How much can we really know about learner autonomy?

10.47908/8/1 ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 8-39
Author(s):  
Dominic G. Edsall
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Critical Realism ◽  
Learner Autonomy ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Social Realism ◽  
Philosophical Basis ◽  
Empirical Truth ◽  
Simple Definition

In this chapter the author examines the concept of learner autonomy in Second Language Acquisition which is now more than 40 years old. Its seemingly simple definition remains difficult to pin down empirically which can be a challenge for some practitioners. This problem of empirical truth is intrinsically linked with our understandings of the underlying epistemology, and our own philosophical theories about what we know. This chapter attempts to address the current philosophical basis for learner autonomy, how much we as language teachers can actually know about learner autonomy, and some of the theoretical limits to how we can investigate it further. Exploring the relatively new philosophies of Critical Realism and Social Realism from the wider educational literature, the author discusses how new insights could be gained. Edsall concludes by contemplating the possibility of not being able to definitively define the concept of learner autonomy and why we might have to settle on an incomplete but richer picture of the concept and its practice.

scholarly journals A Discussion on Autonomous Teachers and how to Get them Reach their Utmost Capacity in SLA Classroom

2015 ◽  
Vol 53 ◽  
pp. 1-5
Author(s):  
Afsaneh Ghanizadeh ◽  
Mohammad Ghazanfari ◽  
Mohsen Fatehi
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Collaborative Learning ◽  
Professional Growth ◽  
Learner Autonomy ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Peer Observation ◽  
Cooperative Development

It is of paramount importance for a teacher to do his best and make sure the students are becoming quite a learner, this paper tries to analyze autonomous teacher meanings, features, learner autonomy and how to accelerate the second language acquisition. And it also endeavors to shed some light on developing language teachers’ potentials, understanding and valuing their endowments and sharing them among colleagues. It is discussed that cooperative development can be achieved through collaborative learning and peer observation. Indoctrinating and observing are also needed to fortify professional growth.

Second Language Acquisition Research and Language Pedagogy: A Critical View

2015 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohammad Reza Talebinejad ◽  
Aasa Moattarian
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Teaching Practice ◽  
Structured Interview ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Language Pedagogy ◽  
Language Research ◽  
Class 1 ◽  
Research Findings

<p class="1"><span lang="X-NONE">Over the past several decades, a substantial body of research on second language acquisition has been provided. The current study was an attempt to investigate language teachers’ views on applying research findings in their every day practice of language teaching through a critical lens. Data for this qualitative study was collected by means of a semi structured interview with 10 language teachers teaching English at different language institutes in Iran. Analyses of data revealed that, although teachers find second language acquisition research a useful tool for their professional development; they do not usually consult bodies of research in their every day teaching practice. They report problems in applying second language research in their practice due to problems with practicality, particularity, and possibility. The findings suggest that language teachers need to be exposed to insight from SLA research and practice.</span></p>

Introduction: Supporting learners and educators in developing language learner autonomy

10.47908/8/i ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 1-7
Author(s):  
Michelle Tamala
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Learner Autonomy ◽  
Language Learner ◽  
Autonomy Development ◽  
The Social

This introduction sets the scene for the volume that explores some of the theoretical, empirical, and practical considerations when supporting educators and learners in promoting language learner autonomy. The author gives an overview of the chapters and notes that the findings pay special attention to the ‘social turn’ in researching language learner autonomy development and second language acquisition, and focus on the social, interactive and co-dependent nature of the concept.

scholarly journals Interactive Learning: An Innovation for English Language Acquisition

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 1187-1190
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
English Language ◽  
Interactive Learning ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
English Language Acquisition ◽  
Interactive Tool ◽  
Second Language Teachers

The education field is constantly venturing into many creative forms. Interactive learning is a hands-on approach to boost students' engagement and confidence. With new innovation, interactive learning enables students to reinforce critical thinking and problem-solving abilities in second language acquisition. Thus, the aim of this research is to design and create new interactive tool for second language teaching which can benefit both teachers and ESL students. This teaching and learning tool can be used for the 4 basic skills in ESL classrooms namely reading, listening, speaking and writing. A total of 30 students from a rural public secondary school were involved in this study. This interactive tool can help in building students’ motivation in learning especially among the low proficiency students and create autonomous learners who enjoyed and have fun while learning English. In conclusion, it is hoped that this research could add knowledge to the field of interactive tools and promotes creativity among second language teachers.

scholarly journals Review and Evaluation on the Sociocultural Theory and Bottleneck Hypothesis

2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 58
Author(s):  
Fan Xu
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Sociocultural Theory ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Specific Aspect ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Psychology Education

Over the past three decades, a growing number of different theories in second language acquisition field have come out in an effort to provide explanations as to how language learning takes place, to figure out what variables are effective for second language acquisition as well as to offer guidance to mass second language learners and language teachers. Because behind every teaching approach exists certain kind of theory of language acquisition and good theory in turn can help students master language skills in an effective and efficient way.Each theory is considered to have contributed to the field by highlighting a specific aspect of the language acquisition process. Second language acquisition theories are intrinsically related with various disciplines such as applied linguistics, psychology, education, sociolinguistics, neurology, etc. Considering the impossibility to elaborate all second language theories, I will focus on sociocultural theory and bottleneck hypothesis in second language acquisition. There is an overview which follows the introduction to the Sociocultural Theory and Bottleneck Hypothesis and its contribution to second language acquisition respectively, and then I will evaluate them to see their contributions to the SLA disciplinary development.

Modified Input as an Aid to Comprehension

1985 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 81-90 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ken Kelch
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Classroom Discourse ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Second Language Teachers

Much work in the field of second language acquisition (SLA) has focused on the linguistic adjustments made by native speakers (NSs) when speaking to non-native speakers (NNSs) of that language. Modifications of speech to NNSs are usually assumed to be an attempt to make the target language more comprehensible. The study of second language teachers' classroom discourse has contributed to a thorough description of such modifications, which in general may be termed foreigner talk (FT).

scholarly journals La valutazione della complessità sintattica nella classe di lingua

EL LE ◽  
2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ineke Vedder
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
University Students ◽  
Panel Discussion ◽  
Research Literature ◽  
L2 Writing ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Syntactic Complexity ◽  
Argumentative Texts

This paper aims to investigate how language teachers perceive syntactic complexity in L2 writing and to what extent teachers’ judgments are related to current theoretical views in the research literature on Second Language Acquisition (SLA). Sixteen L2 teachers were asked to evaluate the syntactic complexity of a sample of argumentative texts written by L2 university students of Italian. In the panel discussion that followed, teachers discussed the motivations behind their assigned scores and the feedback they had proposed. The results revealed that teachers tended to focus primarily on accuracy and comprehensibility, and much less on syntactic complexity. Teachers’ reflections appeared to be only partly aligned with existing theoretical views on syntactic complexity in the SLA literature.

Inquiring into the Nature of Beliefs: Implications for Learner Autonomy Reflection and Practice

10.47908/9/3 ◽  
2013 ◽  
pp. 53-74
Author(s):  
Stephen Brewer
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Human Behavior ◽  
Learner Autonomy ◽  
Current Debate ◽  
Ontological Status ◽  
The World ◽  
Human Brains

Human brains are prolific producers of thoughts about the world. One category of such thoughts, known as beliefs, is seen to play a key role in guiding human behavior. There is much current debate, however, about what beliefs actually are, i.e., their ontological status, and how second language acquisition researchers should go about conceptualizing and studying them. This article is an attempt to address this debate and ask what its implications could be for teachers interested in learner autonomy.

Second language acquisition, teacher education and language pedagogy

2009 ◽  
Vol 43 (2) ◽  
pp. 182-201 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rod Ellis
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Education ◽  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Acquisition ◽  
Teacher Collaboration ◽  
Teacher Educators ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Language Pedagogy ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
The Relationship

Various positions regarding the Second Language Acquisition (SLA) – Language Pedagogy (LP) nexus have been advanced. Taking these as a starting point, this article will examine the nature of the SLA/LP relationship both more generally and more concretely. First, it will place the debates evident in the different positions regarding the relationship in a broader educational and professional context by examining the nature of the theory/practice nexus – because the issues at stake do not just concern SLA. Second, it will examine critically a number of options for bridging the divide (e.g. through presenting the pedagogical implications of research, engaging teachers in researching their own classroom or promoting research–teacher collaboration). Third, it will probe the relationship in terms of a framework that links (i) SLA researchers, (ii) classroom researchers, (iii) teacher educators and (iv) language teachers. This framework will serve as a basis for formulating a set of eleven principles that can guide attempts to use SLA theory and research in teacher education programmes.

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