This volume is an edited collection of chapters: eight critical reviews and eight research reports. The introductory chapter by the editor justifies the volume's dual focus on first language (L1) acquisition and SLA research as an opportunity to explore the findings of each domain and illuminate areas where findings from one area might inform the other.
Alongside exploring connections between L1 and L2 research, this volume aims to relate theories of language acquisition to their applications; it is intended primarily for applied linguists and language teaching practitioners. Indeed, the latter group, occasionally marginalized by theory-heavy applied linguistic research reports, should find this resource highly practicable in its scope and insights. However, SLA researchers might also be interested in this volume, especially those who work with functional and sociolinguistic approaches to L2 (generative approaches do not appear in the volume).
The eight critical reviews are wide-ranging: L1 reading strategies are examined and advocated as beneficial for L2 reading skills (Masuhara; van Ginkel) and internal monologue and visualization are framed as necessary precursory stages to L2 performance (Tomlinson & Avila). Some interesting comparisons are made between the linguistic and affective environments of L1 and L2 learners in relation to caretaker or teacher speech (Arnold & Fonsica), and Timmis looks at attitudes toward target varieties, examining notions of native-speaker varieties and prestige.
The research reports take a similarly comparative framework. The pedagogical value of classroom recasts is tested by Tomlinson and Avila; results suggest that learners' productions can be positively influenced in the short term. Ghosn cites the acceleration of discourse acquisition in children who received story-based instruction. Reticence among students is explored by Dat, who tested new communicative strategies with English learners in Vietnam; Prodromou surveys idiomatic patterns in L2. Finally, Bacha presents a case study of a successful blind learner in a mainstream English as a foreign language (EFL) course.
The volume has been described as “an intelligently edited, probing and innovative set of studies balanced between social and psychological insights” (Ronald Carter, Chair of the British Association for Applied Linguistics, back cover). I would add that the practical character of the volume renders it an excellent resource (there is an abundance of data where appropriate). The aim of relating theory to practice is achieved very well—the emphasis of the book is on practical application and scholarly discovery through doing, which reflects many of the chapters' approaches to language learning. The volume's emphasis on the facilitation of L2 learning runs throughout, beginning in Tomlinson's introduction, which presents comparisons of L1 and L2 learner characteristics and offers new perspectives on claims of L1 superiority in ease of acquisition.
As with all instruments, this volume can only be reviewed along with a clear vision of who might use it. Following from the somewhat nebulous title, the chapter titles indicate that the contents cover many domains, such as language pedagogy, psycholinguistics, corpus linguistics, sociolinguistics, psychology, and even cultural studies. Crucially, the volume has a clear focus that unites the broad range of chapters—that is, effective teaching and learning strategies. Thus, this volume is potentially a very useful resource for English language teaching (ELT) practitioners. Conversely, it might be less useful for experimental or lab-based researchers, such as those in the field of SLA processing. Due to its accessible style and transparent data analysis, the volume will be of use not only to academics and practitioners but also to interested undergraduates of linguistics or education. Due to the discrete nature of the individual chapters, the reader is able to pick specific areas of interest, although some cross-referencing, for which there are many opportunities, would have been helpful.
The application of advancements in L1 research to L2 and vice versa raises perennial problems; my students commonly extrapolate from L1 research to L2, with varying degrees of success and coherence. This work initially seems to achieve this, but, as the reader progresses beyond the introduction to each chapter, the thrust of the arguments is soon restricted to either L1 or L2. This is clearly something of which the editors are aware, given the warning in Tomlinson's introduction (pp. 9–10), but it does threaten to undermine the volume's overarching aims of unifying L1 and L2 research.
Overall, this collection is thoughtfully compiled; the chapters are well written, well supported, and well referenced. It is a valuable resource in the field of language acquisition.
