Reversing language shift: The social identity and role of Scottish Gaelic learners, based on Alasdair MacCaluim's Ph.D. dissertation, provides an in-depth review of the role of adult Gaelic learners in the efforts to reverse language shift in the Scottish Gaelic community. The study begins with an introduction to the state of affairs of Gaelic, highlighting two facts that motivate the rest of the study: the decline of Scottish Gaelic and the importance of adult acquisition for success in revitalization. The latter is argued from the point of view of this specific community, as well as by appealing to general theory about the reversal of language shift. MacCalium discusses issues in adult acquisition that are specific to the Gaelic community and that must be understood to promote the acquisition of Gaelic and motivate adults to become learners of the language. Specifically, the study investigates the social identity and role of adult language learners in the Gaelic community and the effectiveness of the learning infrastructure and makes recommendations for improvement. These issues are discussed in light of the responses to a survey of adult Gaelic learners.

The main motivation of the study is to find out if adult language learners are actually occupying a central role in revitalization efforts, as has been suggested, and if their role can be strengthened. The framework of the study is Joshua Fishman's model for reversing language shift, which is described in Ch. 2. It has significant implications for the adult Gaelic community, since the first step in revitalization, according to Fishman, is to encourage adult acquisition. In the next two chapters, barriers to adults' acquisition of Gaelic are discussed. First, MacCalium critiques the learning infrastructure and makes suggestions for improvement. He sees adult learners currently occupying a peripheral position in language revitalization and suggests that coordination between learning programs, tutor training, the creation of a learning resource center, and changes in the number and type of language courses would place adult learners at the core of revitalization. Second, MacCalium discusses the social role of learners in the community as perceived by native speakers and by learners themselves. He shows that adult learners occupy an ambiguous position in the Gaelic community and suggests that time and experience may allow them to assume a more concrete role.

Ch. 5 provides an in-depth analysis of the responses given to the survey by adult language learners. Providing the actual questions asked, the types of responses given, and the frequency of each response type, this chapter makes up the bulk of the study. Ch. 6 concludes with the observation that adult learners are essential to revitalizing Scottish Gaelic and that there are a number of issues that must be resolved in order to secure a place for Gaelic in the future.