Analysis of the content of Persian textbooks (teaching Persian language to non-Persian speakers) based on learners' age

Background and Objective:

 Age is an important factor in language learning. Sociologically, members of a language community at different ages have different patterns of behavior that change throughout life and through different stages. Age-related linguistic features may be purely lexical or may be phonetic and grammatical. There are differences in the language behavior of different age groups in a language community. In this way, each age group tends to certain linguistic features. No progress will be made in language learning unless the characteristics of language learners are taken into account. We consider speech to depend on to whom we speak, where we speak, and when we speak. The importance of the sociology of language becomes clear where language is a means of communication and we must consider what we say and what we mean by that speech. If students discuss a topic of interest, they will certainly not simply forget the new sentences on that topic. For this reason, in learning a second language, the sociological skills of language, such as social class culture, age, etc., should be considered. The present study is a field study that analyzes the content of Persian textbooks (teaching Persian language to non-Persian speakers) to see to what extent they fit the age of students.

Materials:

 The research sample includes 50 Persian language learners who have been selected by a researcher-made questionnaire. In this research, the following questions are raised: to what extent the selection of comprehension texts of the textbook of Persian language teaching to non-Persian speakers that is adapted to the age and interests of the learners can be effective in learning the vocabulary of Persian language to non-Persian speakers? What changes are proposed to make Persian language teaching books to non-Farsi speakers more relevant to the age of the learners?

Findings of the research show that foreign language learners tend to have their own age preferences in proportion to their age, and are interested in certain texts. Therefore, in curriculum development, age and interests of the learners should be taken into account. In this way vocabulary of the texts is taught easily and effectively. The relevance of the text to the learner's age is important in learning the vocabulary of the text.

From the point of view of teachers and experts, the content of textbooks for teaching Persian to non-Persian speakers ​​does not lead to the responsibility and participation of language learners in the desired level of learning activities. The content of textbooks does not have the desired variety of content, examples and illustrations. In this course, books should be designed and arranged in such a way that language learners have the necessary ability to write answers to book exercises, write summaries of textbooks, write sentences with correct spelling and observe written technical points, including marking, use of capital letters, and create the correct calligraphy. Learners should be familiar with the facts of the Persian language, the culture of Persian speakers, and develop critical thinking in learners. Since the concepts of Persian language for learners as a non-native and second language are far from the mind and not very understandable, the content of Persian language textbooks should be designed in such a way that they form interesting content and examples, use a variety of pictures to help learns better learn the content. Textbooks can be effective in cultivating the imagination, sense of beauty, personality of language learners compared to Persian.