A Study On Ways Of Fostering Learner Autonomy In College English Teaching

Recently, more and more Chinese educators have realized the importance of fostering learner autonomy in accordance with the notions of"learner-centeredness"and"life-education". The Ministry of Education issued a new document in 2004 setting new curriculum requirements on college English. It emphasizes the importance of enhancing learner autonomy and proposes a new teaching model, which will be geared towards students'individualized and autonomous learning. Some empirical researches have been conducted on fostering learner autonomy in China. However, few of them have been done in the large classroom setting of college English. Therefore, in this thesis, a systematic study is made on ways of fostering learner autonomy in college English teaching in China.This thesis is composed of five chapters.Chapter I introduces the current situation of college English in China and points out the existing problems, which indicates the significance of fostering learning autonomy in college English teaching and the purpose of the present study.Chapter II first defines the term of learner autonomy, and then distinguishes the related terms. The influential factors of fostering learner autonomy in classroom settings are also discussed in this chapter.Chapter III illustrates the four practical ways in detail --- questionnaire, learner contract, explicit instruction, and group work. It also discusses why and how to apply these four practical ways on fostering learner autonomy in college English teaching. In brief, questionnaires can raise the learners'awareness of their needs, learning strategies, and learning style etc, and the...