"NAVIGATING BETWEEN PRESCRIPTION AND PRACTICE: VIETNAMESE EFL TEACHERS’ ADAPTATION OF TEXTBOOKS TO FIT LOCAL TEACHING NEEDS "

Abstract

"Textbook adaptation is common in Vietnamese EFL classrooms, yet the teacher centered processes behind it remain insufficiently described. Drawing on Borg’s work on teacher cognition and a Vygotskian sociocultural activity perspective, this qualitative study examines textbook adaptation through semi structured interviews with ten in-service teachers. The findings show that adaptation functions as a routine practice of autonomy with alignment, in which teachers treat the textbook as a curricular spine by maintaining core aims while adjusting peripheral activities. Modification and addition were the dominant strategies used to fine tune difficulty and localize content, whereas omission and substitution operated as higher risk responses for managing load when prescribed materials were judged to be fundamentally mismatched to the class. Decision making was shaped by an ecology of three interacting domains, wherein teacher cognition and affective states determined the scope of change at the cognitive level, learner variance and engagement needs acted as triggers at the learner level, and institutional mandates defined the boundaries of acceptable adaptation at the contextual level. Accordingly, the study provides practice based evidence that can inform teacher education and materials development in comparable EFL contexts."