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FOSTERING LEARNER AUTONOMY IN ENGLISH FOR SCIENCE: A COLLOBATIVE DIGITAL…
FOSTERING LEARNER AUTONOMY IN ENGLISH FOR SCIENCE: A COLLOBATIVE DIGITAL VIDEO PROJECT IN A TEACHNOLOGICAL LEARNING ENVIRONMENT
CHRISTOPH A.HAFNER AND LINDSAY MILLER
(2011)
AUTONOMY IN LANGUAGE LEARNING
capacity for detachment, critical reflection, decision-making and independent action (Little, 1991)
Independent out of class learning
Defined as the ability to take control over one's learning (Holec,1988)
Intrisically motivated and learns outside the classroom
Can develop in the structured learning environment of the classroom
Can become part of the pedagogical objectives of a languuage course
CONSTRUCTIONIST APPROACH IN COURSES PROMOTING LEARNER AUTNOMY VIA THE USE OF TECHNOLOGY
Help develop an ability to readily create new knowledge
Help solve new problems
Encourage students to learn in a social context
Help employ creativity and critical thinking
Experience is a central notion
Motivate learners in their learning process
NEW TECHNOLOGIES AND NEW PRACTICES IN LANGUAGE LEARNING
Provide learners with easy access to a range of resources, tools for out-of-class learning
It is important to draw on an appropriate student-centered pedagogy
Use of technology and learning fosters learner autonomy
It is necessary to consider the affordances of particular technological tools for autonomus language learning
Emerging globalized online spaces provide new ooportunities for autonomy language learning (Benson and Chik, 2010)
Case studies provide a useful starting point
Hong Kong Chinese teenager established J-pop Web site and used ICTs to interact with online chat mates from all over the world
DIGITAL STORIES
Combine traditional storytelling and narration with images, video and audio
Focus on the telling of a personal narrative
Have a strong personal dimension and should "Reflect, in one way or another, the student's way of perceiving, interpreting the knowledge he acquired or still acquiring (Gregori Signes, 2008)
Can be designed to tie in to students' academic skills, fostering the development of critical thinking and media literacy (Ohler, 2006)
Includes research skills, writing skills, organizational skills, technology skills, presentation skills, interpersonal skills, problem solving skills and evaluation skills(Rance-Roney, 2008)
Are considered motivating and empowering for learners
CONTEXT, METHODS AND DATA SOURCES
Implementation of the Digital Video Project were applied which aims at raising students' awareness of potential problems and provide a platform for discussion of the problems
Design of the Technological Learning Environment
Aimed at including the full range of technological tools used to support the learning process
Designed to support students in their project work, the planning, construction and sharing of the scientific documents
Stage of project: Planning, Filming and editing, Sharing
Technology utilized : Internet search tools, DV cameras, DV editing software, Resources website, Course weblog, Course YouTube channel
In-class support: Reading workshop, Video workshops, Face-to-Face sharing session
Data Sources and Analytical Methods
Qualitative interpretive approach is adopted for evaluating video project innovation
Participants of the study were drawn from a cohort of 67 university science students
First, students were surveyed an anonymous questionnaire
Analysis summary: 409 coded segments
Participants: 59 students
Second, students were provided with semi-structured focus-group interviews
Participants:21 students in 12 focus groups
Analysis summary: 612 coded segments
Third, students reflected on their learning in weekly Weblog comments
Participants: 62 students, 378 comments
Analysis summary: 60 coded segments
FINDINGS
Authenticity
Digital video project was an authentic task
The project was suitable for the 21st century students
Independent Learning
In digital video project, there are 2 kinds of independent learning : independently practising using English and independently searching for information related to the content
Students made the use of the Internet as a tool for exploratory, just-in-time learning
Motivation:
Digital video project was highly motivated for students
Students found the project to be novel, fun and challenging
Teamwork and Managing Learning Process
Students learnt to monitor not only their own process but of the whole group
Students emphasized the importance of good communication for effective team functioning
Students managed their own and team-mates; roles on the project
Peer Teaching
Project created a social context for learning for peer teaching of English as well as technology skills
It was a focus of discussion and feedback while finding suitable content for the video
Reflection on Learning
Provided students with an opportunity to reflect on their learning
Students were oriented towards the issues of Language proficiency and presentation, content and affect
Commenting on Weblog let students celebrate their achievements, reflect in general terms on content and use of English in the videos
Peer evaluation helped students achieve a degree of reflective detachment
DISCUSSION
Technological language learning afforded opportunities for autonomous language learning
Students were motivated to independenly practise English in the preparation of their videos as well as eliciting and providing peer support for issues of language
Students took advantages of the Digital Video project to exercise their capacities as autonomous learner
The project raised awareness of important aspects of the learning process such as time management
Project-based learning allowed to create realistic social context
Use of digital video provided students with record of their own spoken performances
Technological learning environment afforded the possibilty to write for a real audience
Use of digital video provides learners with the opportunity to select personally meaningful content