Abstract
Research methods and approaches to study language teachers have been aligned with theories underpinning language teacher education. Earlier views on teaching were of a seamless relationship with one’s professional training, and thus, studies of second language classrooms primarily used quasiexperimental methods and observation schemes in order to identify the effectiveness of one’s pedagogical practice. This behaviorist model of teaching was critiqued due to its insufficient attention on teachers’ mental lives and actions; therefore, a qualitative approach that highlights the role of teachers in interaction with students and their environment has prevailed more recently. Qualitative data collection strategies (e.g., fieldnotes, interviews, reflective writings, or stimulated recall) aim to make tacit teachers’ cognitive processes visible and provide a descriptive account of their practices. Ensuing methods were primarily narrative and based in teacher research. These inquiries not only allowed teachers to examine their own classrooms, but helped them transform themselves at a personal and sociopolitical level. Nevertheless, both (1) how to understand and view language teacher knowledge and (2) how to conceptualize language teacher learning, present methodological challenges in studying these phenomena. A pressing issue is how to connect language teaching with learning outcomes. Future research will use mixed-methods to examine multiple teaching variables and their effects on students’ achievement, and will also adopt a critical approach to understand language teachers and teaching, such as studying and understanding language teacher identity.
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Varghese, M.M., Huang, IC. (2017). Language Teacher Research Methods. In: King, K., Lai, YJ., May, S. (eds) Research Methods in Language and Education. Encyclopedia of Language and Education. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-02249-9_38
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