Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/114810
Title: Researching teacher research
Other Titles: Qualitative research topics in language teacher education
Authors: Xerri, Daniel
Keywords: Language teachers -- Training of -- Research
Language and languages -- Study and teaching -- Research
Qualitative research
Issue Date: 2019
Publisher: Routledge
Citation: Xerri, D. (2019). Researching teacher research. In G. Barkhuizen (Ed.), Qualitative research topics in language teacher education (pp. 174-179). London and New York: Routledge.
Abstract: As an academic working at Malta’s main university, I am expected to devote one third of my professional duties to research. One of the reasons why I was expected to hold a PhD when I applied for this position is that this degree is meant to equip people with the knowledge and skills required to do academic research. However, prior to enrolling on a doctoral program I had already worked as an English language teacher in secondary schools. This is where I learnt a lot about research and was encouraged to engage in it. Despite the fact that research is part of my job description, my interest and willingness to engage in research were nurtured by my experiences in the secondary school classroom. My graduate education prior to becoming a teacher did provide me with an understanding of research principles and methodology, and working on my Master’s dissertation enabled me to put into practice the theory I had learnt in my lectures. However, it is only once I started teaching that I realized I had to do classroom research in order to !nd answers to my questions. These questions varied in nature but mostly revolved around issues concerning my practices as a teacher, my students, and the context in which I taught. Going beyond the research de!nitions and requirements imposed by graduate education, I found I could experiment with the way I looked for answers. In the ten years I spent in the English language classroom, I engaged in teacher research, which Borg (2013) de!nes as practitioners’ systematic investigation into their own contexts for the purpose of learning more about their practices. Teacher research became one of the main means by which I could develop professionally.
URI: https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/114810
ISBN: 9781138618121
Appears in Collections:Scholarly Works - CenELP

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