language shift Reagan (chapter 18) calls for the promotion of an explicit and implicit agenda in order to increase sign language users’ rights In the final chapter, Phillipson (chapter 19) discusses the role of English as a lingual franca, or linguistic imperialism, in globalization English is perceived as a threat to other languages and causes tensions at international and national levels of society, as well as between top-down and bottom-up levels Overall, this book provides a comprehensive introduction to LP theories and methods It offers an excellent overview to both well-established and new approaches in the field (e.g., geolinguistics), together with key concepts and samples of studies In addition, it exposes the reader to controversial issues and domains that are affected by LP This is vital because a policy must address both linguistic and nonlinguistic elements in society, because studying only one aspect and ignoring others will “provide a very incomplete and biased view” (Spolsky, 2004, p 40) The selected annotated bibliographies offer a useful starting point for further reading and research in the LP field The usefulness of the discussion questions at the end of each chapter, however, may be less apparent Although they may help the reader to understand the content, they not lead to higher thought or ideas for further research Given the lack of LP books containing a combination of explicit discussions of various LP theories, methods, and major issues, this book provides a comprehensive overview It is useful for novice LP researchers, and it is suitable for an introductory course in language planning and policy at the graduate level Also, experienced researchers in language policy, education, applied linguistics, and related fields will appreciate the in-depth and thorough discussions of the wide range of issues presented REFERENCE Spolsky, B (2004) Language policy: Keys topics in sociolinguistics Cambridge: Cambridge University Press ANGKANA TONGPOON Khon Kaen University Khon Kaen, Thailand Adult Biliteracy: Sociocultural and Programmatic Responses Klaudia M Rivera and Ana Huerta-Macías (Eds.) New York: Erlbaum, 2008 Pp xiv + 225 Ⅲ What is the relationship between biliteracy and TESOL studies? What does research tell us about the role of the first language in acquiring 382 TESOL QUARTERLY literacies in additional languages? What are the policy implications of biliteracy acquisition research? These are questions that the field has addressed largely with regard to children and rarely in terms of adult language learners Within a policy context that privileges English, making the case for bilingual education with regard to children is difficult enough; but arguments for biliteracy in adult education have been rendered all but invisible in educational discourse Rivera and HuertaMacías’s book provides the first comprehensive look at the complexities of these issues for adults in the United States in a single volume A key rationale for the book is that although literacy scores rose for most groups in the United States between 1992 and 2002, they fell for the largest immigrant group in the United States—Hispanics—making it critically important to develop policies and practices that address their educational needs The authors’ central argument is that it is both just and effective to incorporate biliteracy approaches into adult education: It is just from a human rights perspective; it is effective from a language acquisition perspective The chapters provide rich evidence from multiple sources to support this argument The book is organized into three parts, the first providing theoretical framing and statistical analysis, the second providing case studies of adult biliteracy in a range of contexts, and the third looking at assessment, challenges, and directions The editors’ opening chapter provides a powerful and comprehensive synthesis of research about the development of biliteracy from cognitive, sociocultural, and critical perspectives Rivera and Huerta-Macías’s long history of praxis grounded in scholarly engagement is evident in their masterful overview of the literature The chapter as a whole provides ample evidence from multiple perspectives for the importance of connecting the bilingual’s two languages in supporting literacy development The authors of chapter (Castro and Wiley) critically analyze statistical data from national adult literacy surveys and U.S census data They question the underlying ideological assumptions of the survey tools and the fact that the tools collect data only about English literacy Most interesting is the authors’ analysis of the data that shows it is not lack of English proficiency but rather a lack of prior educational experience that is the greatest obstacle to employment They conclude that “workforce training focus should be redirected from providing English instruction to providing educational opportunities to those with low levels of schooling” (p 51) This is a stunningly significant finding with enormous policy implications The chapters in Part 2, “Adult Biliteracy in Diverse Contexts,” include chapters (Rivera), (Huerta-Macías), (Quintero), (SkiltonSylvester), and (Powrie) In this section, authors explore biliteracy in community-based, workforce, family literacy, higher education, and civics educational contexts, respectively Rivera examines the history and REVIEWS 383 characteristics of biliteracy in community-based programs, as well as describing specific examples She compares participatory and popular education, noting that popular educators “are prepared to transfer the control of the organizations and their educational projects to community members” (p 83) This analysis is an important contribution in a field where the two terms are often used interchangeably Huerta-Macías argues powerfully that first language resources should be used selectively and critically to prepare immigrants for work; she provides a step-by-step bilingual lesson planning model, with its theoretical justification as well as program descriptions Quintero frames her chapter in a critical pedagogy discourse, outlining four successful components of “transformative” family literacy programs (pp 125–128) She describes two projects, one a Spanish–English project in Texas and the other a Hmong–English project in Minnesota Her description of the Spanish– English project includes a detailed account of the use of specific bilingual children’s books, and her description of the Hmong–English project focuses on the production of bilingual family histories, historical tales of Hmong culture, and folktales Skilton-Sylvester’s chapter addresses one context where bilingual approaches are often taboo: higher education She describes two programs which defy this taboo: a general education course taught in both Spanish and English, and bilingual Korean–English tutoring at a university writing center, each of which provides a promising model for more widespread use of bilingualism in higher education She counters the notion that students need to master the language of power (English) in academic contexts by arguing that a globalizing world demands that universities provide bilingual students with support for developing not only the “language of power but also languages of power for making their voices heard in an increasingly multilingual, multicultural world” (p 142) Powrie’s chapter on bilingual civics education posits that using only English impedes engagement with complex concepts and principles of government, whereas using the first language can accelerate understanding of democratic values Like the others, his chapter provides program models that enact promising practices, one in Socorro, Texas, and one in Chicago, Illinois, extrapolating strategies and orientations from these and other programs In Part 3, “Themes, Issues, Challenges,” Wrigley’s chapter on assessment (chapter 8) examines the complex array of factors entailed in assessing language and literacy reliably; she gives an overview of the advantages and disadvantages of commonly used assessment tools and strategies for supporting bilingual learners She expands what “counts” beyond individual needs assessment to community assessments and recognizes that “success” for bilingual learners depends not only on individual performance, but on larger societal factors (p 193) 384 TESOL QUARTERLY The final chapter, by the editors, summarizes the findings across the chapters, reiterating that current U.S policy is shaped more by attitudes and ideology than by research and data The volume’s authors not speak with one voice ideologically: Some seem to see biliteracy as a necessary tool to integrate immigrants into the U.S economy, whereas others see biliteracy as a tool for enabling learners to challenge a system which marginalizes them The book uses discourses that are palatable to policy makers (with terms like evidence based) as well as grounding arguments in the discourses of equity, democracy, and social justice Some authors talk explicitly about “transformation,” whereas others are much more low-key (although in some cases the actual examples provided by the more lowkey authors seem more powerful in promoting student agency than those who talk about transformation) I see this ideological range as an advantage: It enables the book to speak to several audiences, serving at once as a tool that can be used in working to change policies and as a resource for practitioners This volume makes a significant contribution to a rich international literature about bilingual and multilingual literacies It lays the groundwork for future comparisons between biliteracy studies and policies in the United States and elsewhere Drawing on research from other countries would only strengthen the arguments that these authors make, and show U.S policy to be the anomaly that it is ELSA AUERBACH University of Massachusetts Boston, Massachusetts, United States Teacher Cognition and Language Education: Research and Practice Simon Borg London: Continuum, 2006 Pp 314 Ⅲ This book provides a timely collation and thematic interpretation of 180 published studies into teacher cognition—thoughts, knowledge and beliefs—and the impact of this cognition on language teachers’ classroom practices The work will be of interest to language teacher educators and researchers in language teacher education and development Despite language teacher cognition being a relatively young area of enquiry, the work encompasses a study of the cognitions of both pre- and in-service teachers of English and modern foreign languages, as well as an investigation into language teacher beliefs about grammar and literacy instruction After detailing what may be studied in terms of language teacher cognition, the book moves to evaluate how this cognition can be REVIEWS 385