Origins and problems of classroom-centered research on language learning and teaching are surveyed, tracing the development of both the concerns and the research tools used. The development of a productive controversy over objective versus subjective methods is described. (MSE)

Considers both qualitative and quantitative research approaches on second language learning, with focus on second language classroom research. Concludes that both approaches are relevant to determining the important variables to investigate and the relationships those variables have to second language learning outcomes. (Author/CB)

Presents observations on designing and implementing replications of applied linguistics research, focusing on a selection of research to be replicated, evaluation of the feasibility of replication, and benefits of replication. (CB)

Documents 20 years of second-language acquisition research, highlighting two subthemes involving the alternate broadening and narrowing of research perspectives and predicting that the next phase of research will unite the historically distinct research foci on learning and the learner. (209 references) (CB)

Clarifies and defines quantitative research as it is applied to the study of language acquisition. Trends in the use of quantitative and nonquantitative methods in applied linguistics are reported, and suggestions are made concerning useful paradigms and procedures for further research in language acquisition. (Author/CB)

Listings of over 200 graduate theses and dissertations in English as a second language (ESL) completed since 1975 were studied to determine apparent topic areas and methodologies. (Author/RM)

This article describes the status of qualitative research in applied linguistics and English as a Second Language (ESL), identifying trends through an informal survey of professional journals, an examination of relevant qualitative studies and research methods texts, and a presentation of the views of researcher methodologists. (88 references)…

Connor comments on Raimes' research on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) essay component, the Test of Written English (TWE), and the practices of the Educational Testing Service. Raimes' response is directed toward the TWE research agenda. (five references) (Author/LB)

Seven noted researchers each describe a different orientation to research exemplified in their own studies and currently predominant in the teaching of English to speakers of other languages. The statements consider aspects of language behavior, frameworks for interpreting curricula or culture such as classroom interaction or ethnography, or…

This article reviews basic issues of theory and method in qualitative research approaches to applied linguistics research, focusing on the ways in which qualitative research can contribute to an understanding of second-language acquisition and use. (83 references) (MDM)

Reviews research on appropriate methodologies to use in studying native or second language acquisition and points out that both quantitative and qualitative research methods are used in different ways of study in the field. (CB)

Reviews the conceptual, curricular, and empirical bases of task-based language teaching and suggests future trends, concluding that the conceptual and empirical bases need to be extended both substantively and methodologically. (38 references) (CB)

If language research is to arrive at valid analyses of speech behavior, both observation and elicitation methods of data collection will have to be used as necessary complements to one another. The advantages and disadvantages of different research methods are discussed. (CB)

Multiple regression analysis is discussed as useful for studying the effect of a variable while controlling for the effects of others and for estimating the total effect of all predictor variables together. It is suggested that in English-as-a-Second-Language proficiency measurement, regression coefficients should not be the basis for judging…

Discusses a serious problem that has existed for years in language research with regard to the use of the inferential statistic known as the t test. (12 references) (JL)