EXERCISES OF RESEARCH METHODS

I. Were the following studies qualitative or quantitative? Tick the appropriate

box.
A teacher developed some innovative listening materials for low level learners.
She used these materials with a range of classes, and believed that they were
significantly superior to the traditional materials which were used in her school.
However, her colleagues were skeptical. Therefore, she carried out a study. She
had two ways to collect data.

1. She surveyed the students through interviews and questionnaires (open

questions), and obtained their subjective impressions. In addition, she asked a
colleague to become a participant observer in her classroom and made a record of
the teaching and learning going on.
If she collected data in this way, was her study qualitative o or quantitative o?

2. She randomly assigned the students to two groups. One group used the
traditional materials and the other group used the innovative materials. Besides,
she gave the students two tests, a pre-test and a post-test, to check both group at
the beginning of the term as well as the end. Then she compared the scores to test
her hypothesis of the superiority of the innovative materials.
If she collected data in this way, was her study qualitative o or quantitative o?

II. Read the following extracts from TESOL articles and answer the questions
below
This article presents the results of an investigation into the place of
English in the curriculum in several countries in the Asia-Pacific region.
The study indicates that the emergence of English as a global language is
having considerable impact on policies and practices in all countries
surveyed. However, it also reveals significant problems, including
confusion and inconsistency, at the level of policy, particularly regarding
the issue of age of initial instruction, inequity regarding access to
effective language instruction, inadequately trained and skilled teachers,
and a disjunction between curriculum rhetoric and pedagogical reality.
Despite the apparent widespread perception that English is a global
language, relatively little systematic information has been gathered on
its impact on educational policies and practices in educational systems
around the world. The purpose of this study is to explore the impact of
English on educational policies and practices in countries in the Asia-
Pacific region, particularly Mainland China, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea,
Malaysia, Taiwan, and Vietnam. These countries were chosen because
they represent a range of contrasting characteristics and features, from
developed to developing, ex-colonial to independent, large to small, and
culturally diverse to culturally cohesive.
 ...I first collected and analyzed published policy statements, documents,
and programs drawn from a number of sources, including recent books,
articles, government reports, syllabuses, and curriculum documents. I
obtained these materials in several different ways. Some were publicly
available; others were provided by informants. These documents
provided a backdrop for more detailed data collection through guided
interviews with informants. The second source of data was guided
interviews with 68 informants, the majority of whom I had met in the
course of teaching and researching in the region over many years. In
other instances, regional officials from the British Council and the United
States Information Service provided me with contacts. The informants
represented different positions, interests, and perspectives within the
educational sectors of their respective countries, including
academics/teacher trainers, ministry officials, publishers, and
teachers....
(From Nunan, David. Tesol Quarterly, Vol 37, No 4, Winter 2003)

1. What is the research aim of the study?

....................................................................................................................................
2. What are the sources for data of the study?
....................................................................................................................................
3. What is the data collection method of the study?
....................................................................................................................................
III. Write the details of following sources in order in a list of references

1.For a book
Name of author: David Allwright
Year of publication: 1988
Title of publication: Observation in the Language Classroom
Place of publication: London
Publisher: Longman
....................................................................................................................................
2.For a journal article
Name of author: Alan Berreta
Year of publication: 1990
Title of publication: Implementation of the Bangalore Project
Title of journal: Applied Linguistics
Volume number: 11
Issue number: 4
Page number(s): 321 – 340

IV. List four kinds of sources that can be used for writing the literature review.
V. Write specific instruction for each question in a questionnaire below .
Example:
Question: Did you watch television last night? Yes [ ] No [ ]
Response selected from one of two alternatives
Instruction: Tick the appropriate box

QUESTIONNAIRE FOR TEACHERS

This questionnaire aims at surveying the issues of teaching listening in "Tieng Anh 10" at
Dao Duy Tu High School in Quang Binh province. Your contribution is of great value to
my research. The data collected will be served the study purpose only, not for any others.
Please answer the questions by circling the option you choose. You may choose more
than one option or give your own opinions in some questions.

Thank you for your kind cooperation.

**********

Please provide your personal information

Name (optional):.............................................

Gender: o Male o Female

Age: ...........................................................

How long have you been teaching listening? ....................................................................

Have you attended any workshops on Listening Teaching?

a. Yes b. No

1. How important are high school listening teaching skills?

Response selected from one of four alternatives

Instruction:

a. Very important o

b. Important o

c. Not very important o

d. Not important. o
2. What are the reasons?

Response provided by the informant

Instruction:

.............................................................................................................................................

3. Do you find it difficult to teach listening?

Response selected from one of four alternatives

Instruction:
a. Very difficult o

b. Difficult o

c. Not very difficult o

d. Not difficult o

4. What are the reasons?

Response provided by the informant

Instruction:

...............................................................................................................................................

5. If your answer is No, which stage is often omitted?

Response selected from one or two of three alternatives

Instruction:
a. Pre-listening o

b. While-listening o

c. Post-listening o

6. Why is it omitted?

Response selected from one or two of three alternatives or your own opinion.
Instruction:

a. Time limitation o

b. Students’ low interest in this stage o

c. It is not necessary o
d. Others (please specify): ...................................................................................................

7. How often do you organize pre-listening activities?

Response selected from one of four alternatives

Instruction:
Pre-listening Activities Very often Sometimes Rarely Never
Prediction
Vocabulary presentation
Discussion
Using visual aids(
pictures/photos)
Guiding questions
Games
Others

8. How often do you teach your students listening skills or strategies?

Response selected from one of four alternatives

Instruction:

a. Very often o

b. Sometimes o

c. Rarely o

d. Never o

9. How often do you organize work arrangements in your listening class?

Response selected from one of four alternatives

Instruction:
Work arrangement Very often Sometimes Rarely Never
Individual work
Pair work
Group work
Collective work

10. What facilities do you use in listening lessons?

Response selected from one or more among alternatives or your own opinion

Instruction:

a. Radios o
b. Cassette recorders o

c. Audio tapes/ CD o

d. Video o

e. Computers o

f. The internet o

g. Others (please specify):

11. What problems in your listening teaching remain unsolved?

Response provided by the informant

Instruction

……………………………………………………………………………….

12. In your opinion, what can be done to make the listening lessons at grade 10
more interesting and effective?

Response provided by the informants

Instruction:
………………………………………………………………………………………….

VI. Write research questions for the following research topic.

An Investigation into the Effects of Using Facebook on UFLS-UD Students