Abstract

This book presents a novel approach to discussing how to research language teacher cognition and practice. An introductory chapter by the editors and an overview of the research field by Simon Borg precede eight case studies written by new researchers, each of which focuses on one approach to collecting data. These approaches range from questionnaires and focus groups to think aloud, stimulated recall, and oral reflective journals. Each case study is commented on by a leading expert in the field - JD Brown, Martin Bygate, Donald Freeman, Alan Maley, Jerry Gebhard, Thomas Farrell, Susan Gass, and Jill Burton. Readers are encouraged to enter the conversation by reflecting on a set of questions and tasks in each chapter.

This collection offers an innovative combination of authentic researcher voices and expert commentary. Teacher cognition may be the focus, but its appeal is much wider: the methodological riches on offer make this an essential addition to the bookshelves of all doctoral researchers and supervisors in our field.

The materials available in this collection offer research module coordinators, teacher educators, research students and their supervisors a full spectrum of methodological issues to think about. Of particular interest to me is the fact that the majority of the researchers contributing to this collection are themselves practitioners in the same institutions or similar educational settings, making the book particularly relevant to practitioner-researchers conducting research in their own professional settings.

Roger Barnard is an Associate Professor in Applied Linguistics at the University of Waikato, New Zealand. His recent publications include Researching Language Teacher Cognition and Practice (2012, edited with Anne Burns) and Creating Classroom Communities of Learning (2009, edited with Maria Torres-Guzman).

Anne Burns holds professorial positions at Aston University, Birmingham, and the University of New South Wales, Sydney. She is also an Honorary Professor at the University of Sydney and a Visiting Professor at the University of Stockholm. She is known for her work in action research, teacher education, and the theory and practice of teaching speaking.

The book is an insightful evaluation of the trials and tribulations of conducting qualitative research on language teacher cognition. The book would be a useful resource for anyone working with students in this area, as it demonstrates how even the most considered of studies can benefit from alternative views.

I thoroughly recommend this book to graduate student researchers and their supervisors. It is interesting to read and highly informative with regard to practical as well as theoretical issues.

This book will be a very useful resource for researchers and others interested in teacher cognition in language teaching. As well as providing fascinating case studies of research in this area, the expert commentaries on each study clarify the issues involved and provide guidelines for how such research can be conducted.

The greatest value of the book goes beyond the discussion on how to research language teacher cognition; it is a quest to answer the question: How can we better study this specific domain despite the methodological challenges? It is a noble pursuit.

This volume fills an important gap in the research literature on language teacher cognition, bringing together under one cover a set of case studies of researchers' experiences with different methodological procedures. Highly readable and engagingly personal, these narrative presentations provide an effective tool for training novice researchers and reflective practitioners.