Hernandez, Todd A

English

epublications@Marquette

Marquette Universitye-Publications@MarquetteSpanish Languages and Literatures Research andPublicationsLanguages, Literatures and Culture FacultyResearch and Publications4-1-2009Review of Mind and Context in Adult SecondLanguage Acquisition: Methods, Theory, and Practice byC. SanzTodd A. HernandezMarquette University, todd.hernandez@marquette.eduPublished version. NECTFL Review, Vol. 64 (Spring/Summer 2009): 116-118. Publisher link. ©2009 The Northeast Conference on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (NECTFL). Used withpermission.116 The NECTFL Review 64 Spring/Summer 2009antecedents, determining sentence clauses and rewriting sentences in the text,and completing paragraph-length summaries.For post-reading tasks, the authors suggest listening to a mini-lecture by theauthor of the text,making a presentation based on the summary and using rhetor-ical devices in the lecture,watching a film related to the text and answering ques-tions about the film,preparing an oral presentation on a topic related to the text,and writing a paper on the topic of the oral presentation and using additionalsources as necessary.Marat Sanatullov, Ph.D.Assistant Professor of French, French and Italian Division Director andForeign Language Teacher Education CoordinatorWichita State UniversityWichita, KansasPublisher’s ResponseYale University Press wishes to thank Marat Sanatullov for his thorough andinsightful review of Advanced Russian through History (Дела давноминувших дней).We are very proud of this textbook and ancillary materials.Visit yalebooks.com/russian to look at the Learning Tasks, lists of abbreviationsand films, glossaries, and maps included with the main text.Niamh CunninghamYale University PressSanz, Cristina, ed. Mind and Context inSecond Language Acquisition.Washington, D.C.: Georgetown UP, 2005. Pp. 332. ISBN: 1-58901-070-1.The present volume examines the interaction between external and internalfactors that both determine and explain the adult second language learningprocess.The volume contains four parts: (1)Theory and Methodology,(2) InternalFactors, (3) External Factors, and (4) Pedagogical Implications.The structure ofthe ten chapters in this volume is as follows: key words, an introduction, maintext, summary, suggestions for further readings, and references.The exercises atthe end of chapters 2 through 8 are a useful feature—allowing the reader to prac-tice his or her skills in reading and critiquing important issues in second languageacquisition research.In chapter 1, Sanz, the editor, outlines the contents of the volume. Chapters 2and 3 are an introduction to quantitative and qualitative approaches to secondlanguage acquisition research. In chapter 2, Chen begins with a review of thebasic concepts of statistics. He then outlines statistical procedures relevant tosecond language acquisition research such as: t tests,ANOVA, regression, and chi-square tests. The presentation of these concepts within the context of recentstudies assists the reader’s understanding of quantitative statistics. The authorREVIEWS 117also offers an excellent discussion of guidelines for choosing an appropriate sta-tistical procedure.The chapter concludes with suggested readings. In chapter 3,Adams, Fujii, and Mackey focus on the use of qualitative methods in classroom-based second language acquisition research.The authors discuss the characteris-tics of qualitative research,and then provide examples of studies using qualitativemethods.The most important data gathering instruments for qualitative researchare also presented:classroom observations, interviews,case studies and ethnogra-phies, verbal protocols,diaries and journals, and questionnaires.The chapter con-cludes with a discussion of practical considerations in conducting qualitativeresearch.In chapter 4, Bowden, Sanz, and Stafford examine the role of individual differ-ences—age, sex,working memory, and prior knowledge—in shaping the secondlanguage learning process. Ullman discusses second language acquisition from acognitive neuroscience perspective in chapter 5. First, he discusses the declara-tive/procedural (DP) model. He then presents the claims and predictions of theDP model for first and second language acquisition. In chapter 6, Leow andBowles examine the role of attention and awareness in second language acquisi-tion.The chapter provides a brief introduction to the theoretical models of atten-tion and awareness. In addition, the authors explore methodological issues in themeasurement of these constructs.Mackey and Abbuhl provide an overview of the interaction hypothesis in chap-ter 7.The chapter begins with an introduction to the major components of thishypothesis: input, feedback, and output.The authors conclude with a brief discus-sion of the relationship between recent work on interaction and task-based lan-guage instruction. In chapter 8, Sanz and Morgan-Short investigate the role ofexplicit instruction in second language learning.The authors present a clear andcomprehensive discussion of issues such as explicit and implicit learning, explicitrule presentation prior to input,explicit feedback,manipulated input, and practice.Chapters 9 and 10 examine the relationship between second language acqui-sition research and language instruction.VanPatten discusses processing instruc-tion (PI) in chapter 9.The author discusses his input processing model and thethree key components of PI. Examples of structured input activities—and guide-lines for their creation—are provided to assist the reader in understanding howPI differs from traditional grammar instruction. In chapter 10, Byrnes focuses onthe potential role of content-based instruction (CBI) in the attainment ofadvanced second language learning.The author offers a convincing argument forthe development of a CBI curriculum—one that integrates cultural knowledgeand language. She traces the history of CBI within the context of research on theimportance of comprehensible input for output and focus-on-form. Recent CBIinitiatives are examined such as Languages Across the Curriculum, the ForeignLanguage Immersion Program, and Language for Special Purposes.The chapterconcludes with a discussion of future challenges for CBI and second languageacquisition.This is indeed an excellent collection of papers on adult second languageacquisition.The various chapters in this volume provide a comprehensive intro-duction to the field of second language acquisition research. Examples are pro-118 The NECTFL Review 64 Spring/Summer 2009vided throughout to illustrate key concepts and approaches.The exercises at theend of chapters 2 through 8 are also an important feature. In conclusion, this vol-ume is appropriate for both graduate students and researchers in second lan-guage acquisition.Todd A. HernándezAssistant Professor of SpanishMarquette UniversityMilwaukee,WisconsinSobejano-Morán, Antonio, and Paola Bianco.Introducción a la literatura latinoamericana:An Anthology of Latin American Literature.Newburyport, MA: Focus Publishing, 2005. ISBN: 1-58510-105-2.Introducción a la literatura latinoamericana: An Anthology of LatinAmerican Literature provides the reader with a solid introduction to LatinAmerican literature.Written completely in the target language,Spanish, it choosesrepresentative works and writers of the Hispanic world. Beginning with pre-Columbian literatures, the book moves on to contemporary times with samplesof novels, short stories, essays, poetry, and theater. This well-rounded work pro-vides students with a balanced sampling of each genre.To facilitate understanding, the authors have organized the material in chrono-logical order and divided it into four main chapters. Chapter One gives a briefintroduction to pre-Columbian literatures, emphasizing the Mayan, Aztec, andIncan cultures. This chapter could have only been improved if some fragmentsof these texts had been included so that students could understand their beauty.The second chapter deals with writings during the colonial period, includingNaufragios by Núñez Cabeza deVaca and selected poetry by Sor Juana Inésde laCruz. The third chapter focuses on the works produced during theIndependence period of Latin America. Included in this section are canonicalworks by Fernández de Lizardi, Heredia, Palma, Martí, and Darío. The longestchapter of the book deals with the twentieth century and features beautifulworks of poetry by Storni, de Burgos, and Neruda; prose by Quiroga, Cortázar,Borges, Rulfo, Fuentes, García Márquez,Allende, and Ulibarrí; and a dramatic textby Vodanovic.This comprehensive reader is carefully conceived and well organized. Eachreading is placed into its cultural and historical context. Following this introduc-tion is a biography of the author studied; a reader’s guide, which focuses on thetopics and narrative techniques utilized in the work; the actual literary selection,clarified by glossaries and glosses;comprehension and discussion questions, iden-tifications, and multiple choice questions; a critical analysis,which asks studentsto reflect on certain topics or subjects pertinent to the text; an essay section,which invites readers to further analyze the work studied; and, finally, a bibliogra-phy. An introduction to poetic analysis is provided as an appendix of sorts, at the

Review of \u3cem\u3eMind and Context in Adult Second Language Acquisition: Methods, Theory, and Practice\u3c/em\u3e by C. Sanz

https://epublications.marquette.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1072&amp;context=span_fac

Review of \u3cem\u3eMind and Context in Adult Second Language Acquisition: Methods, Theory, and Practice\u3c/em\u3e by C. Sanz

Abstract

Similar works

Full text

Available Versions

epublications@Marquette