In contrast to traditional ‘lockstep learning’, which has learners doing the same thing at the same time, in the same way, and all expected to achieve roughly the same results, autonomous learning starts from the premise that the individual has the potential to take responsibility for everything in their own life, including learning.

While in the past what the learners should do, and how they should do it was typically decided by an authority figure i.e. the teacher, the director of studies or the education department, the notion of autonomous learning has gained in popularity since the 1980s.

Why foster learner autonomy?

Anyone who has attempted to learn a new language knows that language learning takes a relatively long time, and a learner may not want to, or be able to enrol in a teaching program for such a long duration. Likewise, for institutions, it means learning can take place without having a teacher/tutor/facilitator physically present in all instances of learning.

The key benefit of learner autonomy is that autonomous learners ‘will take more responsibility for learning and are likely to be more effective than learners who are overly-reliant on the teacher.’ (Swift)

‘Autonomous learning is more effective than non-autonomous learning.’ (Lowry)

What do learners need to become autonomous?

• The belief that they can learn independently of the teacher and the classroom setup. Some cultures have authoritarian learning systems that produce very dependant learners.
• A willingness to undertake independent learning i.e. to take on the responsibility in terms of goal setting, time management, selecting materials and conducting self/peer assessment.
• A realistic and positive attitude to language learning (sometimes this may be undermined by previous learning experiences, requiring coaching from the teacher).
• Strategies – this is where the teacher becomes invaluable as a resource to the aspiring learners. There is a need for learner training, as autonomy does not happen overnight. Remember, autonomy does not equate with working in isolation. The teacher, the class and the school are still part of the learner’s environment.

Doesn’t fostering learner autonomy remove the teacher from the learning process?

In a word, no. Many learners come to the language class from a background of authoritative teaching. Their previous learning experience may well have conditioned them to be heavily reliant on the teacher for approval, direction, instruction, organisation and learning strategies. We can’t simply expect these learners to be autonomous, and there is typically a real need to develop learner autonomy in the classroom. Eventually the learner is equipped to conduct his/her ongoing learning outside the classroom and even evaluate it. The learner should come to see the teacher in her role as a facilitator and resource rather than the ‘unquestionable authority’.

Furthermore, although a learner may develop skills of autonomous learning, this doesn’t preclude them from participating in language classroom lessons.

Which skills does the teacher need to foster to develop learner autonomy?

This is largely dependent on how independent you expect your students to become. Initially teachers can develop skills that students need in order to find access and use resources; such as internet sites or online journals, supported by activities that are completed as homework tasks. Eventually this leads to students developing their own skills for setting objectives, planning their self-study, and even self-assessment.

It’s important to acknowledge that autonomy is a matter of degree, not ‘either/or’. Nunan points out that this is developed in stages, starting from fostering awareness of the learning goals and the content of the materials learners are using, and developing into a ‘transcendence’ as learners go beyond the classroom to make links between the content of the classroom learning and the world beyond. How deep the learner is able to develop this process depends on the teacher, the learner and the resources available.

How do we foster learner autonomy?

First of all, teachers can start to foster an awareness of the skills that are involved in learning, and demonstrate the learning strategies in use through the activities that they plan during the course. In this way teachers encourage learners to understand the rationale behind teaching methodology, such as learning through discovery.

Through texts, questionnaires, surveys and discussion, different learning strategies can be brought to the learners’ attention so that they can evaluate them for personal effectiveness, or decide which ones to develop.

Gradually, teachers may transfer some of the decision making and choices to the learners in order to develop their awareness and confidence for making decisions. For example, through pyramid discussions learners can identify their preference for scheduling different skills work or different activity types.

With the wealth of resources available for self-study through multimedia and internet, language teaching is, now more than ever before, in a position to encourage learner autonomy – supported by learner training in the classroom. While classroom learning may result in extensive ‘far reaching’ learning in terms of the language input, autonomous learning may complement this by encouraging the learner to go ‘deep’ and exploit materials that assist with acquisition of language.

Examples of strategies to help develop learner autonomy (Swift)

Suggestions for developing learner autonomy:

There are many resources that teachers can draw from in order to encourage learner autonomy. Some, such as social networking sites, are often exploited by learners before teachers utilize them for teaching purposes.

General and specialist dictionaries:

Many have learner orientation tasks to teach learners strategies for using dictionaries as well as language references sections to aid learning.

Journals and periodicals – especially for ESP or EAP students

Keeping a reflective journal about the learning experience

Television

• Documentaries
• News

Radio Streaming

E.g. BBC radio 4 educational programs

Internet

• Language exchange with other language learners e.g. livemocha.com
• Online PPT presentations e.g. authorstream.com or slideshare.com
• ESL resources using graded or authentic material from the following websites
• http://www.pearsonlongman.com/index.html
• http://www.bbcactiveenglish.com/
• http://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/en/
• http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/
• Course books routinely provide extended practice through multimedia
• Online discussion boards (from football to movies cooking and vehicle maintenance)
• Reviews available for books they’ve read or movies they’ve seen
• Exam preparation sites
• You Tube and other social networking media such as wikis and blogs

‘If a teacher raises awareness that these resources can be accessed and utilized independently for further self-study, many students will do so. Learner training and demo-ing are crucial.’ (Krzanowski, 2007)

‘Learners [are] ‘quick on the uptake’ and embrace it easily. Teachers [are] not always keen. At times [they] are so deep in ritualistic behavior that they would not make an effort to accept and take on innovations in learning and teaching.’ (Krzanowski, 2007)

While this article hopefully encourages you to consider how you might develop the principles of autonomy with your learners, a much more thorough knowledge of these principles can be developed by doing your own autonomous learning on the topic, a good place to start would be the links provided in the references below.

References

• Thornbury, S. 2006 An A-Z of ELT. Oxford: Macmillan
• Krzanowzki, M. 2007 Successful Learner Autonomy and Learner Independence in Self-Directed Learning. [Accessed 9 February 2011], http://www.slideshare.net/markkski1/successful-learner-autonomy-and-learner-independence-in-selfdirected-learning
• Lowry, E. Approaches to Learner Autonomy in Language Learning. [Accessed 9 February 2011] http://www.slideshare.net/irwyn12/approaches-to-learner-autonomy-in-language-learning-presentation-786825
• Swift, S. Autonomy. [Accessed 10 February 2011], http://www.authorstream.com/Presentation/sueswift-124056-Autonomy-Learner-Humanistic-Education-Moving-towards-AutonomyFrom-ppt-powerpoint/