Few involved in language teaching would quarrel with the notion that more effective learners are those who take on responsibility for their own learning. However, criticisms have arisen about the promotion of autonomy as a goal for language learning: specifically, how suited are these efforts to cultures where educational tradition defines learners' and teachers' roles quite differently from those implied by a "strong version" of learner independence? What is the classroom teacher`s function in an autonomy-promoting learning environment and how well can autonomy-focused practices be assessed in settings where there is a great demand for accountability in terms of grades or certification?
Cultural
implications of movements to foster learner autonomy
The move
towards increased learner involvement in the language teaching context can
be traced to many innovations over the past 30 years, such as the rise of
communicative language teaching and the rejection of the form-focused syllabus.
This aim may be contrasted with the view expressed by "post-method"
writers such as Canagurajah (2002) that such a goal may not reflect the
preferred learning methods of learners in a particular (non-centre) setting.
Others have questioned the cultural appropriateness of learner autonomy
as a goal for language teaching and learning, emphasizing the political
implications of autonomy as an instrument for social change (e.g. Benson,
1997). Nonetheless, surveys about attitudes to classroom learning have provided
weak support for the presupposition that in certain cultures learners prefer
teachers to take charge of all aspects of classroom management, and defer
to them as sources of knowledge. Littlewood`s large scale 2001 survey, for
example, examined attitudes to classroom language learning in relation to
learner readiness for autonomy in 11 different European and Asian countries,
and concluded that, regardless of country of origin, learners would prefer
to participate actively in classroom learning. This offers support for the
idea that learners have a strong interest in taking an active role in their
learning management, if not always an opportunity to do so.
On the one hand, reports of successful attempts to involve learners in making decisions about their learning provide support for the promotion of greater learner autonomy as both a desirable and realistic goal for language teaching in general. Nevertheless, the wider political implications of power and control that undoubtedly permeate the autonomy movement and form part of its philosophical basis, may raise concerns for teachers about their role in an autonomy-promoting classroom environment.
Teachers'
roles in autonomous learning
Teachers in autonomy-centred classes are seen as facilitators, counselors
and resources (Voller, 1997). Facilitation encompasses a wide range of roles
that are both psycho-social and technical involving motivating, raising
awareness, helping to plan, evaluate and acquire needed skills. The counseling
function involves consultation and guidance while providing information
is the role of teacher as resource, one of many available to the autonomous
learner. How, then, does the teacher promote greater autonomy and exercise
these roles? Some approaches that have now become familiar, if not widespread,
include training learners to become more effective, independent learners;
strategy instruction and negotiating the syllabus. The role of teacher as
negotiator, as exemplified by Leni Dam`s work in Danish schools, appears
to be more consistent with increasing learner control, one of the main aims
of the autonomy movement in language learning. Dam`s aim was to "create
an environment in which learners are both capable of taking charge of their
own learning and willing to do so [my italics] " (1995, p. 4). Many
classroom teachers, faced with seemingly apathetic, unmotivated and dependent
learners may question how this willingness may be inculcated. Dam acknowledges
that developing learner autonomy is a long, painful and demanding process
for learners and teachers alike.
It has also been stressed that learner autonomy and teacher autonomy are interdependent, and that teachers wishing to promote greater learner autonomy need to "start with themselves", reflecting on their own beliefs, practices, experiences and expectations of the teaching/learning situation (Little, 1995; Smith, 2000).
Evaluation
as a constraint on the classroom development of learner autonomy
One problem with putting the principles of autonomous learning into practice
in the language classroom is that most teachers operate in an institutional
setting where accountability is demanded in the form of concrete evaluations
of individual learner`s language proficiency. This usually translates into
the awarding of externally-decided (often teacher-awarded) marks or grades
for course work, something that may be at odds with the "learner takes
control" message implied by increased learner involvement in course
content and procedures. Self- and peer-assessment are promoted as alternative
evaluation methods that have a better fit with the aims of increasing learner
autonomy, but these methods have been mostly used to raise awareness and
increase responsibility for learning, rather than as a reliable means of
evaluating language proficiency.
Among the
problems arising with collaborative assessment, at least in the secondary
school setting, are the reluctance of some learners to take on the responsibility
and of some teachers to give it up (Smith, 2001). Furthermore, since each
group decides its own scale, there is no comparability between groups, thus
validity and reliability are compromised. Smith concludes that self-assessment
may be appropriate for formative purposes but questions its appropriateness
for external summative evaluation, a point also raised by Dickinson (1992),
who considers self-assessment problematic for educational situations where
certification is an aim, such as awarding a degree.
Conclusion
It seems likely that the promotion of learner autonomy in language learning
is an area that will continue to grow given post-critical awareness of the
need to recognize learners' personal voices and identities. As Canaragurajah
(2002) has argued, this path may lead to ways of learning that are apparently
traditional and teacher-centred but can still be seen as reflecting autonomy
in that they represent learners' choices. Properly situated in its context,
and with a careful consideration both of teacher and learner background,
interest and expectations, promoting learner autonomy is a worthwhile aim.
After all, in a shrinking world in which access to information of all types
is becoming ever easier, all of us have to take on the role of self-directed
learner, searching, selecting, evaluating and filtering this mass of communication
into our personal knowledge base. For teachers, the advice Benson (2003)
gives may be the most relevant, "we cannot teach students to become
more autonomous... (but) we can create the atmosphere and conditions in
which they will feel encouraged to develop the autonomy they already have"
(p. 305).
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