EFL Instructors' Perceptions Regarding Conducting Action Research

Abstract

In recent years, there has been a growing interest in teachers' professional development through action research and teachers are expected to be engaged in action research. Thus, this study aimed to explore the perceptions of Turkish EFL teachers regarding conducting action research in their classrooms. The participants were 16 Turkish EFL teachers who enrolled in Master of Art (M.A) specialized in English Language Education at a private university in Istanbul, Turkey. The data was collected by means of a questionnaire consisting of two sections to deeply investigate the impacts of action research on the EFL teachers. The results revealed that teachers have positive attitudes towards action research. Even though certain barriers do exist such as lack of time, lack of knowledge, and lack of support from other teachers, the teachers believe that they have grown both personally and professionally through their experiences as teacher researchers. Teachers in this study also described steps that could be taken to make action research more effective and widespread.