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It is a fact that a very low proportion of practising teachers are in the habit of reading ELT-related research papers. The main cause of this neglect is assumed to be that teaching and researching are two distinct forms of activity with no links to connect them. After comparing the concepts of progress and change in research versus teaching, this article discusses the issue of relevance encapsulated in the question: 'Who needs whom?'. Whereas it is a matter of utmost importance for researchers to reach out to teachers, the opposite does not apply: teachers can do well without outsiders' intervention. It is time, therefore, to accord more prominence to the 'teacher-inquirer', who is a professional capable of analysing their work on their own and exchanging their knowledge and experience with fellow teachers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Action research (AR) is becoming increasingly popular in ELT contexts as a means of continuous professional development. The positive impacts of AR on language teacher development are well documented, but the important question of how those impacts can be sustained over time is virtually unexplored. Drawing on findings from a study of teachers in Australia, we address the question of the sustainability of the impact of AR. Data from a survey and interviews show that, between one and four years after completing an AR programme, the teachers felt more confident, connected to their students, research-engaged, and recognized by colleagues and managers. We argue that a balance of top-down institutional support and individual teacher motivation is essential in ensuring sustainability of the impact over time. Finally, we suggest how the benefits of AR can be sustained for teachers doing AR and their colleagues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Exploratory Practice (EP) has recently been established as an innovative form of practitioner research in language education, one which includes learners alongside their teachers as co-researchers. However, to date, little attention has been given to learners' perspectives on this approach. This article focuses on the experiences of learners engaging with EP for the first time in an undergraduate English for Academic Purposes context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This is a feature in which individuals are invited to express their personal, and sometimes controversial, views on professional issues. These views are not necessarily those of the Editor, the Editorial Panel, or the Publisher. Reaction to Comment features is welcome in the form of a letter to the Editor or a Readers Respond article. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research engagement is an important means for teachers to develop their professional competence. This paper reports on an enquiry into the research engagement of a group of primary school English language teachers in Guangdong province on the Chinese mainland. Drawing on questionnaire data and teachers’ interview narratives, the paper examines how these Chinese primary school teachers experienced research and what their conceptions of good quality research were. While the enquiry revealed that the participants had a variety of research experiences, it also revealed that their research engagement was undermined by numerous contextual constraints and their perceived inadequacy as teacher researchers. These findings will be discussed with suggestions for making research an effective sustainable path for primary school English teachers’ professional development. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The article responds to a review by Richard Smith of the author's book "Teacher Research in Language Teaching: A Critical Analysis" in volume 69, issue 2 of the journal. Topics include the methodology of the book's research on teacher research (TR), the academic nature of the book, and the relation of the book to English language teaching (ELT).