Fostering Learner Autonomy: Strategies and Challenges in English as a Second or Foreign Language Classes

Abstract

The research entitled Fostering Learner Autonomy: Strategies and Challenges in English as a Second or Foreign Language Classes was carried out to identify the teachers' and students' strategies and challenges in fostering learner autonomy in the English as a Foreign Language classroom in Kathmandu valley. In this qualitative study, narrative inquiry research design was used to gather authentic data. It included face-to-face semi-structured interviews of four teachers and thirty students following non-random sampling procedure from different schools and observations of four different classes and audio recordings of instructional practices in Kathmandu valley. The collected data were analyzed and interpreted descriptively in different themes. The results revealed that generally the students are self-directed to improve their English. The instructors, on the other hand, mainly focused on assignments, learner experience, authentic knowledge, technological tools, notebook and also motivational strategies. Moreover, the results showed that there is an urgent need for updating the materials and renewing the resources and facilities. The study also shows different challenges like student’s unawareness, time constraint, no inspirations, student’s false assumptions, etc. And these challenges can be avoided from encouragements, orientations, inspirations, etc. This thesis is organized into five chapters. The first chapter includes the background of the study, statement of the problems, objectives of study, research questions, significance of the study, delimitations of the study and operational definition of key terms. The second chapter incorporates review of the literature and conceptual framework of the study. Likewise, chapter three includes methodological parts like method and design, population sampling procedures, tools and techniquesand ethical consideration. Similarly, the forth chapter consist with the result and discussion of this study and the fifth chapter presents the summary, conclusion, and implication of the study. Finally, this chapter is followed by references and appendices.