Reagan, Timothy. (2005). Critical Questions, Critical Perspectives: Language and the Second Language Educator. Reviewed by Na Liu, Arizona State University

Reagan, Timothy. (2005). Critical Questions, Critical Perspectives: Language and the Second Language Educator. Greenwich: CT: Information Age Publishing Inc. Pp. x + 145 $69.95   ISBN 1-59311-335-8 Reviewed by Na Liu Arizona State University January 27, 2006 Critical Questions, Critical Perspectives is different from most other books about language and foreign language teaching. It does not address anything related to language teaching methods, nor language assessment and management. Instead, as Reagan states in the preface, “it asks the language educator to step back from his or her daily challenges and concerns and consider some of the many important theoretical issues that underlie and inform our pedagogy and profession” (p. ix). As the title suggests, throughout the seven chapters of the book, the author maintains a critical perspective toward various language issues. Chapter One deals with whether language really exists. Reagan starts by pointing out some popular assumptions about language, such as “language can be presented as an objective reality” and “the language user can meaningfully be separated from the language” (p. 1). Underlying these assumptions is the ideology of logical positivism which “presupposes the existence of an external reality which we can seek to recognize and understand” (p. 2). One of the influential scholars to apply this ideology to language is Chomsky, who presented language as a knowable entity. According to the author, this conceptualization of language oversimplifies not only language itself, but also the components of language and the skills related to language teaching and learning. Contrary to Chomsky’s view of language, Reagan argues that any language is a moving target. In the process of teaching and learning any language, educators and learners need to be aware of the context in which the language is being taught and learned. Since language is always changing and cannot be objectified, then the question arises of what it means to know a language. In Chapter Two, the author addresses this question. After going over Plato’s pulling knowledge out of the student and Locke’s pouring knowledge into the student, Reagan presents his own understanding of language from a constructivist point of view: He urges the readers to consider the potential contributions of constructivism to second and foreign language teaching and learning. Learning itself is development. Emphasis should be placed on the individual learner’s construction of his or her knowledge. Although according to Piaget and Vygotsky, constructivism can be either radical or social, Reagan finds a reasonable way to combine these two to present learning as “socially mediated but personally constructed” (p. 23). The author also mentions that constructivism does not claim to provide earth-shaking recommendations in the area of education, but only provides teachers with a solid conceptual basis for some of the things they have done without theoretical foundation. Constructivist teaching entails the complementary and interactive roles of the individual and the social construction of language. As for second and foreign language learning, Williams and Burden have identified several propositions from constructivist views, including “learners learn what is meaningful to them” and “learning is influenced by the situation in which it occurs” (1997, pp. 204-208). Shifting emphasis from teaching to learning is a step forward in foreign and second language teaching. Reagan seems to contradict himself regarding the role of traditional transmission-oriented learning. Early on, he claims that “as an epistemology, constructivism entails the rejection of traditional transmission-oriented views of learning, as well as behaviorist models of learning” (p. 23). Later, he writes that “it is important to understand that no pedagogical approach would be excluded by a commitment to constructivist epistemology” (p. 32). This sort of eclecticism is confusing when one seeks to place in perspective the role of transmission-oriented views of learning a foreign language. In Chapter Three, Reagan discusses the benefits of learning a foreign language. That scarcely two thousand out of a hundred thousand pupils who learn French will actually use it is quite surprising and raises the question why one should study a foreign language at all. In this chapter, instead of providing the traditional argument for language learning (one might increase one’s chances of getting a job), the author makes three arguments in favor of language learning: from an epistemological, a sociopolitical and an interpersonal perspective. Language can help people perceive and understand reality, raise people’s language awareness, and make them aware of their dominance of the communicative situation. These arguments provide a unique perspective for understanding the benefits of studying a foreign language. Even though in reality second language learners may not find ways to use the language, they can still benefit from the learning experience cognitively. In Chapter Four, the author goes into the issue of language rights, dividing them into negative language rights and positive rights. Negative language rights focus on prohibiting actions and policies that unfairly target minority groups; positive language rights have the states take initiatives to create favorable conditions to allow minorities’ development of their culture, language, religion, traditions, and customs. After the discussion of language rights, Reagan points out that “if the individual has the right to an education in his or her native language, he or she also has a responsibility to learn the socially dominant language of his or her society” (p. 50). This dialectical argument provides readers with a complete picture of language rights, which cannot be separated from language responsibility. Some issues related to language rights in U.S. public education are the debates over bilingual education vs. English as a second language or over a hierarchy of languages and language varieties. In all these discussions, the author attempts to help language and second language educators develop an understanding of the relationship between language and power in society, matters of language attitudes and bias, and matters of language dominance and bias. Language is embedded in society and is therefore unavoidably influenced by society. Reagan agrees with this point by stating “although linguists stress the fundamental equality of languages, some languages are clearly, in social, demographic, economic, and political terms, ‘more equal’ than others” (p. 60). Comparing the difficulties of learning different languages for native English speakers, Reagan finds that there were no explanations why some languages are less commonly taught at school. Instead, he finds that educators need to consider such influences as social, cultural, economic, political, demographic, and ideological beliefs and attitudes when considering why some languages are less commonly taught. Chapter Six, “Language Learning and Feelings of Disgust,” deals with the case of Esperanto, which was invented by a Polish Jewish ophthalmologist to be used as a universal language. Foreign language educators often tend to see Esperanto as an affront partly due to its artificiality and supposed ease of acquisition. Reagan attempts to provide a broad overview of Esperanto and its current research evidence. After elaborating the many reasons why Esperanto proponents favored it as a world language and the relevant research to prove the easy acquisition of the language, the author points out some shortcomings of the research, such as “the greatest support for the claims made by Esperantists tends to be anecdotal and personal in nature” (p. 97). Despite the criticisms of the research on Esperanto, the author still regards Esperanto as a fascinating phenomenon; it “provides language educators with an important case study of language, language attitudes, and the symbolic value of language” (p. 99). Chapter Seven deals with language endangerment and language death. It is estimated that in the present century more than half of the approximately 6,000 languages in the world will die, and as few as 600 languages may survive in the long run (p. 104). The author provides several reasons why language endangerment is of concern to second and foreign language educators, one of which is that different languages construct reality in different ways, “offering distinct epistemological lenses for understanding the world” (p. 107). However, I do not believe that these reasons can adequately explain why second language educators should be concerned with language endangerment. Instead, it is an argument for why human beings should maintain language diversity. Though ideally all languages should be maintained, in reality as Newman claims in his article “The Endangered Languages Issue as a Hopeless Cause,” “despite the best intentions of many well-meaning and dedicated linguists, the rapid disappearance of languages throughout the world is likely to continue unabated…” (2003, p. 11). Reagan uses ASL (American Sign Language) as an example of an endangered language. He claims that “ASL, in short, is at risk precisely because its users are seen not as a linguistic minority, but rather as disabled” (p. 117), which provides a critical perspective on how to view deaf persons and their language. Reagan puts forward critical arguments about several language issues which are of concern to language or second language educators. Regardless of whether readers are persuaded by the arguments, this book can enrich their understanding of language issues and spark educators’ critical thinking beyond their everyday routine. References Crookall, D., & Oxford, R. (1988). Review Essay. Language Learning, 31, 128-140. Newman, P. (2003). The endangered languages issue as a hopeless cause. In M. Janse & S. Tol (Eds.), Language death and language maintenance (pp.1-13). Amsterdam: John Benjamins. Williams, M., & Burden, R. (1997). Psychology for language teachers: A social constructivist approach. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. About the Reviewer Na Liu is a Ph.D. student in College of Education, Arizona State University. Her research interests focus on second language teaching and acquisition, heritage language maintenance, and language policy. Copyright is retained by the first or sole author, who grants right of first publication to the Education Review.