REVIEWS The TESOL Quarterly welcomes evaluative reviews of publications relevant to TESOL professionals In addition to textbooks and reference materials, these include computer and video software, testing instruments, and other forums of nonprint materials Edited by PAUL KEI MATSUDA Arizona State University doi: 10.5054/tq.2010.215947 Pedagogical Reflections on Learning Languages in Instructed Settings Esther Uso´-Juan and Marı´a Noelia Ruiz-Madrid (Eds.) Newcastle-uponTyne, England: Cambridge Scholars, 2007 Pp xi + 321 & This book is a compilation of 15 articles presenting current research in the field of language learning in a variety of foreign language teaching and learning contexts In providing teachers with the latest theoretical and methodological reflections on the subject of language learning, Uso´Juan and Ruiz-Madrid’s comprehensive volume serves as an invaluable contribution to the field, not only in terms of helping practising language teachers update their teaching methodology, but also in substantiating the vibrant character of language-learning research today Through an overview of past and present trends in language-learning research and the teaching implications arising from them, section I (‘‘From Teaching to Learning Languages in Instructed Settings: A Theoretical Overview’’) offers the reader the theoretical grounding for the rest of the volume In chapter 1, Villanueva Alfonso focuses on the notion of eclecticism by re-evaluating such fundamental teaching-andlearning issues as the learning–acquisition relationship, the role and taxonomy of previous knowledge, the importance of the communicative approach, the interplay between language and culture, and selfassessment Through this approach, he sheds new light on a number of linking concepts accounting for connections and differences between older and more recent teaching paradigms Alco´n Soler (chapter 2) explores communicative language teaching by prompting new directions within this paradigm and discussing future developments of this approach (e.g., the need to focus on form and the conditions determining successful task-based and content-based instruction) In the third chapter of this section, Riley and Duda offer an overview of past and present research on autonomy and autonomous language learning In particular, 210 TESOL QUARTERLY Vol 44, No 1, March 2010 the authors examine the most significant factors shaping autonomy— regarded as a ‘‘marginal approach’’ (p 48) in the past—while demonstrating how it can be conceptualized as a strong theoretically and empirically based alternative to contemporary teacher-centred practices By investigating a number of questions that have recently caught the attention of language researchers and practitioners, section II (‘‘New Perspectives on Teaching and Learning Languages’’) elaborates on the complex context characterising the current teaching-and-learning practices discussed in chapter To begin with, Ruiz-Madrid and SanzGil (chapter 4) concentrate on the integration of the information and communication technologies (ICTs) within language-learning processes The authors explore the interplay between recent technological advances, approaches to pedagogy, and applied linguistics research and, more importantly, the teaching implications accruing from a learner-centred, socioconstructivist pedagogy, one which enables an ICT-integrative approach fostering learner autonomy In chapter 5, Corte´s examines the fundamental factors that need to be taken into account when designing and analysing language corpora for learners Although the author considers a number of crucial aspects in corpus design and analysis for cross-sectional and longitudinal studies of second language acquisition, the teaching implications are slightly underdeveloped relative to the context of the volume as a whole This section is closed by Pe´rez Vidal in chapter 6, where she scrutinizes the Common European Framework of Reference in general and the European Portfolio of Languages (EPL) in particular The author approaches the EPL from a theoretical and a practical perspective In particular, she is concerned with the united-in-diversity, sociopolitical and educational context which accounts for the emergence and implementation of the EPL in Europe The presentation of the main functions of the EPL is thus followed by a discussion of the project undertaken in Spain with a view to its implementation This will surely inspire researchers and teachers working in this direction in various national contexts Revolving around the learner-centred approach to instruction, section III (‘‘Issues in Teaching and Learning Languages’’) commences with Morgan’s reflections (chapter 7) on the pedagogical implications of affect for language learning In particular, Morgan reconsiders anxiety, selfconcept, emotional engagement, and learning styles, and ends up calling for the incorporation of such options in language teaching programmes In chapter 8, Chapelle and Ca´rdenas-Claros draw close attention to the pedagogical implications of learning styles By means of two case studies, they explore cognitive style in computer assisted language learning as far as field independence and dependence is concerned, thereby suggesting new forms of measurement of cognitive style Closing this section, Mancho´n (chapter 9) disentangles the pedagogical implications of BOOK REVIEWS 211 language-learning and language-use strategies After synthesising the rationales underlying the inclusion of strategy instruction in L2 pedagogy from an epistemological viewpoint, the author provides a framework describing the nature and implementation of strategy-instruction programmes which follow a more applied perspective Section IV (‘‘The Four Language Skills and Assessment’’) consists of five closely related chapters revolving around recent research-oriented perspectives on the four language skills and their repercussions for teaching Focusing on listening, Martı´nez-Flor (chapter 10) addresses the interplay between ‘‘learning to listen’’ and ‘‘listening to learn’’ (p 215) In chapter 11, Salazar Campillo delves into speaking by considering input and output issues within a broader view of communication strategies on the whole In a similar examination of the practical-teaching implications of research, Uso´-Juan (chapter 12) explores automaticity, vocabulary, background knowledge, and strategic-reader and extensive-reading questions as crucial components in reading Palmer-Silveira and RuizGarrido (chapter 13) analyse writing, looking in particular at fundamental strategies to be used in improving L2 students’ writing abilities This section concludes with chapter 14, where Bocanegra Valle looks into language-learning assessment, calling for an increase in ‘‘a pedagogical dimension of language assessment’’ (p 277) within an overall attempt to increase awareness on the mutual influence of teaching and assessing Chapter 15 comprises the last section in the book, where Raăisaănen suggests broadening the scope of language teaching and learning by presenting an integrated content and language programme as a thought-provoking example of how language teaching and learning may be situated within the framework of other disciplines Contrary to other contributions on the subject of language learning, this highly recommended volume succeeds in bridging the gap between scholarly research and actual teaching in instructional settings In considering the interplay between current language-learning theory and practice, the chapters are similarly illuminating for both teachers and scholars Whereas practitioners will benefit from the book’s updated account of teaching methodologies, researchers will gain deeper insight into a wide range of essential issues related to teaching-and-learning processes Given its emphasis on the teaching implications arising from current research on language learning, this well-knit collection of articles will certainly serve as a stimulus for teachers committed to creating engaging, motivating, and successful learning experiences for their students EDUARDO DE GREGORIO-GODEO Universidad de Castilla–La Mancha Ciudad Real, Spain 212 TESOL QUARTERLY Teaching Young Children a Second Language Tatiana Gordon Westport, CT: Praeger, 2007 Pp vii + 216 Tatiana Gordon’s book makes an important contribution to the field of preschool and elementary language teaching A title in Praeger’s Teaching Young Children series, Gordon’s work integrates theory and practice with regard to language acquisition processes specifically for young learners Its intended audience is teachers of English as a second language (ESL) who work with young children in a second language environment, but content teachers and parents would certainly benefit from Gordon’s comprehensive treatment of the topic as well Although teaching applications for English as a foreign language (EFL) and foreign language contexts can be extrapolated from this text, it should be clearly noted that its primary focus pertains to the particular challenges of teaching ESL in the United States In light of the fact that the number of English language learners in American schools is growing exponentially, it is especially refreshing to find an entire teaching text devoted to the learning issues and cognitive processes unique to young language learners rather than the typical relegation to a thin chapter in a larger ESL text Gordon connects relevant second language acquisition research to theoretically sound classroom lessons for the youngest of learners, and the result is a useful ESL resource for any teacher’s personal library The first three chapters of the work encapsulate the linguistic, sociological, and ethnographic research pertaining to young immigrant populations in the United States Chapter 1, ‘‘Language Minority Children in the United States,’’ discusses immigration as a historical construct and draws thought-provoking comparisons between the last and current centuries This chapter identifies the challenges that immigrant children must overcome in order to be successful in school and addresses them in terms of culture shock, school adjustment, and the redefinition of family relationships based on cultural influences Especially captivating is the author’s consideration of the mismatches that occur regularly between school and immigrant communities One poignant example illustrates the differing cultural interpretations of children’s independence or interdependence and how these roles can be misunderstood in U.S classrooms Gordon notes that in some Middle Eastern communities, interdependence creates important social capital for children, but children exhibiting this cultural value can be mistakenly characterized by American teachers as ‘‘being overly dependent or lacking in autonomy’’ (p 21) Chapter 2, ‘‘School Language Policies and Language Rights of Language Minority Children,’’ examines language policy decisions in recent history, including international language policies, bilingual education, and the & BOOK REVIEWS 213 ongoing debate surrounding the English-only movement A sarcastic treatment of the French Academy of Science language policy notwithstanding (p 29), Gordon gives an evenhanded synopsis of major language policies Drawing mostly from research in the 1970s and ’80s, chapter 3, ‘‘Children as Language Learners,’’ offers an overview of psycholinguistic second language acquisition research as it relates specifically to young learners, and includes such stages as bilingual discourse, silent period and rejection period, and telegraphic and formulaic speech (pp 57–59) In this chapter, Gordon addresses issues of morpheme acquisition, corrective feedback, and vocabulary instruction She touches on semantics and conducts an insightful discussion of the relative benefits and drawbacks of intentional and incidental vocabulary learning with young children The remainder of the text focuses on pedagogy, presenting an array of innovative and cognitively appropriate strategies and activities for children Chapters and 5, ‘‘Teaching Emergent Second Language Speakers’’ and ‘‘Developing Literacy Skills of Young Language Learners,’’ respectively, explore many specific techniques for teaching emergent speaking, reading, and writing skills that are extremely useful for the elementary practitioner The author’s expertise in second language literacy is evident from her extensive discussion of literacy scaffolds (pp 100–107) Gordon’s treatment of grammatical approaches in chapter 6, ‘‘Teaching Grammar in the Primary Level ESL Classroom,’’ is very informative considering the active debate in the field surrounding the efficacy of using grammar exercises with this age group In chapter 7, ‘‘Content-Based Second Language Teaching in Primary Grades,’’ the benefits and challenges of content-based instruction are examined theoretically first and are subsequently broken down into easy lessons intended to demystify what many find to be the incongruous task of connecting language to content Chapter 8, ‘‘Multicultural Second Language Curricula,’’ is useful pedagogically and is informed by the analysis of culture in previous chapters Gordon’s discussion in chapter 9, ‘‘Issues in ESL Instruction,’’ of one of the major misperceptions of teaching young language learners, that is, the ‘‘mythology’’ (p 167) surrounding children’s facility for learning languages, refutes the standard assumption that language learning for children is effortless She draws on Vygotsky’s notion of the zone of proximal development to address the difficulties that teachers face in determining the appropriate cognitive level for English language learners in the mainstream classroom ‘‘Using Technology With Young English Language Learners,’’ chapter 10, written by Ekaterina Nemtchinova, briefly discusses benefits and challenges of using technology with young English language learners and refers the reader to several useful Web sites, as well as introducing many ways to incorporate video, software, 214 TESOL QUARTERLY and Web sites into ESL instruction The final chapter, ‘‘Assessment of Young English Language Learners,’’ focuses on assessment, with specific attention paid to the complex issues of reliability, validity, and bias when testing English language learners This section is followed by a succinct but useful discussion of teacher-made assessments A particular strength of this text is the way Gordon consistently interweaves theory with practice by providing many practical examples to illustrate abstract concepts For example, after describing the underlying theoretical value of using total physical response (TPR) with beginning English learners (pp 80–81), Gordon spends several pages describing particular TPR activities such as songs, games, pantomime, and stories Guessing games such as Mystery Voice or What’s Missing incorporate TPR into language classrooms in inventive ways, and Gordon guides teachers through the lessons step-by-step to ensure successful implementation One striking flaw of the book is its unexamined use of the term FOB, or fresh off the boat (p 18), to refer to new arrivals, which is surprising considering Gordon’s otherwise respectful treatment of the immigrant experience In addition, the inclusion of a glossary and a more extensive index would be useful to consolidate the numerous field-specific terms that Gordon introduces throughout the text Some editorial infelicities could have been erased with finer proofreading These criticisms are not meant to detract from the overall value of the book; indeed, Teaching Young Children a Second Language helps to fill a growing need for resource materials pertaining to this area of TESOL This book is highly recommended for language teachers of the very young BETH CLARK-GARECA New York University New York, New York, United States Investigating Pragmatics in Foreign Language Learning, Teaching and Testing Eva Alco´n Soler and Alicia Martı´nez-Flor (Eds.) Clevedon, England: Multilingual Matters, 2008 Pp v + 266 Much of the early interlanguage pragmatics (ILP) research provided a detailed account of language learners’ pragmatic failure in different speech acts, largely because of their linguistic limitations and incorrect judgments about social conventions of the target culture (for reviews, see Ellis, 1994; Kasper & Rose, 1999) Today, the research agenda in ILP has become substantially more complex as it attempts to explore the ways in which learners’ pragmatic competence develops in a variety of & BOOK REVIEWS 215 learning contexts This volume is a collection of articles which offer diverse theoretical perspectives and research methodologies to address developmental issues in ILP The result is an essential resource featuring up-to-date ILP research for both researchers and foreign language teachers Following an overview chapter by the editors, the 11 chapters contributed by various scholars in the field are divided into three sections: pragmatic learning, pragmatic teaching, and pragmatic testing in foreign language contexts Chapter provides the editors’ overview of the two major theoretical perspectives (i.e., cognitive and socially oriented) within which ILP research has been generally framed A review of the studies that investigated learners’ production and perception of speech acts, factors influencing pragmatic learning, and the teachability of pragmatics is also presented The overview chapter ends with discussion of important issues regarding methodological decisions in ILP research The five chapters in the first section address how pragmatics can be learned in foreign language contexts In ‘‘Language Socialization Theory and the Acquisition of Pragmatics in the Foreign Language Classroom’’ (chapter 2), DuFon provides a critical review of foreign language classroom research that has been conducted within a language socialization framework and explores the applicability of language socialization theory in ILP Tateyama and Kasper, in ‘‘Talking with a Classroom Guest: Opportunities for Learning Japanese Pragmatics’’ (chapter 3), investigate how requests in Japanese between participants in different social roles (i.e., student, teacher, classroom guest) facilitate different participation frameworks The authors then examine types of assisted performance made available to the learners as a result of these different participation frameworks In ‘‘Pragmatic Performance: What Are Learners Thinking?’’ (chapter 4), Hassall reports on an exploratory study that attempts to reveal the mental processes underlying the performance of face-threatening speech acts of requests and complaints by Indonesian learners of English This study also demonstrates that verbal reports are a valuable tool for revealing learners’ pragmatic knowledge and acquisitional processes Nikula, in her qualitative study ‘‘Learning Pragmatics in Content-Based Classrooms’’ (chapter 5), shows that learners’ pragmatic success should be treated as ‘‘interactional accomplishment rather than as a repository of skills’’ (p 110) In ‘‘Computer-Mediated Learning of L2 Pragmatics’’ (chapter 6), GonzalezLloret presents a longitudinal study examining addressivity in Spanish This chapter indicates that synchronous computer-mediated communication may facilitate learners’ development in both sociopragmatic and pragmalinguistic competence as they engage in meaningful interactions with expert native speakers for an extended period of time 216 TESOL QUARTERLY The three chapters that make up part are devoted to the investigation of how pragmatics can be taught in foreign language contexts In ‘‘Using Translation to Improve Pragmatic Competence’’ (chapter 7), House provides a historical overview of the role of translation in language teaching and suggests several alternative ways in which translation can be used to promote learners’ pragmatic competence Kondo, in ‘‘Effects on Pragmatic Development Through Awareness-Raising Instruction: Refusals by Japanese EFL Learners’’ (chapter 8), examines how explicit instruction can change learners’ use of refusal strategies and also raise their awareness of pragmatic aspects of both their native and target languages In ‘‘Enhancing the Pragmatic Competence of Non-Native English-Speaking Teacher Candidates (NNESTCs) in an EFL Context,’’ Eslami and Eslami-Rasekh investigate the effect of metapragmatic instruction on the speech act awareness and production ability of Iranian NNESTCs The final three chapters that constitute part address how pragmatics can be tested in foreign language contexts Yamashita, in ‘‘Investigating Interlanguage Pragmatic Ability: What Are We Testing?’’ (chapter 10), discusses various possible components involved in testing ILP and argues for the necessity of instruments that will measure learners’ pragmatic ability in both production and comprehension in order to describe their pragmatic competence in its entirety In ‘‘Raters, Functions, Item Types and the Dependability of L2 Pragmatics Tests’’ (chapter 11), Brown presents a study that analyzes the effects of different numbers of examinees, functions, raters, and items types on the dependability of different types of pragmatics tests He also investigates the options available for developing more dependable pragmatic tests In ‘‘Rater, Item and Candidate Effects in Discourse Completion Tests: A FACETS Approach’’ (chapter 12), Roever applies many-facet Rasch measurement (MFRM) to productive speech act data from discourse completions tests and presents MFRM as a useful tool for understanding the relationship between test-taker ability, rater judgments, item difficulty, and rater facets In sum, this volume is an invaluable contribution to the field, providing an excellent sample of current studies dealing with important issues in learning, teaching, and the testing of pragmatics However, there is an identifiable shortcoming: The book seems to have no explicit discussion of pragmatic transfer (i.e., the role of the first language in learning and use of the target language) in the foreign language classroom as part of its focus on a variety of developmental aspects of pragmatics In spite of the existence of a considerable body of literature concerning pragmatic transfer, the exact nature of processes involved in its occurrence is not yet fully understood The inclusion of the chapters devoted to the current findings and issues on pragmatic transfer may have offered a more complete coverage of up-to-date ILP research BOOK REVIEWS 217 This book will serve as a useful reference for researchers and graduate students However, because the discussion in most of the chapters assumes knowledge of ILP, the book may be less accessible for those readers who are unfamiliar with the field The importance of teaching pragmatic knowledge has been increasingly recognized, but it is still a relatively unexplored territory in the classroom The pedagogical implications presented in the book provide ample rationale for including a much needed focus on ILP in any language teacher’s preparation REFERENCES Ellis, R (1994) The study of second language acquisition New York, NY: Oxford University Press Kasper, G., & Rose, K (1999) Pragmatics and SLA Annual Review of Applied Linguistics, 19, 81–104 JIHYUN KWON Defense Language Institute Monterey, California, United States 218 TESOL QUARTERLY