The Language Teacher
September 1999
Learning from the Learners' Voice: A Consideration of Learner Development
Miyuki Usuki
Hokuriku University
When we talk about "autonomous learners," we may have slightly different features and emphases in mind, but we would probably agree that "learners' taking responsibility for their own learning" (Holec, 1981) is central. Similarly, we would probably agree that "Learner Development" aims to make learners responsible for their own learning processes through planning, monitoring, and evaluation (e.g. Wenden, 1991). And some of us would claim that learner autonomy is necessarily the result of such learner development. However, I read "learners' responsibility for their own learning" as their self-directed awareness of their role as learners, whatever the learning situation happens to be. Learner autonomy, then, may not be a consequence of a particular teaching style, itself. Nor, in my opinion, does autonomous learning necessarily mean a complete shift of instructional mode from teachers to learners. Rather, an autonomous learner is one who can learn from various teaching styles and develop and practice autonomy in a number of ways, depending on the context of the classroom.
In short, an essential element of learners' autonomy is their conscious ability to direct themselves: it may be internal, not public (Dickinson 1996), but its basis is the learners' acceptance of responsibility, and the ways of acting, feeling, and thinking such acceptance implies (Little 1995a).
To investigate students' attitudes toward their roles and classroom learning, I interviewed 24 first year private university EFL majors, in small groups. I had never faced them as a teacher. The one-hour interviews, in their native Japanese, were taped in a relaxed atmosphere--so that the students could feel free to express themselves--and later transcribed.
Japanese students are typically described as passive learners, accepting teachers' authority without question or challenge (cf. Purdie, Doglas & Hattie, 1996; Pierson, 1996). The following discussions however, give the students a chance to express their own feelings and ideas.
"What is the role of the learner in the learning process?"
S1: The learners' role is to attend class with a motivation to learn more.
S2: If students are motivated to learn, teachers may also be motivated to teach. So, together with teachers, we students should accept our own role of stimulating the class, show our motivation by, for example, asking questions in class. The most important point is that we are motivated.
S3: I would like to expect teachers to be good advisors when we have problems with continuing our studies, not only as far as English is concerned. If teachers think about students, we feel happy.
S2: There should be no barriers between students and teachers.
S1: It is difficult to talk with teachers.
S4: We should make use of opportunities to stimulate one another (teachers and students).
S9: We should show our personality; we should let other students and the teacher know what sort of persons we are. Individual students should open up to others. It may be difficult though.
S10: I am the same as everyone else. We students should act more on our own initiative. We should get what we can. There are various people at university, but most of people are not active enough and just attend the class. People who major in English stop trying to improve once they can speak simple English. They seem to decide to stop. I am doing my best, but sometimes feel bored in class. Is it because of the lesson? If I question myself. . . . University study is different from high school study. There are lots of things to do at home. I can do many things privately outside the classroom. I have many things to do, apart from digesting the lessons.
S8: We should even stimulate the teacher, so he becomes motivated to teach us. For example, if we ask lots of questions, he may realize that students want to know these kind of things. In this way, students stimulate learning. Then, both the teacher and the students create a better atmosphere.
S10: I think there are many students who are doing the minimum. We do not realise that all lesson contents can be used for our future, and there might be lots of useful things for us in our lessons.
S9: The biggest problem is that many people have no particular aim.
S8: Many people do not know what they need to do clearly, so they simply try to get the necessary credits. So, many people think as long as they do the minimum requirement, they will have no problem.
S10: On the other hand, there are some people who try to gain as much as possible because they want to improve themselves. Even though they do not have any clear objectives for their future, they try to do their best for the time being.
"What is the role of classroom learning?"
S3: There are some lessons which are not so interesting, and we don't like lessons if we are not interested. But any lesson has some useful points. There is always something that we can use to improve ourselves. I believe that we should not completely hate or reject a class. Teachers try their best to teach us.
S2: There are no lessons which are 100% no good, are there?
S1: No. The point is our motivation.
S2: But there are teachers who never try to change, even though they know our feelings. I understand teachers have their own ways, but students don't follow them. I would like teachers not to speak just about their specialist subjects. Instead, teachers should concern themselves with what and how students learn, and with what students are interested in.
S4: One-way lessons in which teachers talk: These kinds of lessons make it difficult for students to ask questions in class. Even we wish to make lessons more interesting, it is hard in this kind of situation.
S1: There may be different answers possible, but in this kind of class, we think that we need to follow what the teacher says.
S2: We are not getting anywhere. We keep coming back to the same point.
S1: Maybe, it is possible to apply this to various things.
S2: Teachers also have their plans. So, they must follow their plans.
S1: To the next thing, then the next, like this, teachers go ahead. So, we have to follow, even if we have questions, it is hard to stop the stream of lessons and ask a question.
S3: The atmosphere is too quiet.
S2: If we talk, it seems strange. That is what we feel.
S1: We are shy.
S2: If we express our opinions, it seems to be no good. That's what we feel. That we should not interrupt.
S3: If someone speaks out, that person will stand out.
S1: We are too quiet!
S2: We cannot open our mouths.
S3: I want to ask questions, and also I want teachers to reply to me.
S1: So do I. But everyone is too quiet, so I don't have a chance to do this.
S2: I don't know why it is so quiet.
S4: We don't know people around us very well. We don't know the class members very well.
S1: Because there is a clear distinction between the teacher and students.
S3: The important thing is encouragement. If the teacher says "your essay was very impressive," then I would like to write an even better one next time, and surprise him. So, I will be more motivated. I believe the communication between teachers and students is extremely important.
S7: I prefer the lessons where teachers and students communicate with each other. Not just ones where a teacher talks and we listen, but where we communicate with each other.
S6: I think when the teacher only proceeds with the lesson, there is no arrow from the students to the teacher. So, the teacher should take time to find out whether the students really understand or not. Otherwise, only the content goes to the students and not the meaning. In this case, it is meaningless to go to lessons.
S7: In the past, we had a style of lesson where the teacher talks and students listen. But at university, I want lessons which stimulate me.
S6: We should learn by ourselves. It means that things should not only be taught, but we should think what to learn and how to learn. So, I feel something should be different from the past experience of simply receiving information from the teacher. Maybe, we are now allowed to show our wish to learn actively.
S7: Even we want to show this, there is a difficult atmosphere.
S6: Probably, everyone wants to show this. So, someone should break the ice.
S7: Whether I can do it or not, at least, I feel something should be changed.
S6: It is hard, isn't it. We need courage to do it. I feel sometimes we should not be like this. We are allowed to change it.
From the above extracts, the students seem to be aware that students and teachers need to make an effort to change the process of classroom learning.
They expressed a need for interaction between the teacher and students. Also, they seem to think the students' role should be that of active learner and teachers' role that of facilitator or advisor. Probably, their behaviour in the classroom is affected by the atmosphere of the class; the class room atmosphere may be influenced by the relationship of the teacher and other students. The interviews show that our students' internal attitudes are often different to their external performance in the classroom.
One Autonomous Learner's Self-Direction
What needs to be considered to promote learner autonomy? I interviewed Fumiko, an apparently autonomous learner, and analysed how she thinks about her own learning in order to clarify aspects of learner autonomy.
On what occasions do you feel frustrated?
When my TOEIC scores or some other test scores didn't improve at all, I felt frustrated. But when I feel frustration, I try to believe in myself. I believe in myself and keep trying very hard. I believe that if I keep trying, I will progress. It is very difficult, but even if I don't concentrate on my studies, I use the time to study English. If there is a person who speaks better than me, I feel frustration, too. But I get ideas from this person as to how he studies English.
She evaluates herself, and if she finds no improvement, she feels frustrated. That is purely her own matter. She compares her present ability to her past ability, not to that of others. Indeed, she sees the superior ability of others as a positive opportunity for her to learn. Also, her belief in her ability to learn seems to lead her to progress and give her independent support.
What is your role inside the classroom?
To get everything from the class, from the teacher. To get everything in that class. To take full advantage of the class. I prepare for the class and review the lesson. So, together this makes a complete class. Some people often say that the level of the lesson is not suited for them, or the content is no good. But you can learn something from any lesson. The matter lies in the learners themselves. It depends on them. Whether people improve in English or not is their own responsibility and due to their own motivation.
She directs her own learning opportunistically. She takes responsibility as a learner to motivate herself. Rather than treat the environment as a given, she makes her own environment suit her learning. She insists on the importance of the learner, rather than the style or method of classroom learning. In addition, she considers her classroom learning as only part of her learning. It forms the core and is supplemented by outside learning. She insists that these two can not be separated and together they constitute her present learning.
What is classroom learning?
Helping each other, I realise what other people do, or think. I can get ideas from the class that I can't think of by myself.
She considers classroom learning a place for interaction. She is aware of learning from her social relationship with others.
What is your goal?
In the future, I would like to have a particular area of work which relates to English, but I am thinking now what I can do with my English. Studying my English is a very convenient way of learning because we can do a small amount each time. We do not necessarily have to set aside a particular time for it. There are lots of things we can do if we use a short period of time each day. I do not want to waste my time. I would like to use 24 hours wisely.
She has a particular goal in mind. She thinks she needs to know exactly what she wants to do and what she can do. She is reflective: She questions herself and deliberately tries to think flexibly. In addition, she is very conscious about time. This attitude seems to be the basis of her learning and thinking.
Implications for Students
Brookfield (1985) identified two major aspects of "self-directedness": (a) the technique of self-instruction and (b) internal changes in consciousness. I would like to consider the latter the focus of learner autonomy. Learner development aims to raise learners' awareness of their role as learners. It may be effective for learners to take charge of their own learning processes, for example, through project work (e.g. Dam, 1995). However, the most important point to consider is how far learners are aware of their own role in any learning situation. We cannot deny the possibility or the importance of self-directed learner roles in the traditional classroom. As Crabbe (1996) claimed, "the fostering of autonomy is not necessarily a challenge to a traditional role of teachers. Nor is it necessarily incompatible with all existing practice."
To put it concretely, learners should have the opportunity to consciously reflect and question themselves in the following ways, for example:
- What are my problems?
- What do I need to do in order to overcome my problems?
- How am I doing now?
- How can I motivate myself?
- What can I do in the future?
Learner development ought to promote learners' self-confidence and self-motivation through the language learning process in order to encourage learners to believe in their own potential.
Students themselves need to improve their ability of self-analysis and encourage themselves to trust in their own potential. At the same time, it is extremely important for students to get the teachers' support and understanding. The teachers' role is to make an effort to understand the learners' perspectives, and to trust their potential. Lier (1996) argued that "a teacher cannot simply transmit the sort of skills and attitudes to learning that are required, nor can he or she train learners in the way that recruits are trained to march in step." Fostering autonomy is not just a matter of learning a few techniques--it involves changing the way in which we relate to learners (Hoffman, 1997).
Implications for Teachers: My Learning as a Teacher
Although teachers and learners must both struggle with their limits and potentials, it is my belief that promoting learner autonomy does not necessarily mean a complete rejection of teacher authority, or that teachers and students should have equal positions of power. It is a fact that power differences between the teacher and the students exist. As Widdowson (1987) notes, "the learner really exercises autonomy only within the limits set by teacher authority." For both teachers and students, learner development is a challenge for self-realization, in opposition to the limitations of the status quo, and it is the means by which they can become aware of this struggle. Pennycook (1997) also insisted on students' empowerment: "to become the author of one's world, to become an autonomous language learner and user is not so much a question of learning how to learn as it is a question of learning how to struggle for cultural alternatives" (p45). Enhancing learner autonomy should not be undertaken merely in order to make teachers and learners appear equal in power. Instead, we should consider the importance of trust between the teacher and the students. Basically, if students and the teacher do not accept each other, the lessons will not be organized properly.
As for us, most Japanese teachers have been taught a language teaching method that involves one-way knowledge transmission. So we teachers ourselves need to reflect critically on our past learning experience. But this does not mean a total rejection of teacher-centeredness. Reflecting on my teaching diary, I feel now a complete rejection of teacher authority might be dangerous. I believe that the most important thing to consider is the responsibility of a teacher as a teacher and a learner as a learner; self-direction of their own roles as teachers and learners.
(An earlier version of this paper was presented at the JALT98 Annual Conference in Oomiya, Japan on 22nd November, 1998)
References
Brookfield, S. D. (1985). " Analysing a Critical Paradigm of Self-directed Learning". Adult Education Quarterly. Vol. 36, No.1, pp60-64.
Crabbe, D. (1996). " Examining Claims for Autonomy and Seeking Evidence ". International Conference Proceedings Autonomy 2000: The Development of Learning Independence in Language Learning. Nov. 20 - 22, 1996, Bangkok, Thailand.
Dam, L. (1995). Learner Autonomy 3: From theory to classroom practice. Dublin, Ireland: Authentik.
Dickinson, L. (1996). Learner Autonomy 2: Learner training for language learning. Dublin, Ireland: Authentik.
Holec, H. (1981). Autonomy and Foreign Language Learning. Pergamon Press.
Hoffmann, A. (1997). "Conference Report: Symposium on Learner Autnomy - AILA 11th World Congress, Finland, 4-9 August, '96". Newsletter of The AILA Scientic Commission on Learner Autonomy in Language Learning (LALL). Issue #3, March.
Lier, L .O. (1996). Interaction in the Language Curriculum. London and New York: Longman.
Little, D. (1995a). "Learning as Dialogue: The Dependence of Learner Autonomy on Teacher Autonomy". System. Vol.23, No.2, pp175 - 181.
Little, D. (1995b). Learner Autonomy 1: Definitions, Issues and Problems. Dublin, Ireland: Authentik.
Pennycook, A. (1997). " Cultural Alternatives and Autonomy ". In Benson, P. & Voller, P. (Eds.) (1997). Autonomy & Independence in Language Learning. London and New York: Longman.
Purdie, N., Doglas, G. & Hattie, J. (1996). "Student Conceptions of Learning and Their Use of Self-Regulated Learning Strategies: A Cross-Cultural Comparison". Journal of Educational Psychology.Vol.88, No.1, pp 87 - 100.
Wenden, A. (1991). Learner Strategies for Learner Autonomy: Planning and Implementing Learner Training for Language Learner. Prentice Hall, English Language Teaching.
Widdowson, H. D. (1987). "The Roles of Teacher and Learner". ELT Journal. Vol.41, No.2, April, pp 83 - 88.
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