Publicação
A learner classroom: learner´s participation in the process of language learning
| Resumo: | The main goal of this Action Research project was to discover how to involve learners in classroom activities, in the English classroom. Assuming that through the use of various strategies, such as pair work activities and the stimulus of providing learners with the opportunity to share their suggestions, learning preferences and feedback on the language classroom, the creation of a more learner-centred classroom would be facilitated. Therefore, the research questions are the following, (1) “How can pair work promote a learner-centred classroom?”, (2) “How can a Suggestion Box be used as a starter to create a learner-centred classroom?” and (3) “How can learners’ opinions and feedback influence teaching practices?”. In order to obtain the answers to these questions, I performed a small-scale action research project as a teacher trainee with a class of twenty-one (21) learners. The learners were given the possibility of suggesting activities/resources, through a Suggestion Box, to be used in the classroom. Other research tools were used, such as the classroom activities and questionnaires. These were used to obtain data related to the interaction patterns used, learners’ participation in the Suggestion Box and the learners’ feedback on the English class and the activities/resources used. I chose to focus on learners’ participation in the process of language learning because in my (short) teaching experience, I have observed first hand that most of the learners are eager to either suggest activities/resources to be used or eager to share their opinions and solutions to an activity or lesson stage. The results revealed that there are several strategies which can be used to involve learners in the teaching and learning practices, either through the use of pair work activities, in which learners have more autonomy and responsibility or by sharing their suggestions and their opinions on the English class and activities. These tools were useful not only to promote a more learner-centred classroom but can also serve as a basis for learners to reflect on what and how they wish to learn. Ultimately, not only did this research encourage me to gain more knowledge on these topics but, as a teacher, it also inspired me to continue to use the Suggestion Box in the foreign language classroom. |
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| Autores principais: | Videira, Vanessa Filipa Veríssimo |
| Assunto: | O aluno no centro Padrões de interação Autonomia do aprendente Escola primária Língua estrangeira Learner-centred classroom Learner autonomy Interaction patterns Primary school Foreign language |
| Ano: | 2022 |
| País: | Portugal |
| Tipo de documento: | dissertação de mestrado |
| Tipo de acesso: | acesso aberto |
| Instituição associada: | Universidade Nova de Lisboa |
| Idioma: | inglês |
| Origem: | Repositório Institucional da UNL |
| Resumo: | The main goal of this Action Research project was to discover how to involve learners in classroom activities, in the English classroom. Assuming that through the use of various strategies, such as pair work activities and the stimulus of providing learners with the opportunity to share their suggestions, learning preferences and feedback on the language classroom, the creation of a more learner-centred classroom would be facilitated. Therefore, the research questions are the following, (1) “How can pair work promote a learner-centred classroom?”, (2) “How can a Suggestion Box be used as a starter to create a learner-centred classroom?” and (3) “How can learners’ opinions and feedback influence teaching practices?”. In order to obtain the answers to these questions, I performed a small-scale action research project as a teacher trainee with a class of twenty-one (21) learners. The learners were given the possibility of suggesting activities/resources, through a Suggestion Box, to be used in the classroom. Other research tools were used, such as the classroom activities and questionnaires. These were used to obtain data related to the interaction patterns used, learners’ participation in the Suggestion Box and the learners’ feedback on the English class and the activities/resources used. I chose to focus on learners’ participation in the process of language learning because in my (short) teaching experience, I have observed first hand that most of the learners are eager to either suggest activities/resources to be used or eager to share their opinions and solutions to an activity or lesson stage. The results revealed that there are several strategies which can be used to involve learners in the teaching and learning practices, either through the use of pair work activities, in which learners have more autonomy and responsibility or by sharing their suggestions and their opinions on the English class and activities. These tools were useful not only to promote a more learner-centred classroom but can also serve as a basis for learners to reflect on what and how they wish to learn. Ultimately, not only did this research encourage me to gain more knowledge on these topics but, as a teacher, it also inspired me to continue to use the Suggestion Box in the foreign language classroom. |
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