The Comparison Of Reading Materials Between Go For It!(PEP) And Project English(ren’ai) For Grade Nine Students

Reading materials is an important part of English textbooks. The selection and design of reading materials in the textbook directly influences students’ reading efficiency. The researcher chooses two widely-used English textbooks in Haikou, Go for it!(PEP) and Project English(Ren’ai) for Grade 9. This study is to compare the two textbooks in terms of topics(cultural knowledge), length, genre, vocabulary, syntax, text structure and reading activities and to find out which textbook can help students achieve the objectives set for reading skills proposed by English Curriculum Standards better and whether the textbooks can suit both the needs of teachers and students.This research attempts to answer the following questions: 1. What are the characteristics of the reading materials in the two textbooks? 2. Which textbook can help students achieve the objectives for reading skills set in English Curriculum Standards? 3. Which textbook can suit both the needs of teachers and students in terms of the topics(culture knowledge), length,genre, vocabulary, syntax, discourse structure and reading activities?The findings show that Go for it! can help students achieve the objectives for reading skills set in English Curriculum Standards better in terms of the topics(culture knowledge),length, genre, vocabulary, syntax, discourse structure and reading activities. The reading materials in Go for it! demonstrate the following characteristics: 1. The reading materials is various and practical in topics, genre, syntax, discourse structure and reading activities. 2. The reading materials emphasizes the guidance of reading skills and strategies. 3. The length of reading texts is moderate and increases with the learners’ progression. 4. The vocabulary in the reading texts is extensive but with some obscure words. The proportion of core vocabulary is relatively large. 5. Reading skill training is integrated with other language skills. 6. The discourse structures of the reading texts are varied and clearly-defined, serving the themes well. 7. The sentences in the texts are varied in complexity, with a large amount of compound sentences.The reading materials in Project English demonstrate the following characteristics: 1.The reading texts are less diversified and varied in terms of topics and genre. 2. The reading materials emphasizes the guidance of reading skills and strategies, but with little stress on vocabulary strategies in reading. 3. Some reading texts are too short for Grade 9 students,which may not be good for them to develop reading skills. 4. The vocabulary in the reading texts is less extensive with a comparatively small proportion of core vocabulary. 5. Reading skill training is integrated with other reading skills. 6. The discourse structures of the texts is varied but with some not so clearly-defined. 7. The sentences in the texts are varied in complexity.However, the interview data analysis shows that Project English is easier and can better suit the needs of the teacher and the students in terms of the topics(culture knowledge),length, genre, vocabulary, syntax, discourse structure and reading activities. This may ascribe to the students’ low-level language proficiency and the teachers’ ability to analyze and use textbooks.Based on the findings, the researcher proposes that the textbook writers need to be more selective when choosing and designing reading materials in conformity with English Curriculum Standards, and teachers should make close textbook analysis and use the reading materials more flexibly and creatively according to their student’s needs and teaching purposes.Hopefully this thesis will inform the development and design of the reading materials for Junior English reading instruction.