This book recruits and showcases innovative voices in language curriculum issues. Some of those issues are insufficiently addressed in current debates and might need richer engagement; others remain less noticeable and thus less exploited in academic practice despite their significant potential. The volume brings together 14 academics in ELT materials development. Some are renowned scholars, the authors of profound publications that have shaped the field; others have recently joined the discipline with something new to say. We value all voices and refrain from listening solely to the dominant discourse, believing that sometimes an unusual thought might be worth noticing for disturbing current knowledge and revealing common practice as improvable.

Key issues discussed in the book include why commonly used language tasks should be challenged, what pedagogical choices accelerate creativity, why learners need more flexible activities, what types of task nurture children's creativity, how constraints promote innovations, whether imaginary content can merge with authentic materials, what place literature occupies in a multicultural context, whether technology can shape pedagogy, how classic SLA theories support creative digital learning, how teachers can be involved in developing materials, why learners' creative work should enter into task construction and how teacher perception helps adjust the socio-cultural content of a coursebook. Although the authors may or may not address all of these questions to readers' full satisfaction, we raise these concerns in the hope of expanding current practice in coursebook design. Despite decades of scholarly research there remain gaps and unresolved issues, and scholars in this field never cease to challenge the dominant discourse in order to advance theorisation in ELT materials.

The book falls into three parts. Part 1, 'Improving ELT Materials Through Creative Pedagogies', discusses how innovative task-writing ideas can make materials more original and inspiring. Part 2, 'Improving ELT Materials Through Specific Resources', suggests how different forms of arts and technology can be used to craft innovations in coursebooks.