REVIEW ARTICLE TESOL Quarterly welcomes evaluative reviews of publications relevant to TESOL professionals Edited by MARGARET HAWKINS University of Wisconsin Language, Literacy, and Technology Call Dimensions: Options and Issues in Computer-Assisted Language Learning Mike Levy and Glenn Stockwell Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum, 2006 Pp xviii + 292 Laptops and Literacy: Learning in the Wireless Classroom Mark Warschauer New York, NY: Teachers College Press, 2006 Pp xi + 179 Ⅲ Today, more and more educators are introducing new technologies into their classrooms with the hope of transforming their practices and student learning This widespread infusion of technology in schools calls for teacher guidance in practical, pedagogically grounded ways to make optimal use of technological tools in classrooms (Meskill, 2002) The two books reviewed here offer valuable insights about the history, current state, and broad applications of technology-assisted learning Although these books differ in focus, in combination they deliver essential information needed to make effective use of new technologies to meet the educational needs of culturally and linguistically diverse learners Levy and Stockwell’s CALL Dimensions is a commendable and timely contribution to what is becoming an increasingly popular and perplexing field: the field of computer-assisted language learning (CALL) (In this book, CALL is used generically to refer to network-based language learning, technology-enhanced language learning, and information and communication technologies for language learning.) Levy and Stockwell are apparently committed to identifying the breadth and diversity of CALL to provide a comprehensive guide and resource to those who wish to develop detailed knowledge of the field This book has three obvious uses First, it can serve as a course text for language teacher preparation TESOL QUARTERLY Vol 42, No 2, June 2008 339 Second, it will be useful as a reference for software designers who create Web sites, programs, and online materials for language learners And third, CALL researchers who conduct classroom-based action research or large-scale research projects will find this book to be highly relevant CALL Dimensions is divided into 10 chapters The authors have based the chapter order on a detailed analysis of a CALL corpus constructed in 1999 from published CALL literature Chapter starts with an introductory discussion about CALL in general and ends with an overview of the structure and approach of the book Chapter focuses on issues related to design in CALL and suggests a number of pedagogical and technical guidelines for effective creation of CALL materials Chapter considers processes of evaluation in CALL and provides frameworks for assessing the value and effectiveness of CALL materials Chapter addresses the strengths and weaknesses of different forms of computer-mediated communication and discusses their applicability to specific aspects of language teaching and learning Chapter is devoted to theories of second language learning that inform CALL practices and provides direction for designers, language teachers, and researchers to follow when making decisions about CALL Chapter focuses on approaches to research in CALL and explores themes and issues that researchers should consider in their work Chapter addresses practice in CALL and provides a brief overview of various types of activities that can be used in teaching different language skills and areas Chapter discusses current advances in technology and provides cautionary notes for teachers and designers on state-of-the-art technologies in CALL Chapter explores the key elements in integration of CALL and provides guidance for best practices And Chapter 10 introduces the terms emergent and established CALL and reports on parameters that surround the field as a whole The authors’ core position is that successful integration of CALL is not an isolated endeavor Theoretical, pedagogical, technical, environmental, social, institutional, and sometimes personal factors influence CALL implementation and contribute to various interpretations in particular settings This complex and multifaceted nature of CALL constitutes the overall theme of the book CALL Dimensions has many strengths that make it an essential and valuable addition to the existing literature All chapters are well organized, with clear, straightforward introductions that specify what will be discussed, and the topics are addressed in simple, lucid prose The ideas put forward are all data driven, and the explanations provided are systematic rather than anecdotal In each chapter, detailed references allow for follow-up and further reading about highlighted theoretical positions A further pleasing feature is that, unlike many publications on CALL, this book does not limit its focus only to the English language, but covers a range of languages 340 TESOL QUARTERLY One cautionary note: Readers looking for pedagogical insights into their daily CALL practices may be disappointed because this book is lean on practical tips It could perhaps be significantly more useful for language practitioners if the authors had achieved a good balance between being theoretical and being practical This shortcoming is understandable because CALL is a broad field and covering all aspects pertaining to practice in one chapter is not an easy task Although to some extent chapter provides examples from the literature that show how CALL is used in teaching language skills, the book needs detailed accounts of classroom practices that provide language teachers with best practices in CALL Yet, all in all, given its insightful perspective, CALL Dimensions would be an excellent text or resource for an MA TESOL or teacher education class For those readers who wish to further their teaching repertoire and gain insights into effective classroom use of computers, Warschauer’s Laptops and Literacy will be of interest This book is a commendable contribution to current literature on literacy, learning, and technology As Warschauer states in the preface, this book aims to address the following question: “How students’ literacy practices in school change, or not change, when every student throughout the school day has a mobile personal computer wirelessly connected to the Internet?” (p ix) The type of work described in this book is timely, given the debates about one-to-one laptop initiatives across the United States With its optimistic rhetoric, it is an invaluable and authoritative text that has the potential to calm these debates Laptops and Literacy is the result of a study conducted by a research team in ten K–12 public schools in California and Maine Each school represents students from diverse cultural, linguistic, and socioeconomic backgrounds Based on a combination of data collection methods, such as observations, interviews, surveys, and document review, this book examines the influence of one-to-one laptop computers on students’ academic as well as digital literacy development It presents informative, well-written, and well-researched chapters and offers useful insights into what is an educational challenge of enormous importance to policy makers, administrators, teachers, and parents This book will be of value to any educator with an interest in using computer-based technology in their practices Although not targeted specifically to English language teachers, this book’s use of rich examples from English as a second language (ESL) classrooms will be of great interest to a range of TESOL professionals The book is divided into eight chapters Chapter starts with a short vignette that sets the scene for the discussion that follows The definition of literacies and the literacy challenges of the 21st century are the major themes of this chapter Chapter looks at the history and current state REVIEW ARTICLE 341 of technology use in education and introduces the research study that forms the foundation of this book The book comes alive in chapters 3–7, where the author provides accounts of classroom practices that involve effective and sometimes ineffective uses of laptops in literacy education Each chapter begins with a powerful quote that is immediately followed by critical analysis of computer-based learning activities used in the K–12 classrooms under study Specifically, chapters and discuss the role of laptops in learning to read and write Chapter looks at information literacy and discusses the processes and techniques used by K–12 classroom teachers to hone students’ research skills Chapter discusses the influence of multimedia in students’ knowledge representation and construction Chapter describes students’ experiences with one-to-one laptops and explores the opportunities laptops afford for students to improve the habits of mind they need for 21st-century success And chapter concludes with an evaluation of one-to-one laptop programs in light of the data that emerged from the research project on which this book is based It is no secret that rich uses of technology not, in and of themselves, transform classrooms or provide promising solutions for institutional or instructional problems that result in poor learning Based on his observations, Warschauer concludes that “while a one-to-one laptop program can make a good school better, it will not fundamentally alter a school with problems” (p 133) One crucial finding of Warschauer’s research is that it is “the teacher’s overall approach rather than the use of technology” (p 142) that determines the extent to which laptops contribute to the development of students’ literacy skills Like Levy and Stockwell, Warschauer also explicitly states that the success of technology integration depends on “social context, including the norms and values of the school and community, students’ individual abilities and beliefs, and teachers’ approaches” (p 132) Overall, Warschauer’s research makes a powerful case for the central roles played by teacher, student, and institutional variables in fostering students’ literacy development with one-to-one laptops across the curriculum One interesting feature is the book’s approach: It shows rather than tells Throughout, Warschauer provides a rich description of the study context, presents powerful quotes from the interviews, and most important, draws a vivid picture of classroom happenings that detail the types of teaching and learning that take place in one-to-one laptop classrooms The book and its underlying argument are extremely well structured, presenting comprehensive, well-balanced treatment of the topics Undoubtedly, this book has the potential to help create a future in which laptop initiatives are welcomed without hesitancy across the United States or elsewhere to meet the needs of 21st-century students One critical observation: Warschauer’s book notes that laptop use in 342 TESOL QUARTERLY wireless classrooms does not correlate with higher test scores, but it promotes the development of skills that are necessary for survival in the 21st century The book would have a much more powerful effect on the current debates about laptops in education if Warschauer had provided detailed examples of successful use of laptops that promote student success on standardized tests Such examples would prove that doubtful attitudes towards laptop initiatives are wrongheaded In sum, both books reviewed here are highly recommendable to different audiences for different reasons CALL Dimensions helps language teachers and CALL designers and researchers understand CALL from a theoretical and critical perspective; Laptops and Literacy provides real classroom examples of technology use across the curriculum (including ESL) to help readers gain new insights about laptop use in education Both books are valuable additions to the existing literature on language, literacy, and technology and provide excellent resources of interest and importance not only for TESOL professionals but also for all educators across the curriculum REFERENCE Meskill, C (2002) Teaching and learning in real time: Media, technologies and language acquisition Houston, TX: Athelstan SEDEF UZUNER The State University of New York at Albany Albany, New York, United States REVIEW ARTICLE 343