Research Methods in Second Language Acquisition


Book Description

Research Methods in Second Language Acquisition “With its cornucopia of information, both thorough and practical, this book is a must for our methodology shelves. Its study questions and project suggestions will be a boon for many research methods courses.” Robert M. DeKeysevr, University of Maryland “This guide to collecting, coding and analyzing second language acquisition data will be an essential reference for novice and experienced researchers alike.” Peter Robinson, Aoyama Gakuin University “Comprehensive and technically up-to-date, yet accessible and cogent! This remarkable textbook is sure to become a premier choice for the research training of many future SLA generations.” Lourdes Ortega, University of Hawaii “Alison Mackey and Susan Gass’ valuable new book offers hands-on methodological guidance from established experts on all kinds of second language research.” Michael H. Long, University of Maryland Research Methods in Second Language Acquisition: A Practical Guide is an informative guide to research design and methodology in this growing and vibrant field. Utilizing research methods and tools from varied fields of study including education, linguistics, psychology, and sociology, this collection offers complete coverage of the techniques of second language acquisition research. This guide covers a variety of topics, such as second language writing and reading, meta-analyses, research replication, qualitative data collection and analysis, and more. Each chapter of this volume offers background, step-by-step guidance, and relevant studies to create comprehensive coverage of each method. This carefully selected and edited volume will be a useful text for graduate students and scholars looking to keep pace with the latest research projects and methodologies in second language acquisition.




Research Methods in Second Language Psycholinguistics


Book Description

Addressing a rapidly growing interest in second language research, this hands-on text provides students and researchers with the means to understand and use current methods in psycholinguistics. With a focus on the actual methods, designs, and techniques used in psycholinguistics research as they are applied to second language learners, this book offers the practical guidance readers need to determine which method is the best for what they wish to investigate as well as the tools that will enhance their research. Each methods chapter is written by a leading expert who describes, discusses, and comments on how a method is used and what its strengths and limitations are for second language research. These chapters follow a specific format to ensure cohesion and a predictable structure across all chapters. The chapters also inform the novice researcher on such key issues as ease of use, costs, potential pitfalls, and other related matters, each of which impact decisions that researchers make about the paths they take. With the most reliable information available from experienced reseachers, Research Methods in Second Language Psycholinguistics is an essential resource for anyone interested in conducting second language reserach using psycholinguistic methods.




Key Methods in Second Language Acquisition Research


Book Description

Key Methods in Second Language Acquisition Research is a book written to help novice teachers and undergraduate students developing an awareness and understanding of the key methodological frameworks and processes used in second language research. The book should also help readers generating ideas and researchable questions and adopting particular research methods and procedures to collect and analyse data. The book is divided into three main parts: Key Stages in Second Language Research (Part One); Key Methodological Frameworks (Part Two); Mixed Frameworks and Psycholinguistics Methods (Part three).




Second Language Research


Book Description

Specifically targeted towards the needs of a second language research audience, Second Language Research: Methodology and Design addresses basic issues related to research design, providing step-by-step instructions for how to carry out studies. This up-to-date text includes chapters that cover identifying research problems and questions; selecting elicitation measures; dealing with ethical issues related to data gathering; validity and reliability in research; research in second and foreign language classroom contexts; data description and coding; and data analysis. Also included is a chapter on the much needed and rarely addressed topic of writing up SLA research, giving concrete suggestions about preparing for publication. Principles of both qualitative and quantitative research are discussed in the context of design issues. Throughout the book, examples from applied linguistics, second language acquisition, and TESOL are provided. Helpful discussion and data-based skill-building exercises at the end of each chapter promote better understanding of the principles discussed. A glossary outlines the key terms in second language research. Second Language Research: Methodology and Design is an ideal textbook for introductory and advanced classes in second language research methods, as well as classes in related areas, for example, TESOL research methods.




Using Priming Methods in Second Language Research


Book Description

Using Priming Methods in Second Language Research is an accessible introduction to the use of auditory, semantic, and syntactic priming methods for second language (L2) processing and acquisition research. It provides a guide for the use, design, and implementation of priming tasks and an overview of how to analyze and report priming research. Key principles about auditory, semantic, and syntactic priming are introduced, and issues for L2 researchers to consider when designing priming studies are pointed out. Empirical studies that have adopted priming methods are highlighted to illustrate the application of experimental techniques from psychology to L2 processing and acquisition research. Each chapter concludes with follow-up questions and activities that provide additional reinforcement of the chapter content, while the final chapter includes data sets that can be used to practice the statistical tests commonly used with priming data.




Quantitative Methods for Second Language Research


Book Description

Quantitative Methods for Second Language Research introduces the approaches to and techniques for quantitative data analysis in second language research (SLR), with a primary focus on second language learning and assessment research. It takes a conceptual, problem-solving approach, emphasizing the understanding of statistical theory and its application to research problems and pays less attention to the mathematical side of statistical analysis. A range of common statistical analysis techniques that can be employed in SLR, presented and illustrated through applications of the IBM Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) program, are presented and discussed. These include tools for descriptive analysis (e.g. means and percentages) as well as inferential analysis (e.g. correlational analysis, t-tests, and analysis of variance (ANOVA)). It provides conceptual explanations of quantitative methods through the use of examples, cases and published studies in the field. Additionally, a companion website to the book hosts review exercises and answer keys for each chapter, SPSS files, and a manual. Practical and lucid, this book is the ideal resource for data analysis for graduate students and researchers in applied linguistics.




Mind and Context in Adult Second Language Acquisition


Book Description

How do people learn nonnative languages? Is there one part or function of our brains solely dedicated to language processing, or do we apply our general information-processing abilities when learning a new language? In this book, an interdisciplinary collaboration of scholars and researchers presents an overview of the latter approach to adult second language acquisition and brings together, for the first time, a comprehensive picture of the latest research on this subject. Clearly organized into four distinct but integrated parts, Mind and Context in Adult Second Language Acquisition first provides an introduction to information-processing approaches and the tools for students to understand the data. The next sections explain factors that affect language learning, both internal (attention and awareness, individual differences, and the neural bases of language acquisition) and external (input, interaction, and pedagogical interventions). It concludes by looking at two pedagogical applications: processing instruction and content based instruction. This important and timely volume is a must-read for students of language learning, second language acquisition, and linguists who want to better understand the information-processing approaches to learning a non-primary language. This book will also be of immense interest to language scholars, program directors, teachers, and administrators in both second language acquisition and cognitive psychology.




Research Methodology in Second-Language Acquisition


Book Description

This volume addresses salient theoretical issues concerning the validity of research methods in second-language acquisition, and provides critical analysis of contextualized versus sentence-level production approaches. The contributors present their views of competence versus performance, the nature of language acquisition data, research design, the relevance of contextualized data collection and interpretation, and the desirability of a particularistic nomothetic theoretical paradigm versus more comprehensive consideration of multiple realities and complex influencing factors. This book presents varying and antithetical approaches to the issues, bringing together the thinking and approaches of leading researchers in language acquisition, language education, and sociolinguistics in an engaging debate of great currency in the field.







Researching Second Language Acquisition in the Study Abroad Learning Environment


Book Description

This book is intended to introduce novice student researchers to second language acquisition in the study abroad learning environment. It reviews the existing literature and provides the emerging researcher an overview of the important factors to consider, informs them where to begin, and how to move forth an agenda for future research in this field. The book recognizes that aside from the academic advantages, study abroad programmes are an excellent tool for fostering extended and relevant interaction with native speakers. It provides reflection questions and activities, and guides the novice researcher in critically analysing existing research and to eventually carry out their own study. The book will be of use to beginning researchers who are new to linguistics in the areas of study abroad and second language acquisition.