Speaker
ABSTRACT
Inspired by marketing campaigns and self-access learning centers and the need for an English atmosphere in the school, an English language learning space was established more than three years ago at a non-academic public high school in Tokyo by the presenter, who was then a JET Programme assistant language teacher (ALT). The modest space started with a table, a chair, and a double-sided whiteboard in an in-between space along the corridor. The board designs are interactive and aim to be language resources for students to access during short breaks, which the ALT facilitated. The space gained recognition through a large reach of the school population and gradually went from ALT-only facilitation to student-volunteer facilitated, to the formation of an English team in charge of making board contents, facilitation, and creating festive events. This presentation will recount the journey of the space, the failures, successes, and ongoing challenges in terms of student autonomy and agency, the witnessed transformation of the English team members, how the space was perceived, and raise questions related to whether such spaces can be established in other public high schools with a low student body interested in English language learning, compared to English clubs in confined spaces.
KEYWORDS
Autonomy, Agency, Language Learning Space, Student Volunteers
| TITLE | The Journey for Student Agency and Autonomy in a Language Learning Space |
|---|---|
| RELEVANT SIG | Learner Development |
| FORMAT | Research-oriented Oral Face-to-face presentation (25 minutes, including Q&A) |
