Materials Development
Materials development is the principled process of creating teaching and learning resources — coursebooks, worksheets, digital content, audio/video, task sequences — grounded in theory, research, and knowledge of learner needs. It is distinct from materials adaptation (adapting existing materials) and materials evaluation (assessing materials' suitability), though the three processes are closely related.
Brian Tomlinson, the leading figure in this field, has argued consistently that materials development should be driven by principles of second language acquisition, not by publishing conventions or commercial pressures (Tomlinson, 1998, 2011).
Tomlinson's Principles
Tomlinson (2011) synthesised research into a set of principles for effective materials:
| Principle | Implication for materials |
|---|---|
| Rich and varied input | Expose learners to extensive, diverse, and authentic language — not just graded, simplified text |
| Affective engagement | Materials should engage learners emotionally — curiosity, humour, personal relevance, surprise |
| Noticing facilitation | Help learners notice features of input through tasks, highlighting, or consciousness-raising — not just explicit rules |
| Opportunities for output | Provide meaningful tasks that require learners to produce language for communicative purposes |
| Contextualised practice | Present and practise language in meaningful contexts, not in isolated drills |
| Catering for differences | Allow for different learning styles, speeds, interests, and proficiency levels |
| Achievement and confidence | Activities should be challenging but achievable — learners need regular experiences of success |
| Delayed grammar teaching | Allow learners to encounter and process language before explicit analysis (Tomlinson's "text-driven" approach) |
The Development Process
1. Needs analysis
Establish who the learners are, what they need, and in what context they will use the language. Without needs analysis, materials are generic at best and irrelevant at worst.
2. Goals and objectives
Define what the materials should achieve, ideally aligned with learning outcomes and backward design principles.
3. Framework design
Establish the overall structure: how many units, what sequence, what recurring task types, how skills are integrated. This overlaps with scope and sequence and course design.
4. Content creation
Write texts, design tasks, create visuals, record audio. Each component should serve a clear pedagogical purpose. Questions to ask:
- Does this text provide rich, engaging input?
- Does this task require meaningful language use?
- Is the difficulty appropriate?
- Does the sequence move from receptive to productive, guided to freer?
5. Piloting
Test materials with actual learners. Observe what works and what does not. No amount of desk-based planning substitutes for classroom trialling.
6. Revision
Revise based on piloting feedback. This iterative cycle (write → pilot → revise) is what separates principled development from one-shot production.
7. Evaluation
Systematic evaluation after use, feeding into the next iteration.
Common Pitfalls
- Grammar syllabus driving everything — Units organised around grammar points often produce incoherent themes, unnatural texts, and contrived practice
- Neglecting extensive reading/listening — Over-focus on intensive exercises at the expense of exposure to extended texts
- Cosmetic engagement — Colourful layout and photos do not substitute for cognitively and affectively engaging content
- Ignoring the teacher — Materials that cannot be adapted or that assume a single teaching approach frustrate experienced teachers
- No piloting — Publishing untested materials and relying on author intuition
In Institutional Contexts
Language schools and programmes that develop their own materials (rather than relying solely on published coursebooks) gain:
- Relevance — Materials can be tailored to specific learner populations and institutional goals
- Coherence — Materials can align precisely with the scheme of work and assessment
- Currency — Topics and texts can be updated rapidly
- Ownership — Teachers who develop materials understand them more deeply than teachers using imposed coursebooks
The cost is time and expertise. A minimum viable approach: use a coursebook as the spine, develop supplementary materials for gaps, and gradually build an institutional materials bank through iterative piloting and revision.
Key References
- Tomlinson, B. (Ed.) (2011). Materials Development in Language Teaching (2nd ed.). Cambridge University Press.
- Tomlinson, B. (1998). Materials Development in Language Teaching. Cambridge University Press.
- McGrath, I. (2002). Materials Evaluation and Design for Language Teaching. Edinburgh University Press.
See Also
- Materials Adaptation — modifying existing materials for specific contexts
- Materials Evaluation — assessing materials systematically
- Course Design — the broader framework materials serve
- Needs Analysis — the starting point for principled materials development
- Authenticity — a key consideration in text and task selection