EFL Teachers’ Perceptions and Strategies in Fostering Learner Autonomy during the COVID-19 Pandemic

BASIC AND APPLIED EDUCATION RESEARCH JOURNAL 2022, Vol. 3, No. 2, 98 – 107 http://dx.doi.org/10.11594/baerj.03.02.03 Research Article EFL Teachers’ Perceptions and Strategies in Fostering Learner Autonomy during the COVID-19 Pandemic Khairani Putri Salsya*, Lulu Laela Amalia English Language Education Study Program, Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia Article history: Submission November 2022 Revised December 2022 Accepted December 2022 *Corresponding author: E-mail: ABSTRACT Learner autonomy is required when studying English as a Foreign Language (EFL). In fact, teacher-centered learning is still dominating the learning activity, where the students still depend on the teacher as the source of knowledge in the classroom, including in Indonesian context. Unfortunately, the world is now facing serious pandemic COVID-19 which has caused the teachers not able to do the teaching and learning process conventionally. This research sought two senior high school teachers in Lampung. In this study, questionnaires and semi-structured interviews were used as instruments. This qualitative research aimed to describe the EFL teachers’ perceptions and strategies to foster learners’ autonomy during the COVID-19 pandemic. Both EFL teachers agreed that autonomy meant that students could choose how they learned and be in charge of their own learning. The EFL teachers fostered learner autonomy by using some strategies such as assigning e-diaries, asking for a presentation based on certain tasks, and allowing students using educational apps as it is one of a tool to reach students’ learner autonomy. The result showed that teachers had positive perspectives and the eagerness to foster learner autonomy. Furthermore, the teachers’ strategies affect positive responses for their students during online learning due to the COVID19 pandemic. Keywords: EFL Teachers, English as a Foreign Language, Fostering Learner Autonomy, Learner Autonomy Introduction Since the beginning of the twenty-first century, foreign language education has changed in a lot of ways, and so has the theory and practice of autonomy. The learner-centered approach is often chosen instead of the traditional teacher-centered way of running a classroom. (Teng, 2019). However, teacher-centered learning is still dominating the learning activity, where the students still depend on the teacher as the source of knowledge in the classroom, including in Indonesian context. As Lengkanawati (2016) said that when compared to those from neighboring ASEAN countries, Indonesian students rank lowest, in terms of higher order abilities other than How to cite: Salsya, K. P. & Amalia, L. L. (2022). EFL Teachers’ Perceptions and Strategies in Fostering Learner Autonomy during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Basic and Applied Education Research Journal 3(2): 98 – 107. doi: 10.11594/baerj.03.02.03 Salsya & Amalia, 2022 / EFL Teachers’ Perceptions and Strategies in Fostering Learner Autonomy during the COVID-19 Pandemic handling day-to-day problems. Higher order abilities can only be reached by learners with sufficient learner autonomy. Indonesian schools need to use new ways of teaching and learning instead of practices that are based on spoon-feeding. According to the results of trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) 2011 (Mullis, Martin, Foy, & Arora, 2012), Indonesian students rank the lowest among them from ASEAN countries listed in the report in terms of their ability to go “beyond routine problem solutions to encompass unfamiliar situations, complex contexts, and multi-step problems” (Mullis et al., 2012), which seems achievable only for learners who have acquired some degree of autonomy. Therefore, there must be a paradigm shift in the teaching and learning process from just transferring knowledge by teachers to students who are looking for the information they need themselves. Unfortunately, the world is now dealing with a serious pandemic COVID19, which has forced school closures in most parts of the world, including Indonesia. In that case, both students and teachers are unable to carry out the teaching and learning processes conventionally. In the last few decades, autonomy has been one of the most talked-about topics in the field of teaching and learning languages. Using a questionnaire, Borg and Al-Busaidi (2012) investigated 61 teachers' views and practices about learner autonomy in one language center at a university in Oman. The data suggest that, in theory, the teachers believed in the necessity of learner autonomy in second language learning. Several new methods and techniques have been used to help people learn a foreign language on their own. Learner autonomy requires pedagogy development so that students can take responsibility for them and help raise a generation of knowledgeable people. So, educational institutions must give students all the information they need to learn, but they can also give general information about communication and the education system as a way to help students keep getting better (Camilleri, 1997). The term "learner autonomy" refers to the phenomenon in which a student takes control of his or her own learning. According to Holec BAERJ | Basic and Applied Education Research Journal (1981), autonomy is the capacity to direct one's own learning. Learner autonomy makes reference to a student's ability to take part in the learning process, making choices about all parts of the learning process, such as setting the goals, outlining the content, designing the methods and approaches that controlling the language acquisition, and evaluating the results obtained. However, learner autonomy does not come naturally. Instead, it must be learned and developed in a planned and systematic way. If an EFL teacher has not received any autonomy-focused training, it may be hard for them to create this kind of classroom culture. Teachers who work independently are responsible for the education they provide to their students. Teachers must learn to be self-sufficient early in their careers in order to teach in a way that promotes learner autonomy and allows students to take control for their own learning. Studies on self - regulated learning in learning languages look at both learning outside of class and practice in class (Holec, 1981). On the other hand, teachers have a big part to play in helping students learn to be independent. Benson (2008) said that in order to encourage learner autonomy, teachers must show some autonomy in the way they teach and help students learn. Several studies have been conducted on teachers' perceptions of learner autonomy in the field of language learning. It has been found that teachers in Indonesia, despite having a positive attitude toward the idea, have a negative view of language learning autonomy. This is because they haven’t fully mastered the concept and how it works in practice, which keeps them from using it in their teaching (Saraswati, 2019). During this COVID-1 (...truncated)