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Second Language Distance Learning and Teaching. Theoretical Perspectives and
Didactic Ergonomics, Jean-Claude Bertin, Patrick Gravé and Jean-Paule Narcy-
Combes. Hershey, PA: Information Science Reference, 2010. 258 pages. ISBN:
978-1-61520-707-7. Price: \$180 US// €158.00
Pascual Pérez-Paredes
ReCALL / Volume 23 / Special Issue 03 / September 2011, pp 311 - 315
DOI: 10.1017/S0958344011000206, Published online: 01 September 2011
How to cite this article:
Pascual Pérez-Paredes (2011). ReCALL, 23, pp 311-315 doi:10.1017/S0958344011000206
ReCALL 23(3): 311–315. 2011 rEuropean Association for Computer Assisted Language Learning 311
doi:10.1017/S0958344011000206
Book review
Second Language Distance Learning and Teaching. Theoretical Perspectives and
Didactic Ergonomics, Jean-Claude Bertin, Patrick Grave
´and Jean-Paule Narcy-
Combes. Hershey, PA: Information Science Reference, 2010. 258 pages. ISBN:
978-1-61520-707-7. Price: $180 US// h158.00
A first quick look at this volume will lead readers to assume that we are looking at
another new book on the subject of second language distance learning and teaching.
A closer reading of the complete title, Second Language Distance Learning and
Teaching. Theoretical Perspectives and Didactic Ergonomics, will reveal that this
volume is different. In the Foreword to the book, Robert Fischer states that this
volume ‘‘sheds light on the fundamental processes involved in distance language
learning’’ and that the authors ‘‘support their analysis of distance language learning
environments with theoretical constructs from several disciplinary perspectives’’. The
construct that the authors use is that of didactic ergonomics. In tutoring systems,
didactic ergonomics involves making an interface that is efficient to support learning
and establishing its configuration for different users. In particular, didactic ergo-
nomics looks at the interactions between software and the studied object (Curilem,
Azevedo & Barbosa, 2004).
The volume is divided in three sections and 12 chapters. In Section 1, An Intro-
duction to Didactic Ergonomics: Theoretical Stance, Chapters 1 and 2, the ergo-
nomics model is introduced. Section 2, Discussing the Model in the Context of
Distance Learning, Chapters 3 to 9, offers a detailed discussion on the different
components, or poles, or the ergonomics model advocated by the authors. In Section 3,
Operating the Model, Chapters 10 to 12, the authors put the model into practice.
Chapter 1 is an essential read for those wishing to gain a deeper knowledge of the
concept of pedagogic ergonomics and its applications in the field of CALL. The title
of the chapter, In Favor of a Model of Didactic Ergonomics, leaves no doubt as to its
purpose. Bertin & Grave
´discuss how the ergonomics model can help us understand
distance language learning by bringing up interesting notions such as complexity as
an attribute of reality. The authors draw on systemics and interactionist theory to
build on a pedagogic model that can account for the many variables that play a role
in language distance learning. After reviewing a selection of language learning
models, the authors go on to discuss the relevance of ergonomics in the realm of
Human-Machine systems. In this effort, they bring along theoretical contributions
from engineering or technology, sociology and psychology. On page 12 they define
the ergonomic perspective as ‘‘the study of the conditions for the integration of
technologies within learning environments by the teachers who choose to use them as
well as by the learners for whom they are designed.’’ Bertin & Grave
´present a CALL
and distance language learning model which integrates different agents or, in the
authors’ words, sub-systems, namely, teacher, learners, peers and regulation, that is,
the monitoring capacity of the computer. These sub-systems gravitate towards five
poles: language, the learner, the teacher, technology and the context, which will
receive subsequent attention in Section 2 of the book. The authors claim that their
model together with these poles ‘‘suggest a conceptual framework to CALL
researchers, practitioners, designers and administrators’’ (p. 30).
Chapter 2, Introducing Distance into the Model, takes the model outlined in
Chapter 1 and discusses how distance may affect the different sub-systems which are
part of it. Drawing on psychosocial studies, Bertin & Grave
´resort to the notion of
analyzer as a catalyst for the reflection on the concepts of absence, discontinuity and
technology. The authors combine three dimensions of mediation, namely, pedagogic,
technological and mediation by distance, to enrich a debate which has traditionally
been biased by ‘‘linear typologies based on former experimental research’’ (p. 48).
The authors conclude that it is necessary to ‘‘reassess the theories and their mutual
relationships in order to take stock of those ‘hidden’ elements of the pedagogic
situation revealed in distance learning contexts’’ (p. 51). Bertin & Grave
´discuss
terminological issues which will be useful for those seeking to get a hold on central
CALL concepts. The discussion of the notion of distance learning and similar terms
such as virtual learning or open learning on pages 38–40 is a good example. Chapter 2
also offers a very interesting discussion of the role of time in distance education,
which deserves further attention in future research. Chapters 1 and 2 are enriched
with a wealth of theories coming from different areas, from psychology to engi-
neering, which will challenge the reader who is, presumably, more familiar with
mainstream CALL theory.
Section 2 is devoted to the discussion of the different poles that are part of the
didactic ergonomics model outlined in Chapter 1. In Chapter 3, The Language Pole,
Narcy-Combes illustrates how both language as discourse and language as culture
interact to enrich the model. In particular, the author is favourable to the combi-
nation of social situations and real-world activities with a notion of curriculum that,
despite the incorporation of the CEFRL, can be ‘‘experienced as interaction’’.
Chapter 4, L2 Learning Processes, gives an overview of the most influential theories
of second language learning, establishing a distinction between those which are all-
encompassing, such as behaviourism or constructivism, and those which, in the
words of the author, ‘‘do not cover every aspect’’ (p. 86) of second language learning,
such as perception and attention or noticing. While it is debatable that the latter can
really be considered as fully-fledged theories, the chapter is a valuable synopsis of the
SLA theories and scholarly debates that have influenced and will continue to have an
influence on CALL. The chapter ends with the outline of a learning cycle that
integrates, among others, contents, tasks, tutor/ learner interaction and follow-up/
evaluation. Narcy-Combes admits that, given the varied origin of the cycle components,
312 Book review
‘‘it will require some form of reflective practice [y]to measure the validity of the
construction’’ (p. 99).
Narcy-Combes is also the author of Chapters 5, The Learner Pole, and 6, The
Teacher Pole. Chapter 5 starts with an overview of individual differences in second
language learning, including aptitude, multiple intelligences, styles of learning or
foreign language anxiety. The author then describes the roles of autonomy and those
of language awareness and reflective interaction in distance learning. The author
brings up some interesting issues, such as the locus of agency in distance learning or
the role of the learning environment as an organizing circumstance. As a result of the
discussion, Narcy-Combes offers a modified version of the learning cycle presented
in the previous chapter which integrates some specific directions in terms of learner
actions. Chapter 6 introduces the topic of teacher roles and discusses more in depth
the role of teacher as a mediator. The author draws on the specific skills and stra-
tegies of online teachers in White (2003) to offer, as he did in Chapter 5, a modified,
enhanced version of the learning cycle presented in Chapter 4. The introduction of
teacher postures is an interesting and novel contribution from the field of sociology
which has received little attention in CALL so far.
The Technology Pole is the title of Chapter 7. Bertin & Grave
´discuss in this
chapter ‘‘the difficulty to provide an appropriate and comprehensive definition of the
technology pole’’ (p. 141) for their model. The chapter looks at the relationships
between language learning and technology by exploring myths of the technology
applied to language learning. The authors present a very thorough and updated
reference list of research which has looked at technology and language learning.
However, the most relevant contribution of the chapter is the final discussion on the
place of technology in distance language learning and the role of the computer and
the learners in the context of the ‘‘learning database model’’ (p. 152).
Chapter 8, The Context Pole, by Bertin & Grave
´, explores the contribution of the
context of the distance second language learning experience(s) to their ergonomics
model. From a socio-organizational perspective, the authors point out that a careful
analysis of the roles of innovation and change is what distinguishes a CALL model
which accounts for the ‘‘multiple relationships involved within a system’’ (p. 171). Bertin
&Grave
´illustrate their ideas about the adoption of change with two experiments
carried out in Europe which involved teachers and educators facing the challenges of
distance learning. The chapter ends with a discussion of different modes of adoption.
Section 2 ends with Chapter 9, Interactions and Distance Learning, where the
authors discuss the places where interactions take place and how these may affect
course organization. Anyone seeking to design, implement or teach a distance course
will benefit from reading this chapter, as it contains reflections on the notion of
interaction based on systemics which cover a wider scope of ideas than those typi-
cally pertaining to more analytical studies. The chapter offers a very interesting
account of how different types of courses can be combined with learner support and
the different functions that this support can take, both in self-instruction indepen-
dent learning and in CMC environments.
In Section 3, Operating the Model, the authors ‘‘put the model into practice’’
considering ‘‘the practical applications of the principles outlined in earlier parts’’
of the volume (p. xvi). In Chapter 10, Designing a Distance Language Learning
Book review 313
Environment: An Engineering Perspective,Bertin&Grave
´draw on an engineering
approach to outline four phases which will guide the reflection on the design and the
implementation of distant second language learning courses. These phases are course
needs analysis, learning environment design, implementation and assessment. In each
of these, the authors offer a list of elements and considerations which will be highly
instrumental for teachers, researchers and, last but not least, administrators, who are
key actors in the analysis of context. The authors stress the role of teachers and tutors,
who will need to adapt to innovation and change and develop new competences,
including action-research skills. Chapter 11, Pedagogic Consequences: A Task-Based
Approach to Distance Second Language Learning, provides an outlook on the
approaches to the creation of task-based courses, including task sequencing, guiding
principles for task integration in distance language courses and a very useful taxonomy
of tasks. Based on an existing distance course, Narcy-Combes offers suggestions and
adaptation guidelines fror those moving from blended to distance learning courses.
In Chapter 12, Conclusion, the authors summarize their efforts to ‘‘problematize
the use of ICT for language learning purposes [by]understanding the nature of ICT
and distance [and ]providing suggestions for the design and development of soundly
constructed environments’’ (P.250). The chapter summarises the motivation behind
the volume and will, undoubtedly, help readers who choose to focus on particular
chapters instead of reading the book from beginning to end.
Second Language Distance Learning and Teaching. Theoretical Perspectives and
Didactic Ergonomics is a welcome contribution towards addressing the gap between
everyday CALL practice and a more profound reflection on the epistemology of dis-
tancelanguagelearning.Theauthorsclaim that their work is explicitly focused on
‘‘theoretical and philosophical issues’’ [y]taking ‘‘a more integrative stance [y]to
include a wide array of background theory’’ (p. 28). This is an excellent summary of the
contents of the volume and one that does justice to the theoretical and multidisciplinary
approaches that readers will find in its pages. Reading this book is a much-needed
exercise of reflection on the nature of CALL and the complex variables which condition
the implementation of distance second language learning and teaching.
The other strengths of this book include the chapter syntheses, explicit objectives
at the beginning of each chapter, updated bibliographies, as well as figures and
summary tables in all chapters. Each section of the volume can stand alone and
could provide valuable supplemental reading to students or faculty interested in
finding out more about each of the topics covered. However, the book reads much
better when taken as a whole and read as a complete unit. In this sense, the three
authors have been successful in putting together a coherent volume.
Although the book is more focused on problematizing distant second language
learning, practitioners will find very valuable resources for their everyday teaching.
Given the stress placed by the authors on the exploration of distance learning and
teaching in terms of a complex systems, those who will benefit most from this volume
will be professionals in a position to think about and implement the model, in
particular administrators and researchers.
Pascual Pe
´rez-Paredes
Northern Arizona University – Universidad de Murcia
314 Book review
References
Curilem, S. G., Azevedo, F. M. and Barbosa, A. R. (2004) ‘Adaptive Interface Methodology
for Intelligent Tutoring Systems’. In: Lester, J. C., Vicari, R. M. and Paraguac¸ u F. (eds.),
Intelligent Tutoring Systems. Lecture Notes in Computer Science. Berlin: Springer, 170–227.
White, C. (2003) Language Learning in Distance Education. Cambridge: CUP.
Book review 315
