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THIS BOOK is edited in honor of Rod Ellis, whose contributions to the field of second language acquisition (SLA) and teacher education have been of tremendous significance over the past three decades. Rod’s work and ideas have advanced our understanding of many areas within SLA, including form-focused instruction (FFI), task-based teaching and learning, classroom research, and the role of input and interaction. Throughout his career, Rod’s commitment to teacher education through linking research with classroom pedagogy stands out as especially significant. Because he began his career as an English teacher, he has extensive experience with and knowledge of classroom teaching and the challenges facing teachers. This background, coupled with his expertise in SLA research and applied linguistics, has enabled him to connect theory and practice effectively and to make outstanding contributions to various areas of teacher education, including curriculum development, teaching methodology, and classroom research. Rod’s contributions in these areas have appeared in numerous journal articles, conference presentations, workshops, and teacher education textbooks and monographs. By editing this Festschrift, we wish to express our appreciation of what Rod has done over the course of his academic and teaching career for second and foreign language (FL) teachers, researchers, and teacher educators.

The book has been designed to focus on current areas of research, theory, and practice in FFI and teacher education. The contributors are Rod’s colleagues and friends and those who have worked with him over the years and have inspired or been inspired by his work. The range of topics covered reflects the breadth and depth of Rod’s expertise and interests.

In line with Rod’s work, the volume addresses FFI from the perspective of informing teachers of the role that formal instruction plays in communicative contexts. It considers both theoretical and empirical issues as well as classroom use of form-focused activities in communicative pedagogy. Since many SLA researchers and teacher educators now recognize the important role of FFI in language learning theory, teaching, and learning, a volume that combines theoretical concerns, classroom practices, and teacher education constitutes an important contribution to the field.

Overview of the volume

The book is organized into three parts: ‘Theoretical issues of focus on form’, ‘Focus on form and classroom practice’, and ‘Focus on form and teacher education’. All sections address FFI with particular reference to Rod’s work, and the last two discuss its classroom applications, again drawing upon Rod’s many contributions to the field. The first section contains four chapters addressing theoretical considerations including an overview of focus on form (FoF), consciousness, cognitive processing, explicit knowledge and sociocultural theory, the relationship between task research and language teaching pedagogy, and FoF as psycholinguistic and sociolinguistic phenomena.

Chapter 1, ‘Issues in form-focused instruction and teacher education’ by Hossein Nassaji and Sandra Fotos, introduces the volume by examining the theoretical aspects of FoF and reviewing the various types of FFI in classroom practice. This chapter also discusses current insights from FFI research and theory and their relevance for teachers and teacher education. Chapter 2, ‘The weak interface, consciousness, and form-focused instruction: mind the doors’ by Nick Ellis, examines the interface between implicit and explicit knowledge and compares the roles of consciousness in SLA and psychology. N. Ellis suggests that current theories of the role of consciousness correspond to the ‘weak interface’ theory proposed by Rod (R. Ellis 1994b) whereby explicit knowledge plays a facilitating role in SLA.

Chapter 3, ‘Conceptual knowledge and instructed second language learning: a sociocultural perspective’ by James Lantolf, considers the implications of sociocultural theory for second language (L2) instruction, arguing that conceptual knowledge is likely to have a more powerful impact on grammatical development than traditional approaches which focus less on meaning and more on formal grammatical features. Chapter 4, ‘Task research and language teaching: reciprocal relationships’ by Peter Skehan, begins with a comprehensive review of task research, particularly examining the sequence and implications of pre-task, task, and post-task activities and relating the research findings to current pedagogical practice. Skehan notes that a task-based approach has much to offer FFI.

The second section, ‘Focus on form and classroom practice’, examines research-based FFI activities in the (L2) classroom. Chapter 5, by Merrill Swain and Sharon Lapkin, is titled ‘The distributed nature of second language learning: Neil’s perspective’. The authors review research on the distributed nature of learning as a situated local phenomenon, then present an analysis of a French immersion student’s transcripts during performance of multi-task activities, suggesting that the participant’s L2 learning is mediated by his own languaging. Chapter 6, ‘Recontextualizing focus on form’ by Rob Batstone, examines the ongoing, discourse-based nature of FoF and the critical roles of framing and negotiation of form. The shift from meaning to form is reconsidered, with particular focus on the processes by which learners develop alertness and attentional capacity.

Chapter 7, ‘The prior and subsequent use of forms targeted in incidental focus on form’ by Shawn Loewen, investigates the effectiveness of incidental FoF in promoting L2 learning by examining the use of targeted linguistic items in classroom interaction both before and after FFI took place. The author emphasizes the need for various measures of learners’ L2 knowledge. Chapter 8, ‘Reactive focus on form through negotiation on learners’ written errors’ by Hossein Nassaji, examines the role of negotiation taking place during oral feedback on English as a second language (ESL) learners’ written errors. The results indicated that negotiated feedback occurred more frequently than non-negotiated feedback, and was more effective in helping students identify and correct their L2 writing errors than non-negotiated feedback. Chapter 9, ‘Form-focused instruction and output for second language writing gains’ by Sandra Fotos and Eli Hinkel, reviews research indicating that, without FFI, even advanced L2 learners write text with simple grammatical and lexical features. Classroom pedagogy consisting of FFI, output opportunities, feedback, and learner revision is recommended, and activities in an English as a foreign language (EFL) writing class are described.

The third section, ‘Focus on form and teacher education’, integrates FFI with teacher education and practice. Chapter 10, ‘Materials development and research: towards a form-focused perspective’ by Jack Richards, discusses research and theory in materials development, including the writer’s goals, the focus of the materials, and the syllabus. Richards suggests that development of successful teaching material is not dependent on research but rather on how the material is received by teachers and students, and whether it meets their needs.

Chapter 11, ‘Time, teachers, and tasks in focus on form instruction’ by Teresa Pica, addresses time as a factor in teachers’ selection of target forms, their decision when to focus attention on the forms, and their practices for form mastery. Recommendations are given for designing tasks which are consistent with FFI and curriculum requirements. Brian Tomlinson’s Chapter 12, ‘Using form-focused discovery approaches’, describes various types of discovery approaches and investigates teacher attitudes and adoption practices. The author’s experience of introducing discovery approaches to teachers around the world is presented, and suggestions are offered regarding the use of discovery approaches in the future.

Chapter 13, ‘Learning or measuring? Exploring teacher decision-making in planning for classroom-based language assessment’ by Pauline Rea-Dickins, recognizes the need to understand language assessment practices within the social and cultural context in which they take place. The chapter explores decisions that teachers make in relation to classroom-based assessment and to the different phases in the assessment cycle.

Chapter 14, ‘Learning through the looking glass: teacher response to form-focused feedback on writing’, by Tricia Hedge, examines teacher responses to their writing tutor’s taped FFI and commentary on their writing. The teachers responded positively to the taped feedback in comparison to face-to-face interaction or written commentary. Chapter 15, ‘Explicit language knowledge and focus on form: options and obstacles for TESOL teacher trainees’, by Catherine Elder, Rosemary Erlam, and Jenefer Philp, examines TESOL teacher trainees’ explicit knowledge and their ability to deliver FoF options. The authors also suggest that if FoF interventions are to be effective, teacher education programs must help teacher trainees develop strategies to tailor their instructional approaches to their level of metalinguistic knowledge.

The primary theme running through the chapters in this collection is that FFI is necessary in language classrooms. Written from the viewpoint of language teachers, the chapters attempt to demonstrate, either theoretically or empirically, options for integrating form and meaning in language classrooms. The theoretical concerns which should underlie an integrated curriculum are discussed, and specific techniques are examined, with suggestions for their application in language teaching and teacher education.

Sandra Fotos

Hossein Nassaji