Posts Tagged ‘self-access’

Language-related episodes in self-access interaction

Wednesday, August 26th, 2009

An interesting study in the context of self-access learning, I thought this might be of interest to the autonomy folks out there:

Previous studies have shown that second language (L2) learners use language to refl ect on language form when they carry out collaborative classroom-based activities, and that they generally remember the language forms that they had discussed. The current study similarly investigated whether learners refl ect on and remember language forms, but focused on learners’ interaction during self-access computer activities. The language-related episodes (LREs) that occurred when Thai learners of English as a foreign language (EFL) ( n = 48) carried out computer activities in a self-access environment were examined, and tailor-made tests that targeted the linguistic information discussed in those LREs were administered. The results indicated that the learners’ LREs involved lexical items more often than grammatical forms, and that they successfully resolved the majority of their LREs while they were collaborating. However, their test performance indicated that they only remembered less than half of the lexical items and one-third of the grammatical forms that they had discussed. Suggestions are offered for teachers and administers interested in integrating collaborative selfaccess computer activities into English L2 courses.

Collaborative Dialogue Between Thai EFL Learners During Self-Access Computer Activities. Authors: McDonough, Kim; Sunitham, Wichian. Source: TESOL Quarterly, Volume 43, Number 2, June 2009 , pp. 231-254(24). Publisher: Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages

http://www.ingentaconnect.com.ezproxy.auckland.ac.nz/content/tesol/tq/2009/00000043/00000002/art00004

Autonomy/Self-Access thesis now available as book

Wednesday, November 19th, 2008

I have published my thesis on learner autonomy and self-access through Lulu. It is still available as a free download (from the ‘autonomy’ page) but you can also order it as a book though this website

.
This research presents a learners’ perspective of (the promotion of) learner autonomy and Self-Access Language Learning in an English Proficiency Programme. It provides an evaluation of the success of these course elements as well as an interpretation of students’ understanding of the related concepts. Finally it identifies factors that enhance or hinder the successful implementation of Self-Access Language Learning.

Postgraduate Certificate in Language Advising

Tuesday, September 9th, 2008

This has been around for many years now but it is not that widely known. This is an excellent online course that gives you a certificate in language advising, offered by the University of Hull. You can find more information here:

http://www.hull.ac.uk/languages/postgraduate/online_PG/index.html

Powerpoint presentation on teachers’ beliefs about autonomy and self-access

Sunday, August 24th, 2008

Below you can view the presentation Noemi Lazaro and present as part of the 2008 AILA symposium on Learner Autonomy on the topic of teachers’ beliefs about autonomy and self-access. You can read more information about this project here.

Articles on autonomy and self-access, now in Audio!

Thursday, August 14th, 2008

I will be publishing a series of articles on the topics of learner autonomy, self-access, and out-of-class learning in audio format. This way you can download them and play them on your mp3 player. You can also subscribe to them as a podcast, by subscribing to this blog.

Here is the first one: Do language advisory sessions encourage independent learning?

Conference on Self-access learning

Tuesday, July 8th, 2008

An exciting conference is being organised by the Universidad Autonoma de Baja California, in Mexicali, Mexico (just across the border from the United States, south of Los Angeles and San Diego). The theme of the conference is self-access learning and all related areas, including technology applications. This sounds like a wonderful event for anyone interested in learner-centred approaches in language learning and teaching.

The website for the conference is: http://idiomas.tij.uabc.mx/7mocemaai/7momain.htm