Abstract
In this ‘Researching EAP Practice!’ paper, I reflect on the experience of embedding learner-initiated enquiry into an in-sessional EAP course and argue that the process can be viewed as a continuous exploration of learners’ needs. First, I explain the rationale for adopting Exploratory Practice (EP)-a form of practitioner research-to position EAP undergraduates at a UK university as learner-researchers. I then reveal why our EAP team harnessed EP’s central process of ‘puzzling’ to develop personalised research agendas and encourage student engagement, practitioner collaboration and novel learning. Finally, I outline how academic and practitioner research in EAP combined with our professional development experiences shaped the approach taken. I gathered a range of qualitative data, observing learners as they puzzled, analysing written summaries of their puzzles and cross-referencing these with my own reflective journal entries. This integration of research and pedagogy created several synergies: Through puzzling, learners better understood their academic journeys, and some highlighted the transferable potential of puzzling. The teaching team also benefited as we began to view learner-initiated puzzling as a continuous exploration, illumination and assessment of learners’ needs. This paper offers a practitioner’s perspective on continuous needs assessment with insights for EAP lecturers and those in adjacent fields.
Published Version
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