Learner Training: developing autonomy and self-awareness
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Page 1 of 2 In this issue: ✔ Learner Training: developing autonomy and self-awareness ✔ Teacher Tidbits The overall aim of learner training is to encourage students’ awareness of learning strategies so that they become more effective and autonomous language learners. The following are a number of learner-training techniques that you can incorporate in your classroom to encourage your students to become more independent learners. ■ Learners’ goals ■ Syllabus negotiation ■ Thinking about learning ■ Thinking about language ■ Correction and assessment Learners’ goals Students learn more when their own personal objectives and ways of working are taken into account. You can support students by letting them choose personal goals to work toward. Encourage them to reflect on those goals, discuss them with the rest of the class, and adapt them if necessary. Diary entries One way of getting students to set and track their goals is to ask them to record them in their diaries. Their goals should be specific, measurable, achievable and realistic. For example: ■ I’m going to record my new vocabulary in my Study Guide. ■ I’m going to write down at least two example sentences for each new vocabulary word. ■ I’m going to work on improving my pronunciation of /T/. Make sure that goals set at the start of a term are reassessed periodically through open discussion. If goals have been met, or were unrealistic, encourage students to rewrite them. Syllabus negotiation At the start of the course, go through the syllabus and/or the plan of the course book with the class. Explain which items are non-negotiable and why. Allow students to vote on which negotiable items they want to do. It is best to start off with limited syllabus-negotiation and expand it as the group becomes more cohesive. Later on in the course, give students the opportunity to choose alternative tasks and ways of working that address the same objectives on the syllabus. Students play a part in the decision-making process and the syllabus will better reflect their attitudes, beliefs and interests. Thinking about learning Reflections When doing any activity, get students to ask themselves these types of questions and share their responses: ■ Before you begin, determine what your personal objectives are and how they can be reached by this activity. ■ How did you remember and learn the vocabulary? Was it useful to recognize the words in the text? ■ Were you able to reach your objectives in this activity in the class or in another outside the class? If you were, in what way? If not, why not? Did you achieve other objectives that you hadn’t planned to? Many course books have these types of activities built-in. Learner Training: developing autonomy and self-awareness Issue 6 www.ef.com/teacher EF’S NEWSLETTER FOR TEACHERS Educator Monthly This month, EF Educator Monthly is turning its attention to learner training; techniques to develop students’ awareness of how they learn. When learning L2 in an L1 environment, students have no choice but to be proactive about their studies as practice opportunities will rarely come their way. Becoming part of the syllabus, understanding what works for them (and what doesn’t), and thinking about language itself, are all ways in which students can maximise their potential. The EF Educator Monthly is designed by and for teachers; if you have any suggestions for content or themes for future newsletters, contact the editor [email protected]. Chris Flint Editor London, UK
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Transcript of Learner Training: developing autonomy and self-awareness
Page 1 of 2
In this issue:
� Learner Training:developing autonomy and self-awareness
� Teacher Tidbits
The overall aim of learner training is to encouragestudents’ awareness of learning strategies so that theybecome more effective and autonomous languagelearners. The following are a number of learner-trainingtechniques that you can incorporate in your classroomto encourage your students to become moreindependent learners.
� Learners’ goals� Syllabus negotiation� Thinking about learning� Thinking about language� Correction and assessment
Learners’ goals
Students learn more when their own personal objectivesand ways of working are taken into account. You cansupport students by letting them choose personal goalsto work toward. Encourage them to reflect on thosegoals, discuss them with the rest of the class, andadapt them if necessary.
Diary entriesOne way of getting students to set and track their goalsis to ask them to record them in their diaries.
Their goals should be specific, measurable, achievableand realistic. For example:� I’m going to record my new vocabulary in my
Study Guide.
� I’m going to write down at least two examplesentences for each new vocabulary word.
� I’m going to work on improving my pronunciation of /T/.
Make sure that goals set at the start of a term arereassessed periodically through open discussion. Ifgoals have been met, or were unrealistic, encouragestudents to rewrite them.
Syllabus negotiation
At the start of the course, go through the syllabusand/or the plan of the course book with the class.Explain which items are non-negotiable and why. Allowstudents to vote on which negotiable items they want todo. It is best to start off with limited syllabus-negotiationand expand it as the group becomes more cohesive.Later on in the course, give students the opportunity tochoose alternative tasks and ways of working thataddress the same objectives on the syllabus. Studentsplay a part in the decision-making process and thesyllabus will better reflect their attitudes, beliefs andinterests.
Thinking about learning
ReflectionsWhen doing any activity, get students to ask themselvesthese types of questions and share their responses:
� Before you begin, determine what your personalobjectives are and how they can be reached by thisactivity.
� How did you remember and learn the vocabulary?Was it useful to recognize the words in the text?
� Were you able to reach your objectives in this activityin the class or in another outside the class? If youwere, in what way? If not, why not? Did you achieveother objectives that you hadn’t planned to?
Many course books have these types of activities built-in.
Learner Training: developing autonomy and self-awareness
Issue 6www.ef.com/teacher
EF’S NEWSLETTER FOR TEACHERS
Educator Monthly
This month, EF EducatorMonthly is turning itsattention to learner training;techniques to developstudents’ awareness of howthey learn. When learning L2 in an L1 environment,students have no choice but to be proactive abouttheir studies as practiceopportunities will rarely cometheir way. Becoming part ofthe syllabus, understandingwhat works for them (andwhat doesn’t), and thinkingabout language itself, are allways in which students canmaximise their potential. The EF Educator Monthly is designed by and forteachers; if you have anysuggestions for content or themes for futurenewsletters, contact theeditor [email protected].
Chris FlintEditorLondon, UK
Page 2 of 2
PortfoliosStudents collate their course work in a portfolio whichallows both teacher and students to see what has beenachieved and to reflect on the learning process. As partof a final assessment, ask students to select a certainnumber of pieces to include in their final portfolio andask them to say why those pieces were selected forgrading.
Resources outside of classBe sure that students are fully aware of all of theresources that are available to them outside of class, aswell as inside, such as textbooks, authentic materials,media, computers and the Internet. Provide them with alist of web sites where they can practice or do L2research. When assigning activities allow students tochoose the resources that they feel are mostappropriate for the tasks.
Thinking about language
Discovering patternsGuide students to discover, record and comparepatterns in the language. Eliciting grammar rules fromstudents can help to foster a sense of independence.For example:� Did you find any language patterns in your questions
and answers? � If so, record what they were and compare them to
your earlier list(s) from this unit.� Why do you think those patterns are used here?
Negotiating meaningAllow students to understand new vocabulary throughnegotiated or shared meaning. For example, whenstudying a topic such as, Heroes, Idols and Legends, � Allow students to discuss the meaning of the words
in small groups and agree upon a definition (withouthelp from the teacher or a dictionary).
� Get them to share their opinions with the rest of the class.
� Record their collaborative definitions on the board.
This will help students to develop a belief in their ownability to guess meaning and negotiate in the targetlanguage. It also frees the teacher and the dictionaryfrom being the sole authority on the language.
Authentic activities and materials Devise open-ended activities around authentic materialsthat offer students the opportunity to bring their ownbackground, experiences, opinions, and interpersonalskills to the activities. Using authentic materials will notonly expose learners to the real structure of the targetlanguage, but to the socio-cultural aspects of languageas well.
Correction and assessment
Self-correctionEncourage students to keep a record of their ownerrors and the corrected sentences in their diaries.
Peer-correctionAfter completing writing assignments, ask students inpairs to edit each other’s work and advise each otheron corrections.
Self-assessmentAfter completing activities, or at the end of the term, getstudents to answer questions on how they think theyperformed in the activity or during the term. Compareand discuss the student’s responses with your ownassessment.
Peer-assessmentWhen doing an activity, such as giving presentations,allow students to work together to develop the set ofcriteria for a successful presentation. Then, as a studentgives his or her presentation, the rest of the studentsmark him or her based on the criteria that they haveestablished.
ConclusionLearner autonomy is grounded in co-operation andcollaboration, formed through syllabus negotiation,given room to grow in activity design, and guided bylearner training. By incorporating as many of thesetechniques as possible into your classroom, you willincrease students’ language use, start them on the roadto greater self-awareness in language learning and helpthem to become better, more effective communicators.
Kristine PackProfessional Development CoordinatorEF ILS
Learner Training: developing autonomy and self-awareness (cont’d)
Turning the tables
You can increase your students’engagement with their learningmaterials and/or course book bygetting them to design their ownexercises. At first, they aretesting themselves—asking whatwould be appropriate to reviewand how to phrase thequestions—and then their classcolleagues. This practice isappropriate at any level andoften provides students with aconcrete reason for reproducingexamples of language items fortheir notebooks.
Usually, it’s most helpful to getstudents mimicking the exactexercise structure that appearsin their learning materials/coursebook—the focus is then on theteaching aim rather than the skillof materials design. Examplesmight include simple clozeexercises for checking recentvocabulary, error correction forgrammar and key wordtransformations, for the moreadvanced students.
Naturally, you will need to checkthe integrity of exercises beforesharing them with the class, butasking students to analysis thelearning process can be alesson for you too and quiterevealing of what your studentshave understood from yourefforts.
Teacher Tidbits
EF Educator Monthly – Issue 6
