What do we want teaching - materials for in EFL teacher training programs ?

During the past several decades, scholarly consideration has focused on the concept of teacher knowledge and a variety of reform efforts to rethink both the structure and practices of teacher education to enhance teacher preparation process. As a consequence, the tripartite knowledge base of EFL teacher training is built on the partnership between universities and schools to support student teachers’ language competence, pedagogical knowledge, and teaching competency. Within this framework, one strand of enquiry has focused on the role of teaching materials in EFL teacher education; however, literature reveals few insights into how to evaluate and select teaching materials and sources of knowledge for each component of the knowledge base. In order to address this problem, this paper reviews the knowledge/competency base of EFL teacher training program and the types of input content that support such knowledge/ competency, and suggests some criteria for evaluating teaching materials according to theoretical/practical underpinnings of teacher education (Korthagen, Loughran, & Russell, 2006).