Book Notices

158

doi:10.1017/S0272263109990398

LANGUAGE LEARNERS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS: AN INTERNATIONAL
PERSPECTIVE . Judit Kormos and Edit H. Kontra (Eds.). Clevedon,
UK : Multilingual Matters , 2008 . Pp. v + 233.

With increasing globalization comes an increasing demand for bilingualism in
the workforce. For those raised in primarily monolingual communities, greater
need is placed on primary and secondary education for provision of second
(or foreign) language learning. There is no question that early exposure is key
for maximizing the opportunity to achieve fl uency (if not mastery) of a second
language and that the older the learner, the harder it is to reach that goal. Yet,
there are also those learning a second language who face numerous obstacles,
regardless of age. For example, a deaf individual learning a second language will
naturally have very different experiences from those of a hearing individual.
Additionally, an individual with dyslexia will be particularly hindered by the
markedly opaque orthography of English, arguably the most common second
language in the world. Importantly, the language-learning challenges that indi-
viduals with special needs face often refl ect the paucity of research in and de-
velopment of appropriate second language pedagogical methodologies. In other
words, such individuals are at risk due in no small part to the lack of adequate
consideration of their needs. However, they can and should benefi t from the
knowledge of a second language just as much as anyone else: As Helland puts it,
“no one should be left out of education: it is for all” (p. 83).

The nine chapters of this edited volume focus on the language-learning

process of some of those individuals for whom language learning is different or
more challenging. Populations considered in this volume, from Canada, Hungary,
Norway, Poland, the United States, and the United Kingdom, include primarily
those with dyslexia and other reading disabilities; also considered are individuals
who are deaf or hard-of-hearing or who have learning disabilities or attention
defi cit hyperactivity disorder. Language teachers’ views with regard to inclu-
sive education programs for those at-risk learners are also addressed. Ulti-
mately, the volume succeeds in helping to raise an awareness of the special
needs of certain language learners.

( Received 15 May 2009 )

Jessica A. Barlow

San Diego State University

doi:10.1017/S0272263109990404

JAPANESE LANGUAGE TEACHING: A COMMUNICATIVE
APPROACH . Alessandro G. Benati . New York : Continuum , 2009 . Pp. 214 .

There are many ways of teaching a foreign language. When a teacher chooses
one method or approach from all the varieties, he or she has at least some kind
of reason for it. However, it is possible to validate the choice of one method

Book Notices

159

over another by measuring the actual effectiveness of the teaching. This volume
thus serves as an aid to foreign language teachers, especially those teaching
Japanese.

This volume represents a combination of theory, practice, and research.

It starts with a literature review of SLA, followed by an introduction of commu-
nicative language teaching and focus on form, and the effects of processing in-
struction are examined along with many ideas of structured input activities for
the classroom. Finally, the fundamentals of conducting research as well as the
actual data from a study conducted by Benati are presented to help readers
become independent researchers.

This is an extensive volume that covers a wide range of topics, which means

that each issue is dealt with rather superfi cially. This lack of depth was unavoid-
able because, for each of the seven chapters, the topic is so dense that it could
easily be expanded to a whole volume. Therefore, those readers who are already
familiar with SLA, and especially with processing instruction and structured
input activities, may fi nd this volume rather insuffi cient. However, it is suitable
for those currently teaching Japanese as a foreign language and who are not yet
acquainted with SLA but willing to incorporate SLA theory into their own
teaching and examine its effectiveness for themselves.

One of the shortcomings of this volume lies in the frequent errors in Japanese

in sample activities. It is a pity that careful proofi ng of Japanese did not take
place.

( Received 29 May 2009 )

Nobuhiro Kamiya

Michigan State University

doi:10.1017/S0272263109990416

CHILDREN’S LANGUAGE AND MULTILINGUALISM: INDIGENOUS
LANGUAGE USE AT HOME AND SCHOOL . Jane Simpson and Gillian
Wigglesworth (Eds.). New York : Continuum , 2008 . Pp. xviii + 311.

This edited volume makes an important contribution to our understanding of
language use and language learning among young children. Too much of what
we know (or what we think we know) about fi rst, second, and multilingual
language acquisition and use is based on research from United States and Euro-
pean contexts and focuses on a small number of languages. This volume makes
serious headway in correcting this imbalance by bringing together 13 empiri-
cally rich chapters on language use in Indigenous Australian homes and schools.
Many of the studies draw their general theoretical orientation, if not their
research methods, from the language socialization paradigm (Schieffelin & Ochs,
1986 ), and all are informed by a dual focus on anthropology and linguistics.

Indigenous children in Australia are reared in vastly different environments

and within highly varied and fl uid language landscapes and practices. Simpson
and Wigglesworth provide a window into this linguistic and cultural diversity
with solid empirical description and analysis across each of the four parts of
this volume. The fi rst part focuses on language and learning at home, with an