New Prospects in the Light of the Competency-Based Approach

Abstract

The new educational reforms launched by
Algeria’s policy-makers in collaboration
with the UNESCO education experts aim
at achieving a modern and efficient
educational system. And the choice of a
competency–based model is said to
enhance the learners’ performance and
prepare them to cope with the job-related
issues. The ingredients to materialize
these reforms could be seen in these areas:
an innovative teaching methodology, a
new syllabus specification and the
publication of new instructional
manuals… However, the effectiveness of
any pedagogical approach is very often
closely tied up to the textbook
implementation. As teachers in a Teacher
Training School, we have the
responsibility to evaluate how efficient
these teaching materials are, and how well
fitted they are to the theoretical paradigm.
The purpose of this paper is, therefore, to
assess the quality of a course book (New
Prospects S.E. 3rd year), bringing out its
merits and demerits in the light of the CBA
principles.