ARELE: Annual Review of English Language Education in Japan
Online ISSN : 2432-0412
Print ISSN : 1344-8560
ISSN-L : 1344-8560
A Systematic Review of Published Articles in ARELE 1-24 : Focusing on Their Themes, Methods, and Outcomes
Atsushi MIZUMOTOKen URANOHiroaki MAEDA
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2014 Volume 25 Pages 33-48

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Abstract

This study reviewed three representative aspects (themes, methods, and outcomes) of the published articles in ARELE, volumes 1 to 24. The review of 450 ARELE articles revealed the following results: (a) the 24 ARELE volumes could be divided into two periods (the first 12 and the second 12); (b) articles in each period have characteristic words to represent the themes peculiar to the period; (c) research themes have shifted from teaching to learning, with reading, vocabulary, assessment/testing, and motivation coming to the forefront; (d) articles are predominantly empirical studies, targeting learners at secondary and tertiary levels, and hypothesis generating, with a quantitative approach, while intervention studies are not common; (e) medium strength of effect size was obtained with a meta-analytical approach; (f) the effect size decreases toward more recent volumes, which may be a sign of theoretical refinement; (g) the statistical power of most studies is lower than it should be. A number of suggestions are offered for improving the quality of future research practice.

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© 2014 The Japan Society of English Language Education
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