Autonomy and Foreign Language Learning in a Virtual Learning Environment

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Digitalised learning with its promise of autonomy, enhanced learner choice, independence and freedom, is an intuitive and appealing construct but closer examination reveals it to be a rather simplistic proposition, raising the following questions. -What do we mean by autonomy -What are we implying about the role of the teacher, the classroom, and interaction between learners -What do we understand about the impact of technology on the ecology of the learning environment This book describes the use of a Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) by a group of advanced English language learners in Mexico, comparing what students thought and what they did in response to the technology. The theoretical aim of the book is to work towards the construction of a theory of the development of autonomy and virtual learning in an EFL context. Enhanced understanding about the relationship between autonomy and technology has the potential to inform academics, software designers, materials writers, teacher educators, and teachers and to help learners in their quest to acquire a foreign language.

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This book is well written, with a clear and crisp style that allows the reader to follow the theoretical drive of the book without strain ... A thought-provoking exploration ... If you have an interest in learner autonomy, educational technology, or both, this book is definitely worth your time. * ELT Journal *

Author Bio

Miranda Hamilton is a Researcher in Cambridge looking at Learning Orientated Assessment with a focus on the use of technology. She recently completed her PhD from the University of Cambridge, UK.