While We're on the Topic by Bill VanPatten

While We're on the Topic Reviews

• 
  Jessica

  This book has blown my mind in the best way. MANY TIMES. I just had to sit and my desk and process the info and think about how I’ve been so wrong. As a language teacher this book has a lot of hard truths backed up by research that will inform the way I teach and think about how we learn a language. Will definitely revisit many times.
• 
  Christina Despain

  “Language acquisition is relatively simple, right? You learn some rules or vocabulary, you practice what you learn, people correct you and so you improve, and over time you learn the language. Many people think this, including teachers, students, and people on the street. On the other hand, people say, “I took four years of high-school French but can’t speak a word,” or “The only way to learn a language is to go live where it’s spoken.” These latter comments suggest something quite different from the study + practice belief. Who is right?” p. 35
  
  “What I have come to understand is that many people believe that communicative-language teaching is anything that isn’t “teaching grammar the old-fashioned way.” This may be true sometimes, but not always. In fact, it may not be true at all.”
  “To teach communicatively means instructors have a working definition of communication that informs and inspires what they do. We can’t define “communicative” by “what communicative isn’t.” P. 2
  
  “Language is not a collection of rules and structures. Language is an abstract, implicit, and complex mental representation. As a mental representation, it cannot be taught and learned explicitly as happens with other “subject matter.” Language teaching needs its own pedagogy.” P. 19
  
  “Language is not what most people think it is. Language is certainly not what you find in language textbooks. Or as I repeatedly say, “What’s on page 32 of the textbook is not what winds up in your head.” Textbook rules just aren’t psychologically real.” P. 30
  
  “...this does not mean that we can’t “teach” language. Of course, we can. But that may depend on what is meant by “teach...In some sense, the classroom is probably the ideal place for a learner to begin the language acquisition journey.” P. 32
  
  “Research on the internal constraints on acquisition undermine many people’s notions that the way to learn a language is through study and practice. Memorizing words, studying grammar, filling in blanks, repeating after someone, forcing the use of a structure to ensure it is learned-none of these (or others) carry much weight regarding how a language gets inside someone’s head.” P. 52
  
  “We must educate students, parents, colleagues, and administrators about the nature of acquisition as well as the nature of language and communication...a teacher who does have the foundation can and must educate others so that they understand why the communicative and proficiency-oriented classroom looks so different from other classes. Knowledge of acquisition helps teachers become advocates for a more appropriate curriculum designed to develop communicative ability.” P 53
  
  “One of the principal jobs of instructors and their materials is to provide appropriate-level input for learners, as well as appropriate-level interaction with that input.” P. 57
  
  “Input should be central to the classroom, not something “added on.” P. 73
• 
  Jennifer

  Great information presented in an accessible format. Engaging and friendly tone, yet completely shakes up everything we think we know about second language acquisition and language instruction.
• 
  April

  Excellent book on language acquisition and importance of a communicative classroom. This book will definitely shape my curriculum and understanding of instruction going forward.
• 
  Tracy

  A wonderful explanation of leading second language acquisition theories and its implication for teaching. Every World Language teacher should read this book.
• 
  Brooke

  The best professional book ( for second-/world-language teachers, but would not go amiss for ESL, reading, ELA teachers either) I've read in recent memory. Short, sweet, and too the point. Alludes to deeper topics w/o holier-than-thou (you couldn't ~possibly~ understand) verbiage. Examples from a variety of languages (decidedly Euro-centric, but you can't expect the author to have a command of EVERYTHING under the sun). Give a TON of extended/foundational resources in bibliographic format. If I were teaching a course to pre-service language teachers, I would use this book as my foundational text and the extension texts to flesh out the course content. Just the work that he suggests in the activities and "discussion questions" could flesh out the meat of a collegiate level course or any sort of meaningful professional development for practicing language educators.
• 
  Rebecca

  I know I'm not an expert, but I learned French, starting in middle school, through an exchange program, and at the university level, and I've taught it.
  I have a few issues with BVP's philosophy: first, learning a second language (I know, different than "acquiring") is different than learning one's first language because we have scaffolding for learning now.
  Second, he writes about the importance of classroom context and how role plays don't really work. I'd like to know how he would teach students how to ask for directions or order food in a realistic manner with real "purpose." I think he could have taken the time to demonstrate this in his book.
  
  I do think his explanation of tasks is interesting and could be useful.
• 
  Katie

  Definitely could use a second read, but very practical and informative for language teachers! Nice mixture of upper-level knowledge about language acquisition and linguistics with practical tools and applications for the every day in your classroom.
• 
  Diane

  Every language teacher can benefit from reading this concise, principled overview of language, communication, and implications for language teaching.
  
  The chapter on tasks (ch. 5) is one that was newer to me at first, and I've returned to it multiple times in thinking about designing lessons.
• 
  Courtney Johnson

  A quick, easy, non-technical read about comprehensible input and its role in the secondary language classroom. I would highly recommend it to all world language teachers.
• 
  Lauren

  A good refresher book
• 
  Andy

  DNF