Putting the CEFR into Practice Through Action Research: Reflecting on Principles for Foreign Language Teaching

This book provides an overview of an action research model which utilizes the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) and stresses the importance of systematically researching classroom practice. It introduces the complementary nature of the CEFR and action research, the CEFR, and the CEFR-focused Action Research Model (CARM). The book includes seven case studies guided by the model and concludes with an overall assessment of the efficacy of the CARM as a way to facilitate action research into CEFR-informed practice. Undertaken in a Japanese educational context, the focus of the book is squarely on classroom-based CEFR-focused action research concerning issues that all educators face, such as course design, materials development/selection, classroom implementation, learner autonomy and assessment.

Gregory Birch, a Professor at Seisen University in Nagano, Japan, holds a MSc Degree in TESOL from Aston University and a MA in Japanese Language and Society from Sheffield University. His current research concerns the implementation of the European Language Portfolio in Japan. He has also presented and written articles on Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) projects, Task-Based Learning, in-service teacher training for Japanese teachers of English, and the Japan Exchange and Teaching Programme. 

Noriko Nagai is Professor Emerita and Senior Research Fellow at Ibaraki University, Japan. She received her Ph.D. in Linguistics from the University of Michigan, USA. She is the principal investigator of a JSPS KAKENHI-supported research initiative focusing on the development of CLIL courses in Japanese higher education. This project aims to align classroom practices with the concept of mediation advanced in the CEFR/CV (COE 2020), thereby transforming language education for the 21st century. She is co-author of the book CEFR-informed Learning, Teaching, and Assessment and the article "Foreign Language Education Reform through Action Research: Implementing CEFR Pedagogical Principles". 

Maria Gabriela Schmidt is a professor at Nihon University, Japan. She received her PhD in Comparative Linguistics from the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Germany. Her research interests include applied linguistics, pragmatics, phonetics and phonology, history of language, intercultural communication and the CEFR. She is co-editor of the CEFR Journal - Research and practice.

Jack Bower is an associate professor in the School of Commerce at Waseda University in Tokyo, Japan. He received his PhD in Linguistics from Macquarie University. His research interests include language test design and validation, curriculum design, and putting the CEFR into practice.