Pedagogical Norms for Second and Foreign Language Learning and Teaching: Studies in honour of Albert Valdman(5 Language Learning & Language Teaching)

The concept of Pedagogical Norm is grounded in both sociolinguistic and psycholinguistic principles. Pedagogical norms guide the selection and sequencing of target language features for language teaching and learning. This book both situates and expands on this concept highlighting the interaction of research and pedagogy. The papers collectively illustrate how the concept of pedagogical norm applies to all components of language, including phonology, morphology, syntax, and discourse. The book begins with a discussion of definitions including papers that trace the history of the concept and define what is meant by norms. Also included are papers that apply the concept of pedagogical norms in specific contexts (e.g., intonation, morphology) and to specific languages. Finally, pedagogical norms are extended beyond the more traditional areas of grammatical competence to such disparate areas as listening, discourse, and circumlocution.

Table of Contents:
1. Introduction (by Bardovi-Harlig, Kathleen); 2. Section I: Defining Pedagogical Norms; 3. Pedagogical norms: Development of the concept and illustrations from French (by Magnan Pierce, Sally); 4. Norms, native speakers and reversing language shift (by Spolsky, Bernard); 5. Standard, norm, and variability in language learning: A view from foreign language research (by Kramsch, Claire); 6. French immersion in Montreal: Pedagogical norm and functional competence (by Auger, Julie); 7. Section II: Applying Pedagogical Norms; 8. Communicative classrooms, processing instruction, and pedagogical norms (by VanPatten, Bill); 9. The initial impact of reading as input for the acquisition of future tense morphology in Spanish (by Lee, James); 10. Treating French intonation: Observed variation and suggestions for a pedagogical norm (by Ramsey, Laurie Anne); 11. Dislocated subjects in French: A pedagogical norm (by Ossipov, Helene); 12. Variant word-order constructions: To teach or not to teach? Evidence from learner narratives (by Kerr, Betsy); 13. Section III: Extending Pedagogical Norms; 14. Incorporating variation in the French classroom: A pedagogical norm for listening comprehension (by Fox, Cynthia A.); 15. A pedagogical norm for circumlocution in French (by Jourdain, Sarah); 16. Between orality and literacy: Developing a pedagogical norm for narrative discourse (by Blyth, Carl S.); 17. Albert Valdman, the Compassionate Shepherd (by Gradman, Harry L.); 18. Albert Valdman: Rudy Professor of French & Italian and Linguistics; 19. Subject index

Review :
This volume provides an interesting overview of the uses and possibilities of the concept of pedagogical norms. It furthermore includes the evolution of Valdman's work, as well as the evolution of foreign language teaching and acquisition. The fine individual contributions to this volume make a strong case for the importance of incorporating pedagogical norms in any second and foreign language teaching situation, offering relevant and concrete ways to do so, all the while demonstrating the complexities of such a task. This volume is a must for any language program coordinator and will no doubt provoke many a language teacher to rethink his or her program goals and means of achieving them. The present volume is a valuable contribution to our understanding of one of the major concepts in language pedagogy and will no doubt become an indispensable reference tool for researchers and practitioners in the fields of applied and educational linguistics. Taking Professor Valdman's legacy as its theoretical foundation, the volume elaborates further the concept of pedagogical norm, superbly illustrating its overall importance and role in mediating the relationship of the closely related disciplines' descriptive linguistics, second language acquisition and language pedagogy. The editors splendidly succeeded in making the volume extremely readable, thematically rich, but highly coherent, with a right proportion of purely theoretical and more empirically-based contributions. It is with pleasure that we recommend it to the attention of its intended readership, composed primarily of applied linguists and educationist, who will most certainly welcome the appearance of this volume. But it should also without hesitation be brought to the attention of a wider scholarly audience, including in particular younger generation of applied linguistic and educational scholars and practitioners, who might find its exhaustive bibliography on the topic a very good starting point for further research.