Autonomous Learning in On-line Interactions

Autonomous Learning in On-line Interactions

The current study sets out to find out the potential of CMC for facilitating the autonomy of Korean students. In this study, autonomy means the learner is responsible for the decisions concerned with his learning and the implementation of those decisions. This is a term referring to situations in which learners are working voluntarily without the direct control of the teacher. The main research questions of the study are; 1) do students participate actively during the CMC course? 2) do students use the CMC activities for English language learning voluntarily as a form of autonomous learning? The results of the study show that the students' attitudes toward autonomous learning (i,e., correcting errors for themselves, using self-access voluntarily) had changed following the CMC activities. All participants acknowledged that the CMC activity helped them to study English independently and to take responsibility for their studies. However, the results also indicate that e-mail and chatting activities themselves cannot bring about learner autonomy. The role of teachers and selecting discussion topics for CMC activities has been suggested.