Evaluation of textbooks is also considered to function as a kind of educational judgement. Hutchinson and Waters (1987:96) gives thisdefinition, ‘Evaluation is a matter of judging the fitness of something for aparticular purpose.’ Cunningsworth (1984:64) puts fon/vard the idea ‘...that theprocess of evaluation could not be a purely mechanical one and tha tprofessional judgement was involved at every stage.‘ He goes on to say, ‘Professional judgement, founded on understanding of the rationale oflanguage teaching and learning and backed up by practical experience, lies atthe base of evaluation procedure.‘ (ibid:74) To conclude, materials evaluation
helps us make decisions in selecting textbooks, form professional judgementsas well as raise awareness of or reflect on our teaching and learningexperience.