METHODOLOGICAL APPROACHES TO RESEARCH IN SECOND LANGUAGE LEARNING

Authors

  • Ellen Bialystok Ontario Institute for Studies in Education
  • Merrill Swain Ontario Institute for Studies in Education

Abstract

The learning of second languages, like any educational undertaking, is subject ta such a complexity of influences that the strategies of research cannot afford to confine themselves merely to those inquiry procedures that precedent alone has sanctioned. Bialystok and Swain, laying down three criteria to be used in selecting an appropriate methodology for any intended inquiry, review with examples the respective attributes and limitations of case study research, evaluative research, and experimental studies, by way of establishing that each has its necessary and complementary role in arriving at firm conclusions about language-learning.

Author Biographies

Ellen Bialystok, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education

Ellen Bialystok is a Research Officer at The Ontario Institute for Studies in Education where she is director of the project "Studies on Second Language Teaching and Learning in Classroom Settings". Her work focuses primarily on the theoretical aspects of second language learning.

Merrill Swain, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education

Merrill Swain is an Associate Professor at The Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, where she also directs the Bilingual Education Project. She has published articles related to bilingual education and second language learning in, for example, Language Learning, TESOL Quarterly, Canadian Modern Language Review, Canadian Journal of Education, International Journal of Psychology. She is editor of the Working Papers On Bilingualism.

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Published

1978-04-01

How to Cite

Bialystok, E., & Swain, M. (1978). METHODOLOGICAL APPROACHES TO RESEARCH IN SECOND LANGUAGE LEARNING. McGill Journal of Education / Revue Des Sciences De l’éducation De McGill, 13(002). Retrieved from https://mje.mcgill.ca/article/view/7200

Issue

Vol. 13 No. 002 (1978)

Section

Articles

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