The relationship between SLA research and language pedagogy: Teachers’ perspectives

Abstract

There is currently a substantial body of research on second language (L2) learning and this body of knowledge is constantly growing. There are also many attempts in most teacher education programs around the world to inform practicing and prospective L2 teachers about second language acquisition (SLA) research and its findings. However, an important question in this context has been to what extent SLA research has been able to influence L2 teaching. There is extensive discussion and debate among SLA researchers about the applicability of L2 research to language teaching. However, there is little empirical research in this area. This research was conducted to shed some light on this issue by examining how English language teachers perceive the relationship between SLA research and language teaching and to what extent they believe the findings of SLA is useful and relevant for L2 pedagogy. Data were collected from 201 teachers of English as a second language (ESL) and English as a foreign language (EFL) by means of a written questionnaire. Analyses of data revealed that most teachers believed that knowing about SLA research is useful and that it can improve L2 teaching. However, a high percentage indicated that the knowledge they gain from teaching experience is more relevant to their teaching practices than the knowledge they gain from research. The majority indicated that they have easy access to research materials, but very few stated that they read research articles, with the most common reasons being lack of time, difficulty of research articles, and lack of interest. The article concludes with discussion and suggestions about how to improve the perceived gap between L2 research and pedagogy.