Learner autonomy – the ability to take charge of one’s own learning. It is not inborn but must be acquired either by natural means or (as most often happens) by formal learning, i.e. in a systematic, deliberate way. To take charge of one’s learning is to have the responsibility for all the decision concerning all aspects of this learning.
In adult education there is a strong promotion to learner’s freedom learning. Why is learner autonomy important? According to an empirical research in social psychology, autonomy – “feeling free and volitional in one’s actions” is a basic human need.
The development of autonomy in language learning is governed by three basic pedagogical
principles:
• learner involvement – engaging learners to share responsibility for the learning process
• learner reflection – helping learners to think critically when they plan, monitor and
evaluate their learning
• appropriate target language use – using the target language as the principal
What does the teacher do?
§ use the target language as the preferred medium of classroom communication and require the same of her learners;
§ involve learners in a non-stop quest for good learning activities, which are shared, discussed, analyzed and evaluated with the whole class – in the target language, to begin with in very simple terms;
§ help her learners to set their own learning targets and choose their own learning activities, subjecting them to discussion, analysis and evaluation – again, in the target language;
§ require learners to identify individual goals but pursue them through collaborative work in small groups;
§ require learners to keep a written record of their learning – plans of lessons and projects, lists of useful vocabulary, whatever texts they themselves produce;
§ engage learners in regular evaluation of their progress as individual learners and as a class – in the target language
§ a series of learning strategies are the key to learner autonomy
§ the overall classroom atmosphere needs to encourage reflection and learner initiative. Students need to recognize that their views and roles are valued before they are willing to risk greater participation.
§ Teacher should talk to the students about what is the aim and why. Explain your thinking and what it means for your students.
Two activities for fostering autonomous learning:
1. Checking and correcting homework - this activity transfers a common teacher's role to learners, encourages their cooperation, interaction and assessment. It can be used as a warm-up activity at the beginning or as a revision task at the end of the class. Ask one of the students to start the activity by appointing a speaker who will provide an answer to the first question. If the answer is correct, this student asks somebody else to answer the next question, and so on. If the answer is wrong, the teacher's role is taken by any student who provides the right answer. In this activity, all students have opportunity to speak out and argue their points. The teacher is nearly redundant, however, the teacher's interference might be necessary in case of tricky questions.
2. student produced test - the choice of materials that students can use for producing tests for their peers depends on their level. For students, making their own tests is an extremely motivating activity, which also has an element of self-study and self-assessment.
What are the constraints of introducing autonomy?
§ Nature of the examination system
§ Demands of curriculum coverage
§ General passivity of the pupils
§ Tension between what they would like achieve and what they feel
§ Negotiation skills
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