Prioritizing practitioner research: an example from the field

Abstract

For many ESL teachers, finding time for research within the everyday activities of classroom teaching can be problematic. This is often the case with large classes and classes that have few contact hours, where it is difficult to include research activities, particularly those that centre upon gathering relevant information about individual students’ perceptions of classroom life. Part of my ongoing practitioner research efforts have focused upon the value of written student feedback in various forms for both language teachers and language learners as a tool to help both the teacher and students work towards greater understanding of classroom life. In this paper, I provide an example of how a principled practitioner research perspective can be adopted productively by busy teachers in ordinary teaching situations to enhance the quality of life in their classrooms.