English Language University Teachers’ Difficulties in Research Engagement: A Case Study in Vietnam
Open Access
- 12 October 2017
- journal article
- Published by Universitas Muhammadiyah Sidoarjo in JEES (Journal of English Educators Society)
- Vol. 2 (2), 91-100
- https://doi.org/10.21070/jees.v2i2.979
Abstract
The study uses a qualitative case study framed within a socio-cultural framework to investigate Vietnamese English language university teachers’ difficulties in their research engagement. The study was conducted among 21 English language university teachers in Hong Duc University in Vietnam. Skype semi-structured interview was employed to collect necessary data to explore teacher participants’ perceived obstacles to research. The findings of the study show that there was a gap between Vietnamese authorities’ expectations of research outputs and the realities of English language university teachers’ research capabilities. Such gap has caused serious challenges to those teachers and prevented them from effectively engaging in research. On the one hand, Vietnamese authorities hope to increase universities’ research output to keep up with the international academic ranking. On the other hand, the working realities of university teachers hinder their engagement in research. However, no official investigation has been done to reduce such gap and the enforcement of research activity in universities has been taken for granted. In this sense, the significance of this study is an opportunity for English language university teachers to voice their opinions about the enforced nature of research activity in universities in Vietnam.Keywords
This publication has 6 references indexed in Scilit:
- The Higher Education Reform Agenda: A Vision for 2020Published by Springer Science and Business Media LLC ,2009
- Skills development in higher education in VietnamAsia Pacific Business Review, 2009
- English Language Teachers' Conceptions of ResearchApplied Linguistics, 2009
- What do University Language Teachers Say About Language Teaching Research?TESL Canada Journal, 2007
- Social SurveysPublished by SAGE Publications ,2002
- Observing sociocultural activity on three planes: participatory appropriation, guided participation, and apprenticeshipPublished by Cambridge University Press (CUP) ,1995