To ensure smooth communication and collaboration, here are some troubleshooting tips to address common issues:
Check Internet Connection: Verify that you have a stable and reliable internet connection. Use a wired connection when possible, as it tends to be more stable than Wi-Fi. If using Wi-Fi, make sure you have a strong signal.
Update the Browser or App: Ensure that you are using the latest version of the web browser. Developers frequently release updates to address bugs and improve performance.
Clear Browser Cache: Sometimes, cached data can cause conflicts or issues. Clear the browser cache and cookies before joining the meeting.
Test Audio and Video: Before the meeting, check your microphone and camera to ensure they are working correctly. If you are a speaker, you can click on "Start Practice Session" button test to ensure audio and video devices are functioning.
Close Other Applications: Running multiple applications in the background can consume system resources and lead to performance issues. Close unnecessary apps to free up resources for the Dryfta meeting platform.
Restart Your Device: If you encounter persistent issues, try restarting your computer or mobile device. This can help resolve various software-related problems.
Use Supported Browsers: Ensure you are using a browser supported by the meeting platform. Recommended browsers: Chrome, Firefox, Edge, and Brave.
Allow Necessary Permissions: Make sure the Dryfta meeting platform has the required permissions to access your microphone, camera, and other necessary features.
Disable VPN or Firewall: Sometimes, VPNs or firewalls can interfere with the connection to the meeting platform. Temporarily disable them and see if the issue persists.
Switch Devices: If possible, try joining the meeting from a different device to see if the problem is specific to one device.
Reduce Bandwidth Usage: In cases of slow or unstable internet connections, ask participants to disable video or share video selectively to reduce bandwidth consumption.
Update Drivers and Software: Ensure your operating system, audio drivers, and video drivers are up to date. Outdated drivers can cause compatibility issues with the Dryfta meeting platform.
Contact Support: If none of the above steps resolve the issue, reach out to the platform's support team. They can provide personalized assistance and troubleshoot specific problems.
By following these troubleshooting tips, you can tackle many common problems encountered on Dryfta meeting platform and have a more productive and seamless meeting experience.
Reflections on autonomy research and practice over 40 years from the perspective of inclusion and social justice
Oral Presentation[SYMP44] AILA ReN - Learner Autonomy:10:15 AM - 06:00 PM (Europe/Amsterdam) 2023/07/21 08:15:00 UTC - 2024/07/21 16:00:00 UTC
This paper will provide a critical overview of research and practice in the field of autonomy in language learning over the past forty years and will argue that it has for many years been closely related to issues of inclusion (Lamb 2017). To support this, I will draw autoethnographically on my own work throughout this period, which has largely mirrored the development of the field as manifested in a number of ReN symposia, showing how my engagement in this field has always been driven by my original commitment to social justice and inclusion in my early days as a language teacher in urban secondary schools. I will first draw on my research into flexible learning, which I developed in the 1980s and 1990s as a way of enabling all learners in heterogeneous classrooms to flourish (e.g., Lamb 1998). This research started as practitioner research before developing an ethnographic approach, focusing on learners' voices, metacognitive knowledge, motivation and critical learner autonomy, resulting in the development of a 'powerful language learning curriculum' to enable learners and teachers to address constraints and empower themselves by "finding the spaces for manoeuvre" (e.g., Lamb 2000; 2009). Building on this, I will demonstrate how a pedagogy for autonomy was developed through the work of EuroPAL, a European project which led to a new common definition of critical autonomy for learners and teachers that offered a transformative "vision of education as (inter)personal empowerment and social transformation" (Jiménez Raya et al. 2017: 17) and which mapped autonomy at the levels of the learner, the teacher and the context/environment.In the mid-2010s we saw the spatial (Murray and Lamb 2018) and multilingual (Benson and Lamb 2021) turns in autonomy research. I will illustrate these by describing my ethnographic, participatory and activist research with local language communities, as well as my cross-disciplinary review of the construct of critical and collective autonomy, which facilitated an understanding of the processes by which diverse language communities appropriate and use urban spaces in order to ensure that their languages are learnt and used by the next generations, at the same time challenging the monolingual habitus which persists in many contexts (e.g., Lamb and Vodicka 2018). A connection will briefly be made to my ongoing practice-based and policy-related research into the development of plurilingual education in Europe and its relationship to learner autonomy and inclusion.ReferencesBenson, P. & Lamb, T. (2021) 'Autonomy in the Age of Multilingualism', in Jiménez Raya, M. & Vieira, F. (eds) Autonomy in Language Education: Theory, Research and Practice. New York & London: Routledge: 74-88Jiménez Raya, M., Lamb, T.E. and Vieira, F. (2017) Mapping autonomy in languages education: A framework for learner and teacher development. Frankfurt am Main: Peter LangLamb, T.E. (2009) 'Controlling learning: relationships between motivation and learner autonomy' in Pemberton, R., Toogood, S. and Barfield, A. (eds) Maintaining control. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press 67-86Lamb, T.E. (2009) 'Controlling learning: relationships between motivation and learner autonomy' in Pemberton, R., Toogood, S. and Barfield, A. (eds) Maintaining control. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press 67-86Lamb, T.E. (2000) 'Reconceptualising disaffection – issues of power, voice and learner autonomy', in Walraven, G., Parsons, C., Van Veen, D. and Day, C. (eds.) (2000) Combating Social Exclusion through Education. Louvain, Belgium and Apeldoorn, Netherlands: Garant: 99-115Lamb, T.E. (1998) 'Now You're On Your Own: Developing Independent Language Learning', in Gewehr, W. (ed.) (1998) Aspects of Language Teaching in Europe. London: Routledge: 30-47Lamb T. (2017) 'Knowledge About Language and Learner Autonomy', in Cenoz J., Gorter D., May S. (eds) Language Awareness and Multilingualism. Encyclopedia of Language and Education (3rd ed.). Cham, Switzerland: Springer: 173-186Lamb, T.E. and Vodicka, G. (2018) 'Collective autonomy and multilingual spaces in super- diverse urban contexts: Interdisciplinary perspectives', in Murray, G. and Lamb, T.E. (eds) Space, place and autonomy in language learning. London: Routledge: 9-28Murray, G. and Lamb, T.E. (eds) (2018) Space, place and autonomy in language learning. London: Routledge
Developing inclusive pedagogy for autonomy in a master’s TESOL programme
[SYMP44] AILA ReN - Learner Autonomy:10:15 AM - 06:00 PM (Europe/Amsterdam) 2023/07/21 08:15:00 UTC - 2024/07/21 16:00:00 UTC
Developing inclusive pedagogy for autonomy in a master's TESOL programme
This presentation reports on my developing an inclusive pedagogy for autonomy in a master's programme in TESOL in the UK. For the past three years that I have been teaching in this programme, not only have I incorporated learner autonomy (Holec, 1981; Dam, 1995) as content, but also developed an inclusive pedagogy for autonomy in the modules I teach in the programme. Under this pedagogy, the learners' knowledge, experiences, contexts, and idiosyncrasies take a prime role. It is their interests and needs based on their previous experience, knowledge, and the contexts they are familiar with that shape the curriculum to a great extent (Little, Dam & Legenhausen, 2017). In this respect, the pedagogy is inclusive of students' own needs and own background knowledge and idiosyncrasies, as well as autonomous. Also, my teaching and practitioner research practice has been informed by Exploratory Practice (Allwright and Hanks, 2009), whose principles call for inclusivity understood as involving everyone in working together for mutual understanding and development. Other aspects of autonomy that an examination of my teaching reveal include: students' choices and decisions regarding assessment, tasks, materials, timing, and homework, as well as students' meaning making, discussions, development of understanding and sharing understanding, together with students' epistemic enquiries, creativity and spontaneity. Collected practitioner research data includes video-recorded sessions of my teaching, and students' reflective drawings on the experience and their video-recorded explanation of the drawings. Participants are comprised of three consecutive cohorts of students, each one comprising of a maximum of 10 students.
Regarding the incorporation of inclusive pedagogy for autonomy in the curriculum as content, the presentation reports on the teacher-researcher's own reflections in developing student-teachers' understanding of autonomy within the MA TESOL programme.
The data has been collected as a part of a project that aims to identify signs of criticality (Salvi, 2020) in the researcher's own teaching practice and in the students' learning experience in the MA TESOL programme, via a pedagogy for autonomy and the principles of Exploratory Practice. Since a pedagogy for autonomy has been deployed, the data, together with the teacher's description of and reflection on practice, will be insightful in revealing signs of an inclusive pedagogy for autonomy in the educative practice, including what an inclusive pedagogy for autonomy constitutes in practice and how it was developed.
Allwright, D., & Hanks, J. 2009. The Developing Language Learner: An introduction to Exploratory Practice. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. Dam, L. 1995. Learner Autonomy: From Theory to Classroom Practice. Ireland: Authentik. Holec, H. 1981: Autonomy and foreign language learning. Oxford: Pergamon. (First published 1979, Strasbourg: Council of Europe) Little, D., Dam, L. & Legenhausen, L. 2017. Language Learner Autonomy: Theory, Practice and Research. Bristol, UK: Multilingual Matters. Salvi, A.I. 2020. A practitioner-research study of criticality development in academic English language. In A. Simpson and F. Dervin (Eds.), The Meaning of Criticality in Education Research: Reflecting on Critical Pedagogy. Palgrave Studies in Education Research Methods Series.
Presenters Ana Ines Salvi Lecturer In Education, University Of East Anglia
Mediation criteria towards the development of language learner autonomy.
Oral Presentation[SYMP44] AILA ReN - Learner Autonomy:10:15 AM - 06:00 PM (Europe/Amsterdam) 2023/07/21 08:15:00 UTC - 2024/07/21 16:00:00 UTC
As we take Nicolaides' (2003) view on language learning, we understand that such a process happens through social interaction, as long as there are opportunities for this to happen. Based on that, this research has been elaborated based on Sociocultural Theory (TSC) (VYGOTSKY, 1998) tenets, which take social interactions as fundamental tools for learning-and-development (NEWMAN; HOLZMAN, 2002). In this context, learning takes place when knowledge is built through mediation. Hence, in order to promote significant learning experiences (AUSUBEL, 2003; MOREIRA, 2006), Mediated Development (POEHNER & INFANTE, 2015) and Mediated Learning Experience (FEURSTEIN, FEURSTEIN & FALIK, 2010) theories were taken into consideration to stimulate learning during one-to-one teacher-student interactions in a high school context. This work presents a few results of a PhD research, in which we seeked to understand the outcomes of the implementation of mediation criteria (FEURSTEIN, FEURSTEIN & FALIK, 2010), more specifically with third year students in a federal public school in the State of Minas Gerais, Brazil. Hence, we considered the need to break away from banking education (FREIRE, 2013) as well as change its classificatory, sentential and terminal idea, to encourage mediating and emancipatory educational practices (QUEIROZ & GODOY, 2006). The data were gathered from students' narratives about their experiences, as well as from WhatsApp chats and interviews. The results showed the development of students' autonomy in Raya and Vieira's (2021, p. 5) terms, as an empowering approach that seeks to go against dominant values, as well as an individual competence to manage learning, as well as a collective interest in the service of a more democratic life, towards a vision of autonomy within a sociocultural perspective.
A personalised autonomous pedagogy as an inclusive model that promotes international students’ confidence, well-being and university connection
Oral Presentation[SYMP44] AILA ReN - Learner Autonomy:10:15 AM - 06:00 PM (Europe/Amsterdam) 2023/07/21 08:15:00 UTC - 2024/07/21 16:00:00 UTC
On top of the common challenges experienced by university students, many international students are faced with a linguistic challenge, which often causes fear and anxiety in them. This in turn may impair their well-being and diminish their willingness to engage at university. International doctoral students are not an exception. This paper introduces a personalised autonomous pedagogical model embedded in a course called Personalised English Language Enhancement (PELE) that runs at an Australian university and discusses its impacts on international doctoral students' confidence, well-being and sense of university connection during the critical period of identity formation as researchers. We collected quantitative and qualitative data from two different groups. One group took PELE over a term and the other group did not (non-PELE). Comparison of entry and exit survey data for PELE students showed significant improvements across almost all dependent variables. However, the non-PELE group did not show significant improvements except in confidence. Focus group data revealed that PELE students related their English confidence not only to positive feelings but to identity, self-awareness, and self-acceptance. This paper discusses the implications of the personalized autonomous pedagogy as an inclusive model and concludes with suggestions for further studies.
Australian universities have a large population of students who speak English as an additional language (EAL). This phenomenon is due to Australia being a multi-cultural society with a strong international education sector that contributes significantly to its economy. Numerous models and approaches have been deployed by Australian universities to address the need of international students to improve their English language proficiency. Each approach has made a unique contribution in their distinct contexts, but most of them reported various challenges - particularly in terms of student engagement and sustainability (Rochecouste & Oliver, 2014). Against this background, a Personalised Autonomous (PA) model has been introduced as a holistic and sustainable approach. The PA model was developed through classroom-based action research to address the imbalance in translation and interpreting students' linguistic competence in their working languages (Kim 2014). It was later adopted to develop a course called Personalised English Language Enhancement (PELE). The PELE course has been proven to be innovative and much needed in the field as it has significant positive impacts on students in "a) their confidence with English skills in both academic and everyday contexts, b) self-efficacy skills for self-regulated English learning and academic and social engagement, and c) their sense of belonging to the PELE community, faculty, and university". Furthermore, students' confidence in English skills and self-efficacy are strongly correlated (Kim, in press). In this follow-up study, we measured the impacts of PELE on their English confidence and self-efficacy, and how these related to their well-being and their sense of connection to the university. We collected data from two different groups. One group took the PELE course over a term and the other group did not (non-PELE). Surveys were used to collect quantitative data from both groups at the beginning of the term and at the end. Qualitative data were also collected from several focus groups to supplement the survey data. Language learners commonly experience language anxiety when they need to perform in the language they are currently developing (Horwitz, 2001). However, little is known about how international students' English confidence is related to their well-being and university engagement. In this paper, we explore this question focusing on international doctoral candidates during their critical period of identity formation as researchers (Green 2005).
References
Green, B. (2005). Unfinished business: Subjectivity and supervision. Higher Education Development and Research, 24, 151-163.
Horwitz, E. K. (2001). Language anxiety and achievement. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics 21, 112-126.
Kim, M. (2014). Action research on advanced bilingual enhancement in translator education. In K. Kunz, E. Teich, S. Hansen-Schirra, S. Neumann & P. Daut (Eds.). Caught in the middle: language use and translation (pp. 195-213). Saarland University Press.
Kim, M. (in press). A personalised autonomous model to resolve a prolonged dilemma in international students' English language needs in higher education. Higher Education Development and Research. Rochecouste, J., & Oliver, R. (2014). English Language Growth and the International Student. HERDSA Review of Higher Education, 1, 63-82.
Inclusive course design for remote and dual delivery language teaching
Oral Presentation[SYMP44] AILA ReN - Learner Autonomy:10:15 AM - 06:00 PM (Europe/Amsterdam) 2023/07/21 08:15:00 UTC - 2024/07/21 16:00:00 UTC
This paper presents a collaborative autoethnographic study by two German lecturers at the University of Auckland on the development of their (partially joint) course design and teaching during the pandemic. With an abrupt change to online teaching within one week in March 2020, we had to redesign our language acquisition courses. Starting off as emergency remote online teaching, we had to include online students in New Zealand and from overseas, and in the second phase of the pandemic, these courses had to be readapted as dual delivery for on-campus students and remote domestic and overseas students. Different models for dual delivery emerged while we also had to redesign our beginner's course as a blended-learning course in order to rationalize our teaching as a direct viability result of the pandemic. We rapidly noticed that an even higher language learner autonomy was required for any of these arrangements than for normal on-campus teaching. Remote and blended students needed more assistance, more (online) engagement, more pastoral care, and more access to suitable online learning technologies. In our study, we examined four German language courses at three proficiency levels and compared the constant adaptation of courses and ways of teaching. Within this teaching context, we mainly focused on investigating inclusion in a spatial sense. We enquired how we constantly adapted our course design and pastoral care to best cater to the different needs of (increasingly autonomous) learners in physical and virtual learning environments in different time zones who are enrolled in the same course. We conducted a collaborative autoethnography to investigate the (joint) development of inclusive courses for dual and remote delivery while fostering students´ autonomous (online) learning skills. Collective or collaborative ethnographies are increasingly being used to reflect on emergency online teaching experiences during the pandemic (Jung et al. 2021) or to critically study the impact of COVID-19 on online learning experiences from cross-cultural perspectives (Wilson et al. 2020). Our personal experiences in the same language program across different courses are the main data sources. We collected data such as personal memoirs, hand notes, reflections, and our e-mail exchanges as a critically reflective way to interrogate our experiences. Then, we used two cycles of coding to analyze and interpret the data into emerging themes to better understand the development of our course design and instructional practices to increase inclusive learning opportunities within an autonomous learning framework. Through our collaboration were able to create a collective interpretation of our data. Initial results indicate that different factors influenced our course design and teaching approaches that allowed for different ways of place-specific inclusion.
Jung, I., Omori, S., Dawson, W. P., Yamaguchi, T., & Lee, S. J. (2021). Faculty as reflective practitioners in emergency online teaching: An autoethnography. International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education, 18(30).
Wilson Wilson, S., Tan, S., Knox, M., Ong, A., Crawford, J., & Rudolph, J. (2020). Enabling cross-cultural student voice during COVID-19: A collective autoethnography. Journal of University Teaching & Learning Practice, 17(5).
The Autonomous Language Learning Classroom: The Answer to Inclusion - evidence from a Danish non-streamed secondary school
Oral Presentation[SYMP44] AILA ReN - Learner Autonomy:10:15 AM - 06:00 PM (Europe/Amsterdam) 2023/07/21 08:15:00 UTC - 2024/07/21 16:00:00 UTC
Ever since the Salamanca Statement and Framework for Action on Special Needs Education was issued by UNESCO in 1994, there has been a continuous debate about how to include students with special needs (SSN) in mainstream education. Unfortunately, however, there has been little discussion of inclusion in the foreign language classroom. In Denmark the aim was – and is - to include more than 90% of SSN students. Today the tendency is – sadly – to return the students to special classes or schools. Many teachers claim that the failure of inclusion is due to lack of resources when moving students from special to 'normal' schools. To some extent they may be right when the focus is on specific needs for specific disabilities. However, when it comes to including dyslexic students or students with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) – two of the biggest groups with special needs in Denmark (2022) – there is evidence that the pedagogy and principles that govern autonomous language learning support effective inclusion (Little, Dam & Legenhausen 2017).
This paper will show how it is possible to successfully include a severely dyslexic student and a boy with ADHD in a 'normal' mixed-ability classroom setting (Dam 2021). The data derives from the students' first three years learning English, from 11 to 14, and consists of excerpts from the students' logbooks, their answers to questions focusing on social aspects of learning, their preferred activities, and self-assessments. Use is also made of teacher's notes and comments as well as assessments and comments from peers.
References:
Dam, L. (2021) Lerner Autonomie 3: Von der Theorie zur Unterrichtspraxis. Askeladden.
Little, D., Dam, L. & Legenhausen, L. (2017). Language Learner Autonomy – Theory, Practice and Research. Multilingual Matters.
UNESCO (1994) The Salamanca Statement and Framework for Action on Special Needs Education. UNESCO.
Bibliography:
Leni Dam has been involved in the development of learner autonomy since 1973 – in her role as a teacher at secondary level in Denmark and in her role as educational adviser at the University College of Copenhagen. Together with Lienhard Legenhausen, Germany, she has researched the linguistic development of learners in autonomous language learning settings. She has written extensively on matters related to learner autonomy, such as differentiation, evaluation, teacher roles and learner roles. Her book from 1995 (reprinted in 1998, 2004, 2014) "Learner autonomy: From Theory to Classroom Practice" is still used in pre- and in-service teacher education and was in 2021 translated into German. From 1993 till !999 she held office as the Co-Convenor of the Scientific Commission of Learner Autonomy in AILA together with Sara Cotterall and in 2001 she edited AILA Review 15: Learner autonomy: new insights. In 2004, she received an honorary PhD in pedagogy from Karlstad University, Sweden. In the years 2008-2016 she was Joint Coordinator of the IATEFL Learner Autonomy Special Interest Group. She continues to be actively involved in spreading the word about learner autonomy via workshops, talks, and publications in as well as outside Denmark.
Online networks for teacher development and inclusive pedagogy in pandemic times: a study on the view of the ecological perspective
Oral Presentation[SYMP44] AILA ReN - Learner Autonomy:10:15 AM - 06:00 PM (Europe/Amsterdam) 2023/07/21 08:15:00 UTC - 2024/07/21 16:00:00 UTC
Digital technologies play a vital role in social, political, and economic relations in contemporary society. The mere presence of these technologies in our practices has implications for our daily lives, especially for the educational context. If these technologies already played an expressive role in our society, they have become even more prevalent in the pandemic context. Drawing on the ecological perspective, this study aims to discuss: i) the online networks that emerged in the language teaching context with peers at various levels of digital literacy during pandemic times; ii) the role of this network in the development of teacher agency; iii) possible evolution and (re)configuration of these networks in post-pandemic times facilitated by these teachers' agency; iv) the emerging patterns of this network with regard to the creation of inclusive pedagogies. The complex nature of teaching and learning is comprised of interdependent elements (school, digital technologies, students, administrators, to mention a few) that can be better understood if examined ecologically. The participants in this ongoing study are in-service language teachers in a continuing education initiative of an extension project of a university in Brazil. Data have been generated through the narratives of these teachers. The findings so far indicate the creation of online teacher networks to support peers at various levels of digital literacy during the pandemic, as well as the formative nature of network relationships and their role in the development of the language teacher agency.
Oral Presentation[SYMP44] AILA ReN - Learner Autonomy:10:15 AM - 06:00 PM (Europe/Amsterdam) 2023/07/21 08:15:00 UTC - 2024/07/21 16:00:00 UTC
In the pre-pandemic environment, the approach towards English as an additional language (EAL) students, studying at higher educational institutions in another country than their own, was generally aimed at enabling students to transform and adapt to the prevailing educational system of the host country. This cohort of students were thus viewed as in deficit in relation to the institutions (Kettle, 2017). However, there were researchers with an opposing view, who expressed that these students possess both capacity and capability to flourish in the new educational environment (Marginson, 2014) Kettle (2017) highlights the key role of language in students' learning interactions with teachers, classmates, and texts, drawing attention to the profound anxiety and reticence which many EAL students experience when having to interact in their second language. A recent Australia-based study (Kim, 2022), reports on a Personalised English Language Enhancement (PELE) course, which introduces students to autonomously setting measurable goals for their self-chosen language development areas. Post pandemic, institutions should be prepared when EAL students once again enrol in overseas universities. However, despite decades of research into best practice in teaching and learning, a gap can be identified in our understanding of practical methods and strategies that teachers and EAL students at higher educational institutions can apply to enable these learners to become more confident in English and able to improve their self-efficacy. Taken together, Kettle's (2017) analysis of the issues associated with EAL students' language proficiency, and Kim's (2022) holistic model of support, with its outstanding documented outcomes in enhanced self-efficacy, confidence, sense of belonging, and motivation to study, offer a promising way forward. The focus of this presentation is to report on a study which looked at the approach, the process, and the impact of the Personalised English Language Enhancement (PELE) course on EAL learners' autonomous development, and the social, linguistic, and academic transformation of the participating EAL students. The methodology chosen for this study was ethnographic. Observations of the teacher who was teaching the course was undertaken. Data was gathered through observation notes and reflections, and then processed through further reflections and discussions with the teacher. Applying this elaborate process, this co-constructed data provided a high-quality account of the PELE course, which was then analysed for key themes, relating to the research problem areas around the approach, process, and impact. As this study is not finished before the submission due date, the findings have not yet been established. However, by the time of the symposium, findings will have emerged, and they will thus be included in the presentation. Kettle, M. (2017). International student engagement in higher education: Transforming practices, pedagogies and participation. Bristol, UK: Multilingual Matters. Kim, M. (2022). A personalised autonomous model to resolve a prolonged dilemma in international students' English language needs in higher education. Higher Education Development and Research, (forthcoming). Marginson, S. (2014). Student self-formation in international education. Journal of Studies in International Education, 18(1), 6-22.
Promoting self-regulated learning skills in an EFL Malagasy context
Oral Presentation[SYMP44] AILA ReN - Learner Autonomy:10:15 AM - 06:00 PM (Europe/Amsterdam) 2023/07/21 08:15:00 UTC - 2024/07/21 16:00:00 UTC
Learner autonomy is said to be an educational goal. Since learning can be done only by the learners, they need to take charge of their learning by reflecting critically on their learning goals, processes, methods, and outcomes (Little, 2020). However, few empirical studies on learner autonomy have been conducted in African developing countries. The study that I will present aimed to contribute to filling that gap by shedding light on approaches to promote learner autonomy in an EFL Malagasy context. In that context, teachers are not familiar with the concept of learner autonomy, as it is not mentioned in the national curricula, and it is not included as a subject in teacher training. That is why I decided to foster learner autonomy by means of a course at a teacher training college in Madagascar. The course, which was the first phase of the study and took place before the pandemic, lasted nine weeks, and it involved 22 first year EFL student teachers (STs). It specifically aimed to help them develop their self-regulated learning skills involving goal setting, monitoring, and self-evaluation (Zimmerman, 2002) by means of journal writing, and to improve their writing proficiency at the same time. The course had the principle of inclusion in that it enabled the STs to work individually on their writing goals, from the levels of proficiency they had, within a class nurturing both individual and collaborative reflections. I gave them writing tasks and reflection prompts to answer before, during, and after the tasks, and also a weekly opportunity to reflect together as a group. The findings showed that through reflection, they developed their self-regulated learning skills, which helped them become more responsible towards their learning. In general, their writing performances improved. Also, they became aware of the importance of reflection in learning. The second phase of the study was held during the pandemic when the STs were in their third year at the University. The aim was to investigate the impact of the course (given in their first year) on their learning in general, their writing, and their preparation for their teaching practice. 12 of the STs participated in the second phase, which consisted in either answering a questionnaire through Google Form or having an online interview. One of the major findings indicated that most of them had been using strategies they had learned from the course such as goal setting and planning before writing, and self-evaluation including self-correction after writing. In an uncertain world where things can drastically change overnight, we need ways to help students take charge of their learning in the long term. Promoting self-regulated learning skills through reflection seems to be one of those sustainable ways, as this study implied. References Little, D. (2020). Introduction. In C., Ludwig, M. G., Tassinari, & Mynard, J. (Eds.), Navigating Foreign Language Learner Autonomy (pp. 8-17). Candlin & Mynard. Zimmerman, B. J. (2002). Becoming a self-regulated learner: An overview. Theory into practice, 41(2), 64-70.