Learners` beliefs about autonomy in language learning

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

First, I would like to thank God, Allah SWT, who has granted me power, health, safety and an opportunity to continue my education in the English post graduate program, Everything I get in my life is not separated from His gift and generosity. In this occasion I also want to thank my parents and my wife who have never been tired to encourage me to be a patient and wise man, and a meaningful person for others.

Second, I would like to express my sincere thanks to my advisor, Mr. Mukarto (FX. Mukarto, Ph.D.) for his patient guidance and constructive feedback throughout all the various stages of this research. I am also grateful to English Language Studies lecturers for the chance to participate in their classes. Participating in their classes has indeed encouraged me to regard the time, cooperate with others and increase insight and knowledge.

Third. I wish to thank all my classmates. The learning will never be the same without you all. Thank you very much for all the support during the study.

Finally. I offer my regards to all of those who supported me in any respect during the completion of the study. My apology goes to whom unintentionally omitted, to whom acknowledgements should be addressed to.

LIST OF CONTENTS

TITLE PAGE ... i

ADVISOR'S APPROVAL PAGE ... ii

DEFENSE APPROVAL PAGE ... iii

STATEMENT OF ORIGINALITY ... iv

LEMBAR PERNYATAAN PUBLIKASI ... v

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ... vi

TABLE OF CONTENTS ... vii

LIST OF TABLES ... ix

LIST OF APPENDICES ... x

ABSTRACT ... xi

ABSTRAK ... xii

CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION A. Research Background ... 1

B. Problem Identification ... 2

C. Problem Limitation ... 2

D. Problem Formulation ... 3

E. Research Objective ... 4

F. Research Benefits... 6

CHAPTER II: LITERATURE REVIEW A. Theoretical Review 1. Learners Beliefs ... 8

a. Learners beliefs on Language Learning ... 9

2. The Characteristic of Language Learner ... 11

3. Autonomy in Language Learning ... 17

a. Concept of Autonomy ... 17

b. Contrasting Learner Autonomy and Self-Regulated Learning ... 20

c. Autonomy in Language Learning ... 22

d. Characteristic of Autonomous Learner ... 33

B. Conceptual Framework ... 37

CHAPTER III: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY A. Research Method ... 39

B. Nature of Data ... 40

C. Data Gathering Instruments ... 41

D. Data Setting ... 43

E. Data Gathering Techniques ... 47

F. Data Analysis ... 48

G. Trustworthiness of Research Findings ... 48

CHAPTER IV: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION A. Findings ... 50

B. Discussion ... 65

CHAPTER V: CONCLUSIONS A. Conclusions ... 69

C. Recommendation ... 74 BIBILIOGRAPHY ... 75 APPENDICES

A. APPENDIX 1 Questionnaire ... 76 B. APPENDIX 2 Questionnaire result ... 79

LIST OF TABLE

Table 3.1. The questionnaire blueprint ... 42

Table 4.1. Learner awareness ... 52

Table 4.2. Self-efforts ... 54

Table 4.3. Broader autonomous activities ... 56

Table 4.4. Self-esteem ... 57

Table 4.5. Use of reference materials ... 58

Table 4.6. Motivation ... 59

Table 4.7.Use of technology in learning ... 60

Table 4.8. The role of learner ... 62

LIST OF APPENDICES

APPENDIX 1 Questionnaire... 76 APPENDIX 2 Questionnaire result ... 78

Binar Winantaka. 2015. Learners’ Beliefs about Autonomy in Language Learning. Yogyakarta: English Language Studies, Graduate Program, Sanata

Dharma University Abstract

The effective learning is believed will only occur when the learner actively participated in the learning process. The theory and practice of independent learning and learners’ autonomy have become more popular in foreign language learning. The issue of autonomous learning is the main target of this process of learning.

This research was aimed at describing the learners’ belief about autonomy in language learning.. Learners bring their own beliefs, goals, attitudes and decisions to learning and these influence how they approach their learning. Their beliefs about language learning or learner autonomy may vary greatly from one to another. The main aim is to discover whether learners are ready to accept autonomous learning so as to help teachers know more about learners and choose proper methods to guide them promoting learner autonomy

This research reports the results of a descriptive analysis into university students’ beliefs about autonomy in language learning through quantitative research. The participant of the research are 100 university students from different study programs. The data sampling technique used in this research is simple one-stage cluster sampling. The data was collected by using questionnaire. The learners' responses to the questionnaire items were collated, tabulated and analyzed descriptively. The results were presented in percentages

The results of this research show that learners are found to be aware of the goals and the process of learning English, it could be drawn from the mean score of 3.076 out of 5. Another result is that with the means score of 3.396 out of 5 learners or majority of them has done self-efforts to improve and enhance their English. It can be expected that these findings will help English language teachers further understand learner beliefs about Autonomy language learning, which may enable them to achieve successful English teaching and learning.

This research provide description of learners’ beliefs about autonomy in language learning as an attempt to understand learners’ beliefs on English language learning and to empower the learners to develop their sustained autonomous language learning

Binar Winantaka. 2015. Learners’ Beliefs about Autonomy in Language Learning. Yogyakarta: English Language Studies, Graduate Program, Sanata Dharma University

Abstrak

Pembelajaran efektif diyakini hanya akan tercapai bila peserta didik berpartisipasi aktif dalam proses pembelajaran. Teori dan praktik pembelajaran mandiri dan otonomi peserta didik semakin populer dalam pembelajaran bahasa asing. Isu pembelajaran otonom adalah sasaran utama proses pembelajaran ini.

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mendeskripsikan keyakinan peserta didik tentang otonomi dalam pembelajaran bahasa. Peserta didik membawa keyakinan, sasaran, sikap dan keputusan mereka sendiri untuk belajar dan ini mempengaruhi bagaimana mereka mendekati pembelajaran mereka. Keyakinan mereka tentang belajar bahasa atau otonomi pelajar bisa sangat bervariasi satu sama lain. Tujuan utamanya adalah untuk mengetahui apakah peserta didik siap untuk menerima pembelajaran otonom sehingga dapat membantu guru mengetahui lebih banyak tentang peserta didik dan memilih metode yang tepat untuk membimbing guru mempromosikan otonomi peserta didik.

Penelitian ini melaporkan hasil analisis deskriptif terhadap kepercayaan mahasiswa tentang otonomi dalam pembelajaran bahasa melalui penelitian kuantitatif. Peserta penelitian adalah 100 mahasiswa dari berbagai program studi. Teknik sampling data yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini adalah sampling cluster satu tahap sederhana. Data dikumpulkan dengan menggunakan kuesioner. Tanggapan peserta didik terhadap item kuesioner disusun, ditabulasikan dan dianalisis secara deskriptif. Hasilnya disajikan dalam persentase

Hasil penelitian ini menunjukkan bahwa peserta didik diketahui mengetahui tujuan dan proses belajar bahasa Inggris, hal tersebut dapat ditarik dari skor rerata 3.076 dari 5. Hasil lainnya adalah dengan skor rerata 3.396 dari 5 Pelajar atau mayoritas dari mereka telah melakukan usaha sendiri untuk memperbaiki dan meningkatkan bahasa Inggris mereka. Dari temuan ini diharapkan akan dapat membantu guru bahasa Inggris lebih jauh memahami keyakinan pelajar tentang pembelajaran bahasa otonomi, yang memungkinkan mereka mencapai proses belajar mengajar bahasa Inggris yang sukses.

Penelitian ini memberikan gambaran tentang keyakinan peserta didik tentang otonomi dalam pembelajaran bahasa sebagai upaya untuk memahami kepercayaan peserta didik terhadap pembelajaran bahasa Inggris dan untuk memberdayakan peserta didik untuk mengembangkan pembelajaran otonom mereka yang berkelanjutan.

CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION

This chapter presents the background information related to the importance of this research. This is a replication research by Yingshuang Liu in 2011 with the same theme, but different setting and respondents. The discussion will be initiated with the general information related to learners learning. The focus of the discussion is the learners‟ belief about Autonomy in Language Learning.

A. Background

Mastering English Language has become more important nowadays as there is no more distance boundary between people in the world. The ability of the learners in using English language will be very helpful for them to improve their knowledge with people around the world. It has made more people aware of the importance of learning English language.

Many efforts have been done by education stake holders to make their learners more effective in learning English. Many factors determine the success of a language learning process. One of those significant factors is the individual learner difference such as learners' belief. Learners' belief is believed to play important roles to language learning achievement. The understandings of the important roles of the learners‟ belief have attract many researchers to make projects on the matters. Sharing the similar concern, this research tries to provide a clearer understanding of learners' belief for a better English language learning in

its local context.

The effective learning is believed will only occur when the learner actively participated in the learning process. The atmosphere of learning takes some parts on this when the previous learning process model may lead to the dependent learning. Most of class activities led to the dependent behaviors of their language learning. Therefore, it is important to keep analyzing on the model of language learning process that appreciates the learners‟ autonomy and the changes in the education fields. So the learners do not only become the object of the learning process that passively receives the knowledge but they must actively contribute to the development of their learning. Even more, it is quite necessary to equip the learners with the learning tools, then the aim of education is not as simple as knowledge transfer. Rather, the end of the product of education is an independent learner (McDevitt, 1997).

The theory and practice of independent learning and learners‟ autonomy have become more popular in foreign language learning. The issue of autonomous learning is the main target of this process of learning. Self-learning is one of the suggested ways, the learners are freely to decide, choose and finally be responsible of their learning. The learners are allowed to develop their own learning through various media and various resources. There are many resources which can be used to optimize their language learning. This research is going to focus on the investigation of college learners‟ belief about autonomous learning. The main aim is to discover whether learners are ready to accept autonomous

learning so as to help teachers know more about learners and choose proper methods to guide them promoting learner autonomy.

This research is a replication research by Yingshuang Liu in 2011 with the same theme. According to Mackey (2012) replication studies using the original research design are useful in re-examining the theoretical relationship among constructs. For instance, in a situation where the original research identified multiple explanations for the results, a conceptual replication can manipulate nonsignificant variables and operationalization of the original study to examine the strength of the causal relationship among variables.

B.Problem Identification

The successful learning process especially in language learning is depending on some aspects. The individual learner difference such as learners' belief is one of those key aspects. Some researchers believed that learners' belief on language learning strategy has a substantial roles to language learning realization. The raising of the awareness around the significance of learners‟ belief invites many researchers to study the area. Having the same concern, to provide a better understanding of learners' belief for a better English language learning and to deal with the issue of autonomy in language learning, this research tried to define what learners‟ beliefs about autonomy in Language Learning especially in English learning.

C. Problem Limitation

learners embrace a wide diversity of beliefs about language and language learning and that these may influence learning attitudes and behavior. Many educators have realized that it is crucial to prepare the learners with the tool of learning and they also realize that the purpose of education is not only transmission of knowledge but also promoting the learners autonomy. Learner autonomy is not only the means to the end of effective learning, but also the desirable goal of education. No learners, anywhere, will have their teachers to accompany them through their life ( Littlewood, 1999).

Underlined that learning success depends less on the materials and teaching techniques and more on what goes inside the learner (Stevick in Bernat,et al., 2005). This research focused on the area of belief of language learners about autonomy in language learning and the contribution of their learning into their progress in acquiring the language and then autonomous learning done by the learner will be the objective. This research is a survey research using questionnaire to investigate the respondents about their beliefs.

D. Problem Formulation

One of implications of understanding learner beliefs in language learning is that learners‟ beliefs about language learning influence their affective. So study related to beliefs will be able to offer a reasonable explanation for the emergence of classroom anxiety. Another implication is that learners‟ language learning beliefs are believed to influence their choice of learning strategies. Therefore, teaching the learner with the

knowledge on their learning beliefs will get rid of ineffective learning strategies and as a substitute apply effective learning strategies. Learner beliefs also indicate to some degree learners‟ readiness for autonomous learning, thus it has a vital role in motivation stimulation and formation of learner autonomy.

The theory learners autonomy and the practice of autonomous learning has become increasingly popular in foreign language education, which has inspired much insightful research (Gremmo & Riley,1995). According to Holec (1981), learner autonomy is an ability to take charge of one‟s own learning. Like its forerunner, communicative language learning, it is starting to be an unquestionable goal and integral part of language learning methodologies throughout the world (Hayo Reinders, 2010). Therefore, language teachers should consider stimulating learner autonomy as their primary goal in language teaching, and teach learners how to take charge of their learning besides teaching them knowledge.

In a word, to study learner beliefs can help teachers know more about learners and choose proper methods to guide them fostering learner autonomy. This research describes and interprets the learners‟ belief in the area of autonomous learning of English. The research, therefore, aims to answer theoretically and empirically the following question: What is the learners‟ belief about autonomy in language learning?

E. Research Goals

This research aimed to describe, and interpret, the beliefs of the learners about autonomy in English language learning and to reveal the

answer to the research question theoretically and experientially. This research also reveals and describes learners‟ readiness for autonomous learning between learners so as to be more empowered, self-fulfilling, and autonomous according to the learners‟ belief, which means they can do what they are supposed to do and they can do it on their own when they learn.

Learners‟ belief indicates to some degree learners‟ readiness for autonomous learning, as it reflects their motivation and formation of learner autonomy. In a word, to study learner beliefs can help teachers know better about their learners and choose proper approaches to guide them fostering learner autonomy. The goal of this research is to describe and interpret the learners' beliefs about autonomy in language learning. F. Research Benefits

This research may have three scientific benefits to empower learners and promote their autonomy in language learning. Theoretically, this research becomes an additional reference on the literature of English Study in Indonesia, particularly those concerning the language learning in the institution.

This research may also provide description of learners‟ beliefs about autonomy in language learning as an attempt to understand learners‟ beliefs on English language learning and to empower the learners to develop their sustained autonomous language learning. Through the interpreted result and discussion, this research may contribute in the development of English language learning in general.

CHAPTER II LITERATURE REVIEW

In this section, the discussion focuses on literature review and theoretical framework. Several previous research related to the topic of this research are discussed to support construct understanding of the study. Theoretical framework is described to get the tentative answers to the research questions.

A. Theoretical Review

The literatures on related topics are discussed in this section. The discussion will go around the learners‟ beliefs, the characteristics of language learner, and then will reveal the depth concept of learners‟ beliefs, the characteristic of language learner, and autonomy in language learning.

1. Learners’ beliefs

a. Definition of Learners’ beliefs

Beliefs have been a subject of inquiry in a range of fields, including education, business, medicine, law, anthropology and psychology. Furthermore, a scan of the literature in this area reveals that the concept of belief travels under many aliases; for example attitude, perception, value, philosophy and ideology. Because of this diversity, defining 'beliefs' is a difficult task.

Beliefs are defined as "psychologically held understandings, premises, or propositions about the world that are felt to be true"

(Richardson in Bernat, 2005), and "said as strong filters of reality" (Arnold in Bernat, 2005). Belief can then be simply defined as our state of the mind or our thoughts or our representation of our interpretation of reality; deeper than merely thought, however, belief possesses causal role to the believers' behaviors (Arnold in Bernat, 2005). Belief, then, involves one‟s past (one's previous experiences), present (the currently-held-belief) and future.

Cotterall (1995) identifies six major belief dimensions based on learners‟ responses to her questionnaire as; the role of the teachers, the role of feedback, learner independence, learner confidence in study ability, experience of language learning, approach to studying. He also adds that the beliefs and attitudes the learners hold have an important influence on their learning behavior. They may either contribute to or impede the development of learning process (Cotterall 1995).

Similarly, Peacock (2001), claims that some beliefs may be facilitative or detrimental to language learning. Beliefs about one‟s own motivation and values of English learning, ability, and learning and communication strategies can be seen as facilitative beliefs. Within the BALLI framework, some beliefs about foreign language aptitude, the role of vocabulary and grammar, self-efficacy in speaking English can be detrimental to learners‟ language learning. Thus, it is important to understand learner beliefs because successful learners develop insightful beliefs about language learning processes and their own abilities, which have a facilitative effect on learning.

Horwitz referred to “beliefs” using the terms such as preconceptions, preconceived ideas, and preconceived notions. According to Horwitz (1988), there were five main types of beliefs of foreign language learners as suggested in "Horwitz's Beliefs about Language Learning Inventory" which are The difficulty of second language learning in general and the difficulty of learning the target language, The role of language aptitude, The nature of language learning, Learning and communication strategies, Motivation and expectations. b. Belief Formation

socio-cultural Psychology and Cognitive offers each personal approach concerning the question of how actually belief is formed. In line to their first claim, the cognitive considers belief "as well-organized schema (network of connected ideas-) and belief formation is, therefore, "an individual autonomous act. Each belief, later, bears the mark of the individual" (Gabillon, 2005). Those belong to this side do not take into account the context where belief is constructed. Standing against this view is the socialists which claim that "belief is constructed in the social context. It would be inconsistent to talk about belief without referring to the context in which they are shaped" (Gabillon, 2005).

However, in the field of language learning particularly, the two stances have come into agreement that actually the two are justifiable and complementary, as what Castellotti and Moore (in Gabillon, 2005: 240) stress that there are "the social nature of language learners' representations representations are constructed and shaped through

interactions between groups in society". Similarly, Gremmo (in Gabillon., 2005: 240) argues that the society's general vision about language learning, and the learner's educational past, and that these personal experiences influence the formation of learners' representations and language learning culture.

Discussing back to our previous argument, it is wisely reminding that, again, the differences are not a matter of right or wrong, but more as a matter of choice: whether one wants to approach belief from its individuality, or to deal with it from the social psychological perspective. The nature of duality of belief is not to be further a controversy.

c. Learners‟ beliefs on Language Learning

Horwitz, a pioneer in this field, defined beliefs as 'preconceived ideas about language learning' (Horwitz 1987). Horwitz's classic study investigated how common certain beliefs about language learning of the learners and teachers. She developed and used a 34 Likert-scale item questionnaire (the Beliefs about Language Learning Inventory - BALLI) derived from comments which frequently arose in extensive interviews with learners and teachers.

Nunan (1988), uncovered differences between the beliefs held by learners and teachers in English language courses. It was posited that one factor in this mismatch of beliefs was cultural background. Three other studies into learners' beliefs (Tumposky 1991, Yang 1993, Kuntz 1996) are significant because they show how factors such as learner

background and educational setting affect beliefs. All three studies relied on the administration of the BALLI. Tumposky (1991) concluded that culture contributes to motivation, while Yang (1993) and Kuntz (1996) found that ethnicity and culture influence the beliefs held by learners.

According to Gardner & Miller (2002), learners bring their own beliefs, goals, attitudes and decisions to learning and these influence how they approach their learning. Therefore, their beliefs about language learning or learner autonomy may vary greatly from one to another. To a large extent, the beliefs that learners hold about language learning may have a significant impact on their learning outcomes. Cognitivists assume that learning attitudes and behaviors are conditioned by a higher order of mental representations concerning the nature of language and language learning.

Learners‟ beliefs, as a part of metacognitive knowledge, exert either positive or negative effects on learning practice. Learners‟ insightful beliefs about language learning process, their own aptitudes and the use of effective learning strategies will help their learning and assist them to improve a more active and independent attitude which allows them to take care of their own learning. However, uninformed beliefs about language learning may lead to dependence on less effective strategies, causing in poor cognitive performance, classroom anxiety and a negative attitude towards autonomy. Studies in the area of learner beliefs have shown that learners hold an extensive variety of beliefs

about language and language learning and that these may influence learning attitudes and behavior.

In summary, learners‟ belief about language learning is to define as learners' individual opinion or individual thought concerning what things they assume as right or wrong dealing with themselves as language learners, the nature of the language being learned, the nature of an English as foreign language learning process. In this research, those beliefs are to elicit and record through learners' opinion or feeling regarding three major components of the difficulty of language learning, the existence of foreign language attitude, and the nature of language learning of acquiring English skill.

2. The Characteristic of Language Learner

Learners have certain characteristics which are different from one another; their characteristics will lead more or less successful language learning. Learners' characteristic will affect the language acquisition; extrovert learner and introvert learner will express different acquisition. Learners' personality will also take an important part in gaining the target learning. Some learners have a much easier time of learning than others; there are some characteristics of language learner that influence their successful of learning. They are intelligence, aptitude, personality, motivation and attitudes, learner preferences, and learner beliefs (Lightbown and Spada, 2006). Every element has their own roles on the effort of attaining the successful of language learning. It is belief that

learners who have all elements in `good' condition will get their successful easily.

It is also beneficial for the learners to decide which language features are going to develop intensively. Basically it is important to understand learner's aptitude to determine which profile is the strength and which one is the weakness then use the information to place the learners on the appropriate learning program. In relation to maximize the use of Independent Language Learning Center, knowing self-aptitude will help the learners to decide the way and the aid they will use to.

Other characteristics of language learners is personality, seems that personality is also play role on the successful of the language learners. There are some aspects of personality such assertiveness, adventurousness, inhibition, self-esteem, empathy, dominance, talkativeness, and responsiveness (Lightbown Spada ,2004). Every aspect is supporting each other in the learner's personality and then the personality will support other learner's characteristic and finally it will contribute in the achievement of foreign language learning.

Motivation and attitudes are also part of language learner's characteristics. Positives attitudes and motivation are related to successful second language learning (Gardner 1985). Motivation in second language learning is a intricate phenomenon which can be distinct in terms of two aspects: learner' communicative needs and their attitudes towards the second language community. If learners need to speak the

second language in a wide range of social situation or to achieve professional motivation, they will perceive the communicative value of the second language and will therefore be motivated to acquire in it. Likewise, if learners have favorable attitudes towards the speakers of the language, they will need to contact with them.

Motivation in language learning is divided into two that is intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. Motivation to perform an activity simply for the pleasure and satisfaction that accompany the action called intrinsic motivation; the learner performs based on their own willingness. In this case, the learner is willing to find delight in learning a new way to express their idea in the target language. Extrinsic motivation is motivation that come from everything around the learner, for example social demands. Gardner and Lambert in Lightbown and Spada (1999) created the terms integrative motivation to refer to language learning for personal growth and cultural enrichment, and instrumental motivation for language learning for more immediate or practical goals. The result of the study showed that these types of motivation are related to success in language learning. Generally type of motivation determines the performance or the way or the attitude of the learners in their learning language.

Other characteristic of language learner is learner preferences. In this case, learner has clear preferences for how they go about learning new material. The term „learning style' has been used to describe an individual's natural, habitual, and favorite way of absorbing, processing

and retaining new information and skills (Lightbown and Spada,1999). There are differences on the style of learning, seems this really individually. Basically there are three categories of learning style such as visual, auditory and kinesthetic and every style has its own strength and weakness, this will affect to the way of learning.

Here are some characteristics adapted from Brown about good language learning (2007)

a. Low inhibitions

A good language learner tends to feel secure enough to be able to lower their inhibitions. He or she may create a new second language identity to experiment with second language (Brown, 2007; Lightbown and Spada, 2006). However, Different studies on inhibitions have highlighted terminological uncertainty (as to what „inhibitions‟ really are), and have not been able to confirm any claims. (Scovel: 2001, in Brown 2007).

b. Risk taking ability

A good language learner tends to take more risks. Without risks, there would be an absence of error and therefore an absence of learning (Brown, 2007). In other hand Learners who are very cautious and take few risks can also excel in certain learning environments (Lightbown and Spada 2006). It is arguable as to how much of risk should be considered optimal.

c. High self-confidence

autonomy. A good language learner tends to have the confidence to take responsibility for their own learning progress (Rubin and Thompson, 1982, in Brown 2007).

d. Intrinsic motivation

Intrinsic motivation to communicate in second language is likely to enhance learner‟s learning experiences (Skehan, 2001, in Candlin and Mercer 2001). Brown stated that ‟intrinsic and extrinsic factors can be easily identified‟ and that a teachers „ultimate quest‟ is to „harness the power of intrinsically motivated learners‟ (2007).

e. Cooperative learning skills

A good language learner, commonly through group activities or pair work, tends to produce comprehensible second language with their language learning peers (Brown, 2007).

f. Right-brain processes

A good language learner tends to utilise right-brain processes in order to communicate at a level beyond their current metalinguistic knowledge. Right-brain processes may help the learner comprehend whole chunks of the target language as well as help the learner reproduce the „melody‟ of the target language when they speak (Brown, 2007). g. High ambiguity tolerance

A good language learner tends to not feel overwhelmed by ambiguity, rather they regard ambiguity as an opportunity to seek clarification and to understand more about the different communication aspects of the target language (Brown, 2007; Lightbown and Spada,

2006). h. Intuition

A good language learner tends to use their intuition to understand the contents and contexts of the target language. The learner‟s intuition is used to compensate for what they have not learnt about the target language (Brown, 2007).

i. Error feedback processing skills

A good language learner tends to learn the target language, including pragmatics, through a process of assessing their own trails and errors (Brown, 2007).

j. Personal goals

A good language learner tends to be clear about what they want to accomplish (Rubin and Thompson, 1982, in Brown 2007). Also, „successful language learners tend to take charge of their own attainment, proactively seeking means for acquisition‟ (Brown, 2007).

a. Concept of Autonomy

Autonomy is the capacity of a person to take control over his or her own learning. Everyone has their own capacity which is different from one another for different case. It means that everyone will have their own policy to cover any problem arise in their life. In this case, autonomy is quite similar with the notion of independent, where everyone is freely to make sense of their own case. According to Benson (2001) autonomy is a multidimensional capacity. The capacity to take 3. Autonomy in Language Learning

control has various aspects, autonomy may take various aspects. It greatly depends on the individual personality.

Autonomy as the freedom and ability to manage one's own affairs, which entails the right to make decisions as well (Scharle and Szabo, 2000). In this sense of autonomy, the value of responsibility is powerful enough. Learner may take or make an action with the comprehension that they have to be responsible of what they do although in this case, what learner do belongs to the notion of contributing the learning. Means that learner tries to be involved in learning, it is also can be seen as autonomous behaviors in the sense that they act independently, not waiting to be told what to do.

It is an important element in SLA because it activates the learning process through learners‟ agency and leads the system beyond the classroom. Paiva (2011) holds, “Autonomous learners take advantage of the linguistic affordances in their environment and act by engaging themselves in second language social practices” (p.63).

Autonomy as a socio-cognitive system is not a state but a no-linear process which go through variability. Thus, autonomous learners take benefit of the linguistic affordance in their situation and act by engaging themselves in second language social practices. Therefore, being autonomous, in initial state, involves being scaffolded by teachers in order to improve the process of learning. Without this, it would be hard to implement independent learning in a coherent way and to

attract institutional commitment. In the meantime, teachers, of course, need to experience autonomous learning themselves and need to be committed to self-development.

Learning can only happen if there is willingness to contribute, although all necessaries in learning are provided. Then, it is clear now that responsibility and autonomy are plays role. The matter is on the degrees which are vary from one learner to another, but at least it can be a starting point to help them become more autonomous.

In relation with the research which tries to find any autonomous learning of English. among learners through Independent Language Learning Center, the issue of autonomy is very close because the activities done in Independent Language Learning Center need learner's feel independently. Independent Language Learning Center as a means of facilitating self-directed learning, Independent language learning centers have proliferated to the point where “self-access language learning' is often treated as a synonym for self-directed or autonomous learning” (Benson.2001). Indeed this opinion seems true because learning in self-access Center means learning without any assistance, they have to make a plan, do and evaluate themselves, work in Independent Language Learning Center will automatically lead to autonomy. So it can be concluded that autonomous learning may inhibited by self-instructional

modes of learning.

Learner autonomy is found to be a multipart concept not only from the semantic view point, but also for some other reasons. It covers concepts from different disciplines of study (e.g. philosophy, language, politics etc.). Benson (1997) makes announced distinction between „ self-directed learning‟ and „learner autonomy‟. For him, „self-directed learning‟ is learners‟ global capacity to learn; while „autonomous learning‟ is the specific personal characteristic associated with such a capacity. Nevertheless the term learner autonomy has been seen as synonymous with individualization. According to him, there are a number of terms related to autonomy, which can be distinguished from it in various ways.

Most people now agree that autonomy and autonomous learning are not synonyms of instruction, access; study, self-education, out-of-class learning or distance learning (Benson, 2001). These terms refer to various ways and degrees of learning by oneself; while autonomy refers to abilities or attitudes. The point is then that, learning by oneself is not the same thing as having the capacity to learn-by oneself. Thus, the complication exists at the semantic level.

As a result, it can be determined that autonomy is a complex socio-cognitive system, subject to internal and external limits which establishes itself in different degrees of independence and control of one‟s own learning process. It comprises capacities, abilities, attitudes,

willingness, decision-making, choices, planning, actions and assessment either as a language learner or as a communication inside or outside the classroom. By means of a complex system, it is dynamic, chaotic, unpredictable, non-linear, adaptive, open, self-organizing, and sensitive to initial conditions and feedback. As of this complexity, there have been several misunderstandings about the definitions of autonomous language learning.

Furthermore, Esch (1996) explains what autonomy does not mean: Autonomy is not self-instruction learning without a teacher; It does not mean that intervention on the part of a teacher is banned; It is not something teachers do to learners; It is not a single easily recognizable behavior; It is not a firm state attained by learners permanently. The other reason why it is misinterpreted is the many-sided nature of concept. It consists of a number of elements. The study of language acquisition consist of wide range of areas. Some of them are discussed under the situation for its application.

In literature, there are a number of synonymous terms of autonomy. For some authors, the terms: - learner autonomy, autonomous learning, learner responsibility, self-directed learning, life time learning and learning to learn are synonymous. Methods which assist learners to learn are described in several terms, the most common ones are: self-directed learning, self-instruction, independent learning and self-access learning. While proponents of these methods may argue for differences

between them, there are more similarities than differences. Both of the approaches encourages learners to set and pursue their personal language learning objectives. Though all these approaches are used as the same sometimes, they need to be distinguished from each other.

b. Contrasting Learner Autonomy and Self-Regulated Learning Under a sociocultural angle (Benson, 2007), learner autonomy is constructed during one‟s negotiation with his/her living environment. That is to say, this perspective lays the emphasis on the interactions between learners and their environment. Being in a society, an individual needs to deal with different matters, people, and relationships, and learner autonomy is acquired throughout the implementation of these processes. This perspective acknowledges the impact of both personal and situational attributes in forming and developing learner autonomy. Teachers adopting this perspective often provide learners with more contextual choices, negotiation, and interactive activities (Benson & Chik & Lim, 2003; Dang, 2010; Ho & Crookal, 1995 ).

In the literature on learner autonomy in language learning it is not uncommon to see references to self-regulated learning. These references suggest a tendency to conflate the two constructs. This is not surprising given that on the surface learner autonomy and self-regulated learning appear to be similar in as much as both emphasize learner control and metacognition. Nonetheless, they remain two separate areas of inquiry. What is surprising, given their shared interests, is the lack of attempts to examine how the two might be related, how they differ, and how research

in one area might inform work in the other (Lewis & Vialleton, 2011; Loyens, Magda, & Rikers, 2008).

Two notable exceptions are Lewis and Vialleton (2011) and Loyens et al. (2008); in the case of the latter the comparison was with self-regulated learning (SRL) and self-directed learning (SDL). SDL can be viewed as a manifestation of learner autonomy in which learners accept responsibility for all the decisions related to their learning (Dickinson, 1995), such as those relating to setting goals, selecting materials, determining strategies and activities, monitoring and assessing their learning.

As one would suspect, Loyens et al. (2008) concluded that “SDL and SRL have similarities with respect to active engagement, goal-directed behavior, metacognitive skills, and intrinsic motivation” Despite these similarities, they note that the two terms cannot be used interchangeably. While SRL is usually considered as learner‟s characteristic, SDL is both learner‟s characteristic and a design feature of the learning environment. Further, SDL entails more learner control over the learning environment and provides a crucial role for the learner in initiating a learning task (Loyens et al., 2008).

In regard to learner initiation of the learning task, in SRL there seems to be a general tendency for the teacher to set the learning task and within those parameters learners have varying degrees of freedom to select learning strategies and engage in SRL activities. On the other hand, in the

area of learner autonomy in accordance with Holec‟s (1981) model, learners are expected to assume responsibility for determining the learning task.

c. Autonomy in Language Learning

This broad definition related to learner autonomy has been the one most cited in the research (Benson, 2007). There are four characteristics in Holec‟s (1981) definition. First, autonomy is an ability to take charge of one‟s own learning which means learner autonomy is an attribute of learner, not the process . Second, this attribute is not innate or in - born but necessarily is acquired through systematic and purposeful learning process. Third, it describes a potential capacity to act in a learning situation, and not the actual behavior of an individual in that situation. In other words, learner autonomy cannot be identified as one single simple behavior in a particular learning situation. The fourth feature is related to learners‟ ability to take control of their learning by becoming responsible for the decisions made in all the aspects of the learning process. This definition highlights „responsibility‟ and „capacity‟ as key features of learner autonomy. From this broad definition, many definitions of learner autonomy have followed.

The successful of learning depends on the response which is given to the stimuli. If it is done again and again, it will format a habit. But seems that it will be difficult to apply in foreign language learning

because of the environment is not the origin of the language. So there is stimulus and response in their environment of learning. According to behaviorist view, language learning is seen as a habit formation (Mitchell & Myles, 2004).

Some approaches to educational psychology, humanism, constructivism and cognitivism had a profound impact on the advocacy of autonomous learning. Humanism, in particular, has promoted the growing recognition of learner autonomy. Humanism focuses on the positive aspects of the people, their inner-directed conscious motivation and self-directed goals, which stresses understanding, personal assumption of responsibility, and self-realization (Stevik, 1990).

Rogers proposes that educational objective is to develop human‟s adaptability and autonomy, and which has important implications for education (Rogers, 1983). According to him, learners can take their own responsibilities for their spontaneous activities, use their experiences freely and creatively, and cooperate effectively with others.

The objective of education is the facilitation of learning, and learning how to learn is more important than just being „taught‟ by a teacher who unilaterally decides what shall be taught. Rogers‟ theory has contributed significantly in recent years to the redefinition of the educational process, and meanwhile, has inspired many a teacher to consider the importance of the empowerment of learners in classrooms (Brown,2001).

Strongly associated to humanism, constructivism is also concerned with the individual‟s personal meaning or experience, which suggests the view that individuals should reorganize and restructure their experience rather than internalizing or discovering objective knowledge. In Candy‟s terms (Candy, 1991), constructivism “leads directly to the proposition that knowledge cannot be taught but only learned (that is, constructed)”, because knowledge is something “built up by the learner”. Additionally, language learning does not involve internalizing sets of rules, structures and forms; each learner brings their own experience and knowledge to stand on the target language or task at hand. For constructivists, learning is viewed as a self-regulatory process of actively constructing new understanding from the learner‟s experience, prior knowledge and collaboration with others.

The teacher assumes more of a facilitator‟s role and the learner takes on more ownership of the ideas, thus the learner is brought into the central focus, and this is one of the most important features of constructivist learning (Duffy et al. 1991). The constructivist theory has recently been related to the field of autonomy primarily through the work of David Little (1991, 1994). The key idea that autonomy in language learning has borrowed from constructivism is that effective learning is active learning, i.e., learners actively involve themselves in various stages of learning process, such as setting goals and monitoring their own work. After all learners are responsible for their own learning in constructivist approaches (Benson, 1997). Learner autonomy is also

closely related to cognitive psychology, which emphasizes learners‟ mental processes (Wenden, 1997). The development of learner autonomy gains support from the notion that knowing and thinking develop with experiences.

However, in fact, due to exam oriented basis, learners‟ motivation and learning objectives are not parallel and bounded to the faith in authorities of teachers and textbooks that hinders learners intrinsic motivation due to extrinsic goals such as grades and task completion (Borg & Al-Busaidi, 2012).

Perspectives that researchers have employed to explore learner autonomy. Benson (1997) attempted to systemize learner autonomy by introducing the idea of different versions or perspectives of representing the idea of learner autonomy including: technical, psychological, and political, which now seems to be a standard model for any discussion about learner autonomy.

The technical perspective emphasize the situational conditions under which learner autonomy may develop. “Research adopting this perspective values attribute s from the learning environment” (Benson, 1997) . Morrison (2008) adopting this perspective have been conducted in self - access learning centers where authentic materials and personalized learning activities can foster learner autonomy.

With its emphasis on external conditions, this perspective has its own value in that it is possible to have a full understanding of various

autonomy factors in a particular learning situation. However, if a researcher took only a technical perspective on autonomy, it would be not complete as Oxford (2003) contended that “without psychology, the technical perspective would be inert”. With the psychological perspective, some researcher s ( Benson, 2007) take learners‟ ability or capacity into account. Little‟s (1995) definition involves an element of awareness (cognitive factor) in that capacity. Benson (2001) considered learner autonomy as a capacity consisting of two interrelated elements, namely „behavioral‟ and „(Meta) cognitive‟. These two elements allow learners to „initiate, monitor, and evaluate‟ their learning processes. This perspective fits closely with Oxford‟s (2003) who stated that “the psychological perspective examines mental and emotional characteristics of learners who are viewed as individuals or members of a sociocultural group”.

Pennycook‟s (1997) work illustrates this perspective, where context refers to ideologies and attitudes found in specific locations, situations, groups (related to age, gender, religion, and culture), institution s, and socioeconomic levels . The difficulty of defining learner autonomy in terms of its most important components has also been expressed by two assumptions: the “degrees of learner autonomy” and the “behaviours of autonomous learners” (Nunan, 1997). A number of researchers (Benson, 2001; Nunan, 1997) have attempted to define the notion that autonomy is a matter of degree. Nunan (1997) argued that “autonomy is not an absolute concept”. He developed a model of five

levels of learner actions: “awareness, involvement, intervention, creation, and transcendence”. At the awareness level, for example, learners would be “made aware of the pedagogical goals and contents of the materials”, “identify strategy implication of pedagogical tasks”, and “identify their own learning styles”. At the other end of the spectrum, in the transcendence level, “learners would make links between the content learnt in the classroom and the world beyond” and “become teachers and researchers”.

Nunan (1997) contended that “most learners do not come into the learning situation with the knowledge and skills to determine content and learning proccesses which will enable them to reach their objectives in learning another language” and that “fully autonomous learners are a rarity”.

Nunan (1997) suggested that teachers need to encourage learners to become autonomous and, for the purpose of the current research, this best takes place in the language classroom. Littlewood (1999) classified learner autonomy into two levels: proactive autonomy and reactive autonomy. Proactive autonomy is where learners are able to plan, monitor, and access their learning. In this way, learners establish their own “personal learning agenda” and their own “directions for learning”. This level of autonomy is often seen as the autonomy generally attributed to learners in Western cultures, such as Australia.

However, in education in general and in language education in particular, Littlewood (1999) argued that it is necessary to mention and

pay attention to the second level called “reactive autonomy”. Reactive autonomy is “the kind of autonomy which does not create its own directions, but once direction has been initiated enables learners to organize their resources autonomously to reach their goal”. Reactive autonomy is seen as a lower order autonomy than proactive and is considered a preliminary step towards proactive autonomy. For instance, if a learner is in a state of reactive autonomy, s/he will learn vocabulary without being pushed and may volunteer to form a reading group to deal with assignments.

It can be inferred that with reactive autonomy the level of decision making in class merely complements rather than challenges the traditional structures of knowledge and authority. This classification is worth attention in Asian educational contexts where the concept of learner autonomy is only recently being explored and where one must consider cultural and social constraints that are different to those of Western cultures (Benson, 2000; Little, 1997; Littlewoods, 1999).

However, in one study, Dang (2010) examined the relationship between autonomy and language proficiency at a university in Vietnam and found a positive relationship between the two. In the current research, the study focuses on fostering learner autonomy in foreign language learning in Vietnam, where the learners‟ level of English is quite mixed. Additionally, these learners are generally seen as „passive learner s‟

learner autonomy to explore the educational context for developing learner autonomy. Although there are different definitions of learner autonomy in the world, Sinclair (2000) pointed out some common characteristics of learner autonomy which are generally agreed. These include that autonomy is a construct of capacity which is not inborn ; autonomy consists of learners‟ willingness to be responsible for their own learning ; there are degrees of autonomy which are unstable and changeable ; autonomy can occur both inside and outside the classroom ; autonomy has a social as well as an individual dimension ; and that promotion of autonomy needs conscious awareness of the learning process .

Rather than being interested in how knowledge is acquired, the focus is on how knowledge is constructed (Von Glasersfeld, 2004) . Although researchers may approach issues and factors affecting learning and learners differently, the theories that umbrella their research is constructivism (Von Glasersfeld, 2005) . For teachers, helping learners develop learner autonomy requires attention paid to the negotiation and support their learners. In order to foster learner autonomy, the autonomous learners must be willing to be involved in their learning. This means that they must be motivated and active towards their studies.

As Dam (1995) identified, an autonomous learner as : an active respondent in the social processes of classroom learning. An active interpreter of new information in terms of what s/he already and uniquely knows...knows how to learn and can use this knowledge in any learning

situation s/he may encounter at any stage in his/her life (p. 102). However, in order to be willing to learn, it is important for learners to understand the tasks they have been given to do, which calls on the importance of the teacher in the process. Second, when they are willing to learn, it is important to know how to learn and how to take the responsibility.

Wenden (1991) emphasized the importance of learner training in how to learn, suggesting that even „successful‟, „expert ‟ or „intelligent‟ learners have learned how to become autonomous. All learners have to acquire effective learning strategies, knowledge about learning, attitudes that enable them to use their skills and knowledge confidently, flexibly, appropriately and independently of a teacher. And when they can do this, they are autonomous learners.

Put another way, if learners are willing to learn and have strategies to take control, they will become autonomous. Little (1995) stated that autonomous learners are motivated learners. Motivated autonomous learners are able to apply their knowledge and abilities further. In the context of English language learning, autonomous learners can freely apply their language and skills outside the immediate situation of learning.

The main idea of autonomous language learning is to emphasize the role of learners rather than teachers by focusing on the process rather than the outcomes. Teachers should start to acknowledge the fact that working together with learners in the idea of learner-centered tasks does

not mean losing their authority in the classroom. Autonomous language learning should be viewed as the collaborative effort that will empower learner oriented teaching (Brown, 1994) and the importance of teachers roles should never been neglected or hindered since the responsibilities of learning should be shared equally between teachers and learners.

Autonomous language learning should be able to encourage learners in identifying and developing their learning objective and introduced them with the notion and practices of lifelong learning (Jacobs & Farrell, 2001; Camilleri, 1999 Little, 1991; Dam, 1995; Nunan, 1997; Benson, 2001). Teachers indicated that most of the learners do not have the ability to identify language concepts on their own that they rather wait for their teachers to inform them or to teach them the concepts.

However, sharing goal setting and decision making will actually encourage learners in taking responsibilities or taking charge on their own learning and but the teachers possess lack of awareness in regard to the importance of these two activities during learning session. The teachers need to realize that some learners might not be learning anything unless they has a clue on what they are trying to achieve (Cotterall, 2000). At the end, the learners might feel lost and they will neglect self-evaluation process during ELT session resulting them to be unaware of their strength and weaknesses toward their learning This condition demonstrates a very teacher-centered practice in the current situation of

ESL classroom (Reinders & Lazaro, 2011; Al Asmari, 2013).

Autonomous learners can practice it in several ways. To enhance their learning, they can use the various ways and modes. Benson (2007) summarizes the followings modes of autonomy beyond the classroom: Self-Access: To foster autonomy, various self-access centers have been established around the world. These centers provide essential materials where the learners work on their own to learn from the material provided. Self-access is an approach to learning not an approach to teaching. Tandem learning, in which two people are learning each other‟s‟ language work to help one another, has long association with autonomy (Benson, 2007).

There can be several such modes of practice, for example, self-study, library self-study, group learning and so on. Learners not only are found to be independent beyond classroom but also inside the class. Autonomy in the field of language learning has influenced of variety of approaches of language learning. Some influences on language learning autonomy are political philosophy, personal autonomy, educational reform, freedom in learning, Self-directed learning, Adult Education, and Psychology of learning constructivism. (Michell, R. and Myles, F. 2004). d. Characteristic of Autonomous Learner

Still talking about language learners' characteristic, Learner beliefs is other language learning characteristic which also influent the language learning. Language learners are not always aware of their learning style but actually they have strong beliefs and opinions about

how their instruction should be delivered. These beliefs are usually based on their previous learning experiences and the assumption on the particular type of instruction is the best way for them to learn (Lightbown and Spada, 1999). Learner's preferences for learning, whether related to their learning style or their beliefs on the way the languages are learned, will influence the selection of strategy to learn new material.

There are several researches which try to profiling autonomous language learner. There are more than 100 competencies associated with autonomy in learning, which grouped into 13 headings. One of the most substantial attempts to list the characteristics of the autonomous learner comes from beyond the field of language education in Candy's (1991) list of more than 100 competencies linked to autonomous learning in the educational literature In the context of language education, Breen and Mann (1997) offer a reduced set of characteristics, suggesting that autonomous learners:

1) see their relationship to what is to be learned, to how they will learn and to the resources available as one in which they are in charge or in control;

2) are in an authentic relationship to the language they are learning and have a genuine desire to learn that particular language;

3) have a robust sense of self that is unlikely to be undermined by any actual or assumed negative assessments of themselves or their work;

4) are able to step back from what they are doing and reflect upon it in order to make decisions about what they next need to do and experience;

5) are alert to change and able to change in an adaptable, resourceful and opportunistic way;

6) have a capacity to learn that is independent of the educational processes in which they are engaged;

7) are able to make use of the environment they find themselves in strategically;

8) are able to negotiate between the strategic meeting of their own needs and responding to the needs and desires of other group members.

One observation that can be made about these kinds of checklists is that the components described are often of very different orders, ranging from skills to aspects of attitude and personality. This raises an initial question of whether the autonomous learner is someone who has acquired certain attributes or simply a person with a certain personality and approach to learning and life. It is also possible that both are involved and, if so, we will need to separate out the attributes that make up autonomy from the factors of attitude and personality that may predispose individuals towards their acquisition. We will also need to distinguish the attributes

that are specific to autonomous learning from those that simply describe 'good' learning. Lastly, it seems important that we make a distinction between description of what autonomous learners are capable of doing and description of the psychological competencies that underlie these capabilities.

One of the main arguments is that we can describe what autonomous learners are capable of doing in terms of control over various aspects of their learning. While it is difficult to say how many aspects of learning need to be under the learner's control in order for the learner to be considered autonomous, there must at least be some degree of control over the content of learning. Whether learners are able to control the content of their learning or not is partly a matter of their own capabilities, but also partly a matter of the circumstances in which they are learning. The capacity to control one's learning is, in principle, independent on the act of controlling it, but it also seems unlikely that someone will develop this capacity without ever having had the opportunity to exercise it. This points, perhaps, to a more holistic view of learner autonomy as a broad capacity to control those aspects of learning that are particularly salient to the learner, the learner's goals and purposes, and the context of teaching and learning. The question remains of whether we are able to identify certain core competencies that underlie this broad capacity to control learning flexibly, in response to contextual needs and constrains. If such competence do exist, they are probably best described at a relatively broa psychological level and are likely to involve direction of attentional

resources, reflection and metacognitive knowledge. According to Candy (1991) in Benson, 2001, the learner capable of autonomous learning will characteristically as follows:

1) be methodical and disciplined, 2) be logical and analytical, 3) be reflective and self-aware,

4) demonstrate curiosity, openness and motivation, 5) be flexible,

6) be interdependent and interpersonally competent, 7) be persistent and responsible,

8) be venturesome and creative,

9) show confidence and have a positive self-concept, 10)be independent and self-sufficient,

11)have developed information seeking and retrieval skills, 12)have knowledge about and skill at, learning processes, 13)develop and use criteria for evaluating.

When the learner plays on the strategy and they are willing to explore it in their language learning, they will be an autonomous learner gradually. Defining the profiles of autonomous language learner is rather complex because it is also in relation with the personality and characters

B. Theoretical Framework

This study attempted to describe the learners‟ belief about language learning to measure the readiness of the learners to be autonomous learner. Little (1995) stated that autonomous learners are motivated learners. Motivated autonomous learners are able to apply their knowledge and abilities further. In the context of English language

learning, autonomous learners can freely apply their language and skills outside the immediate context of learning.

The data collected by using questionnaire. A questionnaire is a set of systematically structured questions used by a researcher to get needed information from respondents. This research belonged to survey research that was done by means of questionnaire, survey research is included in a descriptive research which requires a researcher to interpret, describe, and explain thoroughly the natural situation revealed in the answered question (Nazir, 1998).

This research will reveal how learners belief about autonomous language learning. The importance of understanding learner beliefs in language learning is clear. Learners‟ beliefs about language learning influence their affective states. So belief study can provide a reasonable account for the occurrence of learners‟ anxiety. Learners‟ language learning beliefs have impact on their choice of learning strategies. Therefore, understanding the learners‟ beliefs will help teachers to guide the learner to avoid ineffective learning strategies and instead apply effective learning strategies. Learner beliefs indicate to some degree learners‟ readiness for autonomous learning, thus play a vital role in motivation stimulation and formation of learner autonomy.

The decision to promote learner autonomy comes usually from the teacher, and the success of attempts to empower learners to become actively involved in their learning depends to a large extent on the

teacher‟s ability to redefine their roles (Dickinson, 1995). Therefore, study learner beliefs can help teachers know more about learners and choose proper methods to guide them fostering learner autonomy.

CHAPTER III

METHODOLOGY

The purpose of this study is to reveal the learners‟ belief on the language learning in Independent Language Learning Centre. Therefore, this chapter will present the sequential procedure of this research. There are several interconnected parts that build the research method. Those parts are research method, nature of research data, data setting and sources, data gathering instruments and data collection, data collection techniques, data processing, data analysis, and trustworthiness .

A. Research Method

This research belongs to survey research that was done by means of questionnaire that consist of some question item. Sprintall, Schumutte, and Sirois (1991) stated that survey is a research to collect information from the sample (occasionally, even from population) by using questionnaires and interviews. The question may be related to opinions, perceptions, attitudes, and beliefs or any other psychological and sociological quantities.

A questionnaire is a set of systematically structured questions used by a researcher to get needed information from respondents. Questionnaires have been termed differently, including surveys, schedules, indexes/indicators, profiles, studies, opinionnaires, batteries, tests, checklists, scales, inventories, forms, interalia. “any written

instruments that present respondents with a series of questions or statements to which they are to react either by writing out their answers or selecting from among existing answers. Additionally, survey research is included in a descriptive research which requires a researcher to interpret, describe, and explain thoroughly the natural situation revealed in the answered question (Nazir, 1998).

The questionnaire can be self-administered, posted or presented in an interview format. A questionnaire may consist of check lists, attitude scales, projective techniques, rating scales and a variety of other research methods. As an main research instrument and a tool for data collection, a questionnaire has its main function as measurement. It is the main data collection method in surveys and produce to quantitative data. Besides, due to provision for open ended, the instrument may be used to generate qualitative and exploratory data (Dornyei, 2010)

The study was quantitative study, involving respondents filling out questionnaires. Quantitative research methods are characterized by the collection of information which can be analyzed numerically, the results of which are typically presented using statistics, tables and graphs (Acaps, 2012). This study included a linkert scale questionnaire administered to a small number of respondents

B. Nature of Data

To answer the research question, the nature of data in this research was learners' belief description in statistical data. Quantitative

types of data about respondents might be accessed by use of questionnaire instrument. Factual questions: These include demographic information, socio-economic status, education, etc. Behavioral questions: deals with both past and present deeds of the respondent; Attitudinal questions: comprises of world views. It covers people's opinions, attitudes, beliefs and values.

C. Data Gathering Instruments

To attain the research objective on describing the learners‟ beliefs about autonomous language learning, an instrument in the form of questionnaire using the same questionnaire that is used by Yingshuang Liu (2011). The same questionnaire was used in order to get the reliability of the result. As defined by Brown (2001), “questionnaires are any written instruments that present respondents with a series of questions or statements to which they are to react either by writing out their answers or selecting from among existing answers” (p. 6). Also, Mackey and Gass (2005) suggest that the questionnaire is one of the most common measures of collecting data on opinions from a large number of respondents in second language research.

As explained by Dornyei (2010), the advantage of questionnaires is their efficiency in terms of research time, research effort, and financial resources. This study used a new design instrument of linkert-scale questionnaire as the main instrument. The questionnaire contained 29 statements followed by column showing the range of responses from „Never‟, „Rarely‟, „Sometimes‟, „often‟ and „always‟ responses will

designed by the researchers by adapting from the previous research. This questionnaire was designed to investigate learners‟ beliefs about autonomus language learning which was devised based on the literature in (1) Learner awareness, (2) Self-efforts, (3) Broader autonomous activities, (4) self-esteem, (5) Use ofreference materials, (6) Motivation. Therefore the category and features as the blueprint of the questionnaire based on Yingshuang Liu are presented below in Table 3.1.

Table 3.1. Questionnaire Blueprint

No. Category Features

1.

Beliefs about language learning

Behaviorist Theory

Krashen's monitor hypothesis Cognitive

2.

Beliefs about self esteem

Personal identity The sense of purpose Personal competence

3.

Beliefs about lerning sources

Textbook

Authentic material Classroom language Multimedia

Online- Internet Based

4.

Beliefs about being an English Learner

Value construction Self direction

D. Data Setting 1. Population

The research was conducted in the area of Yogyakarta State University, especially at the Independent Language Learning Center in The Institution of Educational Development and Quality Assurance, Yogyakarta State University.

Institute Of Educational Development And Quality Assurance of the Yogyakarta State University (IEDQA YSU) is part of the main structure of the University. The Institute was established in 2011, based on Regulations by the Minister of National Education of the Republic of Indonesia Number 23 Year 2011, regarding the Organization and Management System of the Yogyakarta State University, and Regulations by the Minister of National Education of the Republic of Indonesia Number 34 Year 2011, regarding the Statute of YSU. IEDQA YSU is an institution serving to strategically develop and implement education and professions and to assure the quality of education and professions. It has duties to implement, coordinate, monitor, and evaluate activities of developing and assuring the quality of education and professions.

In line with the implementation of such duties, IEDQA YSU has several functions. They include: (a) coordination, planning, improvement, guidance, and development of educational and

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78 Learner Autonomy Survey Questionnaire

Part 1: Personal Profile

Please give personal information as asked.

Name :

Age :

Gender : Address : Study Year : Part II

Autonomous Learning Activity Scale

This scale is meant to know about your own independent learning activities and plans that you adopt forlearning English language. Please give a tick (√ ) to the answers according to your true cases. No Autonomous Learning Activities

and Plans

Never Rarely Sometimes Often Always 1. I think I have the ability to learn

English well.

2. I make decisions and set goals of my learning.

3. I make good use of my free time in studying English.

4. I preview before the class (i.e. see summary, lessons etc.).

5. In the class, I try to use every opportunity to take part in the activities where and when I can speak in English.

6. I speak confidently in front of the people.

7. I make notes and summaries of my lessons.

8. I talk to the teachers and friends outside the class in English.

9. I practice English outside the class also such as: record my own voice; speak to other people in English.

10. I use library to improve my English.

11. I use audio-visual materials to develop my speech such as: listen to English Radio Station, watch English movies, read English newspapers etc.

12. I attend different seminars, training courses, conferences to improve my English.

13. I take risk in learning the English language.

14. I note my strengths and weaknesses in learning English and improve them.

15. I revise lessons and seek the reference books.

16. Besides the contents prescribed in the course, I read extra materials in advance.

17. When I make progress in learning, I reward myself such as: buy new things, celebrate parties etc.

18. I use internet and computers to study and improve English.

Part III: Evaluation-Sheet for Belief of the Roles

This section requires your true perceptions about the role of a teacher and that you think of yourself in learning English. Please give a tick (√ ) to the answers according to your true cases.

No Autonomous Learning Activities and Plans

Strongly Disagree

Disagree Undecided Agree Strongly Agree 19. Students have to be responsible for

finding their own ways of practicing English.

20. Students should use much self- study materials to learn English.

21. Students have to evaluate themselves to learn better.

22. Students should mostly study what has been mentioned under the course because studying

English course is actually for exam purpose.

23. Students should build clear vision of their learning before learning English.

24. A lot of learning can be done without a teacher.

25. Teachers have to be responsible for making students understand English.

26. Teachers should point out the

students’ errors.

27. Teachers not only have to teach

‘what’ but should also teach ‘how’

of English.

28. Teachers have to provide exam oriented notes and materials.

29. The failure of the students is

directly related to the teachers’

Appendix II

Scale: ALL VARIABLES Case Processing Summary

N %

Cases Valid 100 100.0

Excludeda _{0 .0}

Total 100 100.0

a. Listwise deletion based on all variables in the procedure.

Reliability Statistics Cronbach's

Alpha N of Items

.767 31

Item-Total Statistics

Scale Mean if Item Deleted

Scale Variance if Item Deleted

Corrected Item-Total Correlation

Cronbach's Alpha if Item

Deleted

VAR00001 85.41 46.689 .242 .763

VAR00002 84.03 46.252 .299 .761

VAR00003 84.47 46.211 .275 .761

VAR00004 84.35 44.331 .415 .754

VAR00005 84.27 47.936 .011 .778

VAR00006 84.45 45.664 .430 .756

VAR00007 84.17 45.799 .306 .760

VAR00008 84.06 45.491 .368 .757

VAR00009 84.32 45.796 .285 .761

VAR00010 84.27 45.553 .409 .756

VAR00011 84.45 46.270 .266 .762

VAR00012 85.13 47.973 .010 .778

VAR00013 84.18 46.291 .291 .761

VAR00014 84.66 44.368 .448 .752

VAR00015 84.51 47.727 .018 .779

VAR00016 85.41 47.194 .122 .769

VAR00017 84.70 44.576 .380 .756

VAR00018 84.76 44.912 .351 .757

VAR00020 84.50 43.909 .447 .752

VAR00021 84.12 45.359 .372 .757

VAR00022 84.38 46.682 .218 .764

VAR00023 84.12 45.682 .289 .761

VAR00024 85.34 47.095 .174 .766

VAR00025 84.19 46.842 .161 .767

VAR00026 84.57 43.298 .607 .745

VAR00027 84.38 46.925 .227 .764

VAR00028 84.58 45.014 .318 .759

VAR00029 84.71 43.865 .572 .747

VAR00030 85.38 47.874 .063 .771