In 2008, while reviewing the way English was taught at the school, based on feedback
from learners and teachers, Vicky became convinced that something needed to
be changed. She ‘started feeling that students, especially teens, were not being
offered the best option for their learning’ (Saumell, 2010). The problem was based
on a number of things, but she determined that at the heart of the problem was
the department’s reliance on a coursebook to drive the English curriculum. There
was a pressure on teachers to stick closely to the chosen coursebook, to finish it
because it had been bought, but this meant teachers had little time to do other
things, which they felt were more creative, fun or relevant. The coursebooks ‘did not
fully reflect the students’ interests and culture or the language we wanted them to
learn or how we wanted them to learn’ and in general learners were not motivated
by them, whereas the occasional projects that were undertaken ‘were welcomed
with enthusiasm and offered a more creative output, which resulted in increased
motivation for both the teachers and the students.’