Overview

This title covers those areas of applied language study that are most directly relevant to language teaching, testing and teacher education. It focuses on the fundamental questions raised for research by the practice of language teaching and research. The reader is thus introduced to the contemporary research climate through consideration of germane controversial issues. If any conclusion about applied linguistic research since the 1980s is possible, it is that we can not take anything for granted. This text opens with examples of language teaching, teaching materials and learning a foreign language, which teachers and language readers will recognise, drawing out questions from these which are addressed throughout the rest of the text. Arguments and data from research of all kinds are brought to bear on these and other background issues that are raised, for example: the nature and effects of classroom discourse; the challenges and utility of linguistic theory and linguistic descriptions; what knowing a second language means for proficiency and for processing; nature and nurture in second language learning; how people process language in classrooms and beyond; the role of instruction and the roles of teachers; and measuring achievement. Complex issues are laid out in a clear and accessible style and many examples are used, mainly from English and learning English as a second language. However, the principles apply to learning or teaching any language as a second or foreign language.

Full Product Details

9780340706220

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Reviews

The book is a useful addition to the field and fills an important niche. -- Bilingual Education and Bilingualism 20040615 The text itself is well-written, limited in jargon to the essential concepts, sometimes provocatively questioning but with a neutral stance. The amount of information included in this brief volume furthermore gives testimony to the wide knowledge and excellent synthesising skills of its author. Trainee teachers and undergraduate students will find it a pleasant yet stimulating read. -- Language Awareness 20040510

Author Information

Steven McDonough was formerly Lecturer in Applied Linguistics at the University of Essex, UK.

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