this research was carried out, but it also considers the LOMLOE, the educational law in force at the time of the deposit of this Thesis. The main objective of the present Thesis consists of the identification and analysis of the frequent vocabulary input and emotion words, as well as the identification of the topics, or contents, included in ten Primary Education ELT textbooks (five from 3rd and five from 6th year) as to ascertain whether there are convergences or divergences in the input received by the learner, and whether the topics adhere to the educational policies of Primary Education in Spain. Among the reasons underlying this research is the need to know the degree of compliance of textbooks with the requirements of the national and regional curricula. This knowledge is necessary, among other things, to inform and guide the preparation of objective assessment tests in English for students in the third and sixth years of Primary Education. Through quantitative and qualitative analyses of textbooks content words, we obtained results that show substantial differences in the number of types and occurrences in textbooks of the same grade, as well as a significant increase in the number of types and occurrences in sixth grade textbooks compared to third grade. In contrast, similarity is observed in the frequency, level, and word class. Furthermore, the results reveal a higher number of positive-valence words as opposed to negative-valence words as well as the presence of emotion words in textbooks for learning and teaching English in the third and sixth grades. Among the results on the topics identified in the books, we find that in both grades a low number of topics are shared. Moreover, also in both years, social topics are more present than those related to the individual, and those related to the world and aspects such as the environment, or science and technology, among others. It is also observed that, in general, there is a greater presence of topics in sixth grade books. In terms of the suitability of the topics identified for the LOMCE curriculum for the third and sixth years of Primary Education, the results obtained point to a high level of suitability. These findings have implications for education and research since, depending on the textbook used, learners are exposed not only to a different lexical input, but also to a different amount of information, and to a diversity of ideas, facts, and 'worlds' projected by the different words found in the textbooks.