Since Alderson and Wall (1993) posited a seemingly rhetorical question, “Does washback exist?” language testing professionals have directed attention to the impact of testing on teaching, learning, educational outcomes, and individuals. This edited volume is the culmination of language testing professionals' conscious efforts to better understand washback. It bears rich testimony to the complex nature of washback phenomena in every corner of educational systems. It is a useful resource for those seeking guidance on their own washback studies—for teachers and school administrators who are haunted by the power of tests and for those who need empirical evidence for and against test washback in specific testing situations.

The book contains two major sections. In the first section, the concepts of washback and the methodological considerations are discussed in depth. Following Alderson's comprehensive overview, Cheng and Curtis review the history of washback studies along with the confounding test effects on teaching and learning.

Readers seeking practical methodological guidance are advised to read the second chapter by Watanabe. He succinctly characterizes multidimensional aspects of washback according to specificity, intensity, length, intentionality, and value. He contends that methodology aimed to disentangle the complexity of washback phenomena should be diverse, which renders the potential for qualitative research methodology. In chapter 5, Saville and Hawkey illustrate step-by-step data collection procedures and the development of various instruments in their International English Language Testing System (IELTS) washback studies on textbooks and materials.

The second section includes eight chapters, each of which situates washback phenomena in specific testing situations and reports major findings along with detailed descriptions of various instruments (i.e., surveys, interviews, observation protocols). A diverse array is covered: effects of assessment-driven reform on writing instruction in Washington State, the impact of IELTS on teaching materials, washback in the Certificate in spoken and written English in Australia, the effects of high-stakes university entrance examinations on secondary school education in Japan, the Hong Kong certificate examinations in English, the National matriculation English test in China, and, finally, the English foreign language oral matriculation test in Israel. The cases are from all over the world, and the studies engage teachers and others in various ways to understand whether and how either existing tests or the introduction of new tests influence the content of teaching, teaching materials, ways that teachers teach, and teachers' beliefs and perceptions about tests.

One major motif that interconnects several chapters (chapters 6–11) is the relationship between teachers' beliefs and perceptions of tests, on the one hand, and test impact, on the other. For example, Chen investigates how an exam reform influences teachers' perceptions about teaching practice. She concludes that although teachers positively reacted to the change, the exam neither influenced the teachers' daily teaching nor changed their inclinations to teach to the test.

Results reported in the book show that washback is contextually specific (Bailey, 1999) and that it reflects the heterogeneity of human character. Positive washback effects are reported on writing curricula and on increased attention to more communicative language skills and time allotment for such skills. At the same time, negative washback is evidenced by selective curricula, by increased pressure and test anxiety, and by lack of change in daily teaching practice.

Clearly, more research is needed to further address long-term test impact operating at the macrolevel (i.e., test impact on society and educational systems). Also clearly needed are studies that proactively engage students, teachers, and other parties as collaborators throughout all phases of the test development and implementation process, rather than as passive information-givers as in the current post hoc approach. Such studies will shed light on the dynamic relationship among various educational parties in this era of test plethora.

My minor reservation is that this volume could have had a final chapter devoted to synthesizing the findings across the reported studies and discussing implications and agendas for future research. Yet, such a reservation does not override the rich empirical evidence and examples of data instruments provided throughout the book.