Conditions and Challenges in Developing School‐Based SLA Research Programs

Abstract

In this article, I explore some of the epistemological, technical, and ethical challenges in doing research on instructed second language (L2) learning in Canadian school settings. I examine these challenges from the viewpoint of classroom research that has been influenced by cognitive‐interactionist theories of learning. This includes my own classroom research program and similar programs developed by other Canadian researchers across a variety of school‐based L2 curricula. I examine epistemological challenges in terms of the ecological validity of doing research in classrooms versus laboratories and the value of sequencing descriptive phases prior to experimental components of a research cycle. I also discuss the extent to which different research contexts and goals can influence epistemological choice. In addition, I consider technical challenges in relation to doing research in intact classrooms and to the conditions necessary for the development of sustained research programs in schools. Lastly, I address ethical challenges: the relevance of research for pedagogical practice and suggestions about how to support researchers and teachers in making these links more meaningful.