Isaac Aldava Reyes
Ellis (2012) Ch.2, Methods for researching the second language classroom, pp. 21-49
Action research
Action research is 'a form of self-reflective enquiry undertaken by participants in
social situations to improve the rationality and justice oftheir own practices, and the
situations in which those practices are carried out'
The model for conducting action research for teachers emphasizes a number of
features: (1) it is context-specific, (2) it is practica!, (3) it is systematic, (4) it is
reflective, and (5) it is cyclical.
However, action research - whether conducted in the traditional way or as a
micro-evaluation of a task - ís not without its problems. Barkhuízen's teachers expressed a number of these - it is very time-consuming, they lacked the expertise to conduct research and their students might not be willing to participate.
Exploratory practice
Exploratory practice, then, aims to make the time that teachers and learners
spend together 'pleasant and productive' and, in so doing, create the conditions forpedagogic change.
There are a number of differences between action research and exploratory research.
One is the starting point - a 'problem' or, perhaps, a 'task' in the case of
action research and a 'puzzle' in the case of exploratory research. Another difference
lies in the methodology for the two approaches.
Practitioner Research
is research conducted by practitioners (usually teachers) in
their own classroorns either acting independently or in coUaboration with otbers.
Practitioner research, however, is not likely to be published
in the same academic journals as formal research, which raises the question of its
status in the field of L2 classroom research as a whole
the value of practitioner research lies more in the process of
conducting it than in the product of the research. Indeed, it can be questioned
whether teachers engaging in practitioner research need to produce a product- in the
for111 of a report or a public presentation oftheir research.
Confirmatory Research
Confirmatory studies of L2 teaching draw on theories of language teaching and
learning to identify the 'variables' that can be studied. A 'variable' is a general
theoretical constructo Examples of variables derived from a theory of teaching are
'production-based instruction' and 'comprehension-based instruction'. Examples
derived from a theory of L2 learning are 'implicit learning' and 'explicit learning'.
Some variables straddle the boundaries ofteaching/learning theory.
Data collection
The data collected in confirmatory research will vary depending on the research
question. In a study such as Ellis and He it was necessary to collect data that could
show whether the learners had learned the target vocabulary items.
Formal L2 Classroom Research
This hypothesis claims that L2 acquisition is facilitated when a communication problem
arises that causes learners to try to resolve it through the negotiation of meaning.
Formal L2 classroom research, then, whether experimental or descriptive, aims to
contribute to research-based language pedagogy.
Evidencia de lectura
Mackey and Gass (2011) Ch.1, Introduction to research, pp. 1-5.
Research
TYPES OF RESEARCH
Qualitative Research
This ethnographie report "thickly describes" (Geenz, 1973) the participation
of ESL children in the daily classroom events of a mainstream
first-grade classroom.
• Naturalistic and controlled observation
• Subjective
• Discovery oriented
• Process oriented
• "Soft" data
• Ungeneralizable, single case studies
• Assuming a dynamic reality
• Close ro the data
Quantitative Research
Interaction has been argued to promote noticing of L2 form in a context
crucial to learning-when there is a mismatch between the input and the
learner's interlanguage (IL) grammar
• Obtrusive, involving controlled measurement
• Objective and removed from the data
• Verification oriented conflrmarory
• Outcome-oriented
• Reliable, involving "hard" and replicable data
• Generalizable
• Assuming a stable reality
The American Heritage College Dictionary defined research as "scholarly or
scientific investigation or inquiry" or as a verb "to study (something) thoroughly"
