Stressing the use of meaningful language at all stages of language acquisition, this work is about texts and contexts in second language learning. It is intended for teachers and teachers-in-training as an introduction to the theoretical basis for communicative language teaching and as a guide to building a program consonant with those theories.

Communicative competence is an essential language skill, the ability to adjust language use according to specific contexts and to employ knowledge and strategies for successful communication. This unique text offers a multidisciplinary, critical, state-of-the-art research overview for this skill in second language learners. Expert contributors from around the world lay out the history of the field, then explore a variety of theoretical perspectives, methodologies, and empirical findings, and authoritatively set the agenda for future work. With a variety of helpful features like discussion questions, recommended further reading, and suggestions for practice, this book will be an invaluable resource to students and researchers of applied linguistics, education, psychology, and beyond.

The Routledge Encyclopedia of Language Teaching and Learning is an authoritative reference dealing with all aspects of this increasingly important field of study. Offering a comprehensive range of articles on contemporary language teaching and its history, it has been produced specifically for language teaching professionals and as a reference work for academic studies at postgraduate level. In this new edition, every single entry has been reviewed and updated with reference to new developments and publications. Coverage has been expanded to reflect new technological, global and academic developments, with particular attention to areas such as online and distance learning, teacher and learner cognition, testing, assessment and evaluation, global English and teacher education. Themes and disciplines covered include: Methods and materials, including new technologies and materials development Contexts and concepts, such as mediation, risk-taking in language learning and intercomprehension Influential figures from the early days of language teaching to the contemporary Related disciplines, such as psychology, anthropology and corpus linguistics It covers the teaching of specific languages, including Japanese, Chinese, Arabic and African languages, as well as English, French, German and Spanish. There are thirty five overview articles dealing with issues such as communicative language teaching, early language learning, teacher education and syllabus and curriculum design. A further 160 entries focus on topics such as bilingualism, language laboratories and study abroad. Numerous shorter items examine language and cultural institutions, professional associations and acronyms. Multiple cross-references enable the user to browse from one entry to another, and there are suggestions for further reading. Written by an international team of specialists, the Routledge Encyclopedia of Language Teaching and Learning is an invaluable resource and reference manual for anyone with a professional or academic interest in the subject.

This two volume handbook provides a comprehensive examination of policy, practice, research and theory related to English Language Teaching in international contexts. More than 70 chapters highlight the research foundation for best practices, frameworks for policy decisions, and areas of consensus and controversy in second language acquisition and pedagogy. The Handbook provides a unique resource for policy makers, educational administrators, and researchers concerned with meeting the increasing demand for effective English language teaching. It offers a strongly socio-cultural view of language learning and teaching. It is comprehensive and global in perspective with a range of fresh new voices in English language teaching research.

Foreign language learning is a progressive endeavor. Whatever the method, the learner should advance from one point to another, constantly improving. Growing proficiency entails growing language content. Content is complex, displaying many dimensions. Syllabus designers, textbook authors, and teachers often struggle with the monitoring of content. Computer-assisted systemization helps to handle it in a manageable framework. Besides inventorying content, it ensures more balanced selections, calculated progression, and controlled reiteration of previously learned material. It gauges the usability of authentic material in relation to the level attained. During the teaching process, it allows the instant selection of items needed for a communicative situation, focus on forms, or particular exercises. This book first describes the theoretical background for systemization, including a historical overview, with special attention to the Common European Framework and the new Profiles and Referentials. Next the practical steps for computer-assisted implementation with examples taken from French and English, but applicable to any language.

Routledge Introductions to Applied Linguistics is a series of introductory level textbooks covering the core topics in Applied Linguistics, primarily designed for those beginning postgraduate studies, or taking an introductory MA course as well as advanced undergraduates. Titles in the series are also ideal for language professionals returning to academic study. The books take an innovative 'practice to theory' approach, with a 'back-to-front' structure. This leads the reader from real-world problems and issues, through a discussion of intervention and how to engage with these concerns, before finally relating these practical issues to theoretical foundations. Additional features include a glossary of key terms, and discussion questions. Following the back-to-front approach of the series, the book takes problematic issues in language pedagogy as its starting points. These are then examined in terms of second language acquisition. Each chapter begins with a look at the pedagogical proposals found in teacher guides and then asks ‘Do these proposals accord with what we know about how languages are acquired?’ Pedagogical topics covered include teaching methods, syllabus design, explicit instruction, comprehension versus production-based instruction, task-based instruction, authentic materials, the role of the learners’ first language in the classroom, error correction and catering for individual differences. Including a glossary of key terms and questions for discussion at the end of each chapter, and assuming no prior knowledge of second language acquisition, this is the ideal text for all students studying language teaching methods, language teacher education, English teaching methodology and second language acquisition modules in advanced undergraduate and postgraduate/graduate TESOL and Applied Linguistics courses.