1 learner_autonomy week 8

8/4/2019 1 Learner_autonomy Week 8

1/15

Autonomy and self-

direction

Autonomy, patient:The right of patients tomake decisions about

their medical carewithout their health care

provider trying toinfluence the decision.Patient autonomy does

allow for health careproviders to educate the

patient but does not

allow the health careprovider to make thedecision for the patient.

The illusion ofautonomy


2/15

How can we enable the learner to functionindependently when the teacher is no longerthere?

As well as a basic communicative competence inthe foreign language we must give learners theskillsto study by themselves, experience inindependent working, strategies for adding totheir repertoire, knowledge of tools likedictionaries and reference grammars that theycan use for themselves and, above all, theconfidence to go on working on their own.

Brian Page, 1992


3/15

Definitions - Autonomyiswhen the learner is willing to and capable oftaking charge of his (sic) own learning, i.e.independently:

Choosing aims and purposesChoosing materials, methods and tasksExercising choice and purpose in carrying out

the chosen tasksChoosing criteria for evaluation and using

them in evaluation

Henry Holec, 1981


4/15

Autonomy is

Broadly I regard autonomy as an attitudetowards learning in which the learner is preparedto take responsibility for his/her own learning: inaddition, to be successfully autonomous, thelearner needs to have learning skills, that is, to

have some idea about how to go about thelearning task. An important issue for discussionsof autonomy is whether learners can beautonomous in conventional teacher led,classrooms. Some writing on autonomy suggesta contrast between autonomous learning and

classroom learning. However, in my view, alearner can manifest a degree of autonomyat the level of a single activity or task, whichmight be going on in a conventional classroom

Dickinson, 1987


5/15

Autonomy is

Learning to learn(the development of learnerautonomy) is the development of the learnersawareness and consciousness of the process of(language) learning.

Negotiation, planning and evaluation of learningobjectives and activities are basic elements in theprocess of learning.

Leni Dam, 1990


6/15

Autonomy is

For some, learner autonomy is an ideal state,seldom actually achieved, where learners arefully responsible for decisions about theirown learning. For others, it represents a set ofskills that can be learned, And for others still,

autonomy is an inborn capacity that issuppressed as we go through the processes ofinstitutional education.

Benson, 1997To me autonomy is about people taking more

control over their lives - individually andcollectively. Autonomy in learning is about peopletaking more control over their learning inclassrooms and outside them and autonomy inlanguage learning (is) about people taking morecontrol over the purposes for which they learnlanguages and the ways in which they learn them.


7/15

Autonomy is

Learner autonomy is a problematic term becauseit is widely confused with self-instruction.

It is also a slippery concept because it is

notoriously difficult to define precisely. The rapidlyexpanding literature has debated, for example,whether learner autonomy should be thought ofas capacity or behaviour; whether it ischaracterised by learner responsibility or

learner control; whether it is a psychologicalphenomenon with political implications or apolitical right with psychologicalimplications; and whether the developmentof learner autonomy depends on

complementary teacher autonomy


8/15

Autonomy is

In other words, there is a consensus that thepractice of learner autonomy requires insight, apositive attitude, a capacity for reflection,and a readiness to be proactive in self-management and in interaction with others.

This working definition captures the challenge oflearner autonomy: a holistic view of the learnerthat requires us to engage with thecognitive, metacognitive, affective andsocial dimensions of language learning andto worry about how they interact with one

another.Little, 2003


9/15

Autonomy is

the word (autonomy has been used in at least fivedifferent ways:

1. for situations in which learners studyentirely on their own;

2. for a set of skills which can be learned

and applied in self-directed learning;3. for an inborn capacity which is

suppressed by institutional education;

4. for the exercise of learners'responsibility for their own learning;

5. for the right of learnersto determine thedirection of their own learning.

Benson & Voller, 1997: 2


10/15

Autonomy and teaching

Learner autonomy is the product of an interactiveprocess in which the teacher gradually enlargesthe scope of her learners autonomy by graduallyallowing them more control of the process andcontent of their learning. In classrooms as well asin naturalistic contexts communicative proficiency

in a second or foreign language is also theproduct of an interactive process. Thus whenlanguage learner autonomy is an educationalgoal, we must devise an interactive dynamic thatsimultaneously develops communicativeproficiency and learner autonomy: autonomy inlanguage learning and autonomy in language useare two sides of the same coin.

Little, 2007


11/15

Autonomy ... what we telllearners

Autonomous learning is learning on your own. Here are some ofthe implications of self-study or home learning.

Taking responsibility for your own learning is important at all stages in theeducational process which is why self-study and flexible learningprogrammes are increasingly seen as important at all levels of education. Itis even more important if youre learning on your own or attending aweekly evening class.

So what does autonomy mean in practical terms? Its helpful to think aboutthis in stages:

Defining your objectives Prioritising your objectives

Planning your study routine


12/15

Autonomy - related terms

learner autonomy learner independence

autonomous learning independent learning

open learning distance learning

empowerment individualisation

flexible learning self-directed learning

directed study self-paced learning

self-instruction resource-based learning

self-access supported self-study


13/15

Open learningclosed open

Who? Set entry requirements Scheme open to all

Why? Choice made by others Learner choice

What? Syllabus set out in advance;limited to materials chosen by

tutor; whole course must betaken

Learner formulates ownobjectives & syllabus; wide range

of materials; learners can takedifferent modules

How? One method/style/route Choice of methods, styles,activities

Where? One place only; must attend Learner chooses place

When? Fixed timetable Learner decides pace of work

Assessment Formal exam; no feedback Variety of assessment; ongoingfeedback

Support No support outside course; faceto face teaching

Variety of support e.g.counselling

Adapted from Lewis, 1987


14/15

Growing learner autonomy

Sims 2006;http://www.cybertext.net.au/inet_s3wk1/cs1_1_16.htm
http://www.cybertext.net.au/inet_s3wk1/cs1_1_16.htmhttp://www.cybertext.net.au/inet_s3wk1/cs1_1_16.htm


15/15

Many of the definitions given relate to thelearner but to what degree is the teacherautonomous in what they do?How far are they constrained by the

context in which they work?How far are you able to accecpt changes in

the curriculum, changes in the activitiesand assessment for example?
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1 learner_autonomy week 8

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