EVALUATING THE SUITABILITY OF THE CUTTING EDGE ELEMENTARY TEXTBOOK FOR FIRST-YEAR SCIENCE AND HUMANITIES STUDENTS AT DUHOK UNIVERSITY

Abstract

This study investigates the appropriateness of the Cutting Edge Elementary textbook for first-year university students across different academic disciplines at the University of Duhok. The research aims to evaluate whether the textbook offers appropriate linguistic challenge and content alignment for students in both Science and Humanities departments. A quantitative, quasi-experimental design was employed, involving pre- and post-test comparisons of 300 students from eight non-English departments: Dentistry, Architecture, Physics, Financial and Banking (Science stream), and History, Kurdish, Special Education, Administration and Business (Humanities stream). All students used the same textbook over the course of two semesters. The results reveal that while both groups demonstrated statistically significant improvement, Humanities students achieved greater gains in overall language proficiency, particularly in grammar, reading, and writing. In contrast, Science students, many of whom began with higher proficiency, showed minimal or negative changes, especially in vocabulary and listening. Notably, students in Dentistry and Architecture often scored full marks on both tests, indicating a ceiling effect, while students in Physics and Financial and Banking showed regressions in some areas. These findings suggest that the textbook better supports the linguistic and academic needs of Humanities students, but it lacks relevance and challenge for Science students. The study concludes that a one-size-fits-all textbook policy is inadequate and recommends more discipline-sensitive textbook selection to ensure effective language instruction across diverse academic fields.