This important book includes sections on cognitive and developmental approaches to language and literacy acquisition, sociocultural approaches to language and literacy, crosslinguistic and bilingual issues in language and literacy, and critical perspectives on language and literacy education. The range of methodologies, perspectives, and research areas in language and literacy has exploded over the past ten years. "Perspectives on Language and Literacy," a new publication from the "Harvard Educational Review," provides a comprehensive overview of these trends and developments. In chapter after chapter, researchers, educators, sociologists, and linguists provide theoretical, empirical, and critical evaluations of language and literacy education; sociocultural examinations of language acquisition; and research on the developmental spectrum of language and literacy practices-from preschoolers to adults, with first and second language learners, in the United States and abroad. Presenting an overview of historical trends and current ideas, "Perspectives on Language and Literacy" acts as both an introduction to research and theory and a starting point for new scholarship. Classic articles provide historical grounding and important insights, and carefully chosen recent articles introduce readers to cutting-edge thinking in rapidly developing areas such as critical theory, bilingualism, and cross-linguistic studies.