Mapping the Future of TESOL Through Research: TESOL’s Research Directions and TIRF’s Research Topics

One of the most significant ways TESOL International Association and The International Research Foundation for English Language Education (TIRF) advance the field of English language teaching is by fostering and guiding research. Both organizations recognize that sound research is the backbone of effective practice, equitable policy, and sustained professional growth and development. At the heart of these efforts are TESOL’s Research Directions and TIRF’s Research Topics, two frameworks that complement one another and shape the organizations’ strategic decisions, initiatives, and contributions to the global TESOL community.

In this post, let’s explore how these frameworks guide the work of TESOL and TIRF, highlight the activities that emerge from them, and look at exciting potential future developments.

TESOL’s Research Directions: A Compass for the Profession

TESOL International Association has long served as a leader in promoting and disseminating high-quality research that bridges theory and practice. The association’s research directions (Curtis et al., 2024) are central to this mission. Developed by the Research Professional Council (RPC) and based on extensive empirical research of its members, they are not static priorities but living guides that evolve with the needs of educators, learners, and policymakers. By identifying areas of critical inquiry, TESOL’s Research Directions encourage collaboration among researchers and practitioners while ensuring that the work of the field remains relevant and impactful.

The research directions influence TESOL’s activities in a variety of ways. They inform the association’s professional learning opportunities, conference programming, and publications. They also shape TESOL’s policy and advocacy work by providing evidence that highlights what works, and why, in diverse global learning contexts. Most important, the research directions ensure that teacher voices and classroom realities remain at the forefront of scholarly inquiry.

Some of TESOL’s most visible research-related initiatives are the TESOL Award for Excellence in Research and the conference programming organized by the Research Professional Council.  The former celebrates outstanding empirical research that has a direct and meaningful impact on classroom practice and professional knowledge and the latter showcases several sessions at the annual convention (Research Mentoring Workshop, RPC Colloquium, Research Symposium, and Research Fair).

TIRF’s Research Topics: A Framework for Impact

Similarly, TIRF has developed its own set of research topics to serve as a guiding framework. Established through consultation with experts and periodically revisited to reflect changes in the field, these topics identify areas where more research is urgently needed to advance English language education worldwide. Like TESOL’s Research Directions, TIRF’s Research Topics are designed to bridge the gap between research, policy, and practice.

These topics are not just theoretical in nature. They directly shape the programs and initiatives TIRF undertakes. Every year, for example, TIRF issues its Doctoral Dissertation Grants (DDGs) call for proposals. Applicants are asked to align their dissertation research with one or more of TIRF’s Research Topics, ensuring that the emerging scholarship TIRF supports is both innovative and relevant.

TIRF’s other grant, award, and prize activities also flow from the research topics. In addition to DDGs, the foundation offers opportunities for professional services and leadership, as well as supports teachers, for example, via the TIRF Bailey Award, which encourages innovation in teaching and research and research mentoring. All of these initiatives demonstrate TIRF’s commitment to nurturing the next generation of scholars, which serves to amplify the impact of high-quality research.

Publications That Connect Research and Practice

TESOL International Association supports English language teaching through its focus on research and publications. Its main flagship journal, TESOL Quarterly, is a leading source of research that shapes policy, practice, and theory. TESOL Journal adds a more practical focus, sharing classroom strategies and teacher experiences. Together, these two well-known publications provide essential resources for teachers, researchers, and policymakers. The RPC also provides a series of blog posts annually on research and research-related topics in TESOL. Beyond grants and awards, TIRF’s Research Topics guide the foundation’s publications, which serve as key resources for practitioners, scholars, and policymakers alike. The “Global Research on Teaching and Learning English” series, copublished with Routledge, showcases research by scholars from around the world, whose research has been funded by TIRF grants, awarded through a carefully vetted international competition. Volumes in the series report on issues of current concern to the applied linguistics community and the language teaching profession.

The “TIRF Insights” series, meanwhile, provides shorter, practice-oriented pieces that bring research to life in classroom settings. These publications, written by leading scholars in the field, connect directly to TIRF’s Research Topics and demonstrate how research can inform day-to-day teaching and learning.

Looking ahead, both TESOL and TIRF are preparing to contribute to the growing conversation around artificial intelligence (AI) in language education. AI represents both a challenge and an opportunity, and research will be essential in determining how it can be harnessed ethically and effectively. Forthcoming work in this area will build on the research directions and the research topics while responding to urgent questions raised by technological change.

How TESOL’s Research Directions and TIRF’s Research Topics Work Together

Although TESOL’s Research Directions and TIRF’s Research Topics are distinct from one another, they share a common purpose: to advance English language teaching through research. They complement one another by offering different but interconnected perspectives; TESOL’s Research Directions frame four broad disciplinary priorities for the profession (research education and literacy, professional learning, teaching methods, and emerging educational technologies), whereas TIRF’s Research Topics provide targeted focus areas that drive specific programs, publications, and funding opportunities.

These two associations create a strong ecosystem for supporting inquiry. TESOL promotes research excellence through recognition, professional development, and advocacy, while TIRF ensures that new scholarship is nurtured and disseminated widely. Both organizations are committed to ensuring that research does not remain in journals or at academic conferences but instead reaches teachers, learners, and decision-makers who can apply it in meaningful ways.

Looking Ahead: Building a Research-Informed Future

As TESOL and TIRF look to the future, their research frameworks will remain essential tools for guiding growth and innovation in the ELT profession. For TESOL, the research directions will continue to shape priorities and underscore the centrality of research-informed practice. For TIRF, the research topics will drive ongoing grants, publications, and new joint initiatives, such as the TESOL-TIRF Research Symposium, which ensures that both entities remain responsive to emerging needs.

What unites these efforts is a shared belief that by supporting and celebrating research that connects with practice, the TESOL profession remains vibrant, relevant, and ready to meet the challenges of a rapidly changing world.

References

Bailey, K. M., & Damerov, R. M. (Series Editors). Global research on teaching and learning English.  Routledge/TIRF. https://www.routledge.com/Global-Research-on-Teaching-and-Learning-English/book-series/TIRF

Curtis, J. H., Uştuk, Ö., Salama, A., Coombe, C., Hong, H., & Kitson, C. (2024). TESOL research directions 2023-2027 report. TESOL International Association. https://www.tesol.org/media/oijnexn0/research-directions-report_v4.pdf