Abstract

“The ability to take care of one’s learning,” according to Holec (1981) (quoted in Thanasoulas, 2000). The term autonomy has aroused great debate, as linguists and educators have been unable to agree on what autonomy actually entails. In fact, for philosophical, pedagogical, and practical reasons, autonomy in language learning is a desirable goal. The role of teacher, on the other hand, is suppressed. As absurd as it is to believe that an infant may grow up without the assistance of his or her mother, considering autonomous learning to be unfettered learning.

In the field of language teaching, teachers use a range of ways to assist students build autonomy by scaffolding them toward independence. Despite the fact that many practitioners do not regard autonomous learning to be synonymous with teacher-less learning, many practitioners see learner autonomy as synonymous with self-access and, in particular, technology-based learning. According to the author, if pupils are to be independent, there will be a great need for direction because the ability to take responsibility of one’s own learning is not innate but must be taught. It would be nonsensical to claim, as Thanasoulas (2000) does, that learners enter the learning scenario with the knowledge and skills to organize, monitor, and assess their learning, or to make content or objective decisions. The purpose of this study was to explicate the idea of autonomy from philosophical and theoretical viewpoints, as well as to provide some pedagogical implications, in order to respect the teacher’s role as the primary scaffolder in the educational classroom in solidifying learners’ autonomy.