Interior Design ESP Lesson Plan and Textbook Evaluation

Posted on Feb 14, 2026 in Primary Education

Dudley-Evans and St. John (1998)

  • Does this book motivate students? (attractive)
  • Does the book have learning goals that match your own goals/focus?
  • Does the book offer support in the learning process? Consider students’ learning difficulties or different learning styles (por ejemplo: opciones de ver un video en vez de solo el libro, actividades alternativas para estudiantes con dificultades…)
  • Does the book match your students’ needs?

Cunningsworth (1995)

  • Are the pedagogical approaches used in the book similar to the ones you’d use in your course? (Not similar; my course approach is TBL)
  • Is the book well-organized? Yes — all units have a similar length.
  • Does this organization match your course design? No — the book is designed for longer courses, not for a single 30-hour course.
  • Is the language content of the book accurate?
  • Does it match your students’ field of expertise?
  • What skills are covered in this book? (reading, listening, writing — not focused on oral production)
  • Do they match your course focus? Partially — it includes oral production activities but oral production is not the main topic
  • Does this book include supplementary materials (teacher’s book, grammar book, online materials)?
  • Do these materials help the learning process? No — they help the teaching process. They are useful for junior teachers to find activity ideas, but from the students’ point of view they do not directly help learning.
  • How much is this book?
  • How long is it?
  • Does it match your students’ proficiency level?

Real Content

Real content: This is the penal and legal vocabulary (e.g., exoneration, defendant, prosecution, deterrence). This is the explicit linguistic goal of the lesson.

Carrier Content

Carrier content: This is the topic of the “Facts about the Death Penalty” article. It is the vehicle used to introduce, contextualize, and practice the real content. The students are not being tested on their knowledge of the death penalty, but on their ability to use the target vocabulary to discuss it.

Teaching Lesson

Goals

Students will confidently describe interior design concepts and discuss client needs orally using appropriate professional English.

They will learn to:

  • Describe a room and its design elements professionally
  • Explain design choices (materials, colors, style)
  • Interact politely and effectively in a client–designer conversation

Methodology

  • Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) – focus on meaning and interaction
  • Task-Based Learning (TBL) – students complete realistic professional tasks
  • Scaffolding – from guided speaking to freer production

Lesson sequence (120 min)

  1. 1 Warm-up — 15 minutes

    “Finish the sentence” with vocabulary seen in the previous class.

    Each student must complete and tell the class the following sentences written on the whiteboard:

    • A good interior design must…
    • Clients usually ask for…

  2. 2 Short oral drill — new vocabulary (15 min)

    The teacher introduces new key vocabulary and functional phrases and then students repeat.

    Then, in pairs, the students do a mini speaking practice. They have to describe one element of the room using the new vocabulary they just learned.

  3. 3 Describing a Space (30 min)

    Students divide into groups of 3–4 students.

    Each group receives an interior design image of a room and must prepare a short oral description covering:

    • Type of room
    • Style
    • Materials
    • Target client

    After the presentation the teacher gives brief oral feedback.

  4. 4 Role-play (40 min)

    One student acts as the designer and the other as the client.

    Each pair of students receives a role card depending on their role:

    • Client: needs, preferences, budget, and preferred style
    • Designer: must ask questions and propose ideas

    Structure:

    • Explanation of the activity: 6 minutes
    • 14 minutes preparation of both roles
    • 20 minutes role-play (10 minutes each role)

    The teacher will circulate around the class, monitor conversations, and take notes on vocabulary students could improve or where mistakes were made. The teacher can also help students if they have trouble with the activity.

  5. 5 Feedback — 20 minutes

    During feedback the teacher will highlight:

    • Effective communication and strategies students have used
    • Common errors to be corrected

    Then a short reflection with the students:

    • What did they find difficult during the activities?
    • Questions