A Survey About Chinese University Students' Attitudes Towards Autonomous Language Learning

The goal of current education is to enhance the learners' ability and cultivate their overall quality so as to enable them to survive successfully in the society. More and more people have come to acknowledge that the continual learning is a must in life and that English learning is very important in China. Therefore, today's education, including English teaching, must focus on the cultivation of learners' autonomous learning ability. Based on humanism, constructivism, and cognitive psychology, the author of this thesis conducted a survey study in China of English learners' attitudes towards language learning autonomy, with the aim of examining their attitudes concerning the following aspects: general readiness for autonomous language learning, independent work in language learning, importance of class/teacher, teacher explanation and supervision, etc. The author also seeks to trace the reasons behind the attitudes and discusses the implications of her findings. Given the implications of these findings, at the end of the thesis, the author puts forward some suggestions to encourage and help learners to adopt an autonomous mode of Language learning. The thesis attempts to find the answers to the following two questions:(1) What types of attitudes towards autonomous language learning do the group of Chinese university students under study hold?(2) Do male and female students have the same degree of autonomy in language learning?With the data-analysis and comparison of the Statistical findings, the author comes to the following conclusions:(1) The students surveyed generally show a positive attitude towards autonomous language learning and are willing to take responsibility for their learning. However, a large proportion of students demonstrate a high degree of teacher dependence. And many of them consider exams as a motivating factor in learning English. A fairly high percentage of students lack confidence in self-assessment. Therefore, in order to promote their autonomy, the following measures should be taken: 1) Increasinglearners' self-confidence;2) Providing students with strategy training;3) Raising students' awareness;4) Enhancing the teacher training.(2) On the whole, both male and female students display a similar profile of readiness for autonomous language learning. But there exist some differences of opinion concerning some aspects of autonomous language learning. For example, compared with females, males are more likely to reckon exams as a source of motivation in language learning and they tend to show a higher degree of teacher dependence. But they are more confident in various aspects of language learning than their female counterparts. So such gender differences should be borne in mind when attempts are made to promote learner autonomy.