Title:
Quantitative Research Team Project: Investigating Student Engagement with Extensive Reading as a Vehicle for Professional Development
Presenter:
Patrick Conaway
Abstract:
As language teachers, we normally possess more than enough knowledge of the target language for teaching our students. However, deepening our understanding of how our students engage with foreign language learning is a life-long journey. We can always benefit from a finer appreciation of our students’ motivations and language learning behavior. A readily available method of achieving this goal is to observe our students and reflect upon our teaching experiences. Using research can enhance this process of discovery. Reading the research of others gives us the opportunity to benefit from the insights of other educators who are dealing with similar challenges, as well as being exposed to different viewpoints and gaining fresh insights, while conducting it ourselves allows us to test our own beliefs on learning and teaching. To fully take advantage of quantitative research’s benefits, a basic understanding of statistics is necessary. Through the QRTP, a group of teachers was able to learn the basics of running a quantitative study by actually conducting one together.
This presentation will focus on sharing what the presenter learned through participation in the Quantitative Research Team Project, as well as sharing the results of a study on the effects of book selection method on reader engagement with at-home reading and in-class discussion activities. First, the presenter will introduce and explain the statistical concepts that were studied by the members of the QRTP. Specifically, he will introduce the difference between descriptive and inferential statistics, and one common statistical analysis test. In the second part of the presentation, he will provide background of the engagement study, and summarize its results, which suggest the method of selection for reading materials does not greatly affect student engagement with reading, and in-class discussions about the reading material.
Bio:
Pat Conaway earned his BA in Linguistics, with a focus on French Literature and language teaching. After completing an MBA course, he briefly worked in the finance industry in Tokyo before returning to the field of education where he primarily taught engineers and business managers. Now, as an adjunct instructor at Yamagata University, he teaches freshman EFL classes, using extensive reading as a base for in-class activities.
