Öğrenen özerkliği
Bu konu başlığı altında 57 tez
Perceptions of elt students related to learner autonomy in language learning
This study mainly aims to investigate the perceptions of ELT students related to Learner Autonomy in language learning. 73 male and 139 female students, a total of 212 students, participate in the study. A questionnaire is applied in order to identify the perceptions of ELT students related to Learner Autonomy in language learning. The questionnaire is prepared in four main parts: one of them is for background information of the participants and the other three parts are for their perceptions of ELT learners related to responsibilities, abilities, and activities on learner autonomy. In addition, in order to support the quantitative data, and to have a deeper understanding of the perceptions of ELT students, a total of 20 students, five students from each class, are interviewed. The findings gathered are analyzed according to the year of the study (from 1st year to 4th year) and gender of the participants. Mean, independent samples t- tests and One- Way ANOVAs are used for analyzing the quantitative data. Content analysis is done for the qualitative data and the findings of the qualitative data are organized according to the participants' year of study and gender. The results indicate that there are not any statistically significant differences between male and female students in terms of the perceptions of learners related to responsibilities, abilities, and activity choices. In addition, although there are statistically significant differences between the genders in terms of the perceptions of learners related to abilities and activity choices on learner autonomy, both genders have similar perceptions related to responsibilities of learners. The findings gathered from the qualitative data are in line with the findings of the quantitative data. The participants mainly state similar responsibilities, abilities and activities in terms of their year of study. In addition, qualitative data reveal that although both female and male participants give importance to the similar perceptions related to responsibilities, abilities, and activities on learner autonomy, they state different reasons regarding the perceptions of learners related to responsibilities, abilities, and activities. Additionally, participants utter some definitions related to learner autonomy and they prove how versatile the notion of learner autonomy is. Keywords: Learner Autonomy, Year of Study, Gender.
Secondary school EFL learners' autonomy, motivation, and digital literacy in emergency distance education
Due to COVID-19, the majority of countries encountered emergency remote education at all learning levels for the first time. This abrupt change in the delivery of education created a suitable environment for adopting learner autonomy. A critical approach is required to ascertain how this ability was perceived and which factors are related to it. This study aimed to present the perspectives of secondary school students on learner autonomy in the context of emergency remote education and explore the relations of motivation, digital literacy, and demographic variables (grade level, gender, and age) with it. Mixed-method approach was used in this thesis and in line, three scales were administered to 180 secondary school learners and semi-structured interviews were held with 10 participants. Quantitative results revealed that secondary school students had above-average levels of learner autonomy and digital literacy while maintaining a moderate level of motivation. Significant positive correlations were found between learner autonomy and both motivation and digital literacy. Additionally, the impact of demographic traits on learner autonomy was discovered. It was found that learner autonomy declined with increasing grade level and age. In terms of gender, female students had more learner autonomy than males. The content analysis revealed that secondary school students' perceptions of learner autonomy are generally positive, but that learners also encountered both positive and negative motivational and digital literacy factors that either encouraged or inhibited their autonomy. The study implicated the need for developing emergency remote education settings in terms of student-teacher interaction, technological resources, and instructional strategies.
An analysis of the factors influencing learner autonomy in the Turkish EFL context
In Turkey, individuals generally grow up under the control of their parents who decide on behalf of their children. When they reach school age, this control is passed onto their teachers. Furthermore, although they are never included in the decision-making process of their own learning, the students are expected to learn various school subjects at a reasonable level. This forms one of the problems that prevent long-lasting and meaningful learning from taking place. As a solution to this constraint, practices such as assisting students to gain responsibility, raising their sense of ownership and increasing their self-esteem and self-confidence are recommended. In brief, they should be nurtured as autonomous learners. Since the 1970?s, many researchers have conducted studies on foreign language learner autonomy. Amongst the factors observed influencing this subject are achievement, age, anxiety, attitude, brain dominance, emotional intelligence, experience, gender, language learning strategies, learned helplessness, learning styles, motivation, multiple intelligence areas, parental attitudes, performance assessment, the socio-economic level of the family and whether the participants actually like English. In order to find out what factors influence the autonomy of Turkish learners of English as a foreign language (EFL), some instruments were administered to 116 9th and 10th grade high school students. In accordance with the aim of the dissertation, independent T-test samples, One Way ANOVA and correlation in the package programme named Statistics Programme for Social Sciences (SPSS) were employed to analyse the gathered data.The results of the study show that most of the dimensions of the above-mentioned variables correlate with learner autonomy. This correlation is sometimes negative and sometimes positive. A statistically significant difference is observed between the participants? perception of autonomy and (i) gender for the female participants, and (ii) whether the participants like the English language for those who like it.Keywords: Learner autonomy, Individual differences, Turkish EFL context, Independent learning, In- and out-of-class learning
2018 ortaöğretim İngilizce dersi öğretim programının öğrenen özerkliği açısından değerlendirilmesi ve öğretmen gözüyle öğrenen özerkliği
Bu çalışmanın amacı; 2018 Ortaöğretim İngilizce Dersi (9, 10, 11 ve 12. Sınıflar) Öğretim Programında öğrenen özerkliğinin ne düzeyde olduğunu ve ortaöğretim İngilizce öğretmenlerinin öğrenen özerkliği hakkındaki görüşlerini belirlemektir. Bu çalışma 2020-2021 eğitim öğretim yılında gerçekleştirilmiş olup durum çalışması modelinde nitel bir çalışmadır. Veri toplama yöntemi olarak doküman incelemesi ve görüşme kullanılmıştır. Programın değerlendirilmesi için değerlendirme kriterleri formu oluşturulmuştur ve öğretim programı; ihtiyaçların belirlenmesi, amaçların belirlenmesi, eğitim öğretim durumları, değerlendirme, öğretmenin rolü, öğrencinin rolü ve kazanımlar boyutlarında ele alınmıştır. Program değerlendirmesinden elde edilen veriler betimsel analiz yöntemi ile analiz edilmiştir. Öğretmen görüşmeleri için yarı yapılandırılmış görüşme soruları hazırlanmıştır. Görüşmeler, 2020-2021 eğitim öğretim yılında Kırşehir merkezde çeşitli ortaöğretim kurumlarında çalışmakta olan toplam 12 İngilizce öğretmeni ile gönüllülük esasına dayalı olarak gerçekleştirilmiştir. Öğretmen görüşmelerinden elde edilen veriler içerik analizi yöntemi ile analiz edilmiştir. 2018 Ortaöğretim İngilizce Dersi Öğretim Programının analizinden elde edilen bulgular programın; ihtiyaçların belirlenmesi, amaçların belirlenmesi, eğitim öğretim durumları, değerlendirme, öğretmenin rolü, öğrencinin rolü boyutlarında ve kazanımlarda öğrenen özerkliği uygulamalarına yer verdiğini göstermektedir. Öğretmen görüşmelerinden elde edilen bulgulara göre ortaöğretim İngilizce öğretmenlerinin genel olarak öğrenen özerkliği hakkında herhangi bir fikrinin olmadığı görülürken yapılan açıklamalardan sonra öğretmenlerin öğrenen özerkliğinin İngilizce öğreniminde önemli bir yere sahip olduğunu belirttikleri görülmektedir. Ancak öğretmenlerin çoğunluğunun programda özerklik uygulamalarına yer verilmediğini düşündükleri ya da bununla ilgili herhangi bir fikirlerinin olmadığı görülmektedir. Yapılacak olan yeni programlarda öğrenen özerkliğinin geliştirilmesi açısından sürecin her aşamasında öğrenciler karar verme aşamalarında yer almalı, ders kitaplarının seçilmesi aşamasında da öğrenciler karar verme süreçlerine dâhil edilmelidir. Ayrıca ortaöğretim İngilizce öğretmenlerinin öğrenen özerkliği ile ilgili bilgilenmelerine yönelik çalışmalar yapılıp farkındalıkları artırılmalıdır. Anahtar Kelimeler: Öğrenen özerkliği, öğretim programı, yabancı dil öğrenimi
Lise öğrencilerinin Almanca öğrenmede özerk öğrenme düzeylerinin, motivasyonlarının ve öğrenme stillerinin incelenmesi
Seçmeli Almanca dersleri ortaöğretim programlarında diğer dillere göre daha geniş biçimde yer almaktadır. Bu araştırmanın amacı, lise öğrencilerinin seçmeli Almanca öğrenmede özerk öğrenme düzeylerinin, motivasyonlarının ve öğrenme stillerinin incelenmesidir. Nicel ilişkisel (korelasyonel) tarama modeli kullanılarak gerçekleştirilen bu araştırmanın çalışma evrenini Aydın ilinde bulunan tüm ortaöğretim öğrencileri oluşturmaktadır. Aydın ilinde bulunan farklı lise türlerinde 9-10-11-12. sınıflarda eğitim gören ve Almanca dersini seçen lise öğrencileri ise örneklem grubunu oluşturmaktadır. Araştırma kapsamında öğrencilere 'Öğrenme Stilleri Envanteri, Dil Öğrenimine Yönelik Motivasyon Ölçeği, Dil Öğrenmeye Yönelik Güçlük Ölçeği ve İkinci Yabancı Dil Olarak Almanca Dersine Yönelik Özerk Öğrenme Ölçeği' olmak üzere dört farklı ölçme aracı tamamen gönüllülük esasına göre uygulanmıştır. Öğrencilerin öğrenme stilleri ile cinsiyet değişkeni arasında anlamlı ilişki bulunmaktadır. Öğrencilerin öğrenme stilleri ile onların bölümleri arasında anlamlı ilişki yoktur. Öğrencilerin öğrenme stilleri ile sınıf düzeyleri arasında anlamlı ilişki vardır. İlgi, istek ve uygulama alt boyut puanlarına bakıldığında bu durum dil öğrenme güçlüğü çeken aileler lehinedir. Bölüm/alan değişkenine göre ADÖGÖ bulguları karşılaştırıldığında eşit ağırlık ve sayısal bölüm öğrencilerinin bölüm seçmeyen öğrencilere göre dil öğrenmede daha az güçlük yaşadıkları belirlenmiştir. Ayrıca ailede herhangi bir yabancı dil bilenin bulunmasının dil öğrenmede özgüven alt boyutunda anlamlı bir farklılık oluşturduğu görülmüştür. Gerçekleştirilen araştırmada özerk öğrenme ve başarı yönelimleri kavramlarının birbiri ile ilişkili oldukları tespit edilmiştir. Özerk öğrenme alt boyutları olan 'bağımsız öğrenme ve ders çalışma' alışkanlıkları düzeylerinin başarı yönelimleri düzeyini olumlu yönde yordadığı tespit edilmiştir.
Özbelirleme kuramı çerçevesinde lise öğrencilerinin matematik öğrenen özerkliği: Bir karma desen araştırması
Bu araştırmanın amacı, lise öğrencilerine uygulanabilecek matematik öğrenen özerkliği ölçeği geliştirip lise öğrencilerinin matematik öğrenen özerklik düzeylerini, matematik öğrenen özerkliklerini etkileyen matematik kaygı düzeyleri, matematik öğrenmeye yönelik motivasyon seviyeleri, matematik dersine yönelik öğrenme sorumluluğu ve matematik öğreniminde öz düzenleme becerileri arasındaki ilişkileri ve bu becerileri etkileyen değişkenler ile 9. ve 12. sınıf öğrencilerinin matematik öğrenen özerkliği ile ilgili düşüncelerini belirlemektir. Çalışmada araştırma deseni olarak karma yöntem desenlerinden sıralı-açıklayıcı karma desen seçilmiştir. İlk sırada nicel veriler ardından nitel veriler toplanmıştır. Bu araştırmada öncelikle matematik öğrenen özerkliği ölçeği geliştirilmiştir. Ölçeğin geliştirme sürecinde ilgili literatür incelenerek 144 madde havuzu oluşturulmuş, 10 uzman görüşü alınarak kapsam geçerliliğine bakılmıştır. Kalan 52 madde ile geçerlik ve güvenirlik çalışmaları için pilot uygulamada 1078 öğrenciden alınan verilerle yapılan açımlayıcı faktör analizi ve doğrulayıcı faktör analizi yapılmıştır. "Öz Düzenleme", "Öğrenme Sorumluluğu", "İç Motivasyon", "Öz Denetim", "Dış Motivasyon" ve "Kaygı" olmak üzere 6 boyutlu 41 maddelik bir ölçek oluşturulmuştur. Ölçeğin Cronbach-Alfa katsayısı α=0,82 olarak bulunmuştur. Oluşan boyutların açıklanan toplam varyans miktarı % 47,50'tir. Ölçeğin iki yarı güvenirlik düzeyi için Spearman-Brown korelasyonu değeri r=0,83 bulunmuştur. Üst %27 ve alt %27 gruplar arasında anlamlı bir fark olup olmadığını tespit amacıyla bağımsız örneklem t-testi yapılmış olup ölçek toplam puanları ile üst %27'lik ve alt %27'lik gruplar arasında anlamlı bir farklılık olduğu görülmüştür. Yapılan çalışma sonucunda ortaöğretim öğrencilerine yönelik 6 alt boyutlu 41 maddelik geçerli ve güvenilir matematik öğrenen özerkliği ölçeği geliştirilmiştir. Araştırmada esas uygulamasının evreni Türkiye'nin batısında yer alan bir büyükşehirde bulunan ortaöğretim kurumlarındaki 9. ve 12.sınıf öğrencileri oluşturmaktadır. Gerekli izinler alındıktan sonra araştırmanın örneklemi, eğitim uzaktan devam ettiği için Google Form biçiminde hazırlanan ölçek öğretmenleri aracılığıyla sınıf Whatsapp gruplarından ulaştırılan gönüllü 9. ve 12. sınıf öğrencilerden oluşmaktadır. Araştırmaya 651 öğrenci katılmıştır. Araştırmada "Matematik Öğrenen Özerkliği Ölçeği" veri toplama aracı olarak tamamen gönüllülük esasına göre uygulanmıştır. Elde edilen nicel veriler SPSS 22.0 istatistik paket programı ile analiz edilmiştir. Verilerin normal dağılımı kontrol edilmiştir. Bağımsız Örneklemler t-Testi, Tek Yönlü Varyans Analizi (ANOVA), Pearson Korelasyon Analizi kullanılmıştır. Araştırmanın çalışma grubunuda 9. ve 12. sınıflardan matematik öğrenen özerkliği ölçeğinden en yüksek ve en düşük puan alan dörderden sekiz öğrenci oluşturmaktadır. Çalışma grubu ile görüşme yapılmış elde edilen nitel veriler içerik analizi ile incelemiştir. Nitel verilerin geçerliğini ve güvenirliğini arttırmak için doğrudan alıntılara yer verilmiş ve uyuşum yüzdesi hesaplanmıştır. Çalışmadaki görüşme sorularıyla sağlanan uyuşum yüzdesi %92,23'dür. Araştırma sonucunda 9. ve 12. sınıf öğrencilerin matematik öğrenen özerklik düzeylerinin orta düzey olduğu görülmüştür. Matematik öğrenen özerklik düzeyi ile cinsiyet değişkeni arasında anlamlı ilişki bulunmamıştır. Kız öğrencilerin dış motivasyon düzeyi, erkek öğrencilerin de iç motivasyon ve kaygı düzeyleri daha yüksek olduğu görülmüştür. 9. sınıfların öz düzenleme, iç motivasyon, dış motivasyon, öz denetim ve öğrenme sorumluluğu alt boyutlarının puan ortalamaları 12. sınıflardan, 12. sınıfların ise kaygı alt boyutu puan ortalamaları 9. sınıftan daha yüksek olduğu görülmüştür. Sınıf, ailenin sosyoekonomik düzeyi, anne-baba eğitim düzeyi, özel ders değişkenleri ile matematik öğrenen özerkliği arasında anlamlı ilişki bulunmamıştır. Okul türü değişkenine göre anlamlı ilişki görülmüştür. Matematik öğrenen özerkliği ile öz düzenleme becerileri, öğrenme sorumluluğu arasında pozitif yönde güçlü düzeyde anlamlı ilişki, matematik kaygısı ile de pozitif yönde zayıf düzeyde anlamlı ilişki görülmüştür. Matematik öğrenen özerkliği puanı yüksek olan öğrencilerle yapılan görüşmelerde öğrenme sorumluluğuna, öz düzenleme becerilerine, öz denetime sahip oldukları ve iç motivasyonlarının yüksek olduğu ve matematik öğrenen özerkliği puanı düşük olan öğrencilerin ise iç motivasyonlarının düzeylerinin düşük olduğu, öğrenme sorumluluğuna, öz düzenleme becerilerine sahip olmadığı ve öz denetim yapamadıkları görülmüştür. Geliştirilen Matematik Öğrenen Özerkliği Ölçeğinden elde edilen bulgularla görüşmelerden elde edilen bulguların örtüştüğü görülmektedir.
Learner autonomy in secondary school virtual classrooms: Turkish EFL teachers' perceptions and practices
Learner autonomy in EFL teaching and learning context has long been taken as an efficient channel, which has gained more significance in the globalized world of the 21st century. Today's life has demonstrated that online education, which is believed to be more effective when autonomous, will dominate the education process. Besides, the significance of learner autonomy skills for online educational settings has recently attracted the attention of scholars. In this vein, this study investigates EFL teachers' perceptions and practices concerning learner autonomy in secondary school virtual classrooms in Hatay, Turkey. The data were collected using both quantitative and qualitative data collection tools. For the quantitative data, a questionnaire was administered to 194 teachers working at state and private secondary schools to explore learner autonomy perceptions and language teaching practices promoting learner autonomy. To support the quantitative data, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 21 EFL teachers volunteering to participate. Findings revealed that the EFL teachers have a high awareness of the meaning and significance of learner autonomy and an autonomous learner in online language education. There seems to be a connection between learner autonomy and online learning environments. It is deduced from the findings that teachers have compelling views concerning practices to foster learner autonomy. However, they are having difficulty promoting it due to the fact that they are assumed to be practising traditional approaches which cannot be appropriate in online EFL teaching and learning environment. Moreover, learner autonomy promotion is challenging in an online learning setting for several reasons, such as time, curriculum, and class-size limitations in addition to teacher-related and learner-related constraints. The findings of this study may contribute to the ELT field in terms of identifying challenges in learner autonomy encouragement. They also provide insights into creating autonomous learning in virtual language classrooms presenting influential views and practices of EFL teachers. Keywords: Learner autonomy, autonomous learner, virtual classroom, online education.
The effects of emergency remote teaching on learner autonomy and self-efficacy perceptions of high school EFL students
COVID-19 pandemic has changed people's lives dramatically, the way people socialize and go shopping, the way teachers teach, and students learn. Because of the necessity to reduce the physical contact among people and thus stop the spread of the virus, many people were obliged to stay at home. Accordingly, this resulted in giving a pause to schooling made up of bricks and moving to emergency remote teaching (ERT) made up of internet connections and online social networks. However, that movement was not like a planned transition from face-to-face education to hybrid or online, but it was a sudden, temporary and, most importantly, unplanned change. This unplanned nature of ERT created a substantial academic, social, and mental space that needed to be fulfilled mainly by students themselves. Therefore, the characteristics like autonomy and self-efficacy gained much importance for students to take their responsibilities for learning English. They also enabled students to know their strengths and weaknesses in learning English. For that reason, this study aims to discuss the effects of ERT on learner autonomy and self-efficacy perceptions of high school students and the relationship between autonomy and self-efficacy perceptions of students in the ERT context in addition to the ERT with the advantages and disadvantages of the students' point of view. This study focuses on students' autonomy and self-efficacy perceptions for fifteen weeks before and after the ERT process. It compares the results acquired through the questionnaires before and after the ERT to determine whether there is a significant change in high school students learner autonomy and self-efficacy perceptions. The current study also focuses on describing participants' views and feelings concerning ERT. In this study, the research is framed with the sequential explanatory design of the mixed-method design concepts. In order to investigate students' autonomy and self-efficacy perceptions, two questionnaires were distributed to 109 Turkish high school students (purposive sampling): the Autonomy Learner Questionnaire (ALQ), composed of 33 five point Likert-scale items in eight autonomy dimensions to investigate autonomy levels of students, and the English Self-Efficacy Scale (E-SES) to analyze self-efficacy perceptions of students in learning English. In addition, 20 students (extreme case sampling) were chosen on the bases of the participants' responses given to the ALQ, and E-SES were interviewed at the end of the process to gain a deeper understanding. In order to analyze the quantitative data in the study, SPSS 25.0 was taken into practice. For the qualitative data, on the other hand, content analysis was employed. The detailed data analysis indicated that the ERT process had positive impacts on particular items on students' learner autonomy and self-efficacy perceptions, considering the pre-and post-test results. Furthermore, learner autonomy and self-efficacy were strongly correlated with each other. Alongside of limited positive opinions, Participants mostly expressed their opposing views regarding ERT. This study provides a deeper understanding of the effect of the pandemic on the learner autonomy and self-efficacy perceptions of EFL high school students. Thus, it may provide several implications for teachers/instructors, material developers, and The Ministery of Education in Turkey. Keywords: Emergency remote teaching, learner autonomy, self-efficacy perceptions, EFL classes, high school students.
Supporting self-efficacy and learner autonomy in relation to academic success in EFL classrooms (a case study)
English is the leading foreign language among other languages having a prestigious position in the educational world in Turkey. However, most people who learn English complain that they cannot attain the desired proficiency level in English. The problem behind this may be that not only the relationship between self-efficacy and learner autonomy but also the relationship between these two concepts (self-efficacy and learner autonomy) and language learning may be ignored. This research has been conducted for revealing the missing point of the discussions related to foreign language teaching and learning in Turkey. This study intended to investigate the relationship between self-efficacy and learner autonomy, and these two concepts (self-efficacy and learner autonomy) and academic success. The present study was conducted at Gaziantep, Zirve, İnönü, Selçuk and Karatay Universities in 2010-2011 academic year. In the study, there were 50 preparatory level students out of 250 participants from each of the following universities: Gaziantep University, Zirve University, İnönü University, Selçuk University and Karatay University (n=106 females and n=144 males). The data were collected through two questionnaires: Self-Efficacy Questionnaire (SEQ) and Autonomous Learner Questionnaire (ALQ). The reliability of the SEQ was .91 while the reliability of ALQ was .76. The data were analyzed by using SPSS 19.0. The analysis of the data revealed that there was a positive relationship between self-efficacy and learner autonomy (r= .667 p>.01), self-efficacy and academic success (r=.597 p>.01), and learner autonomy and academic success (r=.506 p>.01). Also, it was found out that self-efficacy affected academic success positively and learner autonomy had a positive effect on academic success. Furthermore, self-efficacy and learner autonomy affected academic success positively.Key Words: Individual Learning, Learner Autonomy, Self-efficacy, Autonomous Learner, Self-efficacious Learner, Academic Success.
Promoting intercultural competence of teacher trainees in english language teaching departments via web 2.0 tools: A case study
This study aims at finding out whether Twitter is effective in promoting intercultural communicative competence of teacher trainees with the help of Twitter. The study involves five main chapters. The first chapter includes the problem, the aim of the study, the importance of the study, assumptions, limitations, and definitions. In the second chapter, the review of literature is involved. In the review of literature part, there are subheadings about intercultural communicative competence, culture, information and communication technologies, web 2.0, social networking, and Twitter. The third chapter comprises the methodology of the study involving research design, sample and population, data collection tools, and data analysis. The forth chapter includes findings and discussion of data. The fifth chapter involves summary of the study, and pedagogical implications and suggestions. The sample group of the study includes 4th grade teacher trainees studying at Gazi University, English Language Teaching Program (N=21). The study was carried out in the 2012-2013 spring semester and the process took six weeks. Using a qualitative method, an interview and reports have been designed, and they were presented to the experts. The interview and reports were analyzed by content analysis. The analysis of the interview and reports revealed that teacher trainees considerably promoted their intercultural communicative competence in terms of knowledge and attitudes with the help of Twitter. Therefore, it was concluded that Twitter is effective in developing intercultural communicative competence of students regarding knowledge and attitudes dimension.
Evaluation of the english textbooks used in seventh grades of state schools in terms of learner autonomy
This study aims to show whether the English textbooks used in the seventh grades of state schools in Turkey for the last five years encourage learner autonomy or not. That is ,this study is designed in to order to find out if, and if so, how textbooks provide information and practice in the areas of whether textbooks materials give students opportunities to make their own choices about and how to learn within the book, whether there is a focus for learning styles and strategies and whether there are opportunities for reflection and awareness building .The aspect of the data analysis of the study was course book evaluation. Although various approaches to research are available for researchers to design the most effective research models that cater for their needs, this study was conducted using content analysis method, which is within qualitative research paradigm. This study is about the evaluation of textbooks in secondary schools which consist of sixth, seventh and eighth grade learners in terms of learner autonomy by using a framework. However, analyzing all of them wouldn?t be possible, so textbooks for 7th grade learners were chosen as sample. In order to be able to get reliable information and compare the books, the books for the same grades namely 7th grade were chosen as subject. It was important to evaluate these books used in public schools of Ministry of National Education (MONE) because these books have been used for the last five years in 7th grades of public schools and they are indispensible parts of the lessons throughout the year. Weekly schedules are programmed mostly according to the course books in question, which makes them a core element of learning English in these public schools. Even though learner autonomy has been one of the most disputed and popular subject, there are almost no studies that combine textbook evaluation and learner autonomy. This subject has been ignored by textbook writers , so far. This also makes this study more crucial. In this study, the books chosen were evaluated with a framework developed by Reinders(2010). This framework includes eight stages of self-directed learning process. These stages are iterative. The books were scrutinized by the help of this framework. A distinction was made between the cases where the books provided information about self-directed learning and where they provided opportunities to put them into practice. After evaluating each unit of each book, if a book just mentioned the importance of learning strategies but didn?t give any opportunities for controlled practice, this would be considered as an example of giving ?information? only. If students were given the chance to practice these strategies by the help of different activities, this would be categorized as ?practice?. However, Results proved that such a focus on strategies or other elements of self-directed learning is not at all common in the four textbooks investigated. Out of the eight skills, none of them was covered in these books. These results put forward that teachers should be more careful while choosing a book for the lesson and the textbook writer shouldn?t ignore the term ?autonomy? in their books. Key Words: English Language Teaching, Coursebook Evaluation, Learner autonomy, Materials adaptation, Language textbooks
İlköğretim öğrencilerinin fen ve teknoloji dersi öz-düzenlemeli öğrenme stratejileri, öz-yeterlik ve özerklik algılarının incelenmesi
Bu araştırmada, cinsiyet ve sınıf düzeyine göre ilköğretim ikinci kademe öğrencilerinin Fen ve Teknoloji Dersinde kullandıkları öz-düzenlemeli öğrenme stratejileri ile bu dersteki öz-yeterlik ve özerklik algıları incelenmiş, bu değişkenlerin dersteki başarıyı tahmin ettikleri model belirlenmeye çalışılmıştır.Tarama modelindeki bu araştırma 2010-2011 öğretim yılı birinci döneminde Edirne İli Merkez İlçedeki İlköğretim okullarında, ikinci kademede öğrenim görmekte olan 1286 öğrencinin katılımı ile gerçekleştirilmiştir. Araştırma verileri, araştırmacı tarafından geliştirilen ?Fen ve Teknoloji Dersi Öz-Düzenlemeli Öğrenme Stratejileri Ölçeği?, ?Fen ve Teknoloji Dersi Öz-Yeterlik Algısı Ölçeği? ve ?Fen ve Teknoloji Dersi Özerklik Algısı Ölçeği? ile toplanmıştır. Ayrıca öğrencilerin başarı durumlarının göstergesi olarak birinci dönem Fen ve Teknoloji Dersi karne notları yüzlük (100'lük) sistemde alınmıştır.Araştırmanın sonuçlarına göre öğrenciler, Bilişsel Öğrenme Stratejilerinden en çok Örgütleme Stratejilerini, en az Grafik Örgütleyici Stratejileri; Kaynak Yönetim Stratejilerinde en çok Yardım Arama Stratejilerini, en az Zaman Yönetim Stratejilerini kullanmaktadırlar. Bununla birlikte Biliş Bilgisi ve Bilişin Düzenlemesi Stratejilerinin kullanımları ?çok sık? düzeyindedir. Araştırmada geliştirilen Öz-Düzenlemeli Öğrenme Stratejileri modelinde gizil bir yapı olarak düşünülen Öz-Düzenleme, Bilişsel Stratejileri, Biliş Bilgisini, Bilişin Düzenlenmesini ve Kaynak Yönetim Stratejilerini anlamlı bir biçimde tahmin ederken, en yüksek regresyon katsayısı Biliş Bilgisine ve Bilişin Düzenlemesine aittir.Öğrencilerin öz-yeterlik ve özerklik algılarının ise hem alt boyutlarda hem de genelde yüksek düzeyde olduğu belirlenmiştir. Araştırmanın tüm değişkenleri cinsiyete göre incelendiğinde Grafik Örgütleyici Stratejiler ve Kaynak Yönetim Stratejileri hariç tüm ölçeklerin genelinde ve alt boyutlarında kızlar lehine anlamlı farklar bulunmuştur. Bu değişkenlerin sınıf düzeyine göre durumları incelendiğinde, sınıf seviyesi arttıkça strateji kullanımı, öz-yeterlik ve özerklik algılarında anlamlı bir azalma olduğu belirlenmiştir.Araştırmada geliştirilen modele göre öz-yeterlik algısı, özerklik algısını ve her ikisi birlikte öz-düzenlemeli öğrenme stratejileri kullanımlarını, bunun da başarıyı anlamlı bir biçimde tahmin ettiği belirlenmiştir. Yine ölçek geliştirmede temel alınan Öz-Düzenleme modelinin başarıyı tahmin eden genel modelde de gözlenen yapılarını anlamlı bir biçimde tahmin ettiği ve en yüksek regresyon katsayılarının Biliş Bilgisi ile Bilişin Düzenlenmesine ait olduğu görülmüştür. Genel model cinsiyet ve sınıf düzeyine göre incelendiğinde önemli farklılıklar gözlenmemekle birlikte, kızlar ve yedinci sınıf öğrencileri için yapılan model analizinde üretilen uyum indislerinin diğerlerine göre biraz daha iyi olduğu görülmüştür.
EFL learners' conceptions of learner autonomy
Promoting learner autonomy in EFL classes has been one of the most fundamental objectives of education. It is known that Turkish educational system has traditional educational methods that constrain autonomous language learning. Learner autonomy is a concept that has many dimensions. The concern of this study is to find out EFL learners' conceptions of different autonomous behaviours that learners need to have in their learning. Those areas include learners' readiness for self-direction, learners' conceptions of independent work, learners' beliefs related to the role of class and teacher, learners' conceptions of the role of the teacher in explanation/supervision, learners' attitudes towards particular language learning activities, learners' readiness to share responsibility in selection of content, learners' roles in determining objectives and self-evaluation, learners' conceptions of external assessment in their motivation, and learners' attitudes towards the culture of the language they are learning. As the data collection tool Autonomy Learner Questionnaire was used. The survey was administered to 114 7th grade students at Şehit Selahattin Elemantary School in Hakkari, Turkey. The data analysis was carried out through quantitative (frequencies, percentages) analysis techniques. The findings of the study showed that while the learners have more autonomy over some aspects of learning, they have less readiness and awareness over the others.
A study on computer assisted language learning and the development of learner autonomy
The purpose of this study is to gain insights into students' perception of learner autonomy development and to explore learners' perceptions of learning English within a CALL environment. In order to gain insights about the students' perceptions of learner autonomy development, four areas of learner autonomy were examined. These areas were as follows: (a) Learners' motivation level in learning English, (b) Learners' use of metacognitive strategies in learning English, (c) Learners' responsibility perception of their own and their teachers' in learning English and (d) Learners' practice of English in the outside class activities.In order to reach the goals mentioned above, both qualitative and quantitative data were collected by the help of questionnaires, semi-structured face-to-face interviews. The data collected from the questionnaire were subjected to descriptive analysis and the data collected from interviews were subjected to content analysis.The findings indicated that the majority of the students had a high motivation. Also, the results showed that most of them tended to use some metacognitive strategies like self-monitoring and self-evaluation. On the other hand, the findings revealed that most of the students considered the teacher as more responsible for most of the tasks during their own learning process, and tended to spend a little time for outside activities to improve their English. During the study, the students were encouraged to take an active involvement to the CALL classes to increase their motivation, use language learning strategies, take responsibility for their own learning and engage in outside class activities. Keywords: Computer assisted language learning, Learner autonomy.
The role of self-assessment practices in the improvement of freshman students' writing performance and awareness
In this study, it was aimed to examine the role of self-assessment practices in the improvement of students' English writing skills. A qualitative case study was conducted in line with the objectives of the research. The participants were 22 Automotive Engineering freshman students. Having been subjected to eight different writing sessions which the researcher had designed in advance, the participants were asked to assess themselves and their performance through various instruments at the end of those sessions. Data for this study was collected through self-assessment checklists, student journals, teacher journal and a self-assessment questionnaire. As a conclusion of the study, it was asserted that students' self-assessment in their own writing skill played an important role in creating personality and task awareness as well as in their performances in the writing skill.
A case study of perceptions and attitudes of 7th grade English language learners toward classroom practices for the development of student autonomy
Autonomy is a crucial issue in language teaching because the world of education needs the language learners who can learn how to learn a language independently for a life-long process. At the same time, the concept of autonomy is popular since it removes the restriction of place and time for language learning. However, developing autonomy of language learners may take a long time. So, before developing autonomy in language classes, it is needed to learn about the autonomy perceptions and attitudes of our language learners. The purpose of this specific twelve-week case study was to find out autonomy perceptions and attitudes towards activities fostering autonomy of 7th grade EFL students studying at Hacı Halil Arpaç Secondary School in Mersin, Turkey. Another purpose of this case study was to find out the changes of language learners' autonomy perceptions and attitudes after the study. In the study, qualitative research method was used. As a source of data, Semi-structured Interviews, Activity Perception Questionnaire and Classroom Observation Checklists were administered. The results were discussed by content analysis.
An evaluation of English coursebooks used in Turkish high schools for learner autonomy: A descriptive study
Research on materials evaluation shapes what materials we are to face in the future. With every single study, we take one more step towards adapting learning and teaching materials according to learners needs. While the trend nowadays is in favor of more learner-centered approaches, one of the fundamentals of learner-centered education, autonomy, must find its place on the upper levels of the structure we, teachers, are trying to build. In this study, we tried to find out to what extend English coursebooks used in high schools in Tukey help learners develop autonomy. Results indicate that coursebook publishers need to support learner autonomy in their print materials more effectively.
Understanding the complex nature of language learner autonomy
This qualitative study was carried out to investigate the three cases' autonomy. The research was based on the dynamic model of learner autonomy proposed by Tassinari (2012). The model mainly discussed four components such as cognitive-metacognitive, action-oriented, affective-motivational and social component of learner autonomy, focusing on the complexity and dynamism of the concept. The sixteen characteristics of an autonomous learner, grounded on the literature of learner autonomy, were analyzed and interpreted within these four dimensions. The qualitative method of inquiry was implemented to get a detailed understanding of the three learners' autonomy. The data was collected through qualitative research methods including questionnaire, interview, journal and mind-map. Due to the nature of the study, content analysis was preferred to analyze and interpret the collected data and a coding scheme consisting of sixteen characteristics was created (See Appendix A). The analysis of each component displayed that the three learners had varied degrees of autonomy and the obtained data supported the notion of autonomy as a complex system. It revealed that autonomy is a complex phenomenon which necessitates different agents interacting not only with each other but also with other components, by this way constitutes the non-linear, dynamic and nested system of autonomy. Keywords: Learner Autonomy, Complexity of Autonomy, Dynamism of Autonomy
Secondary school EFL teachers' perceptions on learner autonomy
Learner autonomy plays a crucial role in learning a foreign language as the ability to take control of one's own learning. Teachers are considered to have the primary role in developing autonomy in learners; it is always the focus of several studies about their perceptions on learner autonomy and considered as incompletely explored, yet. Therefore, the purpose of this mixed type study is to sort out the secondary school EFL teachers' perceptions on learner autonomy, teachers' role in promoting learner autonomy, desirability and feasibility of learner autonomy, and the challenges teachers face in promoting learner autonomy. This study was conducted during the second term of 2019-2020 academic year. The participants of this study are 43 EFL teachers from 23 different secondary schools in Kozan province of Adana, Turkey. A questionnaire and a structured interview, which are designed by Al-Busaidi and Borg (2012) are applied to 43 ELT teachers. These participants, who are selected by purposive sampling method, are given the questionnaire including 60 items and 10 of these participants are volunteers to take part in the structured interview. At the end of 6-week treatment, the data collected through the questionnaire were analyzed with Statistical Package for Social Sciences 26.0 (SPSS 26.0 version) software and the data collected through structured interviews were exposed to qualitative thematic analyses. Findings from these data collection tools reveal that secondary school EFL teachers are familiar with the term of learner autonomy and agree that learner autonomy contributes to learning a second language; nonetheless, they disagree that learner autonomy is feasible at state school environments because of the curriculum and time limitations.
An investigation of out-of-class English learning activities of Turkish 12th graders
This mixed-method design study examines the out-of-class English activities which are done by the 12th-grade students in Fen Bilimleri Temel Lisesi in Adana. Furthermore, the study aims to reveal what kind of activities they do and the frequency of these activities. Additionally, the effect of these out-of-class activities on the four skills of English, the barriers they face, and the frequency of these barriers are examined. Finally, whether the participants motivate themselves or not while doing these activities, their views towards English and the role of English in out-of-class activities are examined. Eighty-one 12th-grade students studying at Adana Fen Bilimleri Temel Lisesi participated in this study. Quantitate and qualitative research methods were used to gather data. The qualitative data gathered through the survey, given to the participants, was categorized and tabularized. According to the qualitative data, the most frequent activities participants do are playing games, listening to music and communicating with foreigners and friends. Additionally, when looked at the quantitative data the most frequent activities are, watching movies/series, listening to music and using social media. According to the gathered data, participants tend to do activities that require receptive abilities.
Examining the relationship between EFL learners' autonomy and motivation in distance education
Due to the coronavirus, which has been affecting the whole country since March 2020, distance education has been initiated in all primary, secondary and high schools. Considering this process in our country, this study aimed to examine the relationship between student autonomy and motivation in English lesson in distance education. In addition, the study determined to what extent gender affected student autonomy and motivation. The study was carried out in Altınşehir Anatolian High School in Adıyaman, Turkey. The data were collected from 9th and 10th-grade students in this High School in Adıyaman. 127 of the students who participated in the study were female and 63 were male. In the study, which was carried out as a quantitative study, the data were collected through a questionnaire which included demographic and general variables that can be accounted for by age, gender, and distance education experience, and 32 items related to learner motivation and autonomy. The data obtained from the questionnaire were analysed using descriptive, Independent Sample T-test, and correlation analysis. The results of the study revealed that the learners' levels of autonomy and motivation in English lessons in distance education were above average level. In addition, it was found that gender had an effect in favour of girls on motivation and autonomy in distance education. Lastly, the results of the correlation analysis showed that there was a positive, significant, and moderate relationship between students' autonomy and motivation. This finding was interpreted as the more autonomous the students were in English lessons in distance education, the more motivated they were, and vice versa.
Investigating students' perceptions of learner autonomy in distance education at a university context
This study was conducted to explore university students' perceptions of learner autonomy in distance education. The study also investigates the effects of students' demographic features on their perceptions and the students' suggestions for fostering learner autonomy in distance education. In this regard, the study was conducted with 120 preparatory school students of a private university in Mersin, Turkey. Both qualitative and quantitative research methodologies were used in the study. In this mixed research design, the data was collected through Learner Autonomy in Distance Education (LADE) Questionnaire and semi-structured interview. The collected quantitative data were analysed using SPSS software and supported by qualitative analysis of the semi-structured interviews through pattern coding.
An experimental case study on the development of a language learner's agentic identity
Learner agency has become a major area of interest within the field of language education over the last thirty years. It is fast becoming a key concept in the era of learner-centered pedagogies. Determining the impact of formal educational context on the learners' agentic development is important for the future of language education at a time when learners are capable of maintaining their learning process in out-of-school contexts and bringing their personal experiences and expertize into formal educational settings. However, the impact of ecological transition from language classes in high schools to tertiary level EFL learning context have yet to be understood. Similarly, researchers have not investigated the extent to which tertiary level preparatory language education can be designed to enhance learners' use of agency. This thesis aimed to explore a language learner's agentic development before and after language class in high school, transition from high school to university, and the impact of syllabus design on a learner's agency use in a tertiary level language learning context. The research is based on one case study which includes five interventions in a preparatory language class in a state university. The findings of this thesis suggested that learners develop their agentic identity as a result of interplay among different social and educational contexts in differing timescales interacting with other social agents by self-regulative skills. Ecological transitions between these phases and contexts can be facilitated by a harmony between micro level syllabus designs and regulations at the national level. The present results highlight the detrimental effects that macro level assessment policies have on micro level classroom practices and learners' agentic development in formal educational contexts.
An investigation into the relationships between learner autonomy, language engagement and academic achievement
The current study, conducted at the Department of English Language and Literature, Karadeniz Technical University, is an attempt to investigate the relationships between learner autonomy, language engagement and academic achievement as measured by Grade Point Average (GPA).The sample in the study consists of 83 students including senior and junior students attending the Department of English Language and Literature at Karadeniz Technical University. 8 out of 83 students are selected to conduct interviews. The participants are selected through purposive sampling which is a part of non-probability sampling.This is a case study combining qualitative and quantitative research tradition. The data is collected via questionnaires and face-to-face interviews. In analyzing the data obtained via the semi-structured interviews, qualitative analysis is used and quantitative analysis is used in analyzing the data collected via the questionnaire. The SPSS 16.0 program is used in the analysis of the quantitative data. As for the qualitative analysis, content analysis is used to determine recurring themes.The study indicates that there are statistically significant relationships between learner autonomy, language engagement and academic achievement as measured by GPA. The nature of the correlations is positive. The strongest relationship occurs between language engagement and learner autonomy while the relationship between learner autonomy and academic achievement as measured by their GPAs and the relationship between language engagement and academic achievement are moderate. The findings obtained via the interviews are consistent with the findings obtained via the questionnaire.