Exploring Japanese University English Teachers' Professional Identity (New Perspectives on Language and Education, 23),Used

Review It is rare to encounter a volume in the TESOL field written in a meticulously researched style that, at the same time, presents an introspective, readerfriendly analysis of a very complex situation. Hawley Nagatomo's book is an important addition to the burgeoning use of narrative studies aimed at uncovering the sociopolitical underpinnings of identity constructions of professional ELT educators. Although the primary focus is on female tertiarylevel teachers in Japan, readers situated in different contexts will recognize themes that resonate with their own experiences as language instructors. Andrea SimonMaeda, Nagoya Keizai University, JapanExploring Japanese University English Teachers' Professional Identity is a timely book on the topic of teacher identity that should be used as a blueprint for the topic in Japan. This is a wonderful study that has been carefully and thoroughly written. Teachers and teacher educators in all contexts can learn a lot from reading this book. Thomas Farrell, Brock University, CanadaAlthough the field of tertiary education in Japan has been described before by numerous observers, Diane Hawley Nagatomo's monograph is unique. Rather than being polemic in nature, this study offers a more balanced, 'thick' ethnographic account of how university language teachers construct their professional identities. This is a refreshing approach and a muchneeded addition to the literature! Gregory Poole, Doshisha University, JapanNagatomos book presents an interesting interplay of policy, theory, and identity, as situated in Japan. The field will welcome such an indepth look into the Japanese university context. Additionally, the eight chapters in her book are valuable for teacher educators, applied linguists, and language teachers alike, in that the sociopolitical contexts of LTI are clearly brought to light throughout Nagatomos research. Miguel Mantero, University of Alabama, USA TESOL Quarterly, 2016I highly recommend this book to anyone teaching at the university level in Japan, or toanyone interested in the professional identities of women in the Japan workforce, as it is notonly rigorously researched and analyzed through a variety of frameworks, but it is alsopresented in an engaging and easy to read narrative style allowing the honest selfreflectionsof the Japanese participants to be heard. Laurel Kamada, Tohoku University, Japan The Journal and Proceedings of GALE 2012 Vol. 5This book makes an important contribution to research on English language teaching through a series of studies that focus on the experiences of Japanese teachers of English in Japanese universities. It offers insights into the place of English in the Japanese higher education system, and the ways in which Japanese teachers of English negotiate their professional identities within that system. The books complex and detailed analysis of teacher identity, though small in scope, provides an important counter to a range of negative discourses that have circulated about English language teaching in Japan. The book has much to offer teachers, teacher educators, and researchers interested in English language teaching as an aspect of university education. Roslyn Appleby, University of Technology, Sydney, Australia Australia Review of Applied Linguistics, Issue 36.3 (2013)Exploring Japanese University English Teachers Professional Identity is the product of a study that has its origins in formal academia, yet it is written and presented in a readerfriendly format that makes it accessible, not only to the research community and English language teachers, but also to just about anyone interested in teaching and learning about higher education in Japan...Scholars of language study, particularly, teacher trainers, will find this book invaluable, as the reflections of the participants show that a onesizefitsall type of pedagogical training may not be effective, and that consideration of the trai