Learner autonomy, microcredentials and self-reflection: a review of a Moodle-based medical English review course

Abstract

English has become increasingly important for medical professionals in Japan. This means English language teachers in medical schools are tasked to not only deliver an intensive time constrained English curriculum, but also expected to design and implement effective and attractive review courses for learners' autonomous study. The authors of this paper have created Moodle-based English courses to improve the English curricula by integrating 'blended-learning' in class. They also have started to provide ongoing access to a range of review courses to help their students' autonomous study. This paper outlines how the authors integrated a self-reflective framework and a badge system in the review courses they created. It illustrates how this framework helped learners identify for themselves the appropriate course at the appropriate level. It also demonstrates how the awarding of badges helps to motivate learners to actively engage with and complete the module and/or the course they have chosen.Keywords: learner autonomy; self-reflective framework; badges; English education; Moodle; motivation.Reference to this paper should be made as follows: Iwata, J., Clayton, J. Biographical notes: Jun Iwata is a Professor of English Language Teaching at the School of Medicine, Shimane University, Japan. He teaches English for medical purposes. His research interests include computer-assisted language learning, effective use of ICT in English language teaching and curriculum design for English for specific purposes. Learner autonomy, microcredentials and self-reflection 43John Clayton is a New Zealand Educator with extensive knowledge of deploying, using and evaluating learning technologies in both educational and workplace environments. He is currently the Director of the Emerging Technologies Centre at the Waikato Institute of Technology. He is an active researcher and his current research interests include situated cognition and workplace learning, reflective frameworks and the personalisation of learning, the impact e-learning technologies on learner achievement and the evaluation of workplace and educational environments using perceptual measures.Sarah-Jane Saravani is a manager of the Learning Hub at the Waikato Institute of Technology, Hamilton, New Zealand. She has responsibility for the provision and development of access to a range of information and learning resources, and for services to staff and students to support their development as lifelong learners in the 21st century. This paper is a revised and expanded version of a paper entitled 'Using self-reflection and badges in Moodle-based medical English review courses