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Vol 28, No 3, September - December 2021
BOOK REVIEW
Title: Linguistics for Language Teachers:
Lessons for Classroom Practices
Authors: Sunny K. Park-Johnson and
Sarah J. Shin
Publisher: Routledge
Year: 2020
No. of pages: 218
ISBN: 9781138681934
Reviewers: Montarat Rungruangthum,
Rajamangala University of Technology
Phra Nakhon, Thailand & Thidaporn
Jumpakate, Suranaree University of
Technology, Thailand
“Linguistics for Language Teachers: Lessons for Classroom Practices” written by Sunny K. Park-
Johnson and Sarah J. Shin provides an overview of linguistic knowledge for language teachers,
describes linguistic components from word to real-world use levels, and shades light on teaching
implications and how well-equipped language teachers can promote language learning in each
chapter. This book gradually introduces us to the multiple layers of language, including
fundamental language components such as phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics
and pragmatics, language use in social contexts, language change, historical English, language
policy, and writing systems.
Unlike other linguistic textbooks, this book heightens our interests as the content is easy to
follow. The introduction, body and conclusion are portrayed respectively, providing comprehensible
examples in English and other languages, detailed diagrams (e.g., articulators), online resources
and language analysis websites, up-to-date references, and trending issues in language teaching.
Therefore, it does not only offer a broad understanding of linguistics itself, but also illustrates
fundamental language analysis practices for novice researchers who are interested in linguistics
and English or foreign language research. This book comprises eleven chapters which can
summarized as follows:
Chapter 1 introduces a brief overview of the essential language components, from phonetics
to pragmatics, and highlights reasons why language teachers should have prior linguistic
knowledge, as it would enable them to understand language systematically, develop their
professions as well as help students better accomplish their language learning. By delving just
deep enough into these core components of English linguistics, the authors were able to
successfully raise not only readers’ curiosity, but also their language awareness.
Chapters 2 and 3 then review the differences between phonetics (e.g., how consonants and
vowels sounds are produced) and phonology (e.g., which sounds form a meaningful utterance).
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The authors illustrate through useful diagrams (i.e., articulators, tongue positions, and the
International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) chart) and linking ideas to the English pronunciation,
how language teachers can ultimately help students improve their pronunciation of target
languages.
Chapter 4 concerns morphology or word level and word formation. The authors introduce
vocabulary size and then lead us to technical terms such as roots and affixes (e.g., prefixes,
suffixes, and infixes). The morpheme classifications and word combinations (e.g., compound
words) from English and other foreign languages are then given step-by-step explanations,
which are thoroughly easy to understand. Our favorite part is the recommended websites
where students can research new English words by themselves and take part in various word-
learning activities.
Chapter 5 involves syntax or the analysis of sentences, describing parts of speech and how
words are formed into sentences, and the importance of grammatical rules. The authors show
the syntactic tree diagrams of phrases and clauses of English, and differentiate movement in
the active and passive voices. Overall, this chapter suggests that language teachers should
shift students’ focus to the specific grammatical form, use various structures of the same word,
as well as encourage students to generate grammatical differences, for example, forming
different wh-questions for real-world use.
Chapter 6 connects semantics and pragmatics, clarifying how meaning is derived from
grammatical rules (e.g., the relationship between a word and its meaning; the importance of
semantic roles), before linking it to how meaning can also be interpreted from non-grammatical
rules (e.g., speakers’ attitudes and social context). What we have found interesting is how the
authors draw our attention to conversational communication by talking about Grice’s four
maxims and speech acts. In addition to pedagogical implications, this chapter also supports
language learning through culture and real-world use.
Chapter 7 talks about sociolinguistics or language in society, what results in language variation
and dialects, how language links to one’s identity, and how the use of language may lead to
discrimination. The authors raise our concerns as language teachers of the importance in
understanding that students may speak differently. Thus, it strikes us as a reminder that
language teachers ought to take standard and non-standard varieties into consideration when
teaching English and other foreign languages.
Chapter 8 presents languages in contact, describing a phenomenon where languages or varieties
meet, usually due to movements (e.g., migration), thus resulting in the change of a language
itself; for instance, the borrowing of words or structures into another language, the construction
of pidgins and creoles, and the evolution of English as global language. By helping students
recognize the diversity of English, particularly in this chapter, language teachers can also impart
on them a sense of appreciation for these Englishes instead of widely dismissing them as
minority languages.
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Chapter 9 takes us through the history of English throughout eras: Pre-History, Old English,
Middle English and Modern English. Here, the authors provide clear examples on how language
formations have changed over time, such as vowel shifts and the influence foreign languages
hold over English. For English teachers like us, we can point out language change and
inconsistencies between spoken and written English language in our language classes. The
contents of this chapter may well help students in understanding why vowel pronunciations
in English are inconsistent, especially with words that are influenced by French, Latin or German.
Chapter 10 clarifies common misconceptions of bilingualism where educators tended to
perceive the phenomenon as rare because bilinguals were often thought to require perfectly
balanced proficiency in two languages. However, it also reveals how bilingualism might limit
child intelligence due to the lack of proficiency in both languages. This chapter is outstanding
as it clearly guides language teachers on how to teach learners to reach their bilingual
communicative goals through the help of a case study.
Chapter 11, serves as a conclusion, and identifies what difficulties students might encounter
when learning the written components of the target language. The following types of writings
are introduced: logographic (e.g., cuneiform, hieroglyphs, Chinese characters) and phonographic
(e.g., syllabic writing, alphabetic writing). Though a few case studies, the authors show how
these writing systems were taught to students. This segment is particularly helpful to language
teachers as it illustrates for us, how to introduce and explain the differences between spoken
and written languages for students before leading them through any writing task or assignment.
To sum up, this fascinating book fills the gap of linguistic knowledge for language teachers and
teacher trainers. Each chapter is well-planned and well-organized by connecting how teachers
as linguists observe language itself and how to help students be proficient in target languages.
Although this book highlights trending issues and challenges in language learning and teaching,
it solely focuses on linguistic analysis for beginners. In other words, this book is more likely
suited to be a preparation guide for novice language teachers or researchers. Our favorite
parts include ‘voices from the classroom’ where language teachers share their teaching tips
and exercises that readers can check for their own understanding. This book, overall, is worth
reading for any aspiring language teacher, be it English or foreign languages.
THE REVIEWERS
Montarat Rungruangthum, a doctorate in Applied Linguistics from King Mongkut’s University of Technology
Thonburi (KMUTT), currently works as English teacher at Rajamangala University of Technology Phra Nakhon. Her
research interests include education technology, text analysis, English language teaching and social psychology.
She received an honorable mention young researcher award in humanities and social sciences by Prachacheun
Research Network (PRN) in 2020.
[email protected]
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Thidaporn Jumpakate is an English lecturer at Suranaree University of Technology, Thailand. She received her M.A.
in Applied Linguistics for English Language Teaching from King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi,
Thailand. Her research interests include internationalization, English language teaching and intercultural communication.
[email protected]
REFERENCES
Park-Johnson, S. K., & Shin, S. J. (2020). Linguistics for language teachers: Lessons for classroom practices. New York.
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