Sammendrag
The thesis takes a closer look at the foundation course in English with particular interest in textbook activities.The main objective is to see if and to what extent changes in the syllabuses are reflected in the types of activities in the textbooks. A hypothesis is presented initially: the gradual increased focus on the communicative approach in teaching has resulted in a shift from reproductive exercises and drills to more functional and open-ended activities.
The thesis discusses briefly the theoretical background to teaching English as a foreign language, as well presenting and discussing the syllabuses from 1976 and 1994. Based on this theoretical presentation the thesis puts forth a system of classifying activities.This typology is used in order to analyse two textbooks, namely Scope which is based on the 1976 syllabus and Passage which is based on the 1994 syllabus.
The results are seen both in relation to the syllabuses and the prevalent TEFL theories. The development and changes of the textbook activities are discussed. The thesis' main findings verified the hypothesis, although the number of open-ended activities did not form the majority expected. The findings can be explained with current reading theories, the Reader-Response theory, schema theory and theories and hypotheses of interaction and interactional activities.