Defining and developing autonomy in East Asian contexts

Abstract

Autonomy in language learning is sometimes presented as a Western concept unsuited to contexts, such as those in East Asia, which have different educational traditions. This paper argues that this view is unfounded but that we need to match the different aspects of autonomy with the characteristics and needs of learners in specific contexts. First the paper analyses the concept of autonomy as it relates to language learning and proposes a framework which would be applicable to learners in all contexts. Then it looks at three sources of influence which many teachers and researchers believe to have an important effect on students' approaches to learning in East Asia: the collectivist orientation of East Asian societies; their acceptance of relationships based on power and authority; and the belief that success may be achieved through effort as much as through innate ability. The paper then considers some of the attitudes and habits of learning which we might expect to result from these sociocultural influences. These are presented as hypotheses which might guide us towards a better understanding of our students but should not blind us to the immense variation that exists in reality. Within the framework for analysing autonomy developed earlier, the paper considers what aspects of autonomy might be most strongly rooted in East Asian traditions and how they might be developed in support of language learning. The paper warns against setting up stereotypic notions of 'East Asian learners' which, if misused, may make teachers less rather than more sensitive to the dispositions and needs of individual students.