Developing Student Support in Self-access Centres

Developing Student Support in Self-access Centres

Darasawang et al. 2007

‘All learners are capable of learning and self development and are regarded as being the most important in the process of learning and teaching’
(Office of the National Education Commission, 2000)

‘Our students are not able to learn by themselves yet. We need to help them, to give explanations and to correct their work.’
(A teacher working in a Students English Access Room in a province in Thailand)


Tessie says "WHen I was an undergrad student, I was imposed by the teachers to work in the self-access center at least 5 hours a week. What did I do? -- I copied my friends' answer on the worksheet as quick as possible and did not even have a look at the materials-- just wanted to submit them on time and got some scores...-- That's all about my motivation to use the self-access center. I found working in the self-access daunting (at that time). But there were some thing that I liked to work on. There were lots of sound-track movies and magazines for us. Sometimes my classmates and I watched the films together --learned some English ---but nothing substantailly gained from the use of the self-access...that's what I experienced in the situated self-access learning."

SEARs (Students English Access Rooms) were established in secondary school across Thailand in 2004 according to the national education plan. The SEARs are designed to promote ‘autonomous learning’ among Thai secondary school students and develop students’ self-directed learning to become ‘independent learners’. However, many students and teachers are ambivalent about the benefits and the purpose of SEAR use although the Ministry of Education has provided nationwide supports such as multiple administrator-teacher workshops and effective technology set-ups. Everything is well-planned but there are reports of implementation problems from schools. Therefore, this action research was conducted to look more closely to help understand general problems in the school contexts.

The authors interviewed teachers and students at a school near Bangkok where a SEAR was established. Despite the objectives to enable teachers and students to develop autonomous learning, students reported that they were extrinsically motivated by grades and teachers’ requirements to study in the SEARs. Teachers who look after the SEARs feel that it is their responsibility to run the centre while having not much support from the colleagues and the head of school. Teachers commented that students are not motivated enough to take control of their own language learning and they need a lot of support and encouragement.

There were many factors that limit the effective use of the SEAR.

- The school administrators simply adopted the project becuase it was a top-down government policy.

- The English department could not force the involvement of every teacher in the project because of lacking genuine administrative support.

- Teachers' overwhelming workload.

- Teachers did not have a clear understanding of the principles of learner autonomy and it development involves.

- Students didn't have opportunities to set learning objectives, choose appropriate materials, and monitor or evaluate thier own learning.

Tessie's hand is up in the air. >> -- WELL - All of the above are the classic scenarios of Self-Access Language Learning in the Thai EFL context, both secondary and tertiary level.---<<