An investigation into teachers perceptions and use of classroom activities to promote students learner autonomy at some high schools in thua thien hue province

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING HUE UNIVERSITY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES -    - HO THI THUY NHIEN AN INVESTIGATION INTO TEACHERS’ PERCEPTIONS AND USE OF CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES TO PROMOTE STUDENTS’ LEARNER AUTONOMY AT SOME HIGH SCHOOLS IN THUA THIEN HUE PROVINCE MA THESIS IN THEORY AND METHODOLOGY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING CODE: 60.14.01.11 SUPERVISOR: LE PHAM HOAI HUONG, Assoc Prof Dr HUE, 2015 i BỘ GIÁO DỤC VÀ ĐÀO TẠO ĐẠI HỌC HUẾ TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC NGOẠI NGỮ -    - HỒ THỊ THÙY NHIÊN NGHIÊN CỨU VỀ NHẬN THỨC VÀ VIỆC SỬ DỤNG CÁC HOẠT ĐỘNG TRÊN LỚP CỦA GIÁO VIÊN TRONG VIỆC THÚC ĐẨY NĂNG LỰC TỰ HỌC CỦA HỌC SINH (LEARNER AUTONOMY) TẠI MỘT SỐ TRƯỜNG TRUNG HỌC PHỔ THÔNG THUỘC TỈNH THỪA THIÊN HUẾ LUẬN VĂN THẠC SĨ LÝ LUẬN VÀ PHƯƠNG PHÁP DẠY HỌC BỘ MÔN TIẾNG ANH MÃ SỐ: 60.14.01.11 NGƯỜI HƯỚNG DẪN KHOA HỌC: LÊ PHẠM HOÀI HƯƠNG, PGS.TS HUẾ, 2015 ii STATEMENT OF ORIGINALITY This work has not previously been submitted for a degree or diploma in any university To the best of my knowledge and belief, the thesis contains no material previously published or written by another person except where due reference is made in the thesis itself Date: 19/ 5/ 2015 Ho Thi Thuy Nhien iii ABSTRACT The research paper is an investigation into teachers’ perceptions and use of classroom activities to promote students’ learner autonomy at some high schools in Thua Thien Hue province The first aim of this study is to explore the perceptions of teachers towards learner autonomy The second aim is to find out whether and how teachers use classroom activities to promote learner autonomy and to find out what kinds of those activities can be carried out in the contexts of English classes at some high schools in Thua Thien Hue province The final aim is to provide the suggestions of teachers about using those activities to promote students’ learner autonomy in Thua Thien Hue province The participants of this study are 62 teachers from high schools in Thua Thien Hue province The data were collected by means of questionnaires and interviews The findings reveal that teachers had highly positive attitudes towards promoting learner autonomy They also generally understood what the concept is However, there is still the contradiction between the perception and support of teachers towards learner autonomy and the practice of using the activities in classroom to promote learner autonomy The majority of teachers reported they had troubles in this process The research also reports how teachers deal with the difficulties when experiencing regular classroom activities for the aim and the awareness of fostering learner autonomy On the basis of the findings, some suggestions to develop learner autonomy were made for teachers, educators and administrators iv I wish to express my sincere gratitude and appreciation to those persons who have advised and supported me, and made constructive criticism during the research First and foremost, I would like to express my most heartfelt gratitude to my supervisor, Assoc Prof Dr Le Pham Hoai Huong, who was very enthusiastic, and patient to support me along this work of research Without her guidance, invaluable advice and persistent help, this thesis would not have been completed Second, I am very grateful to the teachers of Vinh Loc high school, Phu Loc high school, Nguyen Hue high school, Quoc Hoc high school, Phan Dang Luu high school, Tran Van Ky high school, Thuan An high school, and Tam Giang high school for carefully completing the questionnaires and sincerely providing me with valuable information for this research in the interviews Third, I also would like to send my sincere thanks to all the lecturers of the MA in the Theory and Methodology of English Language Teaching course in the academic year 2012-2014 at Hue College of Foreign Languages for imparting their knowledge and enthusiasm of their respective areas of specification Fourth, I especially appreciate the support and advice of MA Pham Thi Xuan Duyen, who helps me a lot in dealing with the difficulties during the research Last but not the least, I am deeply grateful, as always, to my family members, my close friends who constantly stand beside me, give me emotional support during the time this research was conducted Without those encouragement, this study can be hardly fulfilled as expected v TABLE OF CONTENTS SUB COVER PAGE i STATEMENT OF ORIGINALITY iii STATEMENT OF ORIGINALITY iii ABSTRACT iv TABLE OF CONTENTS vi LIST OF TABLES ix LIST OF FIGURES AND CHARTS ix CHAPTER INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale 1.2 Research objectives 1.3 Research questions 1.4 Research significance 1.5 Scope of the study 1.6 Structure of the study CHAPTER LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Introduction 2.2 Definitions of perception 2.3 Definitions of learner autonomy 2.4 The roles of teachers in promoting learner autonomy 10 2.4.1 Traditional roles 10 2.4.2 Roles of teachers in learner-centered approach 11 2.4.3 Roles of teachers in promoting learner autonomy 12 2.5 Factors to develop learner autonomy 14 2.5.1 Learning strategies 14 2.5.2 Learner attitudes and motivation 17 2.6 Steps to develop a degree of autonomy 18 2.7 Promoting learner autonomy through classroom activities 21 vi 2.8 Previous studies 22 2.8.1 Other countries 22 2.8.2 In Vietnam 24 2.8.3 Gaps in literature 27 2.9 Chapter summary 27 CHAPTER 29 METHODOLOGY 29 3.1 Introduction 29 3.2 Research approach 29 3.3 Participants 30 3.4 Data collection tools 31 3.4.1 Questionnaire 31 3.4.2 Interview 32 3.4.3 Data analysis 32 3.5 Data procedure 33 3.6 Chapter summary 33 CHAPTER 34 FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION 34 4.1 Perceptions of teachers towards using classroom activities to enhance learner autonomy 34 4.1.1 Teachers’ understanding of the concept of learner autonomy 34 4.1.2 An overview of teachers’ attitude toward learner autonomy 41 4.1.3 Roles of teachers in promoting learner autonomy 43 4.2 The use of classroom activities to promote learner autonomy 47 4.2.1 Realities of the use of classroom activities 47 4.2.2 The possibility and the ways the teachers use classroom activities to promote learner autonomy 51 4.3 Difficulties in using classroom activities to promote learner autonomy 55 4.3.1 Difficulties confronted by teachers 55 4.3.2 Dealing with difficulties 60 4.4 Chapter summary 61 CHAPTER 62 vii CONCLUSIONS, IMPLICATIONS, LIMITATIONS AND SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER STUDY 62 5.1 Summary of the key findings 62 5.1.1 Perceptions of teachers towards using classroom activities to enhance learner autonomy 62 5.1.2 The use of classroom activities to promote learner autonomy 63 5.1.3 Difficulties in using classroom activities to promote learner autonomy 64 5.2 Implications 65 5.2.1 For teachers 65 5.2.2 For educators 67 5.3 Limitations of the study 68 5.4 Recommendations for further study 69 REFERENCES 70 APPENDICES 74 APPENDIX A: QUESTIONAIRE FOR TEACHERS 74 APPENDIX 1B: INTERVIEW QUESTIONS FOR TEACHERS 81 viii LIST OF TABLES Table 4.1 Frequency of using classroom activities to foster learner autonomy Table 4.2 Frequency of using different kinds of classroom arrangement LIST OF FIGURES AND CHARTS Figure 4.1 Teachers' understanding of students’ independence in learner autonomy Figure 4.2 Teachers' opinions about factors affecting learner autonomy Figure 4.3 Stages of students' involvement in the teaching and learning process Figure 4.4 Students' involvement in designing teaching plans together with teachers Figure 4.5 Selecting materials Figure 4.6 Importance of learner autonomy Figure 4.7 Teachers' attitude towards students’ learner autonomy Figure 4.8 Learner-teacher relationship in the classroom Figure 4.9 Teachers' contribution for promoting learner autonomy Figure 4.10 Teachers' roles in promoting learner autonomy Figure 4.11 Handing over responsibility from teachers to learners Figure 4.12 Possibility of using classroom activities to promote students’ learner autonomy Figure 4.13 Experience in using classroom activities to promote students’ learner autonomy Figure 4.14 Ways to use classroom activities to help to promote students’ learner autonomy Figure 4.15 Effectiveness of activities to promote students’ learner autonomy Figure 4.16 Having difficulties in promoting students’ learner autonomy Figure 4.17 Difficulties in promoting students’ learner autonomy Figure 4.18 Solutions to deal with difficulties in using classroom activities to promote students’ learner autonomy ix CHAPTER INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale Since Vietnam joined WTO in 2007, not only economy but also education have made remarkable changes Learners as well as teachers have more chance to access new technology and new environment but face challenges WTO accession entailed the process of socialization of knowledge, and globalization This forces Vietnam education into two orientations: education has to meet the demand of knowledge growth and the products of education have to meet the requirement of strict labor market (Vu, 2007) Then, students not only need to acquire knowledge but also need to satisfy the requirement of capacity, creativity ability, flexibility, responsibility, work capacity and ability to solve problems in changeable situations However, evaluating the practice of Vietnam education, in the document of strategies to develop education in the period 2001-2010, the authors concluded that the program, curriculum and methodology develop slowly and are still theoretical and emphasized on the examination (cited in Nguyen & Meier, 2010) From the two above opinions, we can easily see the existing distance between demand, objectives and reality In order to shorten this distance, we teachers as well as educators have always tried to find new approach to make change for the above problems Thanks to this awareness and desire, teachers and educators have made “changing winds and shifting sands” in language teaching methodology (Marckwardt, 1972, p.5, cited in Brown, 2007, p.13) The teaching process focuses on learners in learner-centered pattern However, while the general goal of English in schools is to help students be able to use English as a tool of communication at a basic level including listening, speaking, reading and writing (Hoang et al., 2007), the majority of learners who graduated after twelve years or more cannot use English to communicate The reason for this failure is that fourteen minutes per period in class is not enough for students to practice the skills required Besides, for many students, English can be a tool for them to sit in a university Nevertheless, Furthermore, to deal with students’ weakness, teachers should get better understanding about students’ levels, levels of learner autonomy and steps to develop learner autonomy With this perception, teachers can determine what degrees students can be possibly assume and find activities that are suitable for the levels of students (Duong and Seepho, 2014) Moreover, teachers should be brave to ask for the help from administrators The psychology of being shy and being afraid of getting troubles often forces teachers to find helps from their friends, students or internet However, some difficulties can be solved without the involvement and the help from the administrators The sharing of school organizations of other department can reduce the pressure of teachers about the curriculum and the time limit Also only administrators can help to deal with the lack of facility and equipment needed for the change Therefore, teachers need to be more courageous and enthusiastic for the love of job and the care for students Last, but not least, because achieving learner autonomy is a process of learner development including different stages (Brown, 2007), teachers should have detail and continuous lesson plans for the purpose of fostering learner autonomy Lesson plans should be designed from the lowest level to the highest level of development of learner independence (Nunan, 2007) 5.2.2 For educators First, as mentioned above, administrators also play a very important role in fostering learner autonomy It is illustrated in Chapter IV that not all teachers have clear understanding about all the aspects of learner autonomy Therefore, there should be more seminars, workshops and conferences focusing on learner autonomy where teachers can exchange experience to use the method effectively Second, teachers often have pressure of time and curriculum, which limits teachers in applying activities in classrooms to foster learner independence Therefore, there should be the change in the curriculum to meet the requirement of developing learner autonomy With the change in curriculum, teachers will have 67 more time for innovation and creation which will benefits for students, the objectives of education Third, facility is also very essential for teachers such as radios, cassettes, television, projectors, internet, laboratory, headphone etc in using many kinds of activities Therefore, in the ability of each schools, administrators should equip for teachers with the best conditions for the purposes of autonomy Last, but not least, the results collected also showed the reluctance of many teachers in asking administrators for help Therefore, the administrators should create a friendly and cooperative environment between teachers and teachers, as well as teachers and managers Once the relationship between teachers and managers is close, teachers will be readier to share the experience, opinions, suggestions or difficulties they encounter As a result, the cooperation between administrators and teachers will lead to the effective results for education and training In conclusion, once the problems of teachers are solved and the cooperation between different sessions in education is done effectively, the contraction between the perception of teachers towards learner autonomy and the practice of using the activities in classroom to promote learner autonomy will be minimized It is proved that once teachers overcome the doubt and afraid towards students and learner autonomy, the results they receive from what they have done are fruitful and rewarding 5.3 Limitations of the study Although much effort was put into this research, it is impossible to avoid certain shortcomings First of all, the scope of study was restricted to classroom activities to promote students’ learner autonomy Therefore, many issues involving learner autonomy were not carefully discussed, which might lead to the limit in accessing the problem Besides, the number of teachers participating in the study was rather 68 small for the fact that they were too busy with their workload Moreover, the teachers investigated were from many different schools and from different areas of Thua Thien Hue province Although this will ensure the objectiveness of the study, there still exists the problem that there is the inequality in the level of students between schools This might affect the different evaluation of teachers towards the objectives of fostering learner autonomy Therefore, it is unable to generalize the opinions to all other teachers in Hue high schools What is more, the insufficiency of references also minimized the success of the study The researchers have far ambitions in finding specific classroom activities which have been well adapted to help teachers in the aim to foster learner autonomy However, not many of readings were found for this purpose 5.4 Recommendations for further study This study aims to investigate teachers’ perceptions and use of classroom activities to promote students’ learner autonomy at some high schools in Thua Thien Hue Province It is expected that there will be a similar study with a larger scope with more subjects and time Furthermore, future researchers should find out more activities to foster learner autonomy A case study on the application of classroom activities can also give more specific results on the effectiveness of adapting regular classroom activities for the new purposes Also a model design of lesson plan for a specific course will also give interesting and useful findings for the issue concerned 69 REFERENCES Alsop, D (2006) The Impact of Increased Student Choice on Learner Autonomy in a Second-year Spanish Course ProQuest Information and Learning Company Retrieved July 30, 2014 from http://docs.lib.purdue.edu/dissertations/AAI3232145/ Benson, P (2006) Teaching and Researching Autonomy in Language Learning London: Longman Inc Benson, P., and Voller, P (Eds.) (1997) Autonomy and independence in language learning London: Longman Brown, H D (2007) Principles of language and teaching (3rd ed.) New York: Longman Chuk, J Y P (2004) Promoting learner autonomy in the EFL classroom: the Exploratory Practice way Proceedings of the Independent Learning Conference 2003 Published 20 September 2004 Colosi, L (2006) Designing an Effective Questionnaire http://parenting.cit.cornell.edu/documents/Designing Retrieved an from Effective Questionnaire.pdf Condelli, L & Wrigley, H S (2004) Real World Research: Combining Qualitative and Quantitative Research for Adult ESL Retrieved from http://www.leslla.org/files/resources/RealWorldResearch.doc Dam, L (1995) Learner autonomy 3: From theory to classroom practice Dublin: Authentic Dang Tan Tin (2010) Learner Autonomy in EFL Studies in Vietnam: A Discussion from Socio-cultural Perspective English Language Teaching Vol 3, No 2; June 2010 Duong, M T & Seepho, S (2014) Promoting learner autonomy: A qualitative study on EFL teachers’ perceptions and their teaching practices Proceedings of the International Conference: DRAL / ILA 2014 70 Hoang, V.V., Hoang, T.X.H., Dao, N.L., Vu, T.L., Do, T.M., Nguyen, Q.T (2007) Tieng Anh 11, Teachers’ book Hanoi: Education Publish House Holec, H (1981) Autonomy in Foreign Language Learning Oxford: Pergamon Holec, H (1985) On autonomy: Some elementary concept London: Longman Kavaliauskiene, G (2002) Three activities to promote learners’ autonomy The Internet TESL Journal, Vol VIII, No 7, July 2002 Retrieved July 30, 2014, from http://iteslj.org/Techniques/Kavaliauskiene-Autonomy.html Little, D (1991) Learner Autonomy 1: Definition, Issues and Problems Dublin: Authentik Little, D (1996) Freedom to learn and compulsion to interact: Promoting learner autonomy through the use of information systems and information technologies In Pemberton, R., Li, E., Or, W and Pierson H (Eds.), Taking control: Autonomy in language learning, 203-218 Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press Little, D (1999) Developing learner autonomy in the foreign language classroom: a social-interactive view of learning and three fundamental pedagogical principles Revista Canaria de Estudios Ingleses, 38, 77-88 McMillan, J.H & Schumacher, S (1993) Research in Education - A Conceptual Introduction New York: Harper Collins Colleague Publishers Mariani, L (1997) Teacher support and teacher challenge in promoting learner autonomy perspective A Journal of TESOL-Italy, 23(2) Mlstar, J (2000) Maximing Learning Strategies To Promote Learner Autonomy A paper presented at the 48th International TEFLIN Conference hosted by Indonesia University, Jakarta, 22-24 Murphey, T & Jacobs, G (2000) Encouraging Critical Collaborative Autonomy Published in JALT Journal 22 (2), 228-244 Ngo Thi Lien (2008) Exploring motivation in self-study by English majors at Phu Xuan University (Unpublished M.A dissertation) HUCFL, Hue, Vietnam 71 Nguyen Minh Hue (2008) Self-regulated strategy development as a means to foster learner autonomy in a writing course VNU Journal of Science, Foreign Languages 24, 246-253 Nguyen Thanh Nga (2012) “Let students take control!” Fostering learner autonomy in language learning: An experiment International Conference on Education and Management Innovation IPEDR, 30, IACSIT Press, Singapore Nguyen Thanh Van (2011) Language learners’ and teachers’ perceptions relating to learner autonomy - Are they ready for autonomous language learning? 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(1992) Collaborative language learning and teaching New York: Cambridge University Press Nunan, D (1997) Designing and adapting materials to encourage learner autonomy In Benson & Voller (Eds.), Autonomy and Independence in Language Learning, 192-203 London: Longman Patton, M, Q (1987) How to use Qualitative methods in Evaluation London: Sage Retrieved from http://books.google.com.vn/books?id=shxPj6FxQSoC&pg=PA8&lpg=PA8 &dq=How+to+use+Qualitative+methods+in+Evaluation.&source=bl&ots= gRlLoIsbU&sig=s3nvkd8VwYAeu_QLHdw6ODWv1uk&hl=vi#v=onepag e&q&f=false Phan Thi Thanh Thao (2012) Teacher Autonomy and Learner Autonomy: An East Asian’s Perspective International Journal of Social Science and Humanity, (6), 468-471 Phan Thi Thu Huong (2009) An investigation into self-assessment conducted by the fourth year students of English at Hue University - College of Foreign Language (Unpublished M.A dissertation) HUCFL, Hue, Vietnam 72 Ramos, R.C (2006) Considerations on the role of teacher autonomy Colombian Applied Linguistics Journal, 8, 184-202 Reinders, H & Balcikanli, C (2011) Learning to foster autonomy: The role of teacher education materials SiSAL Journal, 2(1), 15-25 Sakai, S., Takagi, A., & Chu, M (2010) Promoting learner autonomy: Student perceptions of responsibilities in a language classroom in East Asia Educational Perspectives, 43(1), 12-27 Scharle and Szabó (2000) Learner autonomy: A guide to developing learner responsibility Cambridge University Press Son, J B (2008) Using Web-Based Language Learning Activities in the ESL Classroom International Journal of Pedagogies and Learning, 4(4), 34-43 Susuwele-Banda, W J (2005) Classroom Assessment in Malawi: Teachers’ Perceptions and Practices in Mathematics (Ph.D dissertation) Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, Virginia Thanasoulas, D (2000) What is learner autonomy and how can it be fostered The Internet TESL Journal, Vol VI, No 11, November 2000 Retrieved May 23, 2014, from http://iteslj.org/Articles/Thanasoulas-Autonomy.html Trinh Quoc Lap (2005) Stimulating learner autonomy in English language education Print Partner Ipskamp B.V., Amsterdam Van Thi Minh Huong (2013) Out-of-class learning activities and their impacts on developing proficiency for English majored students at Hue universityCollege of foreign languages (Unpublished M.A dissertation) HUCFL, Hue, Vietnam Vu Hong Tien (2007) Một số phương pháp dạy học tích cực Retrieved from http://www.dayhocintel.net/diendan/showthread.php?t=94 Wenden (1998) Learner strategies for learner autonomy Great Britain: Prentice Hall 73 APPENDICES APPENDIX A: QUESTIONAIRE FOR TEACHERS This questionnaire is designed to collect information for my research paper entitled “An investigation into teachers’ perceptions and use of classroom activities to promote students’ learner autonomy at some high schools in Thua Thien Hue province” Please read the questions carefully and put tick () on your choice In some questions, you are asked to write numbers in the table For the questions number 21 and 22, you are asked to write your response in the space provided Your responses and feedback will be helpful and valuable to the research The data collected will be used for my research paper only, not for any other purposes Thank you for your cooperation Concept note: Learner autonomy is a capacity of learners, with their willingness, motivation and right, take charge of the responsibility in learning process by actively involving in it from determining objectives, defining content and progressions, selecting methods and techniques to be used, monitoring procedure of acquisition and evaluating what has happened, i.e learners are independent in choosing what, when, where and how to study I BACKGROUND INFORMATION Gender: Male (M)…………… Female (F)…………… Age: ………………………… Year(s) of teaching experience:…………………………year(s) II QUESTIONS: Please complete and put a tick () on your choice Do you think learner autonomy is important?  Yes  No  Not sure  No idea Others (Please specify):…………………………………………… 74 In your opinion, learner autonomy will reflect  the capacity of learners to learn by themselves  the capacity of learners to learn with the help of others  the capacity of learners to learn by themselves with the help of others Others (Please specify):………………………………………………………… According to you, a student with learner autonomy is the one who  is willingness to learn  has motivation to learn  has the right to learn  has strategies to learn Others (Please specify):………………………………………………………… What is your general attitude towards students’ learner autonomy?  It is helpful for teachers  It is beneficial for students  It is a waste of time  It is a waste of money and effort  It is unrealistic Others (Please specify):………………………………………………………… What you think about the following statement? Students should design teaching plans together with teachers  Strongly agree  Agree  Neutral  Oppose  Strongly oppose Others (Please specify):………………………………………………………… In your opinion, materials should be selected  only by teachers  mostly by teachers  by teachers and by students  mostly by students  only by students Others (Please specify):………………………………………………………… What stages should students involve in the teaching and learning process?  Deciding the objectives of the English course 75  Deciding what will be learnt in the next English lesson  Choosing what activities to use in the English lesson  Deciding how long to spend on each activity  Choosing what materials to use in the English lessons  Learning and doing tasks  Monitoring class activities  Evaluating their learning performance  Evaluating the English course Others (Please specify):………………………………………………………… What you think is the learner-teacher relationship in the classroom?  Receiver and giver  Raw material and maker  Customer and shopkeeper  Children and partners  Explorer and director Others (Please specify):………………………………………………………… Do you think teachers have any roles in promoting learner autonomy?  Yes  No  Not sure  No idea Others (Please specify):………………………………………………………… 10 If yes, what roles should teachers perform in promoting learner autonomy?  Authority/ Controller  Lecturer/ transmitter  Resource  Organizer  Consoler  Facilitator  Involver  Observer  Guide  Instructor  Listener  Evaluator  Judge  Researcher Others (Please specify):………………………………………………………… 76 11 To what extent you agree with the following statement? In learner autonomy, the instructors’ role is handing over responsibility in learners’ learning process from teacher to learner  Strongly agree  Agree  Slightly agree  Slightly Disagree  Disagree Strongly  Disagree Others (Please specify):………………………………………………………… 12 How often you the following activities? (Write the number in the table) 1=never, 2=seldom, 3=occasionally, 4=often, 5=always Activities Frequency a I stimulate students’ interest in learning English with games a b I help students make short-term English study plans b c I help students make medium-and-long term English study plans c d I ask students to identify their weaknesses and strengths in learning d English e Before the English course, I often ask my students to pick out the e most important points and make diagrams or tables for themselves f When I teach a new grammar rule, I encourage students to think f about its relationship to the rules they have learned g When teaching vocabulary, I teach the meaning of a word by g dividing it into parts that students can understand h I recommend useful websites about English study i I design the teacher-made web activities and ask students to h i tasks on the website j I get students self-evaluate their progress in learning English k I get students to evaluate their progress in learning English in peers 77 j k l I ask students to explain the reasons of the mistakes they have l made in English m I assign students to prepare English presentations on a particular m topic after class and present them in class n I organize English debates in class n o I communicate with students and learns about their difficulties in o learning English p I praise them when they have ideas about how to a task p 13 How often you use these kinds of classroom arrangement? (Write the number in the table) 1=never, 2=seldom, 3=occasionally, 4=often, 5=always Classroom arrangement Number of frequency a individual work a b pair work b c group work c d teacher – whole class d e teacher – individual e 14 Do you think classroom activities can be used to promote students’ learner autonomy?  Yes  No  Not sure  No idea Others (Please specify):……………… 15 In what ways can classroom activities help to promote students’ learner autonomy?  Regular classroom activities are used with no change  Regular classroom activities are adapted with the aim to raise autonomy awareness 78  Use the totally new teacher-made activities  No classroom activities can help to promote students’ learner autonomy Others (Please specify):……………… 16 Have you ever used classroom activities to promote students’ learner autonomy?  Yes (please continue with questions number 17 to number 22)  No (please move to questions number 23, and 24)  Not sure  No idea Others (Please specify):……………… 17 To what extent you think your activities help to promote students’ learner autonomy?  Very helpful  Helpful  Rather helpful  Rather unhelpful  Unhelpful  Very unhelpful Other ideas (Please specify)………………………………………… 18 Have you met any difficulties in promoting students’ learner autonomy?  Yes  No  Not sure  No idea Others (Please specify):……………… 19 If yes, what are the difficulties?  Students’ weakness  Students’ unwillingness to take part in activities  Lack of encouragement and support from students and colleagues  Teacher’s knowledge about activities to promote learner autonomy  Lack of time  Lack of facilities Other difficulties (please specify)…………………………………………… 79 20 How you confront with those difficulties?  Overcome them yourselves  Get help from colleagues  Get help from administrators  Get help from students  Get help from internet Other ways (please specify)………………………………………………… 21 What implications can be drawn out from your experience in promoting students’ learner autonomy? ……………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………… 22 If you face no difficulties, what are the main factors that help you succeed? ……………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………… 23 If you have not done any activities to promote students’ learner autonomy, why?  It is too difficult  It is too expensive  It is unnecessary  It is time – consuming Other reasons (please specify)……………………………………………………… 24 Would you like to try some activities of promoting students’ learner autonomy in the future?  Yes  No  Not sure  No idea Others (Please specify):………………………………………………………… … The end 0-Thank you for your cooperation! 80 APPENDIX 1B: INTERVIEW QUESTIONS FOR TEACHERS Please answer the following questions: Are you interested in learner autonomy? Why? Why not? ……………………………………………………………………………………… What roles you think teachers should perform in promoting learner autonomy? ……………………………………………………………………………………… Have you ever used classroom activities to promote students’ learner autonomy? If yes, what are they? ……………………………………………………………………………………… Have you ever met any the difficulties in using classroom activities to promote students’ learner autonomy? If yes, what are they? ……………………………………………………………………………………… If you face no difficulties, what are the main factors that help you succeed? ……………………………………………………………………………………… If you haven’t used classroom activities to promote students’ learner autonomy, what makes you hesitate to it? ……………………………………………………………………………………… What are the impacts that you think using classroom activities to promote students’ learner autonomy can eventually have on your students? ……………………………………………………………………………………… What are your suggestions to increase the effectiveness of using classroom activities to promote students’ learner autonomy? ……………………………………………………………………………………… Thank you for your cooperation! 81