When: Thursday 21 September, 11am
Title: “Activities for Promoting Learner Autonomy“
Speakers: David McLoughlin and Jo Mynard
Learner autonomy is “the capacity to take control over one’s own learning” (Benson, 2011, p. 2), and is important so that learning is personally meaningful and seen as a life-long process. Learner autonomy is a matter of degree, but most learners need our support in developing the necessary awareness and skills in order to take charge of their learning. In this practical workshop, we will try out a series of activities designed to promote the various dimensions of learner autonomy. The activities will include a focus on some of the following:
- Awareness of how to learn
- Awareness of how to organise one’s learning
- Awareness of motivation and emotions in language learning
- Ability to evaluate one’s own learning
- Ability to reflect deeply on one’s learning
- The role of goals and interest in the learning process
- The role of others in the learning process
In addition to trying out the activities, participants will discuss how they might adapt them to suit different teaching and learning contexts.
References
Benson, P. (2011). Teaching and researching autonomy in language learning. Routledge.