An introduction to qualitative research methods in relation to SLA-related topics
This workshop, led by Dr. Janice McGregor (University of Arizona) will give an introduction to qualitative research methods in relation to SLA-related topics. The purpose of this interactive workshop is to learn and discuss how qualitative research engages with the relational, how to consider the ways that positionality influences data collection and analysis, and more!
Please note that the time of the workshop is tentative, and will be confirmed by the end of Sep. 2025. The location and modality for the workshop will be posted here closer to the date of the event.
Dr. Janice McGregor is a faculty member in the Department of German Studies and in SLAT. Her experiences with identity, authenticity, and multilingualism shape her research endeavors, which center around three interrelated strands:
- The construction of ideologies and beliefs around language learning and teaching;
- Discourses surrounding language and intercultural learning, especially in study abroad contexts;
- Qualitative research methods and the reflexive researcher in German applied linguistics.
Her projects' findings highlight the need for scholars and educators to better attend to the coordinated interactional work that speakers do in social interactions (e.g. "naturally-occurring" interactions, in interviews), the value of adopting an understanding of "authentic" language as encompassing patterns of language and meaning that are both recognizable within and across communities of speakers and that are appropriated as one's own, and the value of examining beliefs about and constructions of intercultural learning in order to better articulate what it actually is and how to assess it. See here for her contribution to the Tucson Humanities Festival 2020: "Study Abroad and Un(doing) Harm".