Our voices matter: the role of first-year student partners in action research for the EFL course

This study explores a year-long student-faculty partnership at Wenzhou-Kean University China, examining how a student partner can support collaboration between instructors and students in an English as a Foreign Language (EFL) course. The research involved two student partners, two instructors, and 93 enrolled first-year students. The two instructors and two student partners went through classroom observations, surveys, and interviews to collect data to identify challenges and adjust course activities. Findings reveal that student involvement in course design contributed to agency development, engagement, and more positive evaluations of revised classroom activities. The following three key themes emerged: (a) empowering student voice through collaboration, (b) cultivating awareness through scaffolding, and (c) bridging learning and real-world application. Grounded in Students-as-Partners and Participatory Action Research frameworks, the study underscores the importance of structured student input in making meaningful course improvements. While the findings are promising, the specific institutional context and focus of the course may limit generalizability to other educational settings or cultural contexts.