In this month’s issue . . .
Welcome to the September/October issue of The Language Teacher and to the second SIG Special Issue. Before I hand you over to our Associate Editor, let me mention the other great papers and authors we have for you this issue. This issue’s Feature Article is Adoption of the process-oriented writing approach in a Japanese high school classroom by Noriko Kurihara, while in Readers’ Forum there are three articles: Richard White and Mike Guest, Correcting formatting flaws in EFL academic writing: A case study; Julyan Nutt, The use of peer-assisted learning for review presentations in heterogeneous classes; and Daniel Dunkley interviews Anthony Green in Britain’s new language testing powerhouse. This and previous issues of TLT have been packed ones, so I would just like to thank all the volunteer staff—proofreaders, copyeditors, editors, and layout—for all of the extra time and energy they have each put in to get these issues to you our readers. Many thanks and I hope you enjoy reading.
Carol Begg, TLT Coeditor
As I continued teaching English conversation beyond what was supposed to be my “year” in Japan, I started to wonder about methodology and how one could best engage and facilitate L2 learning. The first step was joining and getting involved with JALT, where I immediately volunteered as a copyeditor/proofreader for TLT. As I progressed professionally, becoming more research oriented, I sought ways to combine my background in literature and creative writing with language learning. I discovered two things. The first was that there was not so much out there in the literature about literature and language learning. The second thing was that there was a newly formed Special Interest Group (SIG) called Literature in Language Teaching (LiLT), which was comprised of like-minded lovers of the written word, who were coming together to contribute to the emerging field and the light body of research already out there.
Regardless of background or academic goals, JALT’s 27 SIGs offer a chance for individuals to join a community where specialized ideas about language learning are shared, published, and built upon. The SIGs are always seeking new voices, fresh perspectives, and dedicated researchers to enhance their respective fields and rediscover the scope of their particular special interest. As such, the SIGs thrive on bringing in new members, and the enthusiasm of these and existing members, to contribute to the ever-developing dialogue.
This issue of TLT serves to showcase nine of the JALT SIGs, with articles from Neil Addison (Literature in Language Teaching), Anna Husson Isozaki (Critical Thinking), Jason Byrne and Robert Diem (Computer Assisted Language Learning), Bruno Christiaens (Bilingualism), Anastasia Khodakova (Global Issues in Language Education), Sarah Lubold (Gender Awareness in Language Education), Andrew O’Brien (Extensive Reading), Stephen Paton (Learner Development), and Tomoko Ishii (Vocabulary). These articles not only vary in subject matter, but also from theory-heavy to classroom practicality. It’s precisely this sort of richness in diversity of content that we at TLT have tried to capture in this SIG Special Interest Issue and with which we begin our August/September 2014 edition.
John Wolfgang Roberts, TLT Associate Editor
TLT9/10月号、そしてSIG特集号へようこそ。本号の優れた論文と研究者についてまず述べてから、副編集長に文章を引き継ぎたいと思います。本号のFeatured Article は、Noriko KuriharaのAdoption of the process-oriented writing approach in a Japanese high school classroomです。Readers’ Forumには3本の記事があります。Richard White と Mike GuestのCorrecting formatting flaws in EFL academic writing: a case study、 Julyan Nuttの The use of peer-assisted learning for review presentations in heterogeneous classes、そしてDaniel Dunkley がAnthony GreenをインタビューしたBritain’s new language testing powerhouseです。本号と前号のTLTは1組になっています。出版に協力いただいた全てのボランティアの方々に、校正や編集やレイアウトに携わってくださった時間と労力に対して、深く感謝致します。ぜひ楽しんで読んで下さい。
Carol Begg, TLT Coeditor
当初予定していた1年を越えて英会話を教え続けるうちに、私は第2言語学習を促進する最善の方法について模索し始めました。その最初の段階としてJALTに入り、すぐTLTの編集スタッフになりました。仕事を進めるにつれて、より研究に気持ちが傾き、私の専門の文学やクリエィティブ・ライテングと語学学習とを繋ぐ方法を模索しました。そして2つの事を発見しました。1つ目は、これまで語学学習と文学についての文献があまりなかったということです。2つ目は、Literature in Language Teaching (LiLT)という、この新しい分野に貢献し、既存研究の母体となっている文学愛好者の同志から成る分科会（S IG）が新たに作られたことです。
JALTの27のSIGは、背景や学究的目標にかかわらず、語学学習の専門的アイデアをシェアし、出版し、積み上げるべく、個人に門戸を開き、チャンスを与えています。これらのSIGは各分野への理解を深め、関心分野を再発見するために、常に新たな声、新鮮な観点、そして熱心な研究者を求めています。このようにしてSIGは新たなメンバーを育て、既存のメンバーと共にその対話を常に発展させる事に貢献しています。
本号のTLTには9本のJALT SIG showcase が掲載されています。Neil Addison (Literature in Language Teaching)、Anna Husson Isozaki (Critical Thinking)、Jason Byrne and Robert Diem (Computer Assisted Language Learning)、Bruno Christiaens (Bilingualism)、Anastasia Khodakova (Global Issues in Language Education)、Sarah Lubold (Gender Awareness in Language Education)、Andrew O’Brien (Extensive Reading)、Stephen Paton (Learner Development)、そして、Tomoko Ishii (Vocabulary) です。。これらの記事は主題が異なるだけではなく、理論中心のものからクラスでの実践まで、多様なものになっています。このように多様性に富んでいることがまさにSIG特集号を形作り、その内容は8/9月号の始まりにふさわしいと言えるでしょう。
John Wolfgang Roberts, TLT Associate Editor
