This presentation focuses on the relationship between research and practice within English Language Teaching (ELT). It reports on a project exploring English language teachers' engagement with published research (and research-oriented 'mediating' texts within the field) and their perceptions of its relevance for their own situated pedagogic practice. Drawing on both quantitative survey data and qualitative focus group and interview data gathered from ELT practitioners around the world, the presentation will develop detailed insights into the ways in which English language teachers engage (or do not engage) with published research in the field, in particular, that which focuses on ISLA.
This presentation will focus on the relationship between research and practice within English Language Teaching (ELT). Specifically, it reports on an ongoing project exploring English language teachers' engagement with published research (and research-oriented 'mediating' texts within the field) and their perceptions of its relevance for their own situated pedagogic practice. Drawing on both quantitative survey data and qualitative focus group and interview data gathered from ELT practitioners around the world, the presentation will develop detailed insights into the ways in which English language teachers engage (or do not engage) with published research in the field.The presentation will therefore explore the extent to and ways in which teachers report reading published ISLA research and the related wider research-oriented professional literature, and their reasons for this. It will investigate teachers' perceptions of and attitudes towards published ISLA research, and towards its relationship to their own professional practice. It will also explore the characteristics teachers of 'teacher-friendly' research publications, as reported by teachers; and explore factors which influence teachers' reported attitudes, including background variables such as: qualifications, experience, and institutional context. (Clearly, however, the extent to which all these foci will be addressed depends on the time available within the symposium).Thus central to this presentation are its implications for practitioners and for researchers. It will give voice to practitioners' perceptions (and concerns) regarding the relationship between ISLA research and practice, while also highlighting routes towards professional development through engagement with published research. While these insights should prove useful for researchers seeking to bridge the possible gap between research and pedagogy, the talk will also draw on the data to discuss possible ways in which the presentation of ISLA research might be made more impactful on the profession.
