AWEJ Volume.5 Number.2, 2014 Pp.122- 133
Self- Directed Learners
Hind Al-Jamal
Ministry of Education, Saudi Arabia
Abstract
The inclination to support teachers’ self-directed development goes hand-in-hand with students’ need to acknowledge their skills and direct their own learning. Therefore, this paper sheds light on the key features to address while planning for EFL (English as a Foreign Language) tasks, especially projects. A clear path is drawn for both instructors and students to understand the basics of planning, executing, and presenting a project that enables further student engagement and and—ultimately—sustained learning. By incorporating the most recent teaching methods into brain research to present meaningful experiences, a clear framework determines the necessary roles for both teachers and students to ensure full ownership when equipped with basic tools. These tools aid teachers in monitoring and assessing students’ progress and process. Furthermore, it focuses students’ attention on their observation of projects and highlights the effect of the project on their character and language acquisition, creating a community of autonomous learners.
Keywords: self-directed, project-based-learning, students’ engagement, sustained learning, autonomous learners