This research report examines the implementation of a series of innovations in a research methods course in a postgraduate programme (Masters) for Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL).
The specific innovations are i) a new assessment format which centred on the writing of a critique on a published research study and ii) a series of oral presentations based on the written critique (post assessment) to peers. The approach to the research has two principal features: it develops a comprehensive account of the student experience through use of self report in the questionnaire and interview studies and it has a longitudinal dimension evidenced in the dissertation phase of the research. The data include a series of four questionnaire studies interviews and an impact trail to the dissertations completed at the end of the programme. In addition to contributing to an evaluation of these innovations the research informs wider debates relating to the skills development in research methods and the role of such skills in the professional development of teachers.
