SLA RESEARCH ON SELF-DIRECTION: THEORETICAL AND PRACTICAL ISSUES

A) autonomy as independence of consumer

B) autonomy as the active exercise of learner responsibility and

C) autonomy as the ability to Ieam

(A) refers to a situation in which the learner is free to choose the learning materials
and works with them in an independent way, i.e. without a teacher. According to Holec, this
situation does not have anything to do with his own concept of autonomy. There is no
teacher to teach, but the materials replace her physical presence. That is to say, the learner
lets herself be directed by the materials in the same way a teacher would manage the
learner's situation inside a classroom. In this case there is independent learning within a self-
access environment but there is no autonomy. The learner plays the role of a consumer
(remember the metaphor of the supermarket) and the materials play the role of the teacher.

(B) and (C) refer to true cases of autonomy, according to Holec. Both involve active
learners who take the responsibility for their own learning processes. The difference between
them lies on the approach to learning. While the (B) learner Ieams "indirectly, implicitly and
even, intuitively", learner (C) "learns to Ieam openly, explicitly and cognitively" (ibid.).
Basically, the main difference is a matter of awareness. Learner (C) is (or becomes) aware of
her own learning processes and takes advantage of that knowledge. Therefore, it can be said
that whereas learner (B) Ieams the language, learner (C) Ieams to Ieam as well.

Throughout all his writings, Holec has advocated the fostering of type (C) autonomy
in second language learning. His own definition of autonomy is "the ability to take charge of
one's own leaming"(l980,3). He also believes that this type of ability is not inborn but
learned "by formal learning, i.e. in a systematic, deliberate way" (ibid.). Thus, to Ieam this
ability is to become aware, which in turn, enables learners to manage and control their
learning processes. In fact, for Holec, the main role of an autonomous learner is to be the
manager of her own learning processes (1987).

Our understanding of the concept 'autonomy' was reflected in the two ways in the
SAC: the layout and the procedures. First, we considered that the learner needed to have
physical access to all the materials and equipment available in the SAC. Thus, we designed a
self-access centre for learners to have the possibility to use whatever they felt like using

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