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Volume 2 Number 1, Spring 2005, Pages 1-205   


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From the Editor-in-Chief

    Bernard Spolsky


This new issue of The Journal of Asia TEFL aims to continue the high standards set in the first year of publication, trying to justify the confidence of the Association in setting out to provide a publication of more than local interest. Again, the Editor and his devoted team of associates have carefully judged and edited a significant group of papers which show the solid professionalism of Asian scholars in the field of English as a foreign language. There are some people who wonder what half a century of research and theory has to offer to the practical classroom teacher of languages. Those who are writing for the journal take seriously this concern, and continue to seek to combine sound theories, solid empirical studies, and wise presentation of practical suggestions.
For most of my career, I have been nervous of the term “applied linguistics,” first because more disciplines than linguistics are needed to solve practical language problems, and second, because the term “applied” suggests little boys with hammers hitting anything in sight (my youngest grandson is just moving into this happy stage). Rather, we need to seek out the implications of research and theories in a number of different fields to the issue we are dealing with, the development of effective and feasible ways of assisting people to develop needed skills in English as a foreign language. The Journal of Asia TEFL is one of our most useful ways of doing this, and I am happy to be associated with Professor Jin-Wan Kim and his large team of helpers in this task.
Editor-in-Chief
Bernard Spolsky