The effect of collaborative activities on college-level EFL students’ learner autonomy in the Turkish context
| dc.contributor.advisor | Aydınlı, Julie Mathews | |
| dc.contributor.author | Turan Öztürk, Demet | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2016-07-15T11:59:53Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2016-07-15T11:59:53Z | |
| dc.date.copyright | 2016-06 | |
| dc.date.issued | 2016-06 | |
| dc.date.submitted | 2016-07-14 | |
| dc.department | M.A. in Teaching English as a Foreign Language | en_US |
| dc.description | Cataloged from PDF version of article. | en_US |
| dc.description | Thesis (M.S.): Bilkent University, The Program of Teaching English as a Foreign Language, İhsan Doğramacı Bilkent University, 2016. | en_US |
| dc.description | Includes bibliographical references (leaves 87-102). | en_US |
| dc.description.abstract | One of the most fundamental aims of education in EFL context has been fostering learner autonomy. So far, various studies have been conducted and teaching practices have been put to use in order to develop learners’ autonomous learning skills. One of these practices could be changing the traditional methods in language teaching in Turkish educational system into student-centered ones. Such a practice could create opportunities for students to study together and allow them to learn from each other by improving their sense of responsibility and take control of their own learning. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of collaborative activities on college-level EFL students’ learner autonomy in the Turkish context. It also aims to find out the students’ and the instructor’s perceptions of collaborative activities on learner autonomy development. To achieve this aim, both quantitative and qualitative data were collected with the help of a Learner Autonomy questionnaire, index cards filled out by the students, the One of the most fundamental aims of education in EFL context has been fostering learner autonomy. So far, various studies have been conducted and teaching practices have been put to use in order to develop learners’ autonomous learning skills. One of these practices could be changing the traditional methods in language teaching in Turkish educational system into student-centered ones. Such a practice could create opportunities for students to study together and allow them to learn from each other by improving their sense of responsibility and take control of their own learning. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of collaborative activities on college-level EFL students’ learner autonomy in the Turkish context. It also aims to find out the students’ and the instructor’s perceptions of collaborative activities on learner autonomy development. To achieve this aim, both quantitative and qualitative data were collected with the help of a Learner Autonomy questionnaire, index cards filled out by the students, the instructor’s journal, and an interview with the instructor. Two groups of 40 students in total from the preparatory program of Niğde University School of Foreign Languages were appointed as an experimental and a control group. The learner autonomy questionnaire was conducted as both pre-test and post-test in both groups, before and after the collaborative learning treatment in the experimental group, in order to detect any possible change in students’ learner autonomy level. Quantitative data from the questionnaires were analyzed by using Wilcoxon Matched Groups test and Mann-Whitney U Test. Qualitative data gathered from index cards, the journal and the interview were analyzed with the use of content analysis. The results of the quantitative data analysis revealed that, after the treatment, there was a statistically significant difference between the groups in terms of their autonomy level; the students in the experimental group scored higher than those in the control group, which implies they showed more autonomous skills than the control group. The results of the qualitative data analysis indicated that participants’ perceptions were highly positive about the collaborative activities. They revealed that collaborative activities created a positive environment in the classroom and allowed them to learn from each other and gain a sense of responsibility. The course instructor was also in favor of the collaborative activities as they had various benefits for her teaching. These overall results suggested that collaborative learning practices could be implemented to help the students increase their learner autonomy level in the Turkish EFL context. | en_US |
| dc.description.degree | M.A. | en_US |
| dc.description.statementofresponsibility | by Demet-Turan Öztürk. | en_US |
| dc.embargo.release | 2018-07-13 | |
| dc.format.extent | xiii, 116 leaves. | en_US |
| dc.identifier.itemid | B153643 | |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/11693/30138 | |
| dc.language.iso | English | en_US |
| dc.publisher | Bilkent University | en_US |
| dc.rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess | en_US |
| dc.subject | Learner autonomy | en_US |
| dc.subject | Collaborative learning | en_US |
| dc.title | The effect of collaborative activities on college-level EFL students’ learner autonomy in the Turkish context | en_US |
| dc.title.alternative | İşbirlikli öğrenme aktivitelerinin Türkiye’de ingilizceyi yabancı dil olarak öğrenen üniversite öğrencilerinin öğrenen özerkliği üzerindeki etkisi | en_US |
| dc.type | Thesis | en_US |