Research

LING 530 - Research Methods: Applied Linguistics

Research Proposal

The first artifact, a research proposal from LING 530, highlights my competency in understanding quantitative research methods in applied linguistics and the genre of research proposals. This research proposal targets a specific area of interest throughout my work in the program—L2 anxiety—through the implementation of freewriting. In order to create this research proposal, I had to read and synthesize the current literature on related areas such as L2 writing fluency, L2 anxiety, and freewriting; I had to provide specific definitions for each concept—frameworks that would guide the research project being proposed. After the literature review, the methods section was the next piece to tackle. My proposal focused on my target teaching context of university-level Japanese EFL learners; I proposed researching different levels of learners to see if the impact changed across proficiency levels, while also being aware that learners in this specific context were often afraid of making mistakes, and anxious about writing in their second language (Tanner, 2016). The procedure had to be carefully crafted to be the same across levels. An experimental group and control group were created for each of the three class levels. The experimental group received two 15-minute guided freewriting sessions after class each week for an entire semester while the control group did not. The freewriting sessions themselves utilized the rules proposed by Tanner (2016). Lastly, I detailed the data collection and analysis methods. I proposed an experimental pretest-posttest design (Rogers & Revesz, 2019) that would gather freewriting samples from three different points of time throughout the study: after the first week of the semester, after the final week of the semester, and 10 weeks after the semester ends. By using a pre-test, post-test, and delayed post-test, we would be able to see whether freewriting has a lasting effect as well. Along with the data samples, a survey will be given at each of the three periods that uses seven-point Likert-scale questions (Woodrow, 2011) to investigate learners’ L2 writing anxiety. In order to analyze the data, a quantitative approach would be utilized for both areas of the study. For the samples, number-of-words scores from each set of samples would be compared using a Linear Mixed Effects Model (Loewen & Godfroid, 2019). In doing so, it would account for individual variation due to external factors (Darling, 2018). With the mean score calculated for each group, a repeated-measures one-way ANOVA (Salkind, 2013) would be used to see the differences among class levels. This research proposal, although not actually done as a study, showcases my ability to detail the methods used in a quantitative research study—this level of detail is required for language teachers who want to propose research studies in the future to be producers of knowledge in the field. If I ever propose a study, I know this artifact has given me the background to complete a high-quality proposal that synthesizes current literature and provides specificity to the methods being utilized. 

LING 594 - English Grammar

Mini-Research Project

The second artifact, my hands-on research project from LING 594, utilizes a mixed-methods approach to investigate the perceptions about English grammar among language learners and teachers. Although it included a brief literature review, this artifact better demonstrates my ability to apply research designs and tools such as a survey. During this mini-research project, I created two variations of a similar survey—one for teachers and one for learners. Each survey had the same set of eight Likert-scale questions that inquired about participants’ feelings about grammatical importance in different contexts (e.g., in academic writing, in texting). The second part of the survey had open-ended questions which differed between the student and teacher versions. Both groups were asked about their beliefs of what “good English” entailed, but teachers were asked about pedagogical approaches they’ve used to teach grammar, while learners were asked about activities that have helped them to learn grammar. In order to analyze the data, a quantitative analysis was used for the Likert-scale questions, whereas a qualitative analysis was used for the open-ended questions—the qualitative inquiry attempted to determine how these two groups feel about their experiences in language teaching and learning (Friedman, 2012). Generally, the quantitative data showed that learners and teachers had similar perceptions on the importance of grammatical correctness. The qualitative analysis, however, provided more detailed nuances among individuals; through the coding of data into emerging themes (groups of similar ideas) (Baralt, 2012), one can see that a variety of beliefs exist about what it means to have “good English” and which activities are best for learning and teaching English grammar. A total of eight themes emerged from the data, which I subdivided into those referring to beliefs about “good English,” those referring to positive feelings towards activities, and those referring to negative feelings towards activities. Each theme was given a brief description, and then provided examples from the data to support the inclusion of the theme in the results and discussion of implications of the study. This artifact clearly demonstrates a different skill than the research proposal as it involved hands-on research and the implementation of research skills: the creation and distribution of a survey, and the quantitative and qualitative analysis of real data. Through the process of this mini-research project, I surveyed students and teachers at the American English Institute on the University of Oregon campus. I not only gained invaluable insight into the perceptions of students who match the learners in my future teaching context, but also gained insight from experienced professionals in the field that can guide my teaching in the future.