Student Autonomy

Definitions

Autonomy is the concept of self-directing freedom in the classroom. It describes the degree of learner responsibility and moral independence, meaning "the ability to take charge of one's learning" (Mohanty, 2010). Learner autonomy is defined as the aptitude to become a self-determined, self-regulated, responsible, and critical participant in educational settings. This means, autonomy is closely linked to the thoughts and actions in learning processes that are connected with personal choices, decisions, and intentions (Benson, 2001).

Furthermore, autonomy depicts the students' freedom in governing and controlling their own learning in the classroom (Mohanty, 2010). Therefore, learner autonomy is the ability and/or opportunity to make your own decisions without being controlled by anyone else (Reeve, 2006). Autonomous learners are capable of working independently, making decisions without any help from the teacher. According to previous debates, autonomy is "a constantly changing but at any time optimal state of equilibrium between maximal self-development and human interdependence" (Bocanegra, Haidl, & Càdiz 1999). Autonomy is a continuum and very irregular, because students develop diverse degrees of self-management skills at different times of their lives (Wenden, 1998).

Pedagogical autonomy has become a crucial concept of language teaching in today's curricula for modern language education. Learner autonomy classifies as an educational philosophy helping students with the development of lifelong learning strategies. According to Piaget's constructivist theory, the ultimate aim of education is “for learners to construct their own understandings and knowledge from their experiences rather than adopting predefined ideas” (Wenden, 1998). Thus, autonomy enables children to encounter, manipulate, and observe new knowledge to construct meaning for themselves. Autonomy allows students to become producers of language rather than simply learners of a linguistic system (Bocanegra, 1999). Autonomy is also connected to Vygotsky's cognitive development theory with which he stresses that children need to make their own discoveries to tackle the various tasks and problems they apt to face during language learning processes. Consequently, autonomy is directly related to metacognitive strategies as students are required to reflect upon their own thinking (Chamot, n.d.).

What does Autonomy look like in the classroom?

Autonomy in the classroom portrays the empowerment of students. Autonomy-supportive teachers provide their students with a variety of opportunities for choice. Therefore, teachers enable their students to learn independently, providing adequate structure and guidance. In the classroom, autonomy-supportive teachers take on the role of facilitators rather than language instructors. Similarly to communicative language teaching (CLT), the students are actively involved in the learning activities rather than passively absorbing the knowledge they are presented with by the teacher (Bocanegra, 1999). As facilitators, foreign language teachers raise student awareness and also help their students to plan. The key role of the teachers is to assist their students in becoming independent language learners. In other words, teachers and students work collaboratively. Autonomy-supportive teaching requires educators to create a learning community, in which all parties are active participants. Teachers are the ones to consult and guide their students, meaning they take on the roles of partners (Mohanty, 2010).

There is a great need for learner autonomy in language teaching as it provides students with the opportunity to share their voice and incorporate their identity. The concept of autonomy stresses the fact that foreign language learning is much more than role memorization. Language learning is a constructive process requiring students to actively seek meaning (Mohanty, 2010). When students actively experience language, they can better comprehend it, and easily use it later on.

To enhance students' sense of ownership in the classroom, teachers can and should

• provide opportunities for independent work and decision making.
  
• communicate rules/instructions/expectations in an informational rather than a controlling fashion.
• give students opportunities to make their own choices.
• evaluate students' performance in a noncontrolling way.

How teachers can promote students' autonomy during instruction.

retrieved from http://www.englishonline.org.cn/files/kid_autonomy_e.jpg

Why/what do teachers need to know about Autonomy?

Children are active and motivated learners. Piaget believed that children are naturally curious about the world and actively seek information to help themselves understand and make sense of it. Therefore, they continually experiment with the objects they encounter to construct an overall meaning of their environment (Benson, 2001).

When learners are taught to work on setting their own agenda, the process of learning becomes more focused and purposeful. Consequently, language learning is immediately more effective and children are more likely to remember what they have learned (Mohanty, 2010). Autonomy helps to enhance learner motivation, because choices provide for proactive commitment and encourages students to implement self-reflection strategies. When students are reflectively engaged in their learning, they are able to connect the materials to their personal experiences. This means, students learn more focused and their learning is automatically more efficient (Wenden, 1998).

Clearly, educators must know about the positive effects of autonomy in the classroom. They must know that the empowerment of students increases the students' level of motivation. Thus, educators should know to provide activities and goals that the students are likely to expend their motivation on. Involving students in constructive, productive activities helps them to work harder and feel good about what they are accomplishing (Reeve, 2006).

Teachers need to help students to develop such self-efficacy and the ability to know what they are capable of learning on their own. Through autonomy-supportive teaching, educators present their students with information and materials. However, they also provide their students with choices about how to make use of the information. Students need to realize that their learning environment is encouraging them to take on responsibility for their own development. In order words, teachers need to view autonomy as a key for students to find learning useful. Teachers need to assist their students in learning about learning so that they can increase their level of confidence and engagement. Choices and students empowerpoint has a positive influence on student learning and overall achievement. In the video (0:44), this empowerment is stressed through the importance of willingness. With choices in the classroom, students are likely to exhibit internal motivation (factors within themselves) rather than extrinsic motivation (factors external to themselves) like simply performing a teacher's task. 

retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gahvJJFaRLw

How does Autonomy concern students?

In the field of education, student autonomy is well-founded around the Chinese metaphor: you can lead the horse to water, but you can't make him drink. Considering the video above, the quote given at 0:14 further stresses the importance of student involvement: "Thinking is the key to learning. While teachers can do many things for their students, there is one inescapable fact, they cannot think for them." ~Jim Ahern. In the foreign language classroom, teachers can provide all the daily necessities for learning. Thus, they can lead their "horses" to rich sources. However, the students themselves are the ones to be professionally accountable for developing a willingness to learn (Mohanty, 2010).

Autonomous learners develop an explicit understanding of the purpose of their learning as well as learning activities and outcomes.

This means, they accept their responsibility for their own learning.

The following diagram features the learning initiatives students should be able to take continuously:

1. Learners want to learn.

2. They develop thoughts on what they want to achieve.

3. They organize their information/abilities accordingly.

4. They use trial and error methods to see what works.

5. Based upon their prerequisites, they create a finalized action plan.

6. They observe the effects.

7. They reflect upon and evaluate their experiences.

8. They share their results.

Overall, autonomous learners are able to make independent decisions, take independent actions, and reflect critically upon their actions. Autonomy-supportive teaching enables students to be proactive in the language learning classroom. At 0:50, the video provides a significant chart explaining the behavior resulting from autonomy-supportive teaching. Students not only learn to become independent, they learn to problem-solve independently. This means, students rely upon autonomy to find their preferences of learning. Through autonomy in the classroom, students are enabled to try and develop their own methods to make meaning for themselves. The students gain experience in multiple areas: cognition, responsibility, independence, capacity. The benefits of such experience is displayed in the video at 1:00-1:25. The students learn about themselves as individuals, their preferred learning styles, overall learning processes, and also their personal responsibilities such as self-management and self-assessment. Some of the most important requirements students depend on are simple reproduction, creativity, productive/receptive skills, and reasoning (portrayed in the video at 2:04). Students also benefit from autonomy-supportive teaching as they will be able to rehearse cooperative learning skills: learning with and from each other.

Further reading about Autonomy

Benson, P. (2001). Teaching and researching autonomy in language learning. Harlow: Longman/Pearson Education.

Bocanegra, A., Haidl, A., & Càdiz, U. (1999). Language learner autonomy in pracitce: possibilities in a foreign language situation. Revista      Alicantina de Estudios Ingleses, 12(1), 7-17.

Chamot, A. U. (n.d.). Developing autonomy in language learners. National Capital Language Resource Center. 1(1), 1-103.

Mohanty, D. (2010). Implementing learner autonomy in Indian language classroom. MJAL, 2(5), 334-345.

Reeve, J. (2006). Teachers as facilitators: what autonomy-supportive teachers do and why their students benefit. The Elementary School Journal,      106(3), 225-236.

Wenden, A. (1998). Learner strategies for learner autonomy. Great Britain: Prentice Hall.