How well do textbooks cover collocations? An evaluation of Blueprint B 3.0

Abstract: Collocations receive considerable interest in the second language acquisition literature, with a growing interest in the way they are covered in English as a foreign language (EFL) textbooks. Despite this, corresponding studies in the Swedish context are sparse. The aim of this study was therefore to evaluate one of the most popular textbooks used in Swedish EFL classrooms, Blueprint B 3.0, by identifying how it covers collocations in terms of frequency and mode of presentation and how the collocational profile aligns with best practices as recommended in the existing literature. A total of 529 unique collocations were identified, of which 35 were targeted in exercises. The selection of collocations given explicit attention follows recommendations from the literature in terms of type, but not in terms of frequency, as less than half of the targeted multi-word units could not be identified as collocations with the Longman Collocations Dictionary and Thesaurus (2013) and none with the list of first 100 collocations (Nation & Shin, 2007). As for mode of presentation, the identified exercises did not follow recommendations, and by design increased the risk of learner error. I discuss a number of pedagogical implications for teachers and textbook authors and offer some suggestions for future research in this area.