Research Methods in Linguistics and

Professional Development(The Show Must Begin)

Alexander Kuptsov,Senior ESL Teacher,

English Language Department, HSE Law SchoolMoscow

Higher School of Economics , Moscow, 2013www.hse.ru

Higher School of Economics , Moscow, 2013

Current Situation

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1. Teaching is not research

2. No more choice

3. How to start? = What do we need to know?

Further Reading: Simon Borg, English Language Teachers’ Conceptions of Research, Applied Linguistics, September 2009 (30/3)

Higher School of Economics , Moscow, 2013

What Do We Need to Know?

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Higher School of Economics , Moscow, 2013

Research - How Do You See It?

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Free Associations Cue Word Response

1. Research 2. Research 3. Research 4. Research 5. Research 6. Research 7. Research 8. Research 9. Research10. Research

Is this a research?

Higher School of Economics , Moscow, 2013

Research or Teaching

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Classify the following concepts

Data collection Error correction

Qualitative methods

Quantitative methods

Classroom management

Data analysis

Literature review

Interview

Students and teachersLanguage skills

Fluency and accuracy

Interaction pattern

Broad Categories of Research

Research

Secondary

Literature Review

Library Research

Primary

Qualitative Research

Statistical Research (Descriptive, Exploratory,

Experimental, Quasiexperimental)

Survey Research (Interviews,

Questionnaires)

Qualitative Research

Qualitative research involves data collection procedures that result primarily in open-ended non-numeric data which are then analyzed primarily by non statistical methods. (Research Methods in Applied Linguistics by Zoltan Dörney, p.24)

Qualitative Research - Main Characteristics

Emergent research design (no aspect is tightly prefigured)

Wide range of data (field notes, diaries, verbal protocols, etc.)

Natural setting

Small sample-size

Interpretive analysis

Qualitative Research - Strengths and Weaknesses

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Time-consuming

Lack or rigor

Researcher role

Sample size

Flexibility

Broadening understanding

Rich material

Exploratory nature

Qualitative Research - Data Collection

In qualitative research there are no explicit restrictions on what can be considered ‘data’ and the researcher in a qualitative project often starts by treating everythingaround a topic as potential data. (Research Methods in Applied Linguistics by Zoltan Dörney, p.125)

• Ethnography• Interview• Introspective methods• Case studies• Diary studies

Quantitative research involves data collection procedures that result primarily in numerical data which are analyzed primarily by statistical methods, for example, a survey research which using a questionnaire, analyzed by statistical software such as SPSS. (Research Methods in Applied Linguistics by Zoltan Dörney, p.24)

Qualitative Research

Qualitative Research - Main Characteristics

Using numbers

A priory categorization

Variables rather than cases

Statistics and the language of statistics

Standardized procedures to assess objective reality

Quantitative Research - Strengths and Weaknesses

Positi

veN

egative

• Big sample size

• Measurement

• Reliable data

• Focused Research

• Average out responses

• Limited explanatory capacity

Quantitative Research - Data Collection

Sample - a group of participants whom the researcher actually examines in an empirical investigation

Population - the group of people whom the study is about

Sampling procedures - procedures that are adopted to select a smaller number of people to be investigated

Conclusion

Areas to study:

1. Nature of research (validity and reliability)

2. Research methods (qualitative, quantitative, mixed methods)

3. Applied Linguistics as a whole (areas and study methods)

Thank you for your attention!