Department of English, Jijel Academic Year: 2020-2021
Subject: Classroom Research Level: Master-Semester 3
Teacher: Redouane Naili Evaluation: Assignment + TD Exam
Resource Book:
Nunan, D., & Bailey, K. M. (2008). Exploring Second Language Classroom
Research: A Comprehensive Guide. Heinle ELT.
Lecture Notes
Case Study Research
Case studies have a long history in applied linguistics research, especially in
studying first and second language acquisition. They started as particularly
longitudinal studies employed as a tool to trace the linguistic development of L1
and L2 learners (R. Brown (1973): grammar and semantic development in three
children learning their L1; Halliday (1975): studying his son’s L1). The case
study in L2/FL research can be applied to classroom research: good language
learner, strategies, fossilization, effects of instruction, interaction, etc.
1. Definition:
A case study is a detailed investigation of a single individual or entity (or a few
individuals or entities). In applied linguistics research, case studies can best be
classified as a type of naturalistic inquiry.
- Naturalistic inquiry in that they typically do not involve any sort of
treatment. Instead, researchers working in the case study tradition set out
to learn what is happening
- Detailed: by concentrating on the behavior of one individual or a small
number of individuals (or sites) to conduct a very thorough analysis/"thick"
or "rich" description. The most common type of case study involves the
detailed description and analysis of an individual subject, from whom
observations, interviews, and (family) histories provide the database. It
may also involve more than one subject. It may be based on particular
Department of English, Jijel Academic Year: 2020-2021
Subject: Classroom Research Level: Master-Semester 3
Teacher: Redouane Naili Evaluation: Assignment + TD Exam
groups (e.g., group dynamics within a classroom), organizations (e.g.,a
summer intensive language learning program at a university) or events.
“A case study is an empirical inquiry that investigates a contemporary
phenomenon within its real-life context; when the boundaries between the
phenomenon and the context are not clearly evident; and in which multiple
sources of evidence are used” (Yin, 1984, p. 23).
- Empirical research characteristics.
- Investigation in terms of description, analysis and interpretation.
- Bounded. In classroom research, the bounded (physically or temporally)
instance can be a single learner or teacher, one classroom, a school, or even
a particular school district.
- Contextualized. The phenomenon is studied in context. "case studies
clearly have the potential for rich contextualization that can shed light on
the complexities of the second language learning process" (Mackey and
Gass, 2005, p. 172):
- Unlike formal experiments, which control and manipulate variables and
look for causality, case studies are centered on description, inference, and
interpretation. Case studies explore and describe the context as an essential
part of understanding the phenomenon under investigation. The whole may
be greater than or different from the sum of its parts: while each individual
is different, the ones investigated operate within a variety of linguistic,
sociolinguistic, sociological systems, regarded as units.
- They also contrast with surveys, in which the researcher asks standardized
questions of large representative samples of individuals. The case study
researcher typically observes the characteristics of an individual entity—a
Department of English, Jijel Academic Year: 2020-2021
Subject: Classroom Research Level: Master-Semester 3
Teacher: Redouane Naili Evaluation: Assignment + TD Exam
child, a clique, a class, an educational program, or a community—in that
entity's naturally occurring situation.
2. Criteria of Case Selection:
Originally, cases were chosen because the individuals were especially interesting
or unusual or accessible (context). A case may be selected on the basis of some
criterion/ criteria:
- a particular age group,
- a combination of first and second languages,
- ability level (e.g., basic or advanced), or
- a skill area such as writing,
- a linguistic domain such as morphology and syntax,
- a mode or medium of learning e.g., computer-mediated environment.
- a case seems to jump out of the data (Allwright, 1980, turns, topics, and
tasks in two lower-level ESL classes in California. To see how one student
got so many turns, one conversation was analyzed in great detail because
it showed how his discourse moves caused the teacher to give him more
turns through her repeated attempts to understand his message.
3. Characteristics of Case Studies
Other characteristics of case studies are: triangulation, particularity, and
interpretation and longitudinality.
- Longitudinal case study “examines development and performance over
time”. It is based on multiple observations as information is collected at
regular intervals.
Department of English, Jijel Academic Year: 2020-2021
Subject: Classroom Research Level: Master-Semester 3
Teacher: Redouane Naili Evaluation: Assignment + TD Exam
- Triangulation: multiple perspectives / many points of view can be brought
to the analysis of case study data. For instance, in their investigation of a
Japanese FLES (foreign language in the elementary school) program
Donato, Antonek, and Tucker (1994) captured numerous perspectives in
data from questionnaires completed by parents and learners, reflections
from the Japanese teacher, questionnaires from other teachers at the school,
interviews, and an observation system.
- Particularity is related to the boundedness of the case. The researcher
wishes to understand the particular in depth, not to find out what is
generally true of the many. It is the close examination of the particular
phenomenon that allows case study researchers to go into great detail in
terms of data collection and analysis.
- Interpretation: Interpreting results in data has to do with explaining what
they mean: statistically as well as qualitatively. Ulichny (1996)
documented interaction in an intermediate adult ESL conversation class,
and identified a particular classroom speech event, which contained three
different discourse activities: conversation, correction and instruction.
Ulichny showed how the conversation is subjugated to correction and
instruction. In the process, a particular student (Katherine) is gradually
rendered silent in the telling of her story.
4. Types of Case Studies
Stenhouse (1983), developed a typology of case studies.
1- Neo-ethnographic, the in-depth investigation of a single case by a
participant observer.
2- Evaluative, a single case or group of cases studied in order to evaluate
policy or practice.
Department of English, Jijel Academic Year: 2020-2021
Subject: Classroom Research Level: Master-Semester 3
Teacher: Redouane Naili Evaluation: Assignment + TD Exam
3- Multi-site case study, fieldwork undertaken by a team of workers on a
number of sites.
4- Action case studies. These are school case studies undertaken by teachers
who use their participant status as a basis on which to build skills of
observation and analysis.
5. Advantages:
- Case studies appeal to classroom teachers who will be able to identify with
the issues and concerns raised. Insights yielded by case studies can be put
to immediate use for a variety of purposes: development, feedback,
formative evaluation, etc.
- One can generalize from an instance to a class (identify same cases with
the studied one).
- They allow a multiplicity of viewpoints and can offer support to alternative
interpretations.
- They provide a database of materials that may be reinterpreted by future
researchers.
- They are comprehensible to the interested layman as they are written in a
more accessible style than conventional experimental research.
Department of English, Jijel Academic Year: 2020-2021
Subject: Classroom Research Level: Master-Semester 3
Teacher: Redouane Naili Evaluation: Assignment + TD Exam
Action Research
As an approach to research, action research first appeared in the social science
literature in 1940s. In the 1980s, it was adapted by educators.
1. Definition
Action research is a form of self-reflective enquiry undertaken by participants
(teachers/ practitioner-driven); it seeks to link theory to practice, and involves
more than simply describing or interpreting classroom events as it involves trying
out ideas with a view to cause a change:
- to increase knowledge about the curriculum, teaching and learning
- understand and improve their own practices
- understand the situations in which the practices are carried out
- improve the rationality and justice of their own practices
The Action research Cycle:
(1) identifying an issue, problem, or puzzle we wish to investigate in our own
context (preliminary investigation to gather baseline data);
(2) thinking (hypothesizing) and planning an appropriate action to address that
concern;
(3) carrying out the action (intervention),
(4) observing the apparent outcomes of the action (data collection);
(5) reflecting on the outcomes (analyze and interpret the data) and on other
possibilities (with the same issue or identify a follow-up issue); and
(6) repeating these steps again (start a new cycle on the basis of step (5).
2. Characteristics of Action research
Action research is different from reflective teaching in that it is a systematic,
cyclic, iterative and public process. It is systematic as it involves collecting
Department of English, Jijel Academic Year: 2020-2021
Subject: Classroom Research Level: Master-Semester 3
Teacher: Redouane Naili Evaluation: Assignment + TD Exam
evidence on which to base rigorous reflection. (empirical research). It also
involves both problem posing and problem solving: change and improve things
and learn how to improve them from the effects of the changes being made.
Action research shares some aspects with both experimental research and
naturalistic inquiry. It seeks to intervene and bring about change, but is carried
out with naturally occurring groups, and does not impose artificial control over
variables by some external researcher(s). Action researchers develop questions as
the research proceeds.
When diverse kinds of data lead to the same conclusion, we can be more confident
in that conclusion. The metaphor of triangulation refers to the quality control
strategy and process of using multiple perspectives. Denzin (1978) described four
types of triangulation. These are (1) data triangulation, which draws on different
sources of data (teachers, students, parents, etc.); (2) theory triangulation, in
which various theories are brought to bear; (3) researcher triangulation, when
more than one researcher contributes to the investigation; and (4) methods
triangulation, which involves the use of multiple methods (e.g., interviews,
questionnaires, observation schedules, field notes, test scores, journal entries,
etc.) to collect data. All these types of triangulation can be usefully employed in
action research. Data triangulation can be used in gathering data from teachers,
students, administrators, young learners’ parents, adult students’ employers, etc.
Drawing on various theories is also possible. As for methods triangulation, it is
also a natural fit with action research, which uses any data that can address the
research questions posed when problems and/or puzzles are identified.
Researcher triangulation can be developed by collaborating with colleagues or by
inviting an external researcher to help with an action
Department of English, Jijel Academic Year: 2020-2021
Subject: Classroom Research Level: Master-Semester 3
Teacher: Redouane Naili Evaluation: Assignment + TD Exam
Introspective Data Collection Procedures
The early days of research into language learning and teaching in formal settings
(classrooms) were dominated by behaviorist psychology. Accordingly,
researchers were only interested in the observable characteristics of human
behaviour (what people do) and ruled out any investigation of the cognitive
processes underlying human performance and ability (how people think). The
acknowledgement of the limits of observation in describing language learning, a
process which is invisible for the most part, led researchers to develop
introspective data collection procedures. Nowadays, a lot of research is based on
introspective means: (1) Think-Aloud Protocols, (2) Stimulated Recall and (3)
Diary Studies.
1. Defining Introspection
As a data collection procedure in classroom research, introspection refers to the
process of observing and reporting on one's own thoughts, feelings, motives,
reasoning processes, and mental states, often with a view to determining the ways
in which these processes and states shape behaviour.
Introspection involves a set of techniques in which data collection happens at the
same time as or very shortly after the events being investigated. Thus, we can
distinguish between concurrent introspection, which happens during the event,
immediate retrospection, which is carried out right after the event, and delayed
retrospection, which occurs hours or more after the event.
a) Think-Aloud Protocols:
A think-aloud protocol is a record of self-reporting (talking about) one’s own
current thought processes. That is to say, when subjects engage in completing a
task or solving a problem, they verbalize their thought processes as they do so.
The word protocol refers to the written record that results from transcribing talk.
Department of English, Jijel Academic Year: 2020-2021
Subject: Classroom Research Level: Master-Semester 3
Teacher: Redouane Naili Evaluation: Assignment + TD Exam
This technique requires the researcher to record the verbalization and then
analyze the thought processes that the subjects report. It should not be
misunderstood as description or explanation of the task or what one is doing as it
involves reporting (verbalizing) the information that is attended to or needed to
perform the task. According to Ericcson and Simon (1993), three levels of
verbalization should be followed:
1. Level 1: reporting or vocalization: the act of speaking. No special effort to
communicate his thoughts is expended.
2. Level 2: describing the thought content, recoding information in the short-term
memory, with no further explanation or interpretation.
3. Level 3: explaining the thought processes or thoughts, including efforts to link
new information to that attended to previously.
A think-aloud protocol proceeds by giving clear instructions to the subjects: to
tell everything they are thinking about, to constantly talk, not to plan utterances,
not to explain what they say and not to socialize (with the researcher or other
participants)
Advantage: The gap between the mental process and the reporting is closer than
with other techniques,
Controversy: It is not sure whether verbalization accurately reflects the mental
processes that accompany problem solving
Drawbacks:
- The act of verbalizing the thought processes alters them in some way
(though not peculiar to introspection.
- It cannot be used to collect data directly from real classes, as it would
seriously disrupt the flow of the ongoing lessons.
Department of English, Jijel Academic Year: 2020-2021
Subject: Classroom Research Level: Master-Semester 3
Teacher: Redouane Naili Evaluation: Assignment + TD Exam
b) Stimulated Recall
Stimulated Recall is a retrospective data collection procedure for generating
introspective data after the events being investigated have taken place. The name
comes from the effort by the researcher to stimulate the recollection
(remembering) of the people who participated in the event by using data that were
collected during the event (e.g., a videotape, audiotape, field notes or transcripts.)
Advantages:
- Participants will not be distracted by having to introspect during a task.
- Reliability of the data can be enhanced by ensuring that the data are
collected as soon as possible after the task or event has taken place.
Controversy:
- The record of the original event is not sure to stimulate the participants’
memories sufficiently to produce good introspective data after the event,
which may lead to unreliable data.
Drawback: If subjects know they will be required to provide a retrospective
account, this knowledge will influence their performance on the task.
c) Diary Studies:
A diary/ journal in L2/FL learning and teaching is an introspective account of
one’s experience as recorded in a first-person journal. The learner's or teacher's
experiences are “documented through regular, candid entries in a personal journal
and then analyzed for recurring patterns or salient events”. The diarist can report
on various things including affective factors, language learning strategies, and
perceptions. Since the late 1970s, entries recorded in teachers' and learners'
journals have been used as data in studies of L2/FL learning and teaching. The
Department of English, Jijel Academic Year: 2020-2021
Subject: Classroom Research Level: Master-Semester 3
Teacher: Redouane Naili Evaluation: Assignment + TD Exam
journal entries can be analyzed by the diarists themselves or by someone other
than the diarist.
A five-step procedure is recommended for keeping a diary for research purposes:
Step 1: Provide a context for the study by giving an account of your personal
language teaching and/or language learning history.
Step 2: Keep regular, uncensored accounts of the teaching or learning experience,
trying to be as candid as possible
Step 3: Analyze the account for patterns and significant events.
Step 4: Revise the ‘raw’ account for public consumption. For instance, students’
names may be changed to pseudonyms, local abbreviations will be spelled out,
and so on.
Step 5: Document and discuss the factors that appear to be important in language
teaching/learning.
Advantage:
- Diaries reveal facets of the language learning/teaching experience which
are normally hidden or largely inaccessible to an external observer.
Discussion Issues:
1. Should a diarist read other language learning or teaching diary studies while
keeping a diary?
2. Should a diarist read about and comment on language learning theories?
3. Should a diarist try to take notes during the actual language learning or teaching
experience?
4. To what extent does the process of keeping a diary influence the experience?
