This book forms an invaluable reference work for all teachers of second languages and researchers in the field of L2 acquisition. In the first section of the book, the authors of the various chapters discuss the contribution that modern research into L2 acquisition has to make in the curriculum development process. In particular, the book provides the reader with arguments for and against the various approaches to teaching. In the second part of the book, the contributors concern themselves with the various assessment tests and their validity, discussing them in particular on psycholinguistic grounds. They also discuss the political function of such assessment and how tests are used or abused in many different contexts around the world.