Language centre teachers as researchers: The case of Finland
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Heidi Rontu
Heidi Rontu has been Director of the Aalto University Language Centre since 2006. In 2004–2005 she was a lecturer and deputy director at the Language Centre of the Helsinki University of Technology, and in 2005–2006 professor in Swedish at the University of Helsinki. Her areas of research include early bilingual development, pragmatics of codeswitching, text linguistics and multisemiotics.
Ulla-Kristiina Tuomi was Director of the University of Tampere Language Centre from 1997 to 2007 and has been Director of the University of Helsinki Language Centre since 2007. Her interests include language education policy, leadership and management issues, HR development, quality assurance and international cooperation.
Abstract
Language centres in higher education are facing new challenges as they plan curricula for an increasingly diverse student body and undertake new tasks in support of the multiform internationalisation of universities. Continuing professional development clearly needs to be taken to a new level, and one way of doing this is to include research in a more systematic way. In this article, we focus on the role of research as an aspect of the development of a language centre and on human resources development in particular. Based on recent data from university language centres in Finland, we report language centre personnel’s views on research in relation to their work. The results show that they are strongly in favour of developing their professional practice by engaging in research and that they feel that research conducted in language centres should be practical and have a direct relation to the other work of language centres. We also discuss different ways of supporting a research orientation and present practical models for implementing this in the development of work.
About the authors
Heidi Rontu has been Director of the Aalto University Language Centre since 2006. In 2004–2005 she was a lecturer and deputy director at the Language Centre of the Helsinki University of Technology, and in 2005–2006 professor in Swedish at the University of Helsinki. Her areas of research include early bilingual development, pragmatics of codeswitching, text linguistics and multisemiotics.
Ulla-Kristiina Tuomi was Director of the University of Tampere Language Centre from 1997 to 2007 and has been Director of the University of Helsinki Language Centre since 2007. Her interests include language education policy, leadership and management issues, HR development, quality assurance and international cooperation.
References
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Appendix: The survey questionnaire
How do the following statements reflect your relationship to research/the research-based development of teaching?
The development of teaching should be research based.
I am often uncertain about whether my work on the development of teaching counts as research.
I don’t have any particular targets for research or opinions about a research orientation.
I regularly read journals in my field of expertise and/or research literature.
Reading journals in relevant fields of expertise and/or research literature is an important part of the development of teaching.
I feel that research engagement is a natural part of my work.
Research is included in my annual working load.
To what extent? Automatically or as an exception?
I have always found time to engage in the research-based development of teaching in one way or another.
It would be important for me to be able to include research in my annual work load.
Research/research engagement is not really my thing.
I do research in my own time, and it does not link to my work at the language centre.
I would like to have one or more colleagues to partner with in collaboration so that my research/development ideas would be put into action.
I would need support or guidance for my research/development project.
I have experience in doing research/development work, and I don’t need much support to do it.
Open questions:
How do you see or how would you define research engagement/the research-based development of teaching in language?
What else would you like to say about your relationship or engagement to research/the research-based development of teaching? (You can also specify your earlier answers here, if you like.)
What kind of research information would help you to develop your teaching? What kind of research should be done in language centres in general?
Projects:
Project 1: title/topic + the stage of the project?
Project 1: Who are your project partners (in case you have any)?
From my own language centre
From any language centre
Information on project 1
In the FINELC Wiki
On the local language centre’s web pages and/or intranet
I don’t want to publish information about the project.
Project 2: title/topic + the stage of the project?
From my own language centre
From any language centre
Information on project 2
In the FINELC Wiki
On the local language centre’s web pages and/or intranet
I don’t want to publish information about the project
Project 3: title/topic + the stage of the project?
From my own language centre
From any language centre
Information on project 3
In the FINELC Wiki
On the local Language Centre’s web pages and/or intranet
I don’t want to publish information about the project
©2015 by De Gruyter Mouton
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Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- The Common European Framework of Reference down under: A survey of its use and non-use in Australian universities
- C2+-DaF-Lernende reflektieren über eine perfekte Sprachbeherrschung – ist diese vor dem Hintergrund der postulierten funktionalen Mehrsprachigkeit in Alltag und Beruf künftig noch gefragt?
- The habitat factor in ELF(A) – English as a Lingua Franca (in Academic settings) – and English for Plurilingual Academic Purposes
- “Improvisation is not allowed in a second language”: A survey of Italian lecturers’ concerns about teaching their subjects through English
- What should be explicit in explicit grammar instruction?
- Approaches to assessment in CLIL classrooms: Two case studies
- Integrated learner support through language advising: Initial experiences and considerations at Padova University Language Centre
- Enhanced awareness and its translation into action: A case study of one learner’s self-directed language learning experience
- Language centre teachers as researchers: The case of Finland
