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they require a process of ethnic (re)acculturation that seems to be more efficient

within a multicultural approach (used in Israel) than with forced assimilation (used in
Germany). The research on media uses is equally important because it indicates that
mass media may be more efficient (as a strategy of adaptation) if produced in the
immigrants language. This type of media, as Elias found, not only increases a sense
of belonging, but also maintains and increases ethnic identity with the host country.
Eliass findings constitute a window to the immigrants strategies and forms of
adaption which many intercultural studies have left behind by focusing on the sociohistorical and political implications of migratory patterns. In doing so, she invigorates
ethnographic research that can be very useful to sociologists, anthropologist, and
cultural scholars studying the linguistic influences of mass media in contemporaneous
migrant workers, assimilation processes, and adaptation strategies.
References
Anderson, B. (1983). Imagined communities: Reflections on the origin and spread of nationalism.
New York, NY: Verso.
Gilroy, P. (1993). The Black Atlantic: Modernity and double consciousness. Cambridge: MA:
Harvard University Press.

Bio
Guillermo G. Caliendo is an assistant professor in communication and culture at Hofstra
University and assistant editor of Womens Studies in Communication. His research interests
focus on the discursive and hegemonic construction of race and gender.

Anne Burns and Jack C. Richards (Eds.). The Cambridge Guide to Second Language Teacher
Education. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press, 2009. 324 pp. ISBN: 978-0-52176012-6
Reviewed by: Amin Karimnia and Shahram Salehi Zadeh
Islamic Azad University, Fasa Branch, Iran (AK), and The Ministry of Education, Fasa, Fars,
Iran (SSZ)
DOI: 10.1177/0261927X10377996

The book, edited by Anne Burns and Jack C. Richards, comprises 30 chapters written
by key researchers in the field of second language teacher education (SLTE). The editors compiled this book because there were few volumes that presented a collection
offering a broad and contemporary overview of current debates (p. 7) in SLTE.
Earlier, good language teaching was viewed as the possession of academic knowledge
concerning methodology, applied linguistics, and learning theory. Little attention was
paid to practical skills acquired through experience in real teaching situations. Today,
language learning is viewed as culturally and socially situated, and as encompassing a
wide variety of factors such as context, participants, curriculum, management, and

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Journal of Language and Social Psychology 29(4)

motivation. This has led to a call for the reconceptualization of the knowledge base of
language teachers. Essential to this reconceptualizing is the notion that teacher education
should respond to the basic sociocultural processes of learning to teach. D. Freeman and
Johnson (1998) argue that the core of the new knowledge must focus on the teaching,
the teacher, the context, and the pedagogy. This knowledge base should also include
forms of knowledge representation that document the teacher learning within the
social, cultural, and institutional contexts in which learning occurs (p. 397). Readers of
the current book will note an emphasis throughout the book on language teaching within
the framework of social, cultural, political, and institutional factors.
The book contains a preface and introduction, and then the chapters are grouped
into seven thematic sections. Each section begins with an introduction. The themes
are meticulously discussed in terms of definitions, relevant issues, and present
trends. An extensive bibliography (1,173 entries) and suggestions for further reading
from each chapter (229 entries) are provided, and the book includes both author and
subject indices.
Section 1 explores the scope and trends in critical language teacher education, and
sociocultural perspectives. Freeman describes how the scope of language teaching has
gone through many dramatic changes. In the past, knowledge of linguistics, psychology,
applied linguistics, and language acquisition was central. Recently, this has changed
to include how people learn to teach language, including relevant sociocultural
considerations. It has led to a critical, self-reflective language teaching. Halliday
argues that language teaching needs a paradigm shift and that the teachers should be
introduced to de-central or locality driven approaches (p. 10).
Section 2 contains five chapters dealing with interrelated issues of professionalism,
certification and personal qualification, standards, teacher preparation and nonnative
speaking educators, and trainer development for second language (L2) teachers.
Professionalism is conceived of differently in different cultures. In some countries
it is measured as the level of proficiency in L2 and the certifications acquired in
academic settings while in others it may mean behaving in accordance with rules
and norms that prevail in their context of work (p. 3). Professionalism is of two
types: sponsored and independent. The former is acquired through institutions while
the latter is developed through socially and politically sensitive awareness of
professionalism on the part of the teachers themselves (p. 47). It is emphasized that
teachers should develop a balance of both sponsored and independent professionalism.
Related to professionalism is the issue of certification. There are two views on
granting certification. Professions would like to maintain their status and standards by
excluding unqualified teachers. On the other hand, the government intends to exert
control on certification in an attempt to maintain public interest. This decision is, to a
great extent, politically oriented.
Standards are intended to set clear expectations, provide a common language for
talking about the process of teaching and learning, guidelines for designing instruction,
curricula and assessment. Besides, they set criteria for program excellence, promotion,
career advancement, prospective teacher competencies, and student performance. Katz
and Snow argue that standards vary for both teachers and students, according to their

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function and purpose within education systems thus reflecting local perspectives on the
content of English and how to teach (p. 72). Curriculum and educational policies hold
teachers accountable for student learning based on standardized assessment
instruments and delete what context is to be taught, when, and how (p. 248). This
notion positions teachers as managers or servants of curriculum rather than facilitators
of the L2 learning process. Today, there has been a tendency to measure standards in
terms of the process formative focus rather than product summative focus (p. 74).
Assessment, like other aspects of SLTE, is changing due to increased understanding
of the nature of different forms of knowledge related to language teaching. There are
three views on assessment practices. The conventional view takes testing knowledge
about language for teaching knowledge. An elaborated view makes a distinction
between the knowledge of language as content and proficiency in teaching language.
The emerging view holds that language functions as both the medium and content of
lessons through pedagogy. Katz and Snow argue that assessment is a complex issue
because these forms of knowledge are volatile and overlapping in different contexts,
making it difficult to make clear cut distinctions.
Language teacher preparation deals with the issues of pedagogy and language
proficiency, important factors that may enhance or hinder teachers confidence.
Teacher preparation programs differ in EFL and Inner circle settings due to different
aims. In EFL settings, a lot of importance is attached to language proficiency while in
Inner circle settings attention is focused on the development of sociocultural
competences and self perceived needs.
Professional development has taken the direction of implicitly perceived know
ledge of pedagogy that is to be practiced in a classroom. Doffs (1988) A Training
Course for Teachers: Teach English is probably the most well-known work that
provides trainees with practical guidelines to practice. These guidelines are not
imposed on the trainees. Rather, they are supposed to be analyzed in terms of
practicality and effectiveness and later on practiced in the classroom.
Section 3 focuses on the different forms of knowledge that should be included in
the curriculum designed to train teachers: knowledge about language, knowledge about
language acquisition, and knowledge of professional discourse conventions. The
knowledge base needed for teacher education programs should recognize the needs of
language teachers, and the kinds of contexts in which they will work. Graves contends
that sound curriculum planning is based on needs analysis (p. 116). A modern
perspective on language teaching shifted attention from what teachers should know
to who they are, what they already know, and what they actually do when they teach
(p. 117). In fact, teaching is developed through what Lortie calls apprenticeship of
observation (p. 117). This is in contrast to traditional ideas that mere knowledge of
content and pedagogy would enable effective teaching.
Section 4 explores how teachers learn from their own experiences and develop
awareness into the complexities of language teaching by putting into practice their selfperceived theories in real classroom contexts. In fact, language teachers attempt to
narrow the gap between belief and practice. This process is largely influenced by the
contexts in which teachers work, and it is a source of the teachers developing knowledge.

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Journal of Language and Social Psychology 29(4)

Teachers cognition or mental lives (p. 163), plays an important role in decisionmaking processes during teaching practice. Teaching practice is affected by the thought,
knowledge, and beliefs of teachers. Thus, teachers practice cannot be separated from
the unobservable mental dimensions of this learning process.
Traditionally, teachers looked into identity in terms of cognitivists theory.
Recent trends have made a shift toward a sociological view that considers workplace
conditions, cultural differences, gender, language, ethnicity, and curriculum policy
as important factors in shaping identity. Teacher identity is an issue that has more
relevancies to nonnative speaker teachers working in workplaces other than their
own contexts.
One of the challenges faced by novice teachers is reality shock (p. 182). The
realities of context are shaped by certain social, political, and institutional factors. To
address this challenge, Farrell proposes two approaches: the introduction of specific
courses dedicated to first-year teaching and the development of school-teacher
educator partnerships (p. 185).
Section 5 focuses on the context where L2 teachers may improve their learning in
teaching practice. Within the socially oriented view, chapters focus on contexts such
as the course room, the school, distance learning, and technology-mediated learning.
Given that learning is a social process entailing dialogues and interaction with
others, Section 6 explores the ways by which language teachers may better understand
and reshape their own beliefs and knowledge through collaboration or listening to
voices of others. Recently, there has been a shift from isolation to collaboration
among the people involved in teaching: teacherteacher, teacherstudent, teacher
researcher, teacherparents, supervisors, mentors, administrators, and materials
developers. Johnston speaks of power differential (p. 243) as an important factor
affecting the collaboration of the aforementioned participants.
Section 7 elaborates on action research, classroom research, and reflective practice,
the latter of which pervades the whole book. For many years, language teaching was
mainly based on scientifically derived conceptions of teaching supported by
empirical investigations the by-product of which was certain learning principles
in the form of theories, specific teaching skills, and effective learning behaviors
(D. Freeman & Johnson, 1998, p. 398). In the mid-1970s, research based on the
cognitive school of thought emerged that worked to describe teachers thoughts,
judgments, and decisions as important factors in shaping their behaviors. In the mid1980s, cognitive learning theories shifted the focus of attention to a sociocultural turn
that stands in stark contrast to the cognitive learning theories (Johnson, 2006,
p. 238). This view considers teachers as dynamic entities having emotions, beliefs,
and knowledge built up either before or during in-service programs. Within the
sociocultural perspective, language teaching is a dynamic process whereby teachers
go through research in the classroom context, and test, retest, and revise their selftheories. They come up with their own strategies and apply them to their classrooms
considering the social, economic, cultural, and mental characteristics of their learners.
Readers might get the impression that methods and theories of language learning
are not useful. Johnson (2006) believes that L2 teachers should be given opportunities

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to make sense of these theories in their professional lives and the settings where they
work (p. 240). L. Freeman (2005) in an electronic interview on a critical analysis
of post method argues that a study of methods is very useful; among other things;
methods can serve as useful foils for reflective practice (p. 22). They can be source
of techniques and ideas from which L2 teachers may benefit in classrooms. Methods
are by nature decontextualized and it is the teacher and students who will contextualize
a method and make it appropriate to a given context.
Given the large number of references and extensive discourses, this collection
can be regarded as a great contribution to the fields of applied linguistics and SLTE
because it provides a comprehensive analysis of the relevant issues. It can be
suggested as a source for graduate and postgraduate students, teacher educators,
researchers, and curriculum designers who organize preservice and in-service
programs. The materials are organized in such a way that the readers can follow
them with ease and understanding. Probably, one drawback of the book is that most
of the materials presented are theoretically based and do not easily lend to practice.
There has been too much emphasis on the sociocultural factors affecting SLTE.
As a result, it ignores the achievements of other schools of thoughts such as
behaviorism and cognitivism, which brought about enormous developments in
language teaching and learning. Throughout the world, many teachers have been
relatively successful following the principles of the aforementioned theories.
Because of the complexities of language learning, no models of language teaching
can guarantee one hundred percent success. Thus, the reviewers think that teachers
should use all means available to facilitate learning.
References
Doff, A. (1988). A training course for teachers: Teach English. Cambridge, England:
Cambridge University Press.
Freeman, D., & Johnson, K. E. (1998). Reconceptualizing the knowledge base of language
teacher education. TESOL Quarterly, 32, 379-417.
Freeman, L. (2005). A critical analysis of post method [Electronic interview]. Language Teaching
Journal, 1, 21-25.
Johnson, K. E. (2006). The socio-cultural turn and its challenges for L2 teacher educators.
TESOL Quarterly, 40, 235-257.

Bios
Amin Karimnia is an assistance professor in the Department of English Language Teaching at
the Islamic Azad University, Fasa Branch, Iran. His research interests are in the area of discourse analysis, sociolinguistics, and pragmatics and their interface with the issues in English
language teaching.
Shahram Salehi Zadeh is an English teacher in the Ministry of Education in Fasa, Iran. His
research interests include language teaching and learning, sociolinguistics, linguistics, translation, and contrastive linguistics.