research foundations in language teaching

BACHELOR IN TEACHING ENGLISH AS A BACHELOR IN TEACHING ENGLISH AS A FOREIGN LANGUAGEFOREIGN LANGUAGE

RESEARCH FOUNDATIONS IN LANGUAGE RESEARCH FOUNDATIONS IN LANGUAGE TEACHINGTEACHING

Sandra Milena RodríguezSandra Milena Rodrí[email protected]

English TeacherEnglish Teacher

February 19th 2011

COURSE CONTENTS

Chapter 1: An introduction to research methods.

Chapter 2: The experimental method

Chapter 3: Ethnography

GENERAL OBJECTIVE

To provide trainees with solid foundations on language teaching research in order for them to make research an important tool to improve their teaching and solve language teaching and learning problems.

RESEARCH FOUNDATIONS IN LANGUAGE TEACHING

THEORETICAL BACKGROUND ANALYSIS Objective: To identify key questions and concepts about this course.

TASK 1: Answer the following questions

Student 1 or (Group 1): What is research?-Establish an author’s definition. Student 2 or (Group 2): What is the purpose of research? Student 3 or (Group 3): What is applied linguistics? Student 4 or (Group 4): What are the four traditions of applied linguistics? Student 5 or (Group 5): What does the status of knowledge refer to, taking into account Nunan’s presentation?

WHAT IS RESEARCH?

Research is a systematic process of inquiry consisting in elements or components such as:

A question, problem, or hypothesis Data Analysis and interpretation of data

Nunan (1999)


TASK 2 What are the main characteristics for both qualitative and

quantitative research traditions? How would you distinguish them?

Chaudron (1998) states four traditions for applied applied linguistics linguistics as an attempt to distinguish qualitative and quantitative research.

Which are those traditions?-pg-3

QUALITATIVE QUANTITATIVE

It concerns with understanding human behaviour from the actor’s own frame of reference

It seeks facts or causes of social phenomena without regard the subjectivity states of the individuals

Characteristics Characteristics

Naturals-tic, uncontrolled observa-tion

Grounded oriented

Out-come oriented

Ungrounded verification oriented

ObjectiveObstrusive and controlled measurement

Process oriented

SubjectiveClose to the data

TYPES OF RESEARCH


TASK 3ANALYZE THE FOLLOWING RESEARCH APPROACHES:

Analyze Grotjhan’s proposal? (1987) -Pg-4-7 Analyze Van Lier’s research design-1988-pg 6 Analyze Brown’s approach-1988-pg 9.

TYPES OF RESEARCH

The investigation of the way a single instance or phenomenon functions in context. In applied linguistics it usually involves the investigation of the it usually involves the investigation of the language behavior of a single individual or limited language behavior of a single individual or limited number of individuals over a period of time.number of individuals over a period of time.

CASE STUDYPRIMARY

RESEARCH

STATISTICAL

STUDIES They are used to describe the state of the whole They are used to describe the state of the whole population population with respect to the subject matter under examination. They are experimentalexperimental and generally use surveys to collect data.surveys to collect data.


(BROWN-1998)- How does the (BROWN-1998)- How does the author state the characteristics author state the characteristics and definitions for an experimental and definitions for an experimental research? –pg. 9research? –pg. 9

THE EXPERIMENTAL METHOD

The experimental method involves manipulating one variable to determine if changes in one variable cause changes in another variable. This method relies on controlled methods, random assignment, and the manipulation of variables to test a hypothesis.

THE EXPERIMENTAL METHOD

VARIABLES: A variable is anything that which does not remain constant.

TYPES OF VARIABLES:

1. Independent:Label given to the variable that the experiment expects to influence the other.

2. Dependent:The variable upon which the independent variable is acting.

Variables can also be classified according to the types of scales in which they are measured.

KEY TERMS FOR RESEARCH

Deductive research:

It begins with a hypothesis or theory and then searches for evidences.

Inductive research

It Seeks to derive a general principles, theories, or “truths”

Validity

It has to do with the extent to which a piece of research actually investigates what the researcher purports to investigate.

Reliability

It refers to the consistency of the results obtained from a piece of research.

KEY TERMS FOR RESEARCH

Internal validity: It refers to the interpretability of research

External validity:It refers to the extent to the results can be generalized from samples to populations.

Construct validity:It’s a psychological quality that we can not directly observe but that we assume to exist in order to explain behavior we can observe

TYPES OF RESEARCH

ACTION REASEARCH(Kemmis and McTaggart)

A form of self-reflective inquiry carried out by practitioners, aimed at solving problems, improving practice or enhancing understanding. It’s often collaborative.

STEPS TO CARRY OUT ACTION RESEARCH

1. Initiation: Stating the problem2. Preliminary investigation: Initial data

collection3. Hypothesis: A formal statement about an

expected relationship between 2 or more variables which can be tested through an experiment

4. Intervention: Stating strategies to confirm hypothesis.

5. Evaluation: Systematic determination of merit, worth, and significance of the study

6. Dissemination: Diffusion of the results7. Follow-up: Additional investigation of the

former investigation.

TYPES OF VARIABLES USED IN LANGUAGE RESEARCH

TYPE DEFINITION

NOMINAL NOMINAL SCALESCALE

It measures mutually exclusive It measures mutually exclusive characteristics (e.g. sex, eyes color- female characteristics (e.g. sex, eyes color- female or female, etc)or female, etc)

ORDINAL ORDINAL SCALESCALE

Variables which can be given a ranking Variables which can be given a ranking first, second, third but in which the actual first, second, third but in which the actual score itself is not given.score itself is not given.

INTERVAL INTERVAL SCALESCALE

It provides information of ordinal scale It provides information of ordinal scale and the distance between the scores. and the distance between the scores. (language tests)(language tests)

Pg.25

TYPES OF EXPERIMENTS

TYPETYPE CHARACTERISTICSCHARACTERISTICSPre-experimentPre-experiment It may have pre- and post It may have pre- and post

treatment tests, but lacks a control treatment tests, but lacks a control group.group.

Quasi-experimentQuasi-experiment It has both pre- and posttests and It has both pre- and posttests and experimental and control groups, experimental and control groups, but no random assignment of but no random assignment of subjectssubjects

True experimentTrue experiment It has pre- and posttests, experimental It has pre- and posttests, experimental and control groups, and random and control groups, and random assignments of subjects.assignments of subjects.

ETHNOGRAPHY

It is a non-manipulative study of the It is a non-manipulative study of the cultural characteristics of a group in real-cultural characteristics of a group in real-world rather than laboratory settings. world rather than laboratory settings. Insights and generalizations emerge from Insights and generalizations emerge from close contact with the data rather than close contact with the data rather than from a theory of language learning and from a theory of language learning and use. use.

CHARACTERISTICS OF ETHNOGRAPHY RESEARCH

1. 1. ContextualContextualThe research is carried out in the context in which the subjects normally live and work

2. Unobtrusive2. UnobtrusiveThe researcher avoids manipulating the phenomena under investigation

3. Longitudinal3. LongitudinalThe research is relatively long-term

CHARACTERISTICS OF ETHNOGRAPHY RESEARCH

4. CollaborativeThe research involves de participation of stakeholders other than the researcher

5. InterpretiveThe researcher carries out interpretive analyses of the data

6. OrganicThere is interaction between questions/hypotheses and data collection/interpretation

THANKS FOR YOUR

ATTENDANCE AND YOUR

ATTENTION!!!

research foundations in language teaching

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