Vol.2 No.

1 (2019)

JALT Journal of Applied Learning & Teaching

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Badger, R. (2018). Teaching and learning the English language: A problem solving approach.
London, UK: Bloomsbury Academic.

Pamela Moore Tertiary Preparation and ESOL teacher, Technical and Further Education (TAFE), NSW, Australia
DOI: https://doi.org/10.37074/jalt.2019.2.1.13

In the preface to his book, Richard Badger states “My aim as training and ongoing staff development.
a teacher educator is to support teachers as they try to help
their learners use English more effectively, and I hope this The accompanying website is in its early stages but looks
book will contribute to the problem-solving that goes on in promising. It focuses on classroom activities in skill areas
your classrooms” (xvii). and includes video clips of teachers in action.

The author addresses the three stages involved: Badger explains simply and in context many of the theories
of language learning, giving the kind of overview that
i. Identifying the problem would have been very welcome when I was gaining TESOL
ii. Collecting information about ways of addressing qualifications and struggling with Transformational Grammar
the problem and other such mysteries.

iii. Trying out possible solutions My initiation into the TESOL world in the early 1980’s was
This book would be an excellent introduction to and as a team teacher for an On-Arrival group of refugees from
overview of TESOL teaching along with providing a revision the former Kampuchea, now Cambodia. The young and
of TESOL theories, methodologies and strategies (past and enthusiastic teacher was keen to use the SCAV approach,
present) for practising teachers and teacher educators. It is (Structuro-Global Audio Visual – not one, I noted, mentioned
extensively researched with around 500 references to enable by Badger!) which seemed to involve a lot of moving
readers to extend their knowledge and skills in TESOL. around and beating out rhythms on the backs of other
learners and such activities. I was as uncomfortable – and
This book is reader-friendly, and devoid of a lot of the jargon as bewildered – as the group. The method was not only
associated with TESOL theory and practice. The layout adds culturally unsound but psychologically disastrous. These
to the readability through generous use of space, lines, people were so traumatised, they all gave their occupation
and bold headings / sub-headings to clearly distinguish as ‘farmer’ and denied (through an interpreter) speaking any
between chapter sections, although the fonts could possibly other language other than Khmer. Months later, when the
be changed in some Activities to differentiate between the trauma had abated a little we discovered that in fact most
author’s instructions and the actual task. were from professional backgrounds: doctors, accountants,
lawyers etc., and many could speak both English and French.
There are five sections: Badger’s underlying theme of Know Your Students gets a
big tick of approval. However, as we all know, this focus on
1. The fundamentals learners is subject to the constraints of the teaching and
learning context, the motivation and goals of the students,
2. Teaching knowledge and skills requirements and expectations of the funding source
3. The language elements (private, government, NGO’s or the learners themselves),
available facilities and resources, and geographical/cultural
4. Language skills considerations, to name a few.
5. Conclusion
Badger also examines theories behind the teaching and
Each chapter has a clear introduction and summary plus learning of the four language skills: reading, writing, listening
suggestions for further reading. Also included in every and speaking. Many of the approaches and strategies are
chapter are Activities for the teacher to undertake either applicable to L1 English students.
alone or with colleagues. These selected Activities are where
possible ‘problems’ are addressed, and lend themselves But of course, if TESOL teachers are to be ‘supported’ by
more to group discussion that would be relevant to teacher this book (and the accompanying website), they will be

Journal of Applied Learning & Teaching Vol.2 No.1 (2019) 83

seeking practical strategies to implement in their classrooms My student apparently almost leapt across the table
and to solve related problems as they arise. Badger gives shouting:
examples with references on where to find further ideas and
information and these are the book’s main strength. “NO! NO”. It is ok!! It is OK!” thumping his fist on the table
and looming very close to the faces of the interview panel.
I did find the Index inadequate, and sometimes rather When asked, he demonstrated how all four panel members
puzzling regarding what the author chose to include and shrank back into their chairs looking ‘upset’ (his word).
exclude. There also needs to be a comprehensive list of
acronyms. Often I had to thumb back through a chapter to We practiced culturally appropriate body language and
confirm the meaning of an acronym. suitable voice tones and facial expressions for different
situations. We also created and practised scripts with
Badger did not touch upon an aspect of TESOL particularly utterances along the lines of “I know I have been a doctor
relevant to learners who are settling permanently in an but I understand my qualifications are not accepted here. So
English-speaking country such as Australia. As mentioned, I would be very happy to just find a good job” etc. He was
I taught Communication in TAFE for years and know the successful in a job interview two weeks later.
importance of tone (especially on the telephone when there
is no visual contact) and what can loosely be called ‘body Still along the lines of Communication, I often muse that a
language’. I include just one example out of hundreds I penchant for acting would be a useful attribute in a TESOL
could recount. teacher. After all, so much of meaning comes through tone,
facial expressions, gestures and body language.
An Afghani refugee, a doctor in his own country but not
accepted as such here, came to see me extremely upset Finally, I was aware of the one area not covered adequately by
after an unsuccessful job interview for a position as Records the author, understandably, given the chosen length of this
Clerk in a Sydney hospital. I asked him to demonstrate what compact book. This concerns the increasing and ubiquitous
happened in the interview. use of smartphones with Translate functions by learners in
class situations, indeed the growing use of communication
This question was put to him by a member of the panel: technology devices and e-learning in general and how these
are incorporated into the learning context by both teachers
“You were a doctor in Afghanistan. How will you feel just and learners today.
working in an office?”

Copyright: © 2020 Pamela Moore. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution
License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright
owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No
use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

Journal of Applied Learning & Teaching Vol.2 No.1 (2019) 84