| Learner Training |
Main Points:
For the purposes of this study ‘orientation’ is defined as the process of familiarising learners with the facilities available in a self-access or independent learning centre; following Sheerin’s (1997: 60) distinction learner training is the development of learner’s procedural skills; eg. keeping a learner diary and developing learner’s learning strategies; and learner development as the process of guiding the learner in the discovery of the principles of independent, autonomous, or self-directed learning. Deconditioning is seen as a part of the learner training process.
There is general agreement in the literature that learners need instruction about independent or autonomous learning (Holec 1980 & 1981; Brindley 1989; Miller: 1992; Benson & Voller 1997; Ryan 1997; Sheerin 1997; Sturtridge 1997). As Miller (1992: 43) points out about Self-access Centres (SACs), "Establishing a SAC does not automatically create independent learners." Learners need to know what is available in a self-access centre through orientation, and how to use the facilities through learner training and development.
The CILL Internet site provides orientation by an interactive map of the centre. Learners can click on active parts of this map to find out what is available and how to use it. For example they can click on a shelf of books to find out the titles available. The orientation blends into learner training as learners can access information about how to use those books to study. For less visually-oriented learners there is a list of available resources on the site’s page of contents.
As well as orientation to CILL students may need orientation to learner training on the Internet. As Mills (1996: 2) says about the World-wide Web (WWW), "the WWW is not a place to turn learners loose the first time without some orientation and guidance." CILL has workshops on "How to Use the Internet to Improve your English", there are explanations of what the links lead to so that learners can make informed choices of what links to follow, and there is a beginners’ guide to how to navigate around the Internet.
The need for deconditioning is highlighted by Holec (1981: 22), who says that autonomy has to be acquired, both by acquiring the "know-how" from learner training, and by a deconditioning process that moves him away from prejudices about his role in learning languages. These include, firstly, "to free himself from the notion that there is one ideal method", and secondly, "that teachers possess that method" which the CILL Internet site encourages by its information on learner styles and strategies. Thirdly the learner should be deconditioned from the idea "that his mother tongue is of no use to him for learning a second language", an idea which the CILL site discourages by, for example, information on reading skills suggesting prediction from first language accounts of the same story, and by providing bilingual dictionaries. Fourthly Holec recommends that the learner should get rid of the idea "that his experience as a learner of other subjects, other know-how, cannot be transferred, even partially", which the CILL site encourages by suggesting that learners keep records in their diaries of study strategies, including strategies that they already use. Fifthly he recommends that the learner break away from the idea that he is "incapable of making any valid assessment of his performance", which the CILL site manifests in its information on self-assessment.
Sturtridge (1997: 67) summarises the research on learner training by concluding that, "We now accept that few learners learn well by themselves without language awareness and learning awareness development programmes." In her analysis of the factors that lead to the failure of self-access centres she says that the worst kind of training consists purely of orientation, but "a successful centre will attempt to make learner development an ongoing cycle of action and reflection and to offer a development program that keeps pace with the learners as they work." (1997: 71).
The CILL Internet site encourages this cycle of action and reflection in the organisation of the learner diary page, and offers a development program in the ways described above in relation to Nunan’s model of ‘Autonomy: levels of implementation.’
The importance of learner development is emphasised by Benson & Voller (1997: 9) when they suggest that, "it appears that learners who are forced into self-instructional modes of learning without adequate support will tend to rely all the more on the directive elements of the materials that they use." Firstly CILL learners are not ‘forced’ into self-instructional modes of learning as use of the centre and its Internet site are voluntary, and secondly support is provided by a range of resources from the on-line materials about independent language learning to e-mail access to a tutor.
Ryan (1997: 218) combines the theory behind the learner training and development when he describes a course he taught in Japan which provides a model for structuring learner training. His three-part system consists firstly of a "consciousness-raising discussion of available resources" for independent study. The CILL Internet site provides this by describing how to use various resources such as on-line newspapers, and providing access to discussion forums.
The second part of Ryan’s system is to "present and practise techniques to exploit resources". This happens in CILL workshops, and the presentation happens in on-line in resources such as the Bangkok Post’s ‘Tips on Reading the Bangkok Post’, which is designed for non-native speaker learners, although, of course the practice has to be done by the learners themselves.
The final part of Ryan’s system is an "introduction to the theoretical constructs of language acquisition underlying the selection of resources and techniques." This stage is for learner development. It is the final section, when learners have already put the theories into practice, and hopefully seen that they work, rather than the first stage, when the learners might have difficulty understanding the theory because of their lack of experience to base it on. An example is the use of prediction for receptive skills. Learners can guess that English-language newspapers are a resource for developing reading skills. Then they could be presented with and practise the materials from the Bangkok Post. Finally they would have this experience to use as a basis for expanding the use of prediction from newspaper reading to other genres, and then to the other receptive skill, listening, for example while watching TV.
Learner training based on the learner strategies identified in Larsen-Freeman and Long (1991: 201-3) is also available on the CILL Internet site.
Benson, Phil & Voller, Peter, eds. (1997) Autonomy and Independence in Language Learning London: Longman
Brindley, Geoff, (1989) Assessing Achievement in the Learner-Centered Curriculum New South Wales: National Centre for English Language Teaching and Research, Macquarie University
Holec, Henri (1981) Autonomy in Foreign Language Learning Oxford: Pergamon
Holec, Henri (1980) Learner training: meeting needs in self-directed learning. In Altman, H.B. & James, C.V. (eds.) Foreign Language Learning: meeting individual needs Oxford: Pergamon
Larsen-Freeman, Diane and Long, Michael H. (1991) An Introduction to Second Language Acquisition Research New York: Longman
Miller, Lindsay (1992) Research Report No. 11 Self-access Centres in S.E. Asia Hong Kong: City Polytechnic of Hong Kong
Mills, Douglas G. (1996) A Home on the Web: Our Experience Online Internet
Ryan, Stephen M. (1997) Preparing students for independence: resources beyond the classroom. In Benson, Phil & Voller, Peter, eds. (1997) Autonomy and Independence in Language Learning London: Longman, 215 - 224
Sheerin, Susan (1997) An exploration of the relationship between self-access and independent learning. In Benson, Phil & Voller, Peter, eds. (1997) Autonomy and Independence in Language Learning London: Longman, 54 - 65
Sturtridge, Gill (1997) Teaching and Learning in self-access centres: changing roles. In Benson, Phil & Voller, Peter, eds. (1997) Autonomy and Independence in Language Learning London: Longman, 66 - 78