Is language teaching in language schools influenced by research? An investigation into Chinese EFL teachers' conceptions

This study explored the perceptions of L2 research held by English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers in Mainland China, along with their research engagement. Online questionnaires were completed by 55 teachers and four individual interviews were conducted online. Results showed that teachers perceived research as the collection of objective, quantitative data involving a large number of participants with results being statistically analysed and publicly shared. Teachers also showed a moderate level of L2 research engagement. Lack of time was the main reason given by teachers who had low research engagement while overseas study experience outside Mainland China was found to be related to higher levels of research engagement. Overall, the study contributes to a better understanding of the factors that influence L2 teachers’ research engagement to ultimately be able to promote research activity in the teaching community.