In the light of widespread discussion of qualitative approaches to language teaching and learning research in recent years, this article reports on a survey of qualitative data‐based articles published in 10 major journals between 1997 and 2006. The survey revealed that 477 qualitative articles (22% of the total number published) had appeared in the 10 journals over this period, that the year‐by‐year totals were relatively stable over the 10‐year period of the survey, and that there was considerable variation among the journals. An analysis of the articles in terms of approaches to qualitative research showed that methodological eclecticism, rather than adherence to established traditions, is now the dominant characteristic of published qualitative work in our field.
This paper discusses the historical development of the concept of teacher autonomy in foreign language education and its relationship to the idea of learner autonomy. Three major phases in the development of conceptions of teacher autonomy are reviewed, involving attention to teacher roles in autonomous learning projects, professional development and professional freedom. Different ways of conceptualising the link between teacher and learner autonomy are discussed and an alternative conception based on the notion of transition from learner autonomy to teacher autonomy in learning-teaching careers is proposed. KEY-WORDS: Learner autonomy; Teacher autonomy; Self-directed learning; Teacher development.RESUMO: Este trabalho discute o desenvolvimento histórico do conceito de autonomia do professor de língua estrangeira e suas relações com a idéia de autonomia do aprendiz. São analisadas três fases importantes do desenvolvimento dos conceitos de autonomia do professor, envolvendo a atenção aos papéis do professor em projetos voltados para o desenvolvimento da autonomia na aprendizagem, o desenvolvimento profissional e a liberdade profissional. São discutidas diferentes formas de se conceituar o relacionamento entre a autonomia do professor e do aluno e é proposta uma perspectiva alternativa, baseada na noção de transição da autonomia do aprendiz para a autonomia do professor no processo de ensino-aprendizagem. PALAVRAS-CHAVE: Autonomia do aprendiz; autonomia do professor; aprendizagem autodirecionada; desenvolvimento do professor.
This paper examines how and why learner resistance (to the teacher’s goals and expectations) occurred in a metacognition-training (MT) project, which aimed to enhance reflection and autonomy in EFL learning. MT was integrated into a regular EFL reading course for second-year BA TEFL undergraduates at a Chinese university. Learner resistance in the MT project was manifested partly through mismatches between the goals and expectations on the part of the teacher and the students. After suggesting initial reasons for learner resistance, the paper explores more complex explanations. That is, at a more macro level, institutional pressures and societal expectations arising from an influential national test (TEM-4) gave rise to an examination culture; at a more micro level, these controlling pressures and expectations were realized by the pragmatic product-oriented approach in the EFL classroom and by students’ positioning as examination learners. These might help explain why learner resistance occurred in the MT project. The paper notes in the end that learner resistance is also a matter of tensions and conflicts in learner and teacher agendas, and in learners’ short-term and long-term priorities in learning. Based on this, implications for EFL teaching and learning are explored.
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