Review of Li Wei (ed.) (2014) Applied linguistics in International Journal of Applied Linguistics
The Departments book is reviewed by Christopher Jenks, University of South Dakota
Reviewed by Christopher Jenks University of South Dakota
The Department of Applied Linguistics and Communication at Birkbeck College houses a team of scholars working in linguistics and language sciences that few schools can match in terms of scholarly output and teaching experience. This statement is notable as the reader begins to look through Applied linguistics, an edited volume by Li Wei. All of the contributors of this book – a volume that covers a range of Applied Linguistics topics from first language acquisition to translation and interpreting – hold faculty positions in Applied Linguistics at Birkbeck College. The book maintains a consistent style of writing that is only possible when working in a team like this.
The book is catered to neophytes, though it would most certainly be of interest to scholars looking for a concise survey of Applied Linguistics. The book contains 13 chapters, including the exemplary introduction chapter written by Li Wei. Each subsequent chapter belongs to a subject section: Part 1 deals with ‘Language in Development’, Part 2 relates to ‘Language in Use’, Part 3 covers ‘Language in Society’, and Part 4 is on ‘Language in Public Life’. It is also worth mentioning that the resources list in the back of the book contains a plethora of references that would be of benefit to both students and experienced scholars. Included in this list of references are professional associations, corpora, and book series.
Faculty and teaching staff will find the study activities included throughout each chapter especially helpful in preparing and delivering linguistics and language sciences classes. Furthermore, the beginning of each chapter provides an easy-to-follow content overview, which includes an outline, learning outcomes, and key terms. Chapters end with study questions and recommended reading. Indeed, chapters, when read from beginning to end, resemble a concise lesson plan. However, instructors would most likely benefit from using supplemental teaching materials given the book’s abbreviated treatment of topics. With that said, the book offers extensive references (and resources) lists that make it easy to locate such materials.
Chapter 1 provides an overview of language and linguistics, two slippery but important terms in applied linguistics. Unlike other introductory books, the chapter does not attempt to make definitive statements regarding language and linguistics. Rather, several examples are given in list form, giving readers an excellent foundation to explore what aspects of applied linguistics interest them the most. The chapter ends with research methods in applied linguistics. The chapter also uniquely identifies careers students can pursue with a degree in Applied Linguistics. The short, but helpful section on careers is a topic that few introductory books cover. The book must be commended for this, as career development (and placement) is a responsibility that we as academics must take seriously.
Chapter 2, the first of three on ‘Language Development’, is written by Zhu Hua and covers first language acquisition. Notable topics covered include bilingualism, universal grammar, and language socialization. The chapter begins with a list of facts and problems with first language acquisition, which is followed by a case study of how adults speak to children. The author notes how first language acquisition is partly determined by the ways in which adults speak to children, an idea that stands in stark contrast to nativism. The chapter ends by pointing the reader to CHILDES, an online resource of data and transcripts that has been indispensable to first language acquisition studies.
Chapter 3 covers second and additional language acquisition, topics that represent the bulk of applied linguistics work. In addition to the usual introductory questions, like ‘What makes a good language learner?’, classic topics are discussed from new perspectives (e.g. motivation as a dynamic system) and important, but perhaps overlooked, issues are included (e.g. epistemology). The brain is the subject of chapter 4, though most of the topics deal with impairments and disorders (e.g. aphasia and dyslexia). Again the reader is presented with study activities and questions, as well as examples and case studies.
The focus of the book then shifts to ‘Language in Use’. Chapter 5 covers basic conversation analytic topics; also included in this chapter are speech acts, politeness research, and indirectness. The discussion of pragmatics and conversation analysis provides the novice reader with a good foundation to conduct further studies on spoken communication; examples of conversational exchanges strengthen the chapter.
Chapter 6 continues with language in use, this time dealing specifically with intercultural communication. The chapter begins with key issues in intercultural communication research – six are identified: interpersonal/ intergroup communication, discourse, competence, teaching/learning, and context. Chapter 7 moves on to literacy and multimodality. Key themes and issues covered in this chapter are bilingualism, orthography, linguistic landscape, sign language, and more.
Three chapters are included in the section on ‘Language in Society’. Chapter 8 discusses language diversity and contact. The author of this chapter covers accent, code-switching, creoles, and language shift, to name a few. Chapter 9 is on language, identity and power. While several topics are covered, the chapter focuses on how identities are constructed and represented in and through language. Chapter 10 covers language planning and language policy.
The final section covers ‘Language in Public Life. The three chapters that belong to this section all have direct consequences for language professionals. Chapter 11, language assessment, covers, among other things, testing reliability and validity. Teachers and education administrators are provided with a wealth of resources to better understand the complexities of assessing students. Chapter 12, language in media, health, and law, explores how discourse functions as a powerful tool and therefore has the ability to frame reality. This chapter has implications for policy-makers, journalists, and health professionals, to name a few. Key terms include metaphor, representation, transitivity, and reification. Chapter 13, translation and interpreting, discusses the difficulties of translating in modern times, as well as the theoretical and methodological issues related to conducting such work.
Locating an ideal book for an introductory course in Applied Linguistics is difficult to do in this era of handbooks and edited collections. Applied linguistics, by Li Wei, adds to this pool of work, but is distinguishable in that the book provides excellent study questions and case studies in each chapter. The reader will find these hands-on activities helpful in either a self-guided learning situation or a more formal didactic environment. One of the main objectives of an introductory book should be to provide a springboard for future reading and studies. This book meets this objective, and does so in an amalgamation of work that is enjoyable and easy to read.
email: christopher.jenks@usd.edu
◆ Christopher Jenks © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd
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