Image retrieved from Google images in June 25,2010
I have had problems with this group in terms of autonomy. For most of them it is really difficult to do their basic homework assignments from their workbooks and even coming to class early. They argued that they do not have enough time to do their homework assignments even on weekends (which I consider a big excuse). I have constantly talked to them about autonomy and its implications in adult learning (andragogy). It is quite difficult for them to set up their own learning goals and to take action in order to improve their skills. This issue also affects my research project because most of them are not using the disscussion board to listen to their partners and to leave comments there. I even changed the system by allowing students write their comments in Nabble, which is an embeddable forum, but some of them do not post their comments, or if they do, they tend to be too broad as they do not especifically point out what their partners' problems are. Since they are too teacher dependent, they expect me to do this type of feedback through the forums or by telling them something about their progress during the weekly assessment (that is the time when I turn in the rubrics). I have had some issues with a couple of my students (Michael and Maritza) because their expectations regarding progress is too high and their committment towards autonomony and in implementing the strategies has been too low.
I have been reading about fossilization lately and there is one author (Han, 2004) who says that there are two linguistic phenomenons in the SLA process called "learning plateau" and "backsliding". The first one refers to the slowing down their learning processes due to some determining factors such as brain plasticity, learning styles, pedagogical beliefs, autonomy and the implementation of more sophisticated learning strategies which help them upgrade their linguistic skills. "Backsliding" means the "reemergence of deviant forms that seemed to have been eradicated" so it is only natural that learners are going through an acquisition stage that demands more from them than the teacher himself. As it is only obvious, these students are not taking these considerations for granted and in my opinion they are trying to take the easy way out by blaming me that there has not been a "dramatical" progress in their learning process.
Another problem I had this week is that Adriana, one of my best students, had to drop out because she has had some family issues that prevent her from continuing the course. This was a sensible loss since she has been making real progress and she believed in my approach to help her improve speaking accuracy.
