Evaluation of Side by Side from a Grammatical Perspective

This paper evaluates the grammar exercises in the Side by Side textbook published by Longman. It analyzes the coverage of grammatical elements and the types of grammar tasks in the textbook. The paper finds that Side by Side textbook offers comprehensive coverage of essential grammatical concepts like tenses, nouns, verbs, pronouns, adjectives, adverbs, and clauses. However, it lacks determiners and focuses on mechanical and meaningful aspects. The proportion of communicative exercises is smaller. To reach its full potential, textbooks should consider the perspectives of teachers, students, and editors. The author recommends that textbook compilers consider the age and interests of target students and maintain a balanced proportion of different tasks. However, the textbook lacks warm-up or lead-in content in the grammar section and in the content setting for listening, speaking, reading, writing, and other skills. This lack of content is often overlooked in textbooks and deserves attention from textbook editors.